Runnymede
Runnymede may be the site of the Magna Carta but there are also a number of other memorials to democracy and the struggle for liberty sited here. Discover more about events in history have been marked at Runnymede.
Memorials at Runnymede
Nearly 800 years ago, King John met with a group of barons on this small patch of countryside. It was here he sealed Magna Carta, seen by many as the symbolic first step on the road to modern democracy. In this spirit, today Runnymede has several memorials to the ongoing struggle for liberty.
Magna Carta Memorial
This monument to the historic moment Magna Carta was sealed here was designed by Sir Edward Maufe and erected in 1957 by the American Bar Association.
Nestled in a quiet spot near the meadows and sat on a gentle slope looking out towards the Thames, today the memorial is the perfect place to pause and reflect.
Kennedy Memorial
Set in a symbolic acre of land donated to the United States of America by Queen Elizabeth II in in 1965, this seven tonne block of Portland stone commemorates the life of President John F Kennedy following his tragic assassination.
Designed by Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe, it is maintained by the Kennedy Memorial Trust.
Commonwealth Air Forces Memorial
Beyond the woods on Coopers Hill is this moving memorial, inscribed with the names of 20,456 men and women of the Allied Air Forces who lost their lives during the Second World War and have no known grave.
This building is maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Fairhaven Memorial Lodges
When Lady Fairhaven donated Runnymede to the National Trust, she commissioned Sir Edwin Lutyens to design these lodges in memory of her husband Sir Urban Broughton MP, who had bought the land to safeguard its future.
Today you can visit South Lodge, home to the Magna Carta tearoom.