The murder of Thomas à Becket, Canterbury Cathedral, 29 December 1170
From an original engraving Cassell's history of England circa 1898. Info from wiki: Upon hearing reports of Becket's actions, Henry is said to have uttered words that were interpreted by his men as wishing Becket killed.[10] The king's exact words are in doubt and several versions have been reported.[11] The most commonly quoted, as handed down by oral tradition, is "Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?",[12] but according to historian Simon Schama this is incorrect: he accepts the account of the contemporary biographer Edward Grim, writing in Latin, who gives us "What miserable drones and traitors have I nourished and brought up in my household, who let their lord be treated with such shameful contempt by a low-born cleric?"[13] Many variations have found their way into popular culture. Whatever Henry said, it was interpreted as a royal command, and four knights,[10] Reginald FitzUrse, Hugh de Morville, William de Tracy and Richard le Breton,[1] set out to confront the Archbishop of Canterbury.
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