Like many Norman religious establishments, the Archbishopric of Rouen benefited from the generosity of the duke-kings in England. This deed of Henry the Second (Henry Plantagenet) confirms its title to the estate of Bentworth (in north-east Hampshire) which had been granted to it by his grandfather, Henry the First, and where it receives payment for the administration of justice. The document is sealed with a double-sided seal, following the model introduced by William the Conqueror. The obverse depicts the king in majesty holding a sword in one hand and the globe mounted by a cross and a bird, while the reverse shows him on horseback, holding a sword in his right hand and a shield close to his body in his left hand, in a typical mounted combat pose. The onlookers include Thomas Becket, who was then chancellor.
Charter of Henry the Second (Henry Plantagenet) granting the estate of Bentworth to Rouen Cathedral
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