Today in history: December 29 | Archbishop brutally murdered on King's orders
On December 29, 1170, the Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket was murdered by four of King Henry II's knights - seemingly on orders from the King.
Becket was first a skilled diplomat who won the trust of the King and was appointed as Chancellor in 1155.
He became archbishop in 1162, which marked the beginning of the end for Becket, as he quickly became a problem for the reigning monarch.
At Becket's appointment, King Henry hoped that he, as his close personal friend, would help in his efforts to cull the growing power of the church in England at the time.
Instead, the bishop was a devoted defender of the Chuch's powers and jurisdiction.
He became so outspoken that he was forced to flee to France amid fears that Henry would retaliate against him in 1164.
Six years later he reconciled with the King and returned to Canterbury to the public's joy.
But soon tensions between the pair started bubbling yet again when, despite objections from the pope, Henry had his son crowned his co-king by the Bishop of York.
Tensions came to a head, and the King issued a public plea to his court, which seemingly inspired four knights to take Becket's life.
The plea read: "What a parcel of fools and dastards have I nourished in my house, and not one of them will avenge me of this one upstart clerk."
Finally, after nearly a decade of tension, Beckett was murdered on December 29, 1170.
On December 29, 1994, cricket icon Shane Warne took his first and only hat-trick in Test cricket at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The hat-trick happened in the second innings of the Boxing Day Test against England.
Before his death, Warne recalled the memorable moment to the Sydney Morning Herald.
"My first and only Test hat-trick was at the MCG," Warne said.
"It was David Boon's birthday … and he took the final catch, to remove Devon Malcolm.
"It happened in England's second innings as we moved in for the kill in what was another dominant Test for Australia."
On this day in 2022, Brazilian football legend Pelé died.
In his time playing for Brazil he became the most famous athlete in the world, cementing his legacy as the greatest footballer to ever live.
Pele played as part of the Brazilian national teams that won three World Cup Championships in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
He scored 1279 goals across 1363 matches, which is still recognised as a Guinness World Record.
He passed away aged 82 in 2022 after a long battle with cancer.
London suffered devastating damage when Nazi Germany dropped targeted bombs on the city on December 29, 1940.
The bombing, described as "second great fire of London", killed 160 civilians and 14 firefighters.
While the rest of the city crumbled, St Pauls Cathedral miraculously survived the raid.
The image of the building standing tall among the smoke became a symbol of Britain's indomitable spirit during the Second World War.
On December 29, 1937, the new constitution of the Irish Free State came into effect, giving the country its new name: Ireland.
It also meant the country was a newly independent republic, and was only associated with the British Commonwealth through matters of external policy.
Share a tip-off, video or photo with us
