December 29
– Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1170
Thomas was born in London on the 21st of
December in either 1117 or 1118 to Gilbert Becket
and Matilda Roheise.. When Thomas was 10 he
learned to read at the Merton Priory in England
and then traveled to the Mainland for further
studies of canon and civil law in Paris, Bologna,
and Auxerre. After his studies were concluded he
returned to England around 1141 where he gained
the attention of Theobold, Archbishop of
Canterbury, who sent him on several missions to
Rome and ordained him a deacon in 1154. Soon
after this, he was named Archdeacon of
Canterbury. About this same time King Stephen
died, leaving Henry the II as the new king. At
Archbishop Theobold's urging, King Henry named
Thomas the Lord High Chancellor of England.
Thomas and King Henry were close friends.
Thomas was so zealous in carrying out his duties as chancellor that many of the
English clergy distrusted him. When Archbishop Theobold died in 1161, King
Henry thought that naming Thomas the new Archbishop of Canterbury would
solidify his position as sole head of England; something that had long been
opposed by Archbishop Theobold. Thomas warned the King that if he were to
become the Archbishop, he would fulfill his duty as zealously for the Church as he
had as chancellor for England. The King insisted, even obtaining a dispensation
from the Pope for Thomas to hold both positions. In 1162 Thomas was named
Archbishop of Canterbury and immediately the conflicts that he had warned King
Henry about began. He resigned as Chancellor, excommunicated one of the
nobles, and successfully opposed a new land tax by the king. Within two years,
Thomas fled to France in exile after more fighting with the king over the
Constitutions of Clarendon which were an attempt by the king to define clearly
the various spheres of authority between church and state. King Louis VII of
France welcomed Thomas and let him stay at the Cistercian Abbey of Pontigny
for two years until threats by King Henry forced him to move. During this time,
Thomas was in constant contact with Pope Alexander III who sympathized but
wanted to try a more diplomatic approach to resolving the crisis than Thomas
wanted. In 1166 the pope granted Thomas permission to take what measures he
saw fit to try to bring the matter to a close. Thomas immediately
excommunicated several of the king's councilors. In 1167 the pope appointed
arbiters to try to resolve the authority disputes peacefully, but Thomas refused to
compromise. In 1169 Thomas excommunicated two bishops loyal to King Henry.
In 1170 King Henry had himself crowned king by the Archbishop of York and the
pope threatened to excommunicate all of Britain unless the king agreed to work
out a compromise with Thomas. Thomas returned to England in November of
1170 and immediately declared the Constitutions of Clarendon null and void.
Henry, in a rage, said “Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?” or similar
words. Four of his knights, Reginald Fitzurse, Hugh de Moreville, William de
Tracy, and Richard le Breton, took this as a clear command from the king and
murdered Thomas during vespers in Canterbury Cathedral on December 29,
1170.