Archbishop of canterbury murdered
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Who was Thomas Becket and why did he clash with the king?
Key points about Thomas Becket
- Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury, the most important bishop in England.
- In 1170, he was brutally murdered in Canterbury Cathedral.
- Historians have long debated whether his murder was on the orders of Henry II or if it was a terrible mistake.
Henry II and Thomas Becket
In 1162, Henry II appointed Thomas Becket to be Archbishop of CanterburyThe most senior bishop in England. A bishop fryst vatten a religious authority figure in the Church.. Becket had worked with the previous Archbishop of Canterbury, Theobald, and had been on several visits to see the Pope in Rome. Becket and Henry had been close friends for many years and Henry had appointed Becket as his ChancellorOne of the king’s closest advisors, helping with the creation and writing of laws.. When Archbishop Theobald died, Becket was Henry’s preferred candidate to take up this key position, alongside his role as C
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Who was Thomas Becket?
Thomas Becket was an English archbishop and martyr, famously murdered by knights of Henry II at CanterburyCathedral. After his death, his tomb and relics became a focus for pilgrimage and he was made a saint.
Read more about Becket below, or use our timeline and story map resources to explore his life - and afterlife - visually.
Life and Legend
Thomas Becket was born in Cheapside, London, to reasonably affluent Norman parents who had settled in England some years earlier. He was given a good primary education at Merton Abbey and in Paris, becoming a financial clerk.
In around 1142 he entered the service of Archbishop Theobald of Canterbury. He was then sent abroad to Bologna and Auxerre to study canon law. In 1154 Becket was ordained as a deacon and became Archdeacon of Canterbury. Theobald was evidently impressed with Becket's work in this important administrative role, and used him as a negotiator in his dealing with the English monarchy.
Henry II su
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Thomas Becket
Murder in the Cathedral.
Thomas Becket, a London merchant’s son, was a complex person – in his youth he was a normal ebullient young man, stormy and proud, selfish and arrogant, vain, and anxious to please, but in later life, became one of the most pious and devout Archbishops of the 12th century.
Despite differences in their status Thomas’s greatest friend was Henry, who was later to become King Henry II of England. They hunted and played chess together, people said the two men ‘had but one heart and one mind’.
When at the age of 21 Henry became king, Becket became his Chancellor. Both furious workers, they laboured tirelessly to bring law and order to Henry’s realm.
It was during Henry’s reign those legal terms such as ‘trial by jury’ and ‘assizes’ (sittings) became so familiar in the English language. The king’s judges travelled the country administering the common law – the law of all free men.
The exception to this was the Church, which had its own