Thomas Becket. Brev, vennskap, nettverk

Abstract

What support did Thomas Becket have for his actions against king Henry and his foes in the church? Was he an embarrasment as Frank Barlow claimed, or did he on the contrary have many important allied in the papal curia, as Anne Duggan alleges? In this innovative network analysis, the 329 letters in «Thomas Becket. Archbishop of Canterbury 1162-1170« is examined to try to give a full picture of what support Becket received. I do this while I at the same time compare my findings to earlier claims by Barlow and Duggan, as well as Julian Haseldine, D.J.A Matthew, Beryl Smalley, and David Knowles. The support is categorized in three different parts: Material support, information/advice, and political support. The most innovative of these three are the category «information/advice», where I take a largely quantitative approach to see where Becket got information, and how oral information by the messengers was used. Other important findings relates to the low amount of gifts Becket received, the split in labour between John of Salisbury and Thomas Becket, as well as the restrained political support Becket received from the curia. I also analyze a seemingly low amount of trust between Becket and the curia.