Historical and legal controversy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Historical and legal controversy - Essay Example In the correct context, it was expected that Thomas becket would have used his appointive position to defend the royal affairs, on the contrary, he began to champion for ecclesiastical rights. Specifically, there was the question of how the clergy who committed crimes were supposed to be dealt with. In the conventional world and sense, one would have expected that all clerics who took minor orders were supposed to be subjected to secular rigour and law when on the wrong. This was due to the fact that the so called minor clerics constituted up to one fifth of the population (Knowles, 9). In principle, it implies that one fifth of the population could have been spared from secular authority and instead be subjected to ecclesiastical hierarchy and judges. As a matter of fact, this situation whereby the clerics were to be tried under the ecclesiastical laws regardless of the nature of their crime is called the benefit of the clergy. According to Thomas Becket, all the clergy were suppose d to enjoy the benefit of the clergy regardless of their position in the hierarchy or hegemony of clerical service King Henry on the other hand believed that the proposition by his former ally turned nemesis that the clerics were to be excused from secular regimes of law was going to undercut his authority. In retrospect, the King opposed the position taken by the archbishop, thus controversy and discomfort did set in as a result. Another dispute arose when Thomas Becket endeavored to recover lost land that did belong to the diocese with a royal writ. In the long end, he made a lot of recoveries of land some of which were done in a high-handed manner. The subjects then took matter up with the king and it also contributed to the long standing dispute (Plucknett, 6). At one point, the archbishop, Thomas Becket tried to install a clerk or a clerical officer in a land