Rebel with a cause

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As a lawyer, Brook Highland resident Jack Hood knows the importance of the 1215 signing of the Magna Carta. The document, which English barons forced King John to sign, was one of the first documents in history limiting the power of the king. 

Hood’s interest in the document, however, goes beyond the legal. He is a direct descendent of Saer de Quincey, the First Earl of Winchester and one of the key negotiators in the signing of the Magna Carta. Hood grew up knowing of his lineage after his aunt paid to track the family’s ancestry in the 1950s. 

This year, Hood, his daughter, Laura and his 8-year-old grandson, Inverness Elementary student Walkin Cleage, took a trip to Runnymede, England, for the American Bar Association (ABA)’s monument dedication during the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta’s signing. When the trip was announced last year, Hood jumped at the chance to attend.

“I realized immediately that it was going to be people clamoring to go, so I signed up immediately,” he said. 

The trip had nostalgic reasons, as Hood attended the University of Cambridge in England for his graduate program, but it was also a chance to pass down knowledge to his grandson.

“It’s been a really great educational experience for my grandson. He’s starting to think about some things he never thought about before. It’s had a huge impact on him. We could see it immediately,” he said.

De Quincey is Hood’s “great great 25th” grandfather. While on the trip, Hood learned more about his involvement with the Magna Carta when he met historian Julian Harrison at the British Library. Harrison told him that de Quincey served as exchequer for King John and held important knowledge of the financial state of the country. Though King John made de Quincey an earl, he refused to give him a castle, Hood said. Harrison believed that this might have been one of the factors that caused de Quincey to turn against him with the signing.

“He was a rebel with a cause,” Hood said.

As a member of the ABA, Hood said the importance of the document can be seen throughout many governments in history. 

“The Magna Carta was such an important document in the English common law and the history of rights of individuals in America,” he said. “It had a huge influence on our Declaration of Independence, our Constitution, it’s still cited from time to time by different courts talking about fundamental rights of people.”

Several members of the royal family were in attendance at the ceremony, including Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, William Duke of Cambridge, Princess Anne, Prime Minister David Cameron and more. Walkin was also interviewed by British TV reporters as he sported an American flag bowtie.

“Everyone wanted to stop and get their picture made with Walkin and his little bowtie,” Laura said.

Hood and his daughter both value the learning experience that the three-week trip gave them, but more importantly, they value the time that they were able to connect as a family with Walkin. Hood’s family eventually made its way to the United States in the late 1600s or early 1700s, Hood said. Though less is known about some family members than others, Laura said she has noticed one trend throughout several generations.

“In terms of our [family], they’ve always been in some sort of service to others. Whether it be postal workers, lawyers, nurses, teachers, they’ve always done something in service to others,” Laura said. “Which is kind of interesting that it even goes all the way back to this guy [de Quincey].”