The Tragedy of Thomas Becket: From friend to foe

Not many Medieval Archbishops of Canterbury are as well known as Thomas Becket, but Becket’s humble beginnings and administration skills saw him rise quickly to the top of Anglo-Norman society. Becket’s death is somewhat more famous than his life with his murder at the hands of his old friend, King Henry II, tainting the Plantagenet patriarch’s reign forever.

An early representation of Thomas Becket from Alan of Tewkesbury’s collection of his letters SOURCE: British Library, Cotton MS Claudius B II, f. 341r

Becket’s early life

Thomas Becket was born in December of 1119 or 1120, to small time merchants in Cheapside, London. Both is parents were of Norman-French origins giving the young Thomas access to the highlife, mixing with the wealthy of London, finding himself and avid hawker and hunter from a young age. Becket spent a lot of time in Sussex, learning the ‘rich man ropes’ from one of his fathers friends, Richer de L’Aigle who is thought to have been an important early influence on Thomas.

By the age of ten, Thomas had been sent to the priory at Merton, to start his education. The Church held the monopoly on education and in order for anyone to learn to read or write, they must interact with a church run organisation. The curriculum was not as it is today, no PE and Psychology classes instead, simple grammar, logic, maths, music and rhetoric, the basis for any young man (very few women of the age had access to such levels of education). After his primary education in England, Becket soon travelled to Paris, the centre of religion and education in the western world. Thomas hoped to hone his philosophical mind in the hallowed halls of Paris’s schools but, with Thomas in his early 20’s, his father, Gilbert, started to suffer financially, prompting Thomas to return home.

Thomas did what a lot of half-educated, relatively well off young men did, he became a clerk (where the name Clark(e) comes from). Thomas was an adept administrator and soon rose to prominence, eventually landing perhaps the best clerk job there was, working for the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Archbishop at the time was Theobald of Bec (b. 1090 - d. 18th April, 1161) and the Pope’s representative in England soon took a liking to the young administrator. The Archbishop was as much an mentor as he was an employer to Thomas, using his young clerk to travel around Europe, learning and maturing into a well rounded member of the lower aristocracy. Beckets travel’s saw him travel through the Catholic west, spending extended periods in Rome with the Pope.

By 1155, Becket had impressed Theobald so much that the Archbishop recommend to the King, Henry II, that Becket be considered for the absent Lord Chancellory, one of the most powerful positions in the whole realm. Thomas was appointed to the office in January of 1155, putting him face to face with the King.

A portrait of Henry II of England (b. 1133-1189) circa 1620 SOURCE: Public domain

Chancellor and friend

Becket, now around 35 was an excellent addition to the young king’s court, adding some much needed experience and financial control to the hot-headed young monarch. The two got on very well, with a glorious friendship erupting soon, with the two enjoying each others company, playing chess, hunting and other medieval pursuits of frivolity. As well as a great friend, Becket was an astute chancellor, making sure the King’s coffers were always full (relatively) reinforcing Henry’s rights over his lords and barons, and upholding the law that seemed to be his crowning achievement.

The term ‘trail by jury’ was first used at this time as the kings judges or justices of the peace, would travel the country making sure the ‘common law’ was being upheld. The only exception the the law seemed to be the Church. At the time, the Church was judged separately from the common courts. Regardless of crime, whether it be rape, murder or simple misdemeanours, the accused could use the ‘benefit of the clergy’ to essentially, escape the law. All church men and women swore allegiance to the king but ultimately, to God first.

A bishopric too far

Becket certainly made the most of the power and wealth that came with being chancellor, with William FitzStephen’s Life of Saint Thomas (c. 1170) describing a trip Becket made to Paris in 1158 as one filled with splendour and luxury, surrounded with many a beast and countless servants. Becket had always been a relatively pious man, choosing to stay celibate throughout his life but as chancellor, he was always the Kings man, never putting the rights of the Church (which trained him and got him to the position he was in) above that of the King.

By the 1160’s, Henry had almost completed his programme of reform in the English Church, halting the effects fo the Gregorian Reforms that set out to give Rome and thus the Pope, much more control over local church practice and appointment of clergy. Just as Henry was getting a grip of things, his Archbishop, Theobald died, but Henry had just the man to fill his shoes, or so he thought.

Canterbury Cathedral UK from the south-west SOURCE: Antony McCallum http://www.wyrdlight.com 

Henry saw Becket as the logical successor, and quickly set about having his old friend nominated for the archbishopric, a job that Becket thought himself nether worthy nor politically savvy enough to hold. It is likely that Becket saw the potential for a rift to grow between himself and his King, as mentioned before Becket was very religious and seems to always take whatever job he was doing seriously, and would have to now put the Church first. Regardless of Becket’s reservations, he was made Archbishop of Canterbury in June of 1162 and with that, came a monumental shift.

As Becket became head of the Catholic Church in England, he seemed to change. Becket had a reawakening and became hopelessly pious, choosing to wear a hair shirt so he would itch from the lice as a reminder of his sin, becoming hopelessly obsessed with his faith and that of the wider realm. For 3 years, the two men got along as they always had but, at Northampton Castle in 1164, both men clashed on the issue of clerics under the law. Henry argued that all men and women within the realm were subject to the same laws, Becket on the other hand argued that the Church was above the law and could not be held accountable like Ley people could. An argument ensued where Henry called his Archbishop a ‘traitor’ which forced Becket to leave the country. He would spend the next 6 years in exile in France. Henry viewed this ‘betrayal’ as one of both politics and of friendship, as it is likely that Henry saw Becket as a ‘man on the inside’, who would continue to support his king in giving him what he wanted, he was wrong.

By 1170, Thomas Becket was back. Preaching with a vengeance at the cathedral in Canterbury, excommunicating some of his bishops who had served in his absence, including the archbishop of London, who had taken part in the coronation of Henry ‘the young king’ (son of Henry II, was crowned during this fathers life time in the French style). Upon hearing that his old friend had returned, Henry may or may not have uttered some of the most famous words in all of English and Church history.

“Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest!”

Henry who at this point was in Normandy, was furious with his old friend, and it typical Plantagenet anger, said something who would likely regret. Henry is credited with saying “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest!”. Whether a direct quote, a general idea or a horrible misquote, Henry’s comment in December of 1170 would echo through the ages.

Whilst still in France, Henry most likely thought ‘ill deal with Tommy boy as soon as I’m back in England’ but, the news traveled that the King was unhappy and there were some who were more than happy to help. Four knights found themselves, in full armour, in Canterbury on the afternoon of 29th December, ready to dispatch the King’s justice. Becket heard there were armed men looking for him and fled into the Cathedral where a service was taking place. When they found the Archbishop at the alter, one of the knights hit him in the shoulder with his sword, Becket did not falter, and what may have begun as a simple warning or ‘roughing up’ of the old priest became a full on murder. The knights hacked Becket to death with reports of his skull being smashed in and his brains being sprayed all over the floor of the Cathedral.

Contemporary illustration portraying the murder of Thomas Becket in 1170 SOURCE: Public domain

the four murderers (Reginald FitzUrse, Hugh de Morville, William de Tracy and Richard le Breton,) quickly fled the scene but were never arrested for their crimes. The King found out about the murder and was distraught, he fully blamed himself for his old friends murder and would never truly forgive himself for it. In an act of penance, Henry made a pilgrimage to the site of Becket’s death, wearing a hair shirt and allowed the priests to beat him for his crimes. The King starved himself for 3 days and wept for even longer, and was eventually forgiven by the Church. By 1173 Thomas Becket had been canonised and recognised as a holy martyr, and his shrine at Canterbury became the most important and visited holy site in England. The death of Thomas Becket was the stating point for the unraveling of Henry’s kingship that would ultimately leave him heart broken, betrayed and dead. 

The death of Thomas Becket was obviously the end of the Archbishops physical life but, his martyrdom inspired the creation of churches, shrines and even a holy order (The knights of Saint Thomas) with many a future monarch honouring perhaps the most famous saint in English history. The rest of Henry II’s reign was filled with rebellion and likely regret for the murder of his best friend. I do not believe that Henry meant to have Becket murdered and simply uttered his unhappiness in front of the wrong people, leading to the death of an advisor that would have helped keep his waring sons at bay.

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