THOMAS BECKET, St. — Archbishop of Canterbury, b. in London on 21 Dec. 1117, d. at Canterbury on 29 Dec. 1170.
At the Parliament of Westminster (Oct. 1163) he defended so vigorously the privilege of the ecclesiastical forum that the sovereign was forced to withdraw a bill that would have abolished II. However, an amendment was proposed, according to which the bishop was to be bound to respect ancient customs. B. accepted it, but with the prudent reservation: salvo ordine nostro et iure Ecclesiae; this drew upon him the king’s wrath. The following year, at the Parliament of Clarendon, the ancient customs were specified in sixteen articles, all of which diminished the liberties of the Church. It seems that T. accepted them; but he soon repented and retracted, asking pardon of Alexander III. Condemned to heavy, indeed unjust, fines, he took refuge at the papal court and then in the Cistercian monastery of Pontigny.
The negotiations between Alexander III and the king were long and difficult. T. appeared before Henry II at Montmirail in 1169; but the agreement desired by the Pope could not be concluded because the archbishop would not subscribe to the articles of Clarendon except with the restrictive clause: salvo honore Dei. In 1170, however, a semblance of reconciliation took place and B. returned to England. But his enemies worked against him and stirred up Henry II’s animosity to such a point that he dared to say in the presence of the barons: “Is there no one who will rid me of this turbulent priest?” Four knights intervened and treacherously slew the archbishop in the cathedral of Canterbury.
Alexander III canonized him on 21 Feb. 1173. Feast, 29 Dec.