City in the south east of England; the seat of England’s senior archbishopArchbishop Bishop who also presides over a group of dioceses or provinces., who is also bishopBishop Bishops exercised pastoral care over a diocese and authority to confirm and ordain of the dioceseDiocese A geographical area composed of a number of parishes, under the administrative and spiritual jurisdiction of a Bishop. of CanterburyCanterbury City in the south east of England; the seat of England's senior archbishop, who is also bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. It was here that St Augustine of Canterbury (d.609), who had been sent by Pope Gregory the Great to convert the English in 597, established his ecclesiastical headquarters. In the Anglo-Saxon period Canterbury's monasteries were places of learning and artistry. After the Norman Conquest the cathedral was magnificently rebuilt by Archbishop Lanfranc and embellished by Archbishop Anselm. The martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170 added to the cathedral's prominence as a place of pilgrimage and the east end of the church was dramatically remodelled in the Gothic style.. It was here that St Augustine of CanterburyAugustine of Canterbury, St (d. 604/5) Sent from Rome by Gregory the Great to convert the English. First Archbishop of Canterbury. (d.609), who had been sent by PopePope Head of the medieval church in the West. Used as a title preceding the name of the Bishop of Rome, the head of the Roman Catholic Church Gregory the Great to convert the English in 597, established his ecclesiasticalEcclesiastical Relating to the church. headquarters. In the Anglo-Saxon period Canterbury’s monasteries were places of learning and artistry. After the Norman ConquestNorman Conquest The conquest of the English through the defeat of the Anglo-Saxon king Harold Godwinson by William Duke of Normandy at Hastings in October 1066 the cathedralCathedral (Latin cathedra' throne') Church which contains the throne of the bishop and hence the mother church of the diocese was magnificently rebuilt by Archbishop Lanfranc and embellished by Archbishop Anselm. The martyrdomMartyrdom (From Greek martus 'witness'). Death as direct result of allegiance to, or in defence of, a religious faith. See Martyr of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170 added to the cathedral’s prominence as a place of pilgrimage and the east end of the church was dramatically remodelled in the Gothic style.