A substantial feud began between the two almost immediately after Becket was (warily, since he knew his policies as Archbishop would clash with Henry’s views about the relation between church and state) appointed to the position of Chancellor by Henry. At the time, the Catholic Church was experiencing significant growth in power in comparison to the English crown, and Becket rigorously defended its rights as a political institution, refusing to budge under Henry II’s authority. The play is based on the murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket by four knights under King Henry II in Canterbury, England, 1170.
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