November – Becket excommunicates three bishops.[3]
1 December – Becket controversy: Henry II sends word that his conflict with Becket is at an end, and his lands will be restored. Becket returns to England, landing at Sandwich, Kent.
25 December – Becket preaches in Canterbury Cathedral.
17 April – Henry leaves Ireland, having received the support of the Church and princes for his claim.[1]
21 May – in Avranches Cathedral, Henry II performs a ceremony of penance for the death of Becket. This leads to the Compromise of Avranches which absolves him from censure for the murder and ends the Becket controversy, reconciling him with the papacy.[5]
Henry II and Humbert III, Count of Savoy, agree to the marriage of their respective heirs, John and Alicia, although the Revolt of 1173–1174 and death of Alicia prevent this from taking place.[3]
1173
21 February – canonisation of Thomas Becket; his tomb at Canterbury becomes a shrine and popular pilgrimage destination.[1]
March – Henry the Young King withdraws to the French court, marking the beginning of the Revolt of 1173–1174, a dispute between Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine and three of their sons over the territories they control. Eleanor is placed under de facto house arrest. William I of Scotland invades the North of England in support of the rebellion.[8]
^Turner, Ralph; Heiser, Richard (2013). The Reign of Richard Lionheart: ruler of the Angevin empire, 1189-99. London: Routledge; Taylor and Francis. p. 57. ISBN978-1-317-8904-23.