Shortly afterward, a much more serious quarrel broke out between the
King and the Archbishop. Under the law made by William the Conqueror,
the Church had the right to try in its own courts all offenses
committed by monks and priests (S118). This privilege, in time, led
to great abuses, since even in cases of the commission of the gravest
crimes the Church had no direct power to inflict the penalty of
death. On the contrary, the heaviest sentence it could give was
imprisonment in a monastery, with degradation from the clerical
office; while in less serious cases the offenders generally got off
with fasting and flogging.
On this account some criminals who deserved to be hanged escaped with
a comparatively slight penalty. Such a case now occurred. In one
instance a priest had committed an unprovoked murder. Henry commanded
him to be brought before the Kings' court; Becket interfered, and
ordered the case to be tried by the bishop of the diocese. The bishop
simply sentenced the murderer to lose his place for two years.