Parliament
Magna Carta and the model parliament

The tenants-in-chief often struggled for power with the ecclesiastics and the king. In 1215, they secured Magna Carta from King John of England. This established that the king may not levy or collect any taxes (except the feudal taxes to which they were hitherto accustomed), save with the consent of a council. It was also established that the most important tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics be summoned to the council by personal writs from the sovereign, and that all others be summoned to the council by general writs from the sheriffs of their counties. Modern government has its origins in the Curia Regis; parliament descends from the Great Council, later known as the parliamentum, established by Magna Carta.

During the reign of King Henry III (13th century), English Parliaments included elected representatives from shires and towns. Thus these parliaments are considered forerunners of the modern parliament.

In 1265, Simon de Montfort, then in rebellion against Henry III, summoned a parliament of his supporters without royal authorisation. The archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and barons were summoned, as were two knights from each shire and two burgesses from each borough. Knights had been summoned to previous councils, but it was unprecedented for the boroughs to be represented. In 1295, Edward I adopted De Montfort's ideas for representation and election in the so-called " Model Parliament ". At first, each estate debated independently; by the reign of Edward III, however, Parliament had grown closer to its modern form, with the legislative body having two separate chambers.
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