1) In the 12th century, in 1170, Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Beckett, was violently murdered in the Canterbury Cathedral in England. After the death of Archbishop Theobold, King Henry promoted his close friend, Beckett to the vacant seat, in an attempt to increase his influence over the church. However, Beckett embraced his role to such a degree that he grew defiant against the king, and instead increasingly loyal to the church. In 1170, 4 of King Henry’s knight’s Reginald Fitzurse, Hugh de Morville, William de Tracy, and Richard le Breton, killed Beckett in the Canterbury Cathedral against the permission and the knowledge of the King. Through these events it can determined that the 2 parties involved were the court and the church (the knights who represented the King, and Beckett who represented the Church).
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During this time period, although the Church was subject to swear allegiance to the King of England, they also believed that their true allegiance was to God. By promoting his friend to be Archbishop, King Henry thought he could bring the Church to wholeheartedly obey him and him alone. However, even afterwards, while Henry stated that the church was subject to the law of the land as enforced by him, Beckett continued to counter argue that the Church was tied to command of god, and was therefore above the law. Eventually Beckett was exiled, only to return 6 years later to excommunicate the bishops, exclaiming ’May they all be damned by Jesus Christ!’ In response to this King Henry blurted the words, “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest!” Mistaking that as a command, 4 of King Henry’s knights, murdered Thomas Beckett. Evidently, their reasons for choosing this action was a misunderstanding of the King’s