Four surviving copies of the 1215 Magna Carta have gone on display in London to mark document 's 800th anniversary . `` It has become such a powerful symbol over the centuries for all sorts of rights and freedoms . '' The Magna Carta , or great charter , established the principle that no one -- including the King -- should be above the law . It was signed by a group of barons and knights who were rebelling against Henry II ( later known as Richard I ) because he had refused to recognize their right to rule England without royal permission.
Four surviving copies of the 1215 Magna Carta have gone on display in London to mark document 's 800th anniversary . The Magna Carta , or great charter , established the principle that no one -- including the King -- should be above the law . It was signed by a group of barons and knights who were rebelling against Henry II ( later known as Richard I ) because he had refused to recognize their right to rule England without royal permission.