Soon
after the death of Thomas
Becket,
Pope Alexander canonised him and the murdered priest was elevated
to sainthood. Becket's shrine at Canterbury now became the most important
place in the country for pilgrims to visit.
When
Becket was killed, local people apparently managed to obtain pieces
of cloth soaked in his blood. Rumours soon spread that, when touched
by this cloth, people were cured of blindness, epilepsy and leprosy.
It was not long before the monks at Canterbury Priory were selling
small glass bottles of Becket's blood to visitors. The keeper of the
shrine would also give the pilgrim a metal badge that had been stamped
with the symbol of the shrine.
The
monks were afraid that Becket's body might be stolen. To prevent this
from happening, Becket's marble coffin was placed in the crypt of
the cathedral. The monks also built a stone wall in front of the tomb.
There were two gaps in the wall where pilgrims could insert their
heads and kiss the tomb.
In
1220, Becket's bones were moved to a new gold-plated and bejewelled
shrine behind the high altar. The shrine was placed on a raised platform
supported by pillars. Canterbury, because of its religious history,
had always seen a large number
of pilgrims. However, after the death of Thomas Becket, the number
of pilgrims visiting the town grew rapidly.
(1)
List of some of the relics held at St. Omer's Church in 1346.
A piece
of Our Lord's Cross... Pieces of the Lord's tomb... A piece of the
Lord's cradle... Some of the hairs of St. Mary. A piece of her robe...
Part of St Thomas of Canterbury's tunic. Part of his chair. Shavings
from the top of his head. Part of the blanket that covered him, and
part of his woollen shirt... part of his hair shirt. Some of his blood.
(2)
Benedict of Peterborough described what happened after the death of
Thomas Becket. (c. 1175)
Some of
the blood was carefully and cleanly collected and poured into a dean
vessel and kept in the church.
(3)
Gervase of Canterbury, The Deeds of Kings (c.1210)
(Henry II) returned to
England (1174)... he set out with a sad heart to the tomb of St. Thomas
at Canterbury... he walked barefoot and clad in a woollen smock all
the way to the martyr's tomb. There he lay and of his free will was
whipped by
all the bishops and abbots there present and each individual monk
of the church of Canterbury.
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