Zachary Gorman, ‘A story of mythology coming true’ Magna Carta and its impact on Australia

Seventy years ago the Menzies Government made the unlikely purchase of an original 1297 copy of Magna Carta. Transported to Australia with the greatest degree of care and attention, it has (barring the occasional restoration) sat in pride of place in Parliament House ever since. The question this podcast seeks to unpack is why? - what does a 13th century document principally designed to meet the interests of self-interested aristocrats have to do with a modern democracy based on universal suffrage and the legal equality of individuals? The answer, as it turns out, is everything; for the Charter captured the imagination of proceeding generations who fought and won parliamentary democracy by appealing to a powerful symbol, precedent and semi-mythologised history. The lesson to be drawn is the centrality of culture and continuity in securing and protecting freedom.