Tyler, Isabella, Hank, Nattiel
Welcome to the skit about the Magna Carta.
Here are some key things to know when learning about the Magna Carta
Each role in this brochure is a Character in our skit.
Key years:
King Richard came into power in the year 1189 C.E.
King Richard left for the Third Crusade in the year 1190
The Third Crusade dated from the years 1189 to 1192
King John took over the throne for his brother Richard in the year 1190
Robin Hood and his Merry men started robbing the tax collectors and giving their money back to the people of England around the year 1200.
The Magna Carta was Signed in 1215.
King John died in the year 1216.
King Richard died in 1199
Key people and how they are important in this skit/story:
King Richard (played by Isabella Pozzi)
King Richard, son of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Great Grandson of William the Conquer, and brother of King John, was powerful at a very young age. At the tender age of 16, Richard the Lionheart had taken command of his own army, putting down rebellions in Poitou against his father, King Henry II. King Richard became King of England at the age 32. We received the crown when his father (King Henry II died in 1189). He left the throne (at first temporarily) to lead the Third Crusade. King Richard’s splendid leadership and military skills allowed Richard to acquire many military victories against the enemy Saladin. However, while at Sea, Richard was kidnapped. He would never return to the throne.
King John (played by Henry Sanders)
King John, brother to King Richard, was half the man his brother was. He is, both in History and in our skit, depicted as a lazy, greedy, petty and selfish leader. When his brother asked him to take over the crown while he was on the Crusade, John was determined to become an infamous and very wealthy King. He accomplished this goal by heavily taxing the people of England. That’s when the Barons come into the scenario. (John signed the Magna Carta beacuse he was blackmailed into it by the Baron’s of England.
Barons 1, 2, 3, and 4 (played by Natalie Dodson, Tyler Kropp, Isabella Pozzi, and Henry Sanders)
The Barons were the second most powerful people in England. Just like the Nobles in the Byzantine Empire, the Shogun in China, and the Daimyo in Japan, the English Baron was the group of people second from the top of the Feudal Pyramid. You became a Baron if you did something amazing for the King (loyalty of sort) and the King recognized this and compensated your deed with land. (Land was power in Feudal England). Although individually a Baron was not as powerful as the King, as a group they could pressure the King into doing their bidding. When the Baron’s started to notice that the people at the bottom of the Feudal Pyramid (Knights and Peasants/Vassals) were becoming poorer and poorer while the people at the top (themselves) were becoming richer and richer because of all the taxing King John put upon his people, they realized that the people of england were going to stage a revolt unless they could do something about King John’s tax calls. So instead of murdering the king and staging an all out coupe, the Baron’s decided to force John to limit his power by telling him that if he didn’t limit his power then the People were going to stage a revolt. John, wanting anything but to lose his Kingship, John agreed to limit his power to an agreeable level. The Baron’s decided to limit the King’s power by drafting a document called the Magna Carta.
Robin Hood (played by Isabella Pozzi) and His Merry Men (Tyler Kropp as Little John, Natalie Dodson as Will Scarlet, Henry Sanders as Friar Tuck)
In our skit, Robin and His Merry Men try to help the poor people of England by robbing the tax collectors and taking the money and redistributing it to the peasants. Although it is not clear whether or not Robin Hood was fictionalized or a real person, all I know is that Robin is one of the few men in history who looks good in tights and a skirt.
Peasants 1 (played by Tyler Kropp) and 2 (played by Natalie Dodson)
Peasants, being at the bottom of the feudal pyramid, had little control at all in England. However, in some ways the peasant were the most important people in England. First of all, they tended to make up the vast majority of the population. Second of all, peasants were usually farmers, making them the leaders of the agricultural and trade element of England. Third of all, they were subject to the most hardship, so they were most likely to uprise. This usually forced the King to think twice about treating the Peasants with disrespect. It is a good idea to keep the majority satisfied. Fourth and finally, the Peasants were the foundation of the whole feudal pyramid.
In our skit, the two peasants end up following Robin and becoming one of his merry men.
Eleanor, Queen of Aquitaine (played by Isabella Pozzi)
One of the most powerful women in History, Eleanor was married first to the French King Louis VII and then to the English King Henry II, a marriage that produced the two English kings Richard the Lionheart and John. Her father was William X, Duke of Aquitaine, and her mother was Aenor Aimery, the daughter of Aimeric I, Vicomte of Chatellerault.
In our skit, Eleanor is seen giving John political advice.
The Magna Carta (played by A Few Pieces of Paper)
The Magna Carta was the first document ever drafted in English history that limited the King’s power. This is one of the earliest images of government for the people. Sound familiar?
Written, edited, and printed by THINC (pronounced “think”)
THINC stands for Tyler Hank Isabella Natalie Corporation
No comments:
Post a Comment