responsible, not for aggravating royal harshness, but for restraining it. Cardinal Bourchier died at Knole on 30 March 1486 and Henry VII prevailed upon the monks of Canterbury to elect Morton as his successor as Archbishop of Canterbury. The pope signified his agreement to this appointment by a bull dated 6 October and Morton was enthroned on 21 January 1487. After much pressure from Henry VII, he was made a cardinal on 20 September 1493. With the support of the papacy, Morton pursued reform of religious houses such as the Abbey of St Albans and the Cluniac house of St Andrew’s, Northampton. He was not accused of personal aggrandisement but he sought to defend the traditional prerogatives of the Archbishop of Canterbury and he defended the jurisdiction of the archbishop’s courts over wills where the testator had substantial goods in more than one diocese. As he had done when he was Bishop of Ely, Morton engaged in various building works while he was Archbishop of Canterbury. Cardinal Bourchier had left the manor of Knole to the see of Canterbury in 1480 and Morton carried out repairs and improvements of what was to be one of his favourite residences as archbishop. At Lambeth Palace, which was his principal residence, he built the brick gatehouse, and he also rebuilt or added to his residences at Croydon, Maidstone, Charing, Ford (near Reculver), Allington (modern Aldington) and the palace at Canterbury. Morton’s crowning achievement as archbishop in terms of building works was the completion of the central crossing tower of Canterbury Cathedral, known as Bell Harry Tower. This was initially built as a simple lantern tower, like that at York, but in around 1494 it was decided to add an extra fifty feet to the tower and the exterior stonework bears Morton’s rebus – a falcon or ‘mort’ perched on a cask or ‘tun’ – as evidence of his involvement. Morton’s legacy Morton died at Knole on 15 September 1500. A London chronicler said that he was:a man worthi of memory for his many greate Actes and specially for his greate wisdom, which contynued to the tyme of his Discease, passyng the yeres of iiijxx and odde; in our tyme was no man lyke to be compared wt him in all thynges; Albeit that he lyved not wtoute the greate Disdayn and greate haterede of the Comons of this land The mention of the