St. Thomas Becket

St. Thomas Becket was born about 1119 or 1120 in London and rose through ability and charm to become chancellor of England and the close friend of King Henry II, living for a time in worldly splendor. When the king had him made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1162, expecting a compliant ally, Thomas underwent a profound change, embracing austerity and devoting himself wholly to the rights and liberty of the Church.

He soon came into bitter conflict with Henry over the king's attempts to subject the clergy and the Church to royal power, a struggle that drove Thomas into exile in France for six years. Returning to England after an uneasy reconciliation, he again defied the king, who in a fit of rage was heard to wish himself rid of the troublesome priest. Four knights took him at his word and murdered the archbishop within his own cathedral on 29 December 1170, as he stood before the altar. Canonized within three years, he became one of the most venerated martyrs of the Middle Ages, his shrine at Canterbury a great pilgrimage, and he is celebrated on 29 December.