Archbishop of Canterbury, martyred 29 December 1170
Selected TEXTS concerning Becket and his murder.

Some of the texts posted here are in the public domain.  Some of the texts posted here are copyright, and their holders are so indicated; I have posted them in a good faith effort to comply with the Copyright Fair Use act, for educational purposes.  Other texts are linked from the Internet Medieval Sourcebook, as indicated.

Index of Documents:

• The Chronicle of Roger of Hoveden: 1154-1190 (early 13th c.) - the material from this chronicle relevant to the Becket matter; Roger quotes many letters written by those closely involved in the dispute, including Thomas himself.  Very large file.
• The Constitutions of Clarendon, 1164 (Internet Medieval Sourcebook): the key document in the dispute between the king and the archbishop; Henry wanted Thomas to assent to the Constitutions as a statement of the rights of the king over the English Church; Thomas initially assented, then refused.
• John of Salisbury:  Letter to Canterbury (Oct 1170) :  John accompanied Becket into exile; many of his letters deal with aspects of the controversy.
• John of Salisbury:  Letter to Peter of St-Remi (Dec 1170):  John's account of Becket's return to England.
• Gervase of Canterbury:  Thomas Becket's Life :  A precis of Thomas' career taken from Gervase's History of the Archbishops of Canterbury
• Gervase of Canterbury:  Thomas Becket's death : Description of the martyrdom from the same work.
• The Chronicle of "Benedict of Peterborough": The Murder of Thomas Becket (Internet Medieval Sourcebook) : This chronicle was actually most likely written by Roger of Hoveden
• Edward Grim’s Account of the Murder of Thomas Becket (Internet Medieval Sourcebook) :  Edward Grim stayed with Thomas in the Cathedral through the martyrdom; he was wounded by one of the murderers.
• Garnier's Account of the Murder of Thomas Becket :  Garnier of Pont-Sainte-Maxence wrote a Life of Becket in Old French verse.
• John of Salisbury:  Letter to John, bishop of Poitiers (early 1171) :  John's account of the murder; John was not an eyewitness to the murder itself, having fled the cathedral moments before; but this letter is the earliest account of Becket's death.
• Benedict of Peterborough:  Description of the scene just after the murder : Benedict was a monk of Canterbury and at the cathedral the night of the murder.
• William of Newburgh:  Selections from Book II of his History (c. 1200) :  Three chapters concerning Becket's career, the murder, and Henry II's penance at the tomb in 1174.
• Pope Alexander III:  Bull announcing Canonization of St Thomas Becket (1173) :  Alexander III's formal announcement of the status of Thomas as a saint

See the spot where Becket died:  take my Pictorial Tour of Canterbury Cathedral