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Why did Henry II perform public penance at Canterbury in 1174?

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King Henry II and St. Thomas Becket — Henry II Henry II (left) disputing with Thomas Becket (center), miniature from a 14th-century manuscript; in the British Library (Cotton MS. Claudius D.ii).

Henry II performed public penance at Canterbury in 1174 as an act of reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church following the murder of Thomas Becket.1

The conflict between the King and the Archbishop, who had been a former close companion, centered on issues of ecclesiastical authority and the jurisdiction of church courts over "criminous clerks". After years of bitter dispute and Becket's exile, Henry’s frustrated outburst in Normandy—where he expressed anger over Becket's continued defiance—incited four of his knights to travel to England and murder the archbishop in Canterbury Cathedral on December 29, 1170.12

Following the assassination, Becket was widely venerated as a saint and martyr. To distance himself from the crime and restore his standing with the church, Henry repudiated responsibility for the murder and eventually submitted to public penance, which included allowing the monks of Canterbury to scourge him.21