St Thomas Becket and King Henry VIII

Today is the feast of the martyrdom of St Thomas of Canterbury.

A recent post by Stephanie A. Mann at Supremacy and Survival: The English Reformation
dealt with the fact that it was the destruction of the shrine of St Thomas that was the last straw for Pope Paul III and led to the publication of the excommunication of King Henry VIII. It can be viewed at St. Thomas a Becket and the Long Delayed Excommunication of Henry VIII

There is a useful account by J.C.Wall from his Shrines of British Saints, published in 1905, of the shrine and its decoration, with contemporary illustrations and descriptions as well as an account of the Translation of the relics in 1220 which can be accessed at http://www.historyfish.net/shrines/cw_shrines_four4.html#thomas

The Shrine of St. Thomas of Canterbury.   

Cottonian MS., Tib. E. viii. f. 269.

Image:http://www.historyfish.net/shrines/cw_shrines_four4.html#thomas

Stephanie Mann  has posted today about the events of December 29th 1170 and contemporary reactions to St Thomas in The Murder in the Cathedral