BattlefieldsBecket Crisis — Murder at Canterbury Cathedral 1170
Medieval

Becket Crisis — Murder at Canterbury Cathedral 1170

1170
Kent, England
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Kent, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Becket with cathedral monks
VS
Victor
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Four royal knights acting on royal authority
Outcome
Becket murdered; Henry II faced papal censure; England threatened with interdict; baronial opposition armed
The Battle

History & Significance

Four knights of Henry II rode to Canterbury and murdered Archbishop Becket in the cathedral on 29 December 1170, acting on the king's frustrated outburst. The murder caused international outrage, threatened England with papal interdict and Henry with excommunication, and triggered the military context of the subsequent years including the Young King Henry revolt in which many barons claimed to act in Becket's name. The murder made Becket a martyr and Canterbury the greatest pilgrimage site in England.

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