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Golden Bull of 1222

Andrew II of Hungary · 1222

A Hungarian royal charter limiting the king's power, issued the same era as Magna Carta and often compared to it.

This Hungarian charter is shown for comparison, illustrating that Magna Carta belonged to a wider European pattern of baronial charters.

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A large parchment document with dense handwritten Latin text laid open on dark red cloth, with a round seal hanging from a cord at the bottom center. The seal shows a seated figure.
Golden Bull of Andrew II of Hungary, 1222. Székesfehérvár.

About this source

What it is

The Golden Bull was an edict issued by King Andrew II of Hungary in 1222 under pressure from his nobles. It set out the rights of Hungarian nobles, including the right to disobey the king if he broke the law, and freed nobles and the church from certain taxes and military duties. Several copies were made and sent to institutions including the Pope and the Hungarian king. It is held at Székesfehérvár.

Why it matters

Historians often compare the Golden Bull to Magna Carta, since both were charters from the same general period in which nobles forced a king to accept limits on royal power. The Golden Bull is considered Hungary's first constitutional document, just as Magna Carta is England's. Comparing them shows that resistance to unchecked royal power was a wider pattern across thirteenth-century Europe, not a uniquely English event.

Look closer

  • What does the seal attached to the document tell you about royal authority?
  • Why might nobles across different kingdoms have made similar demands around the same time?
  • What groups are missing from the rights this charter protects?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Magna Carta on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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