Symbolic Oaks


The Meadows & Monuments at Runnymede England
Symbolic Oaks
	The Duke of Gloucester planted an oak tree adjacent to the Magna Carta Memorial in 1987 as did P.V.Narismha Rao Prime Minister of the Republic of India which is the worlds most populous democracy. The Prime Minister left a plaque reading: "As a tribute to the historic Magna Carta, a source of inspiration throughout the world, and as an affirmation of the values of Freedom, Democracy and the Rule of Law which the People of India cherish and have enshrined in their Constitution. March 16, 1994" In the image at left the India Oak is in the foreground at right.
In 1987 two further oak trees were planted near the Memorial. One planted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II marked National Tree Week. Another planted by John O. Marsh, Secretary of the Army of the United States of America has a plaque which reads: "This oak tree, planted with soil from Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in the New World, commemorates the bicentenary of the Constitution of the United States of America. It stands in acknowledgement that the ideals of liberty and justice embodied in the Constitution trace their lineage through institutions of English law to the Magna Carta, sealed at Runnymede on June 15th, 1215."
In the UK oak and yew are commonly the best known ancient trees. The choice of oak for ceremonial planting and to symbolise significant events and cultural ideologies is no accident. Oak was held sacred by many cultiures including the Celts, Druids and Anglo-Saxons representing power and spiritual connection with nature. It has long been associated with England as an icon of strength and endurance. Famously oak was used to construct the ships of navies commanded by Drake and Nelson and revered in the "hearts of oak" march of the Royal Navy. Less famously the aesthetic form of the oak provided Smeaton with the proportions and design ideas for Eddystone Lighthouse.