Details

Subject(s)

• Thomas à Becket, Saint 1118?-1170—Exhibitions [Browse]
• Church and state—Catholic Church—History—To 1500 [Browse]
• Great Britain—History—Henry II, 1154-1189 [Browse]
• Christian saints—England—Biography [Browse]
• Christian martyrs—England—Canterbury—Biography [Browse]
• Statesmen—England—Biography [Browse]

Author

Speakman, Naomi [Browse]

• Speakman, Naomi [Browse]
• Koopmans, Rachel [Browse]
• British Museum [Browse]

Contributor

Koopmans, Rachel [Browse]

Host institution

British Museum [Browse]

Library of Congress genre(s)

• Exhibition catalogs [Browse]
• Biographies [Browse]

Getty AAT genre

• exhibition catalogs [Browse]

Summary note

• On 29 December 1170, Becket was assassinated in Canterbury Cathedral by four knights with close ties to King Henry II, an act that left Medieval Europe reeling. Becket was one of the most powerful figures of his time, serving as royal chancellor and later as Archbishop of Canterbury. Initially a close friend of Henry, the two men became engaged in a bitter dispute that culminated in his violent and public death - an event that sent shockwaves across Europe and caused an immense political fallout. Marking the 850th anniversary of his brutal murder, this special exhibition presents Becket's tumultuous journey from a merchant's son to an archbishop, and from a revered saint in death to a 'traitor' in the eyes of Henry VIII more than 350 years later. Get up close to the man, the murder and the legend through an incredible array of objects associated with Becket ; from illuminated manuscripts, some of which include eyewitness accounts of the murder, to jewellery and sacred reliquaries. The exhibition features objects from the British Museum collection as well as important loans from major collections across the UK and Europe, including an entire medieval stained glass window on loan for the first time from Canterbury Cathedral. Exhibition : British Museum, London, UK (20.04.- 22.08.2021).
• "The murder of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral on 29 December 1170 sent shockwaves across medieval Europe. He rose from ordinary beginnings in London to become chancellor to King Henry II and then Archbishop of Canterbury, making him one of the most powerful men in England. Becket's fortunes changed when a bitter dispute with Henry forced him into a six-year exile. Less than a month after his return to England, he was killed by four knights with close ties to the king. In the wake of Becket's death, hundreds of miracles were attributed to him and, just over two years later, he was canonised. All across Europe he was celebrated as a defender of the Church against royal tyranny. Lloyd de Beer and Naomi Speakman tell the story of Becket's dramatic life, death and legacy through a stunning array of objects, including medieval stained glass, manuscripts, jewellery and sacred reliquaries. They reveal Canterbury Cathedral's transformation into one of Europe's most popular pilgrimage destinations. Over the centuries pilgrims visited Becket's shrine in their thousands, a journey famously reimagined by Geoffrey Chaucer in 'The Canterbury Tales'. A dedicated section by Rachel Koopmans, which features groundbreaking new research, delves deeper into Becket's miracle stories though the lens of one of the stained-glass miracle windows from the cathedral. The cult of Thomas Becket endured in spite of the English Reformation, during which his shrine at Canterbury was dramatically destroyed and his image and name outlawed. From twelfth-century London to the Tudor court, this magnificent book takes you through the twists and turns of one of the most remakable stories of the Middle Ages."--Taken from back cover.

Notes

"This publication accompanies the exhibition 'Thomas Becket : murder and the making of a saint' at the British Museum from 22 April to 22 August 2021."--Title page verso.

Bibliographic references

Includes bibliographical references (pages 264-265) and index.

Contents

• Director's foreword
• List of lenders
• Introduction
• 1. Rise : From Cheapside to the royal court
• 2. Fall : Exile, murder, canonisation
• 3. Reactions, rebellion and the death of a king
• 4. Canterbury Cathedral transformed. The fifth window of Canterbury's Thomas Becket cycle : new readings / Rachel Koopmans
• 5. Becket's shadow : England in the aftermath of the murder
• 6. 'A wonderous tale' : Becket as legend
• 7. 'From every shires ende'
• 8. Becket and the Tudors
• Legacy
• Notes
• Select bibliography
• Acknowledgements
• Picture credits
• Index.

Show 14 more Contents items

ISBN

• 9780714128382 ((hardcover))
• 0714128384 ((hardcover))

OCLC

1242858750

RCP

C - S

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