American Quotations by William J. Federer 2024
Declaration of Arbroath (April 6, 1320)
Declaration of Arbroath (April 6, 1320) during the reign of Robert the Bruce as King of Scotland, the yoke of English oppression was released from the land. The English, under Edward II had been defeated at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, and expelled from Scottish soil with the recapture of Berwick in 1319. But the English and Pope John XXII still refused to recognize Scotland as an independent country. In response, many of Scotland's leaders sat down in 1320 to write a plea of recognition to the Pope for Scotland. The document was eventually successful, and is now named...
Magnus Eriksson, II (1316-1374)
Magnus Eriksson, II (1316-1374) was a king of Sweden, Norway and Skaane. He commissioned an Icelandic judge, Paul Knudsen, to lead an expedition to Greenland in 1354: <Magnus, by the grace of God, King of Norway, Sweden and Skaane, sends to all men who see or hear this letter good health and happiness. We desire to make known to you that you [Paul Knudsen] is to take the men who shall do in the knarr [royal vessel]; whether they be named or not named,..from my bodyguard, and also from among the retainers of other men, whom you may wish to...
Thomas Aquinas (c.1224-March 7, 1274)
Thomas Aquinas (c.1224-March 7, 1274) was a Catholic philosopher and theologian, who wrote Summa Theologica, using Aristotelian logic to reconcile faith with reason, proving the existence of God as the logical uncaused cause. His works rank with Saint Augustine in importance. In Pange, Lingua, a hymn for Vespers on the Feast of Corpus Christi, Thomas Aquinas wrote: <Sing, my tongue, the Savior's glory, Of His Flesh the mystery sing; Of the Blood, all price exceeding, Shed by our immortal King.> 1224TA001. In Verbum Supernum Prodiens, a hymn for Lauds on Corpus Christi, Thomas Aquinas wrote: <O saving Victim, opening wide,...
Magna Carta (June 15, 1215)
Magna Carta (June 15, 1215) known as the "cornerstone of English liberty," was a constitutional charter signed by King John I of England (December 24, 1167-October 18, 1216) in the meadow of Runnymede, under pressure from the English barons. This was the first time the absolute power of a king was limited by law, guaranteeing certain rights to his subjects. In background, 'Norse' Vikings invaded the area that came to be called Normandy, in northern France around the year 911 AD. The Norman ruler, William I, married a Christian wife, Poppa of Bayeux, and was baptized in 912 AD. His...
Henry de Bracton (c.1210-1268)
Henry de Bracton (c.1210-1268) was a medieval jurist and priest whose treatise on Common Law and procedure provided a framework for the early English legal system. During the reign of England's King Henry III, Henry de Bracton wrote in 1240, "De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliae" ("On the laws and customs of England") which borrowed from the Justinian Code (Corupus Iurus Civilis), compiled by the Byzantine Roman Emperor Justinian in 534 AD. De Legibus was the first encyclopedia of English Common Law, described as "the first great book on English law" and "the crown and flower of English jurisprudence," providing a...