Ghanima Atreides (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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fandomhigh2023-11-01 01:33 pm
atreideslioness) wrote in fandomhigh2023-11-01 01:33 pm
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The History of Assassination. Wednesday, First Period [11/01]
"First off, welcome back, everyone. I'm glad you survived last week. Now, let's start off with the homework I assigned last class -- did anyone undertake an information-gathering surveillance mission, or an assassination of one of the televisions? I'm interested in hearing how it went, successful or not, and what you feel you learned from the exercise."
Once the students had finished with whatever results they had to share, she nodded. "Excellent. Thank you, everyone, on your efforts over the last week."
"Now, on to this class. As the Middle Ages came about from the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the moral and ethical dimensions of what was before a simple political tool began to take shape." Ghanima gave a cheerful shrug. "Ethics! Not this class, and not really our concern."
"Although in that period intentional regicide was an extremely rare occurrence, the situation changed dramatically with the Renaissance when the ideas of tyrannomachy" she scrawled the word large across a wipeboard before resuming her usual pacing, "-- the killing of a King when his rule became tyrannical -- re-emerged and gained recognition. Several European monarchs and other leading figures were assassinated during religious wars or by religious opponents, for example Henry III and Henry IV of France, and the Protestant Dutch leader, William the Silent. There were also many unsuccessful assassination plots against rulers such as Elizabeth I of England by religious opponents."
"And this is also where assassination entered the religious sphere for the first major, recorded time, in European history," she said, striding to the board to write across it:
"Yes, you heard that correctly. The king of England in 1170 CE did not speak English. Borders were fluid things at that time, and he controlled vast areas outside of England -- substantial parts of Wales and Ireland, and much of France; including Normandy, Aquitaine and Anjou -- an area that altogether was later called the Angevin Empire -- and also held power over Scotland and the Duchy of Brittany." She smiled at the class. "You may make jokes about England's colonialist tendencies after class."
"Now, what prompted this outburst?" Ghanima asked rhetorically. "Well, a series of events so unprecidented, that they came to be known as The Becket Controversy, because such a clash had never been witnessed before. The dispute concerned the respective rights of crown and church. The king attempted to reassert royal prerogatives and the archbishop resisted. A significant point of contention was jurisdiction over criminal cases regarding clerics, even if only in minor orders."
"Thomas Becket, Henry II's chancellor, was originally promoted to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury by King Henry II of England in 1162 CE because Becket was part of the King's personal counsel and was also a major supporter of the King's claims on French land. Now, Henry hoped that by appointing his chancellor, with whom he had very good relations, royal supremacy over the English Church would be reasserted, and royal rights over the Church would return to what they had been in the days of Henry's grandfather, King Henry I of England."
"Unfortunately for Henry, Becket actually found religion," she said dryly. "The new archbishop resigned the chancellorship and changed his entire lifestyle. Previously, Becket had lived ostentatiously, but he now wore a cilice and lived like an ascetic. He no longer aided the king in defending royal interests in the church, but instead began to champion ecclesiastical rights."
"Although a number of small conflicts contributed to the original clashes, the main source of conflict was over what to do with clergy who committed secular crimes. Because even those men who took minor orders were considered clergy, the quarrel over the so-called "criminous clerks" potentially covered up to one-fifth of the male population of England at the time. Becket held the position that all clergy, whether only in minor orders or not, were not to be dealt with by secular powers, and that only the ecclesiastical hierarchy could judge them for crimes, even those that were secular in nature. Henry, however, felt that this position deprived him of the ability to govern effectively, and also undercut law and order in England. Henry held that the laws and customs of England supported his position, and that Theobald of Bec, the previous archbishop, had admitted in 1154 to the papacy that the English custom was to allow secular courts to try clerks accused of crimes." Ghanima shook her head. "It spiraled from there."
"Henry made the aforementioned outburst on Christmas 1170 at his castle at Bures, Normandy, at the height of the Becket controversy. He had just been informed that Becket had excommunicated a number of bishops supportive of the king, including the Archbishop of York."
"While the quote was not expressed as an order, it prompted four knights —Reginald FitzUrse, Hugh de Morville, William de Tracy and Richard le Breton— to travel from Normandy to Canterbury,with the intention of forcing Becket to withdraw his excommunication, or, alternatively, taking him back to Normandy by force. The day after their arrival, they confronted Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. When Becket resisted their attempts to seize him, they attempted to threaten him with their swords, and in a genuine accident, they killed Becket." Ghanima shook her head sadly. "An accidental assassination, to be sure, but an assassination nonetheless."
"Although nobody, even at the time, believed that Henry directly ordered that Becket be killed, his words had started a chain of events that was likely to have such a result. Moreover, as Henry's harangue had been directed not at Becket, but at his own household, the four probably thought that a failure to act would be regarded as treachery, potentially punishable by death."
"Following the murder, Becket was venerated and Henry was vilified. There were demands that the king be excommunicated. Pope Alexander forbade Henry to hear Mass until he had expiated his sin. In May 1172, Henry did public penance in Avranches Cathedral. The four knights subsequently fled to Scotland and from there to Knaresborough Castle in Yorkshire. All four were excommunicated by Pope Alexander in 1171 during Easter and ordered to undertake penitentiary pilgrimages to the Holy Land for 14 years."
"Today, the phrase is commonly used in modern-day contexts to express that a ruler's wish may be interpreted as a command by his or her subordinates. It is also commonly understood as shorthand for any rhetorical device allowing leaders to organize or exhort violence among their followers, either directly or indirectly, while retaining a respectable distance for political, legal, or other reasons."
Once the students had finished with whatever results they had to share, she nodded. "Excellent. Thank you, everyone, on your efforts over the last week."
"Now, on to this class. As the Middle Ages came about from the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the moral and ethical dimensions of what was before a simple political tool began to take shape." Ghanima gave a cheerful shrug. "Ethics! Not this class, and not really our concern."
"Although in that period intentional regicide was an extremely rare occurrence, the situation changed dramatically with the Renaissance when the ideas of tyrannomachy" she scrawled the word large across a wipeboard before resuming her usual pacing, "-- the killing of a King when his rule became tyrannical -- re-emerged and gained recognition. Several European monarchs and other leading figures were assassinated during religious wars or by religious opponents, for example Henry III and Henry IV of France, and the Protestant Dutch leader, William the Silent. There were also many unsuccessful assassination plots against rulers such as Elizabeth I of England by religious opponents."
"And this is also where assassination entered the religious sphere for the first major, recorded time, in European history," she said, striding to the board to write across it:
Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?"You may have heard the quote as 'Will no one rid me of this troublesome priest?' due to the 1964 film adding the phrase to our collective subconscious," Ghanima said cheerfully. "Though there are many versions of the line, due to the fact the person who said it -- Henry II of England -- only spoke Latin and French, and thus translations abound."
"Yes, you heard that correctly. The king of England in 1170 CE did not speak English. Borders were fluid things at that time, and he controlled vast areas outside of England -- substantial parts of Wales and Ireland, and much of France; including Normandy, Aquitaine and Anjou -- an area that altogether was later called the Angevin Empire -- and also held power over Scotland and the Duchy of Brittany." She smiled at the class. "You may make jokes about England's colonialist tendencies after class."
"Now, what prompted this outburst?" Ghanima asked rhetorically. "Well, a series of events so unprecidented, that they came to be known as The Becket Controversy, because such a clash had never been witnessed before. The dispute concerned the respective rights of crown and church. The king attempted to reassert royal prerogatives and the archbishop resisted. A significant point of contention was jurisdiction over criminal cases regarding clerics, even if only in minor orders."
"Thomas Becket, Henry II's chancellor, was originally promoted to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury by King Henry II of England in 1162 CE because Becket was part of the King's personal counsel and was also a major supporter of the King's claims on French land. Now, Henry hoped that by appointing his chancellor, with whom he had very good relations, royal supremacy over the English Church would be reasserted, and royal rights over the Church would return to what they had been in the days of Henry's grandfather, King Henry I of England."
"Unfortunately for Henry, Becket actually found religion," she said dryly. "The new archbishop resigned the chancellorship and changed his entire lifestyle. Previously, Becket had lived ostentatiously, but he now wore a cilice and lived like an ascetic. He no longer aided the king in defending royal interests in the church, but instead began to champion ecclesiastical rights."
"Although a number of small conflicts contributed to the original clashes, the main source of conflict was over what to do with clergy who committed secular crimes. Because even those men who took minor orders were considered clergy, the quarrel over the so-called "criminous clerks" potentially covered up to one-fifth of the male population of England at the time. Becket held the position that all clergy, whether only in minor orders or not, were not to be dealt with by secular powers, and that only the ecclesiastical hierarchy could judge them for crimes, even those that were secular in nature. Henry, however, felt that this position deprived him of the ability to govern effectively, and also undercut law and order in England. Henry held that the laws and customs of England supported his position, and that Theobald of Bec, the previous archbishop, had admitted in 1154 to the papacy that the English custom was to allow secular courts to try clerks accused of crimes." Ghanima shook her head. "It spiraled from there."
"Henry made the aforementioned outburst on Christmas 1170 at his castle at Bures, Normandy, at the height of the Becket controversy. He had just been informed that Becket had excommunicated a number of bishops supportive of the king, including the Archbishop of York."
"While the quote was not expressed as an order, it prompted four knights —Reginald FitzUrse, Hugh de Morville, William de Tracy and Richard le Breton— to travel from Normandy to Canterbury,with the intention of forcing Becket to withdraw his excommunication, or, alternatively, taking him back to Normandy by force. The day after their arrival, they confronted Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. When Becket resisted their attempts to seize him, they attempted to threaten him with their swords, and in a genuine accident, they killed Becket." Ghanima shook her head sadly. "An accidental assassination, to be sure, but an assassination nonetheless."
"Although nobody, even at the time, believed that Henry directly ordered that Becket be killed, his words had started a chain of events that was likely to have such a result. Moreover, as Henry's harangue had been directed not at Becket, but at his own household, the four probably thought that a failure to act would be regarded as treachery, potentially punishable by death."
"Following the murder, Becket was venerated and Henry was vilified. There were demands that the king be excommunicated. Pope Alexander forbade Henry to hear Mass until he had expiated his sin. In May 1172, Henry did public penance in Avranches Cathedral. The four knights subsequently fled to Scotland and from there to Knaresborough Castle in Yorkshire. All four were excommunicated by Pope Alexander in 1171 during Easter and ordered to undertake penitentiary pilgrimages to the Holy Land for 14 years."
"Today, the phrase is commonly used in modern-day contexts to express that a ruler's wish may be interpreted as a command by his or her subordinates. It is also commonly understood as shorthand for any rhetorical device allowing leaders to organize or exhort violence among their followers, either directly or indirectly, while retaining a respectable distance for political, legal, or other reasons."
During the Lecture