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Things you probably didn't know about Canterbury

Pilgrims, murder and the birth of English literature.

  1. 1170 — fact 1 of 4

    A saint murdered in the cathedral

    The 1170 murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral made it one of medieval Europe’s great pilgrimage sites.

  2. 1387 — fact 2 of 4

    Chaucer’s pilgrims were heading here

    The Canterbury Tales, written in the 1380s–90s, follows pilgrims telling stories on the road to Becket’s shrine.

  3. 597 — fact 3 of 4

    England’s oldest school?

    The King’s School, Canterbury, traces its origins to St Augustine’s arrival in 597.

  4. 1564 — fact 4 of 4

    Marlowe was born here

    Christopher Marlowe, Shakespeare’s great rival, was born and baptised in Canterbury in 1564 — the same year as Shakespeare.

Our Canterbury collection is part of a growing local-history library — more cities and facts are being added.

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