Two elderly green protesters entered an exhibit at the British Library and used a lump hammer and cold chisel in an attempt to smash the glass case of the Magna Carta.
One of the four remaining copies of the 1215 Magna Carta was the subject of the latest attack against symbols of Western culture by Green extremists on Friday. The British Library, where two of those four copies are held, and where the Treasures Gallery where one of them is on display was closed after the incident today, confirmed the ancient vellum document laying out the roots of Western liberty was not damaged.
A spokesman for the British Library said: “An incident occurred at the British Library on Friday, 10 May, in which two individuals attacked the toughened glass case containing the Magna Carta in the Library’s Treasures Gallery.
“The Library’s Security team intervened to prevent further damage to the case, which was minimal. The police were notified and the Magna Carta itself remains undamaged.”
Two elderly Just Stop Oil activists break the security glass to the Magna Carta in the British Library on the 10th of May 2024, London, United Kingdom. (photo by Kristian Buus/In Pictures via Getty Images)
Two elderly Just Stop Oil activists break the security glass to the Magna Carta in the British Library on the 10th of May 2024, London, United Kingdom. (photo by Kristian Buus/In Pictures via Getty Images)
Activist group Just Stop Oil which has now spent years shutting down city traffic, rushing the stage at musical performances, disrupting sporting fixtures, and damaging paintings in art galleries named their activists as 82-year-old priest the Rev Dr Sue Parfitt — the Church of England has ordained women priests since 1992 — and 85-year-old teacher Judy Bruce.
The group justified their action at the British Library, saying it was to bring attention to their demands that the “government commit to an emergency plan to end the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030”.
Just Stop Oil said: “Clause 39 of the Magna Carta is one of four clauses still enshrined in UK common law, a so-called ‘golden passage’, that states: ‘No free man is to be arrested, or imprisoned, or in any other way ruined, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.
“Contrast that with civil law as it stands in 2024, where corporations are buying private laws in the form of injunctions that circumvent the people’s rights to a trial by jury for speaking out against the crimes of oil companies.”
In all, the group said, “Democracy has been hijacked by corporations that are destroying our communities for profit.”.
The Magna Carta — ‘Great Charter — expressed rights for the church and barons from King John in the 13th century. Its clauses have been called the ‘birth certificate of democracy’ and of the rule of law. This foundational status saw it exhibited alongside the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Bill of Rights in 2015 for its 800th birthday.
There are four original Magna Carta copies, three of which are in legible condition, one having been mostly destroyed by fire. One copy was sent to the United States during the Second World War, just in case. Further copies from re-issues exist, including one kept in the Australian Parliament which was signed by King John’s grandson, King Edward I.
(Original Caption) Deposited in the Library of Congress for safe keeping throughout the war, the Magna Carta, the “Birth Certificate of Democracy”, which the English Barons forced King John to sign at Runnymede on June 15, 1215, is packed for return to Britain. Left to right at the packing ceremony are: Robert Wertz, carpenter of the Library of Congress; Louis L. Cogan, assistant superintendant of library buildings and grounds; John Balfour, representing British Ambassador Lord Halifax; Major J.G. Lockhart, private secretary to Lord Halifax; Charles Beach, metal worker of the library. The precious document was placed in a special zinc-lined case for the trip home.
(Original Caption) One of the world’s most precious documents, The Magna Carta, which has been in safe keeping in the U.S. since 1939, is prepared for the trip to its permanent home – England. The document is being put into a wooden box, which in turn was placed in a chromium-plated zinc box and soldered shut. Left to right: Robert Wertz, carpenter of the Library of Congress; Louis L. Cogan, buildings and grounds assistant superintendent of Library; Dr. Luther Evans, librarian; John Balfour, British Minister; Major J.G. Lockhart, private, and Charles Smith, metalsmith of the Library of Congress.
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 02: Television cameras record close ups of the four copies of the Magna Carta on display at the British Library on February 2, 2015 in London, England. Magna Carta, one of the world’s most influential documents, is an agreement granted by King John in 1215 as a practical solution to a political crisis, which in the centuries since has become a potent symbol of liberty and the rule of law. The British Library, Lincoln Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral have brought those four original surviving Magna Carta manuscripts together in one place, for the first time as part of a year of international celebrations to mark the 800th anniversary of the issue of the Charter by King John in 1215. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)