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Happy 800th birthday, Magna Carta!
By Liao Fangzhou Source:Global Times Published: 2015-6-16 18:58:01
More than 350 guests - Chinese dignitaries, Chinese and British business leaders, the diplomatic corps and members of the British community in Shanghai - attended the British Consulate General's 2015 Queen's Birthday Party on June 5. Acting Consul General Matthew Forbes hosted the evening and paid tribute to Her Majesty the Queen for her dedication to representing the UK on the international stage.The evening took its theme from Magna Carta ("The Great Charter"), a document signed 800 years ago that remains the centerpiece of the UK's legal system and has influenced jurisdictions across the world.
"This year we are celebrating 800 years since the signing of Magna Carta. This charter which was signed on the 15th of June in 1215, providing for peace between King John and his barons and establishing certain rights for the people," Forbes said. "Specifically it established principles of justice for everyone and that no one should be imprisoned without a legal process."
Forbes also announced that a copy of the Magna Carta will tour China this October. At present there are four surviving copies of the document: two at the British Library, and the others at Lincoln Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral.
One of the UK's premier global law firms and a sponsor of the British Library's celebration of the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, Linklaters LLP, was a partner of the event. Fang Jian from the firm unveiled a David Bailey portrait of Her Majesty the Queen alongside Forbes and special guest Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The growth of legal services has led to a significant increase in the sector's contribution to the UK economy, which rose 9.4 percent year-on-year in 2013 to 22.6 billion pounds ($35.29 billion) or 1.6 percent of GDP. The sector's contributions have grown by around 65 percent over the past decade, with its net export surplus also doubling over the same period to 3.1 billion pounds.
The Senior School Choir of Wellington College International Shanghai was invited to perform the national anthems of both countries. They also performed two additional pieces, Non Nobis Domine and Sumer Is Icumen In, to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen's birthday.
"This year we are celebrating 800 years since the signing of Magna Carta. This charter which was signed on the 15th of June in 1215, providing for peace between King John and his barons and establishing certain rights for the people," Forbes said. "Specifically it established principles of justice for everyone and that no one should be imprisoned without a legal process."
Forbes also announced that a copy of the Magna Carta will tour China this October. At present there are four surviving copies of the document: two at the British Library, and the others at Lincoln Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral.
One of the UK's premier global law firms and a sponsor of the British Library's celebration of the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, Linklaters LLP, was a partner of the event. Fang Jian from the firm unveiled a David Bailey portrait of Her Majesty the Queen alongside Forbes and special guest Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The growth of legal services has led to a significant increase in the sector's contribution to the UK economy, which rose 9.4 percent year-on-year in 2013 to 22.6 billion pounds ($35.29 billion) or 1.6 percent of GDP. The sector's contributions have grown by around 65 percent over the past decade, with its net export surplus also doubling over the same period to 3.1 billion pounds.
The Senior School Choir of Wellington College International Shanghai was invited to perform the national anthems of both countries. They also performed two additional pieces, Non Nobis Domine and Sumer Is Icumen In, to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen's birthday.
Guests view an exhibition about Magna Carta.
A portrait of Her Majesty the Queen is presented at the 2015 Queen's Birthday Party.
The Senior School Choir of Wellington College International Shanghai performs at the event. Photos: Liao Fangzhou/GT
Posted in: Metro Shanghai