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THE LATEST PROGRAMME |
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Jonathan Freedland looks for the past behind the present. Each week, The Long View, recorded on location throughout the British Isles, takes an issue from the current affairs agenda and finds a parallel in our past.
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Thomas Becket, played by Cyril Cusack and the newly appointed Archbishop of the Church of England, Dr Rowan Williams.
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Extracts from sources used in the readings
Becket's ordination as priest and consecration as archbishop was
described by Herbert of Bosham, a clerk in the chancellor's household, who transferred with him to Canterbury:
"So we all travelled from London, where he had been elected, to Canterbury where, following custom and canonical provision, the consecration of the metropolitan was to be performed.…Therefore in that sacramental time, in those days of marvellous and wonderful anointing, in the week of Pentecost, on the Saturday of the week…the archdeacon and elect of the church of Canterbury was ordained priest, and the next day, the day of the Lord (Sunday), was consecrated archbishop by Henry bishop of Winchester, very festively and magnificently, as was appropriate to such a great future archbishop. In addition to the almost countless crowd of great men and nobles of the realm, most notably the illustrious Henry, still a boy, the king's son and heir…fourteen co-provincial bishops were present. And so our elect was consecrated archbishop, he being around 44 years of age."
* * * * *
From the (16) Constitutions of Clarendon, January 1164:
cl. 3: "Clerks charged and accused of any offence, when summoned by the king's justice, shall come to his court to answer there concerning what seems to the king's court should be answered there, and in the ecclesiastical court what seems ought to be answered there, but in such way that the king's justice sends [men] to the court of Holy Church to see in what manner the matter is treated there. And if the clerk should be convicted or confesses, the Church ought no longer to protect him."
cl. 8: "Concerning appeals: if they arise, they should proceed from archdeacon to bishop, and from bishop to archbishop. And if the archbishop fails to do justice, it should finally reach the lord king, so that by his order the dispute may be concluded in the archbishop's court in such a way, that it ought not to proceed further without the assent of the lord king."
cl. 12: "When an archbishopric or bishopric or an abbey or priory of the king's demesne is vacant, it ought to remain in the king's hand and he ought to receive all revenues and profits from it as his demesne. And when the time comes to take thought for the church, the lord king ought to send word to the more important persons of the church and the election should be held in the lord king's chapel, by the assent of the lord king and the counsel of the clergy of the realm, whom he shall call to do this. And there the elect shall perform homage and fealty to the lord king, as liege lord, for his life and limbs and his earthly honour, saving his order, before he is consecrated."
* * * * *
From The Sarum (Salisbury) Breviary (derived from Canterbury, from the Office composed for the feast of St Thomas the Martyr (29 December 1173). Written by or adapted from John of Salisbury.
"Then, through the care both of the supreme pontiff and of the French king, many days were designated for the restoration of peace. Because God's servant was unwilling to accept it, except saving the honour of God and respect for the Church, they parted from one another in disharmony. At length, having taken pity on the desolation of the English Church, the supreme pontiff Alexander managed to extort the restoration of peace to the Church by issuing threats. The kingdoms rejoiced that the king had received the archbishop into his favour: some believed that the process was conducted in good faith; others thought differently. Consequently the noble pastor returned to England in the seventh year of his exile, either to deliver Christ's sheep from the wolves' attacks or to lay himself down for the flock entrusted to his charge. And so he was received with inestimable joy by clergy and people all weeping and crying out, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' But after a few days he was again afflicted beyond measure with injuries and outrages and forbidden by public edict from leaving the confines of his church. Anyone who showed a pleasant countenance to him or to any one of his followers was regarded as a public enemy. His spirit was not broken throughout all this, his hand remained stretched out for the Church's freedom. For this peace he continually sighed; for this peace he devoted himself to vigils, fasts, and prayers; to obtain this peace he desired above all else to lay down his own life."
"On the fifth day of the Lord's Nativity there came to Canterbury four courtiers, men indeed distinguished by their birth but infamous for their deeds. Entering they approached the bishop with insulting words: they shouted violent abuse and finally directed serious threats against him. The man of God responded moderately as reason required to each one, adding that many outrages had been inflicted on himself and God's Church since the re-establishment of peace. There was no-one to correct errors, nor did he wish nor could he do anything other than exercise the duty of pastoral care in the future. The foolish hearted were therefore disturbed and they immediately went out speaking the utmost wickedness. When they had left, the pontiff went into the Church to render the evening praise to Christ. The devil's henchmen, in mail, followed by a crowd of armed men, pursued him from behind with drawn swords. Entry to the church having been closed off by the monks, God's priest, soon to be Christ's sacrificial victim, unlocked the door to his enemies as he reached it, saying, The church must not be locked up like a fortress.' As the knights and others burst in after him, with furious voices some shouted, 'Where is the traitor?', others, 'Where is the archbishop?' To those threatening him with death, he said, 'I accept death freely in defence of God's Church, but in the name of God I command you not to injure any of my followers: imitating Christ who said during his passion, 'If you seek me, allow the others to depart.' The ravaging wolves threw themselves upon the pious pastor, degenerate sons against their own father, most cruel executioners against the Lord's anointed; they cut off the consecrated crown of his head with their bloody swords, and, casting the Lord's anointed onto the ground, they most cruelly scattered his brains and blood upon the pavement-a thing most terrible even to say. Thus did the chaff overwhelm the grain of corn, thus was slain the vine-keeper in the vineyard, the leader in the camp, the shepherd in the fold, the labourer on the threshing-floor; thus was the just man murdered by the unjust; thus he exchanged a house of clay for a heavenly palace."
"According to the assertion of those standing closest to him, these were the last words of the martyr (which they could scarcely hear because of confusion and clamour): 'To God and blessed Mary and St Denis and the holy patrons of this church, I commend myself and the Church's cause.' Moreover, in all the terrible sufferings which God's unbeaten champion bore, he did not emit a cry, he did not utter a sigh, he did not oppose arm or clothing to the one who struck: rather holding steady the head which he had bowed exposed to the swords until all was completed, falling prostrate as if in prayer, he fell asleep in the Lord. When the wicked men returned to the holy pontiff's palace, so that they might make the passion of the servant even closer to that of the Lord, they divided his clothes among themselves, and decided that each should carry off whatever gold, silver, valuable vessels, and fine horses, or anything valuable which they could find. And the knights indeed did these things. Who can recount the rest without weeping? Such was the grief of everyone, so great the lamentation, that you would think that that prophecy was again fulfilled, 'A voice was heard in Rama, a crying and a loud lamentation.' But the divine mercy quickly brought about. a happy result when from the trial, and through visions, as if in prelude to the miracles to come, it signified that the martyr would soon be glorified by miracles, that joy after would return after grief, and the grace of favours follow the distress of the sick."
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Royal proclamation, issued from Westminster in November 1538,
declared that Thomas Becket was "really a rebel who fled to France and to the bishop of Rome to procure the abrogation of wholesome laws' who 'shall no longer be named a saint…his pictures throughout the realm are to be plucked down and his festivals shall no longer be kept, and the services in his name shall be razed out of all books": Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, on the Reign of Henry VIII, 13/ii, ed. James Gairdner (London, ***), 848.
* * * * *
From John Foxe's (1516-1587), Acts and Monuments of Matters most Special and Memorable, happening in the Church, 9th edn, 3 vols (London: Printed for the Company of Stationers, 1684), i, 231:
"If the cause make a martyr (as is said), I see not why we should esteem Thomas Becket to die a Martyr, more than any other whom the Princes Sword doth here temporally punish for their temporal deserts. To die for the Church I grant is a glorious matter" But since the Church "is a Spiritual and not a Temporal Church" to contend with Princes for "temporal Possessions, Liberties, Exemptions, Priviledges, Dignities, Patrimonies, and Superiorities…is no matter (to my mind) material to make a Martyr, but rather a Rebellion against them to whom we owe subjection." Legal process would have been the better way; but he draws the conclusion, nevetheless,(p. 232) that Becket's example should "teach all Romish Prelates not to be so stubborn (in such matters not pertaining unto them) against their Prince, unto whom God hath subjected them."
* * * * *
Archbishop Thomas to Henry II, king of the English: carried by the aged Cistercian Abbot Urban I of Cercamp and read aloud before Henry II at Chinon in mid-June 1166.
"With longing have I desired to see your face and speak to you, much indeed on my account, but more particularly on yours. On my account, that when you have seen my face you would call to mind the services I rendered to you when I was in your service, with devotion and loyalty according to the judgement of my conscience-so help me God in the final judgement, when all of us shall stand before his tribunal to receive according to what we have done in the body, whether good or ill; and so that you might be moved with pity for me, who now must live by begging among strangers, although, by God's grace, we have an abundance of supplies. And the saying of the Apostle is a great comfort to us, 'All who wish to live piously in Christ suffer persecution'; and the Prophet's, 'I did not see the just man abandoned, nor his seed seeking bread.' On your account, there are three reasons. First, because you are my lord, second, because you are my king, and third, because you are my spiritual son. Because you are my lord, I owe and I offer you my counsel and service, whatever a bishop owes his lord, according to the honour of God and holy Church. Because you are my king, I am bound to reverence and warn you. Because you are my son, I am bound to reprove and restrain you by reason of my office. For a father corrects his son sometimes with mild words, sometimes with severe ones, so that in this way he may draw him back to rightdoing. You should know that you are king by God's grace: in the first place, that you should rule yourself and shape your life according to the best practices so that the others may be inspired to better things by your example, according to the wise saying,
The world is arranged in the king's image."
"In the second place, that you should rule others, some by fining, others by punishing, both by the authority of the power which you received from the Church in the sacrament of unction and also by the office of the sword, which you bear to restrain those who do ill to the Church. For kings are anointed in three places, on the head, on the breast, and on the arms, which signifies glory, wisdom, and strength. Those kings who did not observe God's laws and violated his commands in ancient times, had their glory, wisdom and strength taken away from them and from their heirs, like Pharaoh, Saul, Nabuchodonosor, Solomon, and many others. But those who after their fault humbled themselves before God in contrition of heart, recovered God's favour, together with all the above graces, more abundantly and perfectly-like David, Hezekiah, and many others."
"Christ founded the Church and purchased her freedom with his blood.…God's Church consists of two orders, the clergy and the people. Among the clergy are apostles, Popes, bishops, and the other teachers of the Church, to whom is entrusted the care and rule of the Church itself, who have the ability to conduct ecclesiastical affairs so that they may direct the whole to the salvation of souls. This is why it was said to Peter, and in Peter to the other governors of God's Church, and not to kings or princes, 'Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I shall build my Church; and the gates of the underworld shall not prevail against it.' Among the people are kings, princes, dukes, earls, and other men of power, who have the ability to conduct secular affairs, that they may bring the whole to the peace and unity of the Church. And since it is certain that kings receive their power from the Church, and the Church receives hers not from them but from Christ, if you allow me to say so, you do not have the power to command bishops to absolve or excommunicate anyone, to draw clergy to secular judgements, to pass judgement concerning churches and tithes, to forbid bishops to hear cases concerning breach of faith or oaths, and many other things of this kind, which are written down among your customs, which you call 'ancestral'.…Remember the profession concerning the preservation of the liberty of God's Church which you made, when you were consecrated and anointed by our predecessor, and placed in writing upon the altar at Westminster. Restore the church of Canterbury, from which you received promotion and consecration, to the condition and dignity in which it was in the times of your predecessors and ours, and restore in full the possessions belonging to that church and to us-the villages, castles, and estates which you have distributed at will, and all the goods sequestrated from us and the clergy and laity connected with us. And further, allow us, if it please you, to return freely to our see in peace and with full security, and to exercise our office freely as we should and as reason requires. And we are ready to serve you as our dearest lord and king, loyally and devotedly with all our strength in whatever way we can, saving the honour of God and of the Roman Church, and saving our order. If you do not, you may know for certain that you will suffer the divine severity and vengeance."
* * * * *
Becket refuses to dissemble: response to cardinal legates at Planches on 18 November 1167:
Then the cardinals enquired whether the archbishop would promise, if not to confirm, at least to dissemble and tolerate the customs of Clarendon, or at all events to return to his see, to accept peace, with no specific mention made of the customs?
The archbishop replied: "It is a proverb of our people that "silence implies consent"'. And since the king would seem to be in possession of those customs, and would compel the Church to observe them unjustly and by force, if the onslaught on them already under way ceased by my silence, especially if this was authorized by the intervention of the legates of the Lord Pope, it would instantly appear to the king and to other folk that he had won his case. For myself, to speak truth, God is witness that I choose rather to stay in exile for ever, to be an outlaw and even, if God has planned it so, to die for justice's defence, than to accept the peace to which you persuade me to the danger of my soul and the damage of the cause of the Church's liberty."
* * * * *
The coronation of the young king Henry (14 June 1170, at Westminster Abbey):
Written from Caen by an un-named supporter of Becket (? Master Ernulf or Walter de Insula), before 14 June 1170.
"You should know most certainly that this [the coronation] will be done without delay, and, if York does not dare to do it, the butcher of Séez will set his bloody hands to the task. This is being done against you, so that you will not be allowed even to hope for peace any longer, since your peace is not only deferred, but the whole hope of peace and reconciliation is being taken away. Indeed, when Richard of Ilchester came to Caen the other day to speed up the boy's crossing and forthwith returned with him, he told us that the king would defer your peace by all means, and, if he could not do it otherwise, he would remain disobedient until his death, not only to the Lord Pope but even to God himself, rather than make peace with you…Whatever the king does in your regard is deception and villainy…. What therefore will you do, most unfortunate of men, if that which you have sighed for so long should be taken from you in a short space of time? If he who ought to rule only through you should be made king by the hand of another? , what will you do if your enemy consecrates an enemy king for you, so that a much younger and therefore stronger hand may rise against you in support of his father?"
* * * * *
Henry II's writ of peace (Fréteval, 22 July 1170)
"For the love of God and the Lord Pope, for the salvation of ourselves and my heirs, I release the archbishop of Canterbury and his followers who are exiled with him and for him from my displeasure and enmity; and I cancel all earlier claims which I had against him; and I grant to him and his true peace and firm security from me and mine; and I restore the church of Canterbury to him in that fullness in which he enjoyed it when he was made archbishop; and all the properties which he and the church had and held: to hold and to have as freely and honourably as ever he and his had them and held them; and in the same way I restore to him all the churches and prebends belonging to the archbishopric, which became vacant after Canterbury himself left the land, so that he may treat them as his own and do with them as he pleases, saving the honour of my kingdom."
* * * * *
Disturbing news from England: report by envoys sent ahead to arrange for Becket's return, before 15 October 1170
the report concludes:
"Again and again, my lord, we impress on your memory, that you should not hurry into England unless you are able to secure the unadulterated grace of the lord king. For there is no man in England, even among those you trust, who does not despair entirely of the peace; and those who should give us advice, whom we relied on especially, all avoid our conversation and flee our company. Farewell."
* * * * *
Becket's ordination as priest and consecration as archbishop
described by Herbert of Bosham, a clerk in the chancellor's household, who transferred with him to Canterbury:
"So we all travelled from London, where he had been elected, to Canterbury where, following custom and canonical provision, the consecration of the metropolitan was to be performed.…Therefore in that sacramental time, in those days of marvellous and wonderful anointing, in the week of Pentecost, on the Saturday of the week…the archdeacon and elect of the church of Canterbury was ordained priest, and the next day, the day of the Lord (Sunday), was consecrated archbishop by Henry bishop of Winchester, very festively and magnificently, as was appropriate to such a great future archbishop. In addition to the almost countless crowd of great men and nobles of the realm, most notably the illustrious Henry, still a boy, the king's son and heir…fourteen co-provincial bishops were present. And so our elect was consecrated archbishop. he being around 44 years of age."
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