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Quotation from Magna Carta by King John and the barons of England
“We will appoint as justices, constables, sheriffs, or bailiffs only such as know the law of the realm and mean to observe it well.”
Magna Carta, Clause 45, trans. White and Notestein
The barons ask that royal officers be men who know and intend to keep the law, a response to John's use of agents loyal only to him.
Citation: "We will appoint as justices, constables, sheriffs, or bailiffs only such as know the law of the realm and mean to observe it well." — King John and the barons of England, Magna Carta, Clause 45, trans. White and Notestein. (id magna-carta-q5)
Portrait: Magna Carta (British Library Cotton MS Augustus II.106), King John of England and the barons (1215), Public domain.
