• British Council

Exploring English: Magna Carta

Improve your English language skills while exploring the Magna Carta - the 800-year-old "great charter" that shaped the world.

72,457 enrolled on this course

The Magna Carta
  • Duration

    3 weeks
  • Weekly study

    2 hours

How did a peace treaty signed by an English king in 1215 become such an important symbol of liberty and human rights around the world?

This free online course will start by looking at the events that led to the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215, before examining the role the Magna Carta has played in shaping history – from American independence to liberation movements around the world.

Finally, we will look at the relevance of the Magna Carta to the 21st century.

At each step of the course, our video tutor and team of educators will guide you through the topic and introduce a language focus, by looking at some examples of English in use in videos and texts.

Short quizzes will help you check your understanding and you’ll be asked to join discussions with other learners around the world.

You can find out more in the British Council’s quiz on the FutureLearn blog: “How much do you really know about the Magna Carta?

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

  • Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

Who is the course for?

The course is aimed at non-native English speakers at around intermediate level (approximately B1 on the CEFR) or above.

Who will you learn with?

I've taught English in Hungary, Romania, China and the UK. At the moment I teach in Shetland and I also write English language teaching materials.

Who developed the course?

British Council

The British Council builds connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language.

We work on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2019-20 we connected with 80 million people directly and with 791 million people overall, including online and through our broadcasts and publications.

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control

Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

Learner reviews

Learner reviews cannot be loaded due to your cookie settings. Please and refresh the page to view this content.

Get a taste of this course

Find out what this course is like by previewing some of the course steps before you join:

Join the conversation on social media

You can use the hashtag #FLMagnaCarta to talk about this course on social media.