Why did Henry II do penance at Canterbury after Thomas Becket’s murder?

King Henry II performed penance at Canterbury to reconcile himself with the church following the murder of Thomas Becket in 1170.1

Although Henry had publicly repudiated responsibility for the killing—which was incited by his own angry outbursts in the presence of four knights—the event caused a massive public outcry, and Becket was almost immediately venerated as a saint and martyr. By undergoing this public act of penance, which included allowing monks to scourge him, Henry sought to demonstrate his contrition, restore his standing with the ecclesiastical authorities, and distance himself from the actions of the knights who had carried out the assassination in Canterbury Cathedral.12