It isn't pleasant, but the reality of life in the medieval era was that people often died young and they often died suddenly. And as if that isn't grim enough, those deaths would open up a whole mess of ways for people to abuse and steal from the dead person's family.
The king was, of course, in the absolute best position for rampant death-related thievery because he could disguise it by calling it a tax. The Magna Carta has the job of trying to close some of these loopholes and regulate the way that medieval people dealt with frequent mortality.
Questions About Mortality
- In an era consumed with thoughts of the afterlife, what punishment or circle of hell should await people who unfairly exploit the relatives of a recently deceased person?
- Should titles of nobility be inherited, or assigned by the king? Explain the pros and cons of each plan.
- What do you think might be reasonable taxes to be collected at the time of death? Explain.
Chew on This
By unfairly exploiting the families and children of deceased parents, King John crossed the line from merely greedy and unpopular to that of a monster and thus brought the baron's revolt on himself.
Don't blame King John for the horrors of the feudal system. That system made dealing with underage heirs without any fair process a reality.