Circa 29th - 30th November 1164
Extracts from
Extracts from
Eiríkr Magnússon. Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Volume 1 Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
Chapter XLII: How Thomas Cometh to the Pope's Court
Eiríkr Magnússon Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Cambridge University Press. pp. 289–. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
overheard, as has been said before, what came to pass at
the meeting this day before the lord pope ; and therefore
they take a loving leave with apostolic blessing, wending
their way back again. They have to bring back to their
lord tidings by which he waxeth right blithe, both from
the lord pope and from the king of the French, with
this news moreover, that his enemies could not carry out
their errands. For this reason it seemeth good to God's
man to go and meet the lord pope, sooner rather than later.
And now God sendeth him such great comfort, that
worshipful folk come to him and ofler him their attend-
ance through France, both for his honour and his safety
against enemies. Among these men it may be fitting
to name the noblest, hight Milo, bishop of Terouane
and another, the abbat Gotschal.
Now the archbishop rideth away from the monastery
of the holy Bertin up into France to a certain city called
Soissons, where he tarrieth over night. Straightway the
next day Louis, the king of the French, cometh there,
by the will of God, showing such great kindness to lord
Thomas as that, without delay, he goeth to the chamber
wherein the archbishop sitteth. And a meeting of great
joyance the two good men had between them. The lord
king grieveth over all the heavy trials which the arch-
bishop has had to suffer, and therewithal he speaketh
thus:-
" Whatever favours and needful things you may be
" pleased to accept in our kingdom shall be at your
" own disposal Let our means and true good-will be
" your support as long as our Lord suflfereth that you
" stand in need of our charity."
This liberality and truly kingly bounteousness the
holy Thomas thanketh for in fair words. In Soissons he
tarrieth for several days, whereupon he taketh blithe
leave. King Louis seeth him off in so goodly a fashion
that he giveth him many knights from among his
courtfolk both to be his guides, as also to see that he
lack nought on his journey, whereof he may happen to
stand in need. Thus the archbishop cometh to the court
of the pope, and having arrived there, findeth out soon
and swiftly, that some of the cardinals turn towards
him a right scanty favour, and full clearly he under-
standeth whence such things must needs proceed ; yet
none the less he getteth, that very same day, sweet leave
to come before the lord pope. Now words fall here
much after the same fashion as those, whereof you read
before concerning the king of the French, in that the
lord pope, and the cardinals who show their hearts to
be with God, grieve the worry and the trouble the arch-
bishop hath had over and above the suffering of exile.
And after a little while the lord pope speaketh thus to
the archbishop :
" At present, brother, you will withdraw to your
" chamber and go to rest ; but to-morrow you will come
" before us and our brethren, setting forth the matters
" which divide the church and the king in England."
And so it falleth, that lord Thomas receiveth blessing
and goeth to his chamber
Chapter XLIII: How Thomas Readeth Out the Charges
Eiríkr Magnússon Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Cambridge University Press. pp. 293–. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
Now when as the holy Thomas sitteth in quiet in his
chamber^ he maketh known to his clerks how the lord
pope had commanded that on the next following morning
should be laid before him under due heads, the causes of
the contention between him and king Henry. He now
calleth upon them, asking if any one of them will take it
upon him to expound the matter. But it is a soon told
tale, that for this task they all of them deem themselves
unfit, and therefore lord Thomas understandeth that this
difficult matter must needs fall to himself. Now cometh
round the hour of his being called in, when such a
worthy welcome is given to him by the lord pope, as to
be shown to a seat even next unto him. Having sat
a-thinking for a little while, the archbishop prepareth
to rise, in order to deliver his speech standing out of
reverence for the pope ; but the lord pope maketh a sign
to him to sit down. He then beginneth his delivery,
setting out in the manner following
" It is known to people,'' said he, "that once on a time I
" was with king Henry, when I was wont to give good
" heed to this one thought, that in no great matter should
" I run counter his will. But since the Lord God suffered
" that I should turn away thence to take upon me some
" oversight of holy church, unworthy though I were
" thereof, it seemed to me, that I had departed the place
" where it behoved me to do all things even as the king
" desired. Now have I set myself slightly against his
" will, and straightway all his friendship has fled away
" from me. Yet although it has estranged itself from me
" for a while, I am in need of no man's aid, should I have
" a mind to buy it back again ; for if I choose to say yea
" to all his will, he itf at peace with me at once. Now
" although Englishmen, my fellow-countrymen, carry
" abroad the rumour that I have betaken myself out of
" the land of my kin out of mere treachery, it is cer-
" tainly no fair rendering of the story. If a guilty man
" always findeth this the heaviest affliction, to be ban-
" ished from his country, it would right ill beseem me to
" estiaaige myself from my church, my flock, my duty ;
" and to suffer this dishonour of exile and poverty with-
" out any reasonable cause, for nought but mere blame
" and rebuke. Now, how the truth of the affair standeth,
" will, mayhap, by God's will, be clear anon."
Then he taketh forth the roll, which he had carried erst away
from Clarendon, whereon there stand written the customs
of the king of England ; and then speaketh to the lord
pope:
" Holy father," said he, " here is the cause of my
" exile, and if you give leave thereto, then, to-day, let
" it both come to your hearing and undergo the decision
" which you are minded to pass thereon, for I did not
" deem that I had any power myself to consent to the
" novelties which stand written here."
The lord .pope ordereth them to be read. Whereupon
the archbishop readeth.
First there standeth even this, which the king^s men
dictated, that such as follow are the royal customs in
England.
If differences arise between learned men and lay-
folk, between a clerk and a laic, about any rent or in-
come of holy church, those differences shall be examined
at the king^s court, and shall be decided even there.
Secondly. In whatsoever matter two or more clerks
happen to be at variance with layfolk, let them come to
the king's court, having first received a summons through
the bailiffs and, these having tried the cases of the clerks,
let them be sent before the bishop's court. This to be
done, in order that the secular power and layfolk may
know all the better with what wisdom the church frameth
her judgments. But if a cleric be convicted on evidence
or shall confess, let him have no defence thenceforth
from the church.
Thirdly. No archbishop, or diocesan bishop, nor any
one of the upper men of authority in the church shall go
away from England, unless with the leave of the king,
and yet only on the condition, that they swear to show
the king no unfaith while they are away.
Fourthly. When a laic has been excommunicated by
a bishop, he shall swear no oath before being absolved,
but only appeal his case to the judgment of the church.
Fifthly. No person shall be excommunicated by the
bishops who has on hand a royal office or lordship in the
land, until the king or his steward has been seen on
that matter, whereupoji the ju3ticiary of the country shall
take the case in hand and give decision in those things
which appertain unto the kingdom. But whatsoever the
justices leave for the church, let that go before the
bishop.
Sixthly. Let appeals in England be made in such
way, that the archdeacon appeal to the bishop, and the
diocesan bishop to the archbishop. But should the arch-
bishop forbear dealing rightly with a case, the king's
power shall press him to pass judgment thereon, for no
appeal shall be allowed out of the realm to the lord pope.
Seventhly. When an arch-throne, a bishop's see, an
abbatship, or a priory shall become reft of their heads by
the death of their rulers, these estates with their revenues
shall thereby fall to the crown, yielding thither their
yearly income. But at such time as it pleaseth the king
that a person should be chosen to fill the place of the
departed, he will call together into his chapel such of the
learned folk as he chooseth, that by their counsel and
his consent the ruler be choseu. In this same place he
who has thus been elected shall make an oath to be
faithful to the king in life and limb and earthly honour.
Eighthly. If a guilty person break a lawful sum-
mons of a bishop or an arch-deacon, he may be put
under an interdict, but nowise be excommunicated, if he
happeneth to be of a town, a castle, or a village belong-
ing to the king ; for the king's chief justice of the place
wherein the summoned person hath his dwelling shall
wreiEkk right on him. If, however, he neglect this, let the
summoned be at the mercy of the king ; and then the
bishop shall be allowed to inflict punishment for that
which appertaineth to him in the case.
This is the ninth custom of king Henry : If a learned
man and a laic differ about any property, as to whether
it belong to the church or to the crown, let twelve lay-
men be nominated into a court to judge which of the
two is in the right ; and then let the case go as they
judge according to circumstances, either before the king's
power, or before the judge of the church.
Chapter XLIV: How Thomas Overcame The Cardinals
Eiríkr Magnússon Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Cambridge University Press. pp. 299–. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
his delivery, the cardinals make known, who they were,
and how far from the way of rightwiseness they went
in these affairs for the sake of their unlawful friend-
ship to king Henry ; but in this case is one especially to
be named as the dearest friend of the king at the pope's
court, he namely, hight lord cardinal William, bishop of
the city which is called Pavia. He layeth himself openly
out for backing the king with so many shifts that it
giveth God's man right great trouble on that day ; for
the cardinal spareth neither clerkship nor wiliness, whilst
he keepeth both hands at work, one for the praising, of
the king of England, and the pleading of his cause, and
the other for the shaming of archbishop Thomas. Such-
wise he pleadeth on behalf of the king, that all the
oppressions for the harming of the church, which have
been read even now, he clothes in a fine garb and beau-
tifieth with the fair colour of lawfulness, in order that
the same might all the rather be permitted or be well
borne with in some measure. But the doings of God's
man, his proceedings and flight abroad, he deemeth so
vile as to warrant him putting to the archbishop the
question, why he, a primate, did list to bring so great
a disturbance into the church of God for such a small
matter. The purpose of this cardinal is set forth in the
book called Speculum Historiale : namely, that he as-
sumed the archbishop to be a man of a lesser and weaker
breast than came to be proven afterwards ; and that his
speaking before the lord pope would proceed from alien
wisdom and wording, but not from his own reasoning ;
and that when the clauses which have just been men-
tioned should come upon him unawares, his scanty wis-
dom would be confounded and turn out to the greatest
shame for such a mighty lord. But all this went quite
another way than he had thought, for he got the shame
who had sown for it ; for such, haply, is oft enough the
working of guile, that it often woundeth its own author.
So, too, matters fared in this place ; for it became known
on that day to all folk, better than ever before, that the
worthy lord archbishop Thomas had been healed through
his own wisdom, by the grace of God, in a greater
degree than he had just been wounded by one inferior
to himself. Now although there be no long tale to tell
of the affair, yet it will seem to a wise man a thing
worthy of attention, how he confounded this cardinal.
It fell in this way, that at first he listeneth with good
heed to the whole of his speech, but when that was
over, he giveth his answer, beginning with the clause
which came first in the order. But the manner in
which he undid, knot by knot, all that net of craftiness,
which the cardinal had set for entrapping therein the
freedom of the church, brought a right sweet delight
unto the hearts of those who listened thereto. For the
aforesaid Speculum saith that, from specially cited de-
cretals of the holy fathers, he brought forward convinc-
ing testimonies, as to how this custom or that stood
straight against the church, and as to what hurt it must
needs bring upon the people of God, if it were allowed
to gain power in the church ; hereby then is clean swept
away the garb which the cardinal had given these cus-
toms ; and to everyone it is now clear, that his words
were rather lying than lawful, and aimed rather at tread-
ing the clergy under foot than bringing peace to them.
Things therefore fell out even as Qod would, inasmuch
as the holy Thomas got the greatest honour both from
the lord pope, and all such whom the darkness of envy
had not struck with blindnesa But those who had been
dragged into the deep might nowise see the truth. But
from the things that follow hereafter it will be fully
manifest, how the eye of the pope's reason had already
now become clear and right-sighted, through the holy
and lawful interpretation of the lord archbishop Thomas,
while he giveth decision and passeth judgment on that
which was condemnable, but treateth with lenity that,
which it seemeth the right of the church may endure,
as will be clear from what follows hereafter.
Chapter XLV: Customs of the King Condemned
Eiríkr Magnússon. Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Volume 1 Cambridge University Press. pp. 303–. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
consistory of the lord pope concerning the unmeasured
masterfulness of king Henry were the weightiest, and the
most hurtful to the holy church. But the seven which
are not named seemed in some measure endurable. But
over these nine, which aimed further, the lord pope
sorroweth in such way, that he may not restrain his tears
in thinking that any christian king should list to seize
in such a manifold manner to himself the right of holy
church against the commandments of God and the
sentences of the holy fathers ; and therefore he passeth
thereon the final decision that these nine customs are
accursed abuses, and shall be condemned and excluded
from the whole church of God. When the pope hath
dictated this sentence, he turneth to archbishop Thomas
and speaketh thus :
" These customs bear witness, how deep you fell,
" brother, when at the peril of your consecration, you
" consented or swore to uphold them against the catholic
" freedom of the church. And if you had not arisen
" afterwards, or got our absolution, your affairs would
" now have come to a perilous plight ; for otherwise the
" deed, by which you brought your consecration into such
" danger, would thrust you away from that honour and
" office which you once received. But God be praised
" now, that His mercy has opened your eye to what you
" did amiss, and that you have so well redeemed your
" station that, through your steadfast abiding in the law,
" you have had to encounter troubles and hurtful deal-
" ings, poverty and exile, and therefore it behoveth to
" show you true love and all such support, as the Roman
" mother may afford to yield and accord to you. Now
" go with our benediction and the blessing of God unto
" your chamber."
This day's meeting cometh to such end, that each one
betaketh him to rest.
CHAP. XLVI How Thomas resigned.
Eiríkr Magnússon. Thómas Saga Erkibyskups: A Life of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Icelandic. Cambridge University Press. pp. 305–. ISBN 978-1-108-04921-4.
The morning after the customs of king Henry were
condemned, as the pope sitteth with the cardinals in his
chamber, archbishop Thomas cometh in from without,
and prayeth for leave to speak. This being granted, he
goeth up, and falleth on his knee^ before the lord pope
with these words : —
" Ood demandeth from the christian that he speak
" the truth from heart and mouth ; and this it is our
" bounden duty to do every where, but most espe-
" cially so before your countenance, holy fiebther. I there-
" fore have to confess, that my miserable offence bringeth
" upon the holy church of Ood, the heavy troubles which
" she has now to endure in England ; for I did not enter
" by the right door into the fold of the holy church of
" God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ ; for I was called
" to this o£Sce and honour, not by a lawful election,
" but rather was I installed in this see by the overbear-
" ing will of the king. Thereby it came to pass,
" that I consented to this hard task against my will,
" rather for the sake of the king than my Creator.
" It is therefore nowise to be wondered at^ that many
" things go against me. Now although the manner
" of my entering into the divine office is right fear-
" ful to me, yet I dared not give the arch-see into the
" power of king Henry, urged though I was by my
" brethren to do so. But now, by the will of God, I
" have come to the place, where I may rightly deliver
" myself of this trouble. I therefore give my arch-
" see up into your power, holy &ther, that sinful and
" feeble that I am, I may not bring that flock into
" woful downfall, which I ought to lead towards eternal
" joy."
Having thus spoken, he draweth fixingHaving spoken thus, he walketh out of the room.
But the lord pope sitteth behind in tears as did most of
those who sat therewithin ; for such a sorrowful speech,
given forth and pronounced by such a man, might well
go to the heart of any good man. Those, too, who were
familiar friends of the holy Thomas have now fallen
into great sadness of heart, lest he should get no right-
ing of his affairs, they being moreover placed in a
foreign land, and therefore standing all the more in need
of comfort from Qod ; and that they soon get, as I shall
now relate.
The lord pope Alexander now setteth himself, with
the cardinals, to dealing with this matter and the dis-
sension between the king and the archbishop. And
forthwith there burst forth sundry proposals, some of the
cardinals saying that, belike, it must be most to the mind
of the king, that the ruler of Canterbury be changed, now
that Thomas had resigned of his firee will. They also sMy,
that it would be most likely to bring peace to himself,
if he were translated to another church. But those who
brought forward tliis counsel must have best known
themselves which they had most at heart, the presents
of the king of England, or the purchase of a settled
peace for the holy church. Against this stand other-
cardinals, saying :
" Shall this be right before Qod, that
" archbishop Thomas be reft of his dignity and office,
" because it is the will of king Heniy, having already
" had not only to forego fatherland and freedom, but
" also to encounter peril of life and limb, on account
" of the waylayings of his enemies? Or what will
" worldly lords then shortly say to the bishops, if
" this shall be allow^ to come to pass? what, but
" this that, whenever they shall be withstood in aught,
" they will command the bishops either to give up their
" honour, or to crouch before them ? Or who among the
" rulers of the holy church will be likely to undertake to off his hand the
" consecration ring, and handeth it to the lord pope, pray-
" ing him to choose another ruler for the church of Can-
" terbury, a stronger one in the godly warfare :
" For I never did choose for myself or bear the dignity
" and name of a bishop by duly ministering to that
" office."
" yield her an availing aid or wardship, if for that very
" protection which they afford her they must needs be
" tortured, both by the church and the power of the
" king? Unhealable harm and downfall shall then be
" the lot of the catholic church, if things shall be allowed
" to go on in such manner. It will, therefore, be clear to
" all good men, that no other way is lawful or com-
" mendable in this affair, than this one, that Thomas be
" restored to his full honour and dignity."
In this manner the cardinals strive among them ; for
the friends of king Henry pray the lord pope openly to
shape his course agreably to the will of the king. Yet,
none the less, the matter cometh, even according to the
will of God, to such an end that the lord pope ordereth
Thomas to be called in, when he thus speaketh to him:
" Now first becometh it manifest unto us, from thy
" faithful deeds, how praiseworthy a zeal thou hast
" shown and showest still on beha]^ of the laws of the
" church, and the church itself, and the clergy. We have
" also heard how pure a confession thou hast made of
" thy election. And, moreover, thou hast of thy own
" free will given thy office up into our hand. We have
" therefore determined, in the name of God and the holy
" apostles, Peter and Paul, to deliver the arch-see of
" Canterbury again into your hand with unshorn
" honour, power, and dignity."
With these words the lord pope giveth to the blessed
Thomas again the consecration ring, in token of archi-
episcopal honour and dignity, thus speaking to him :
" Inasmuch as we are brothers in tihe matter of banish-
" ment, let us go in fellowship together, God permit-
" ting, while we are both alive. But because you
" have long led a merry life, it seemeth to us right
" fitting that, in your trials and longsuffering, which
" you must needs endure for the name of God, you
" should become father and fellow of poor folk; we
" name for you, therefore, a dwelling-stead in Pontigny,
" that you live there after hennit fashion with the
" Grey-Friars there ministering. Lay aside the greater
" costs, but let a few familiar clerks and attendants
" accompany you, and abide the day which God shall
" send for our peace and rest"
In such way come to an end the affaira of holy Thomas
at the pope's court, that he receiveth apostolic bless-
ing, and rideth to Pontigny with no greater following
of people than the pope had signified. The other folk
of his suite betake themselves to such places as he
himself ordaineth. But though all the others are scat-
tered about, yet master Herbert of Bosham may be
named as one who parteth not from archbishop Thomas ;
for between them there was a dear love, as has been
read afore. And it was but fitting that he should always
be in fellowship with the archbishop, since it was he who
afterwards was to write many things concerning his trials
and his glorious life, and these the more truthfully, the
better it was known to him how they had come to
pass.
