Edward the Confessor

Chapter 4 shows how during John’s reign the baronial opposition appropriated the figure of the recently canonized Edward the Confessor, and used him as a standard against which to judge the current king. A key part was played by the London Collection of the Leges Anglorum, which compiled and in important respects elaborated and extended the compilations of Old English law codes made during the twelfth century. The Collection informed opposition thinking prior to the crisis which produced Magna Carta. The chapter also subjects to minute analysis two very unusual episodes recorded in thirteenth-century annals of provincial churches. First, the St Augustine’s, Canterbury account of Duke William’s having allowed the men of Kent, uniquely, to continue to use Old English Laws and customs. This episode is supposed to have taken place at Swanscombe Down in 1066. The second is the Burton Abbey account of what purports to be a dialogue between King John and a papal legate, allegedly in 1211. The nub of the dialogue is a disagreement about the role of Edward the Confessor. The chapter then shows how Henry III re-appropriated St Edward for the royal cause, but by emphasizing his saintliness rather than his alleged legislation. Henry focussed on the development of the cult, expressed in liturgical, artistic, and architectural terms, and focussed on the rebuilt Westminster Abbey. The chapter concludes with a brief envoi on the later medieval expression of the cult, especially under Richard II.

Betrayal

This chapter begins by mentioning the Vita, which paints a picture of Edward the Confessor enjoying peaceful pursuits while delegating military tasks to his commanders Harold and Tostig. It analyzes how Edward liked to delegate in accordance with contemporary guidance on kingship with Harold and Tostig as his deputies. It talks about Edward's policy to let Harold and Tostig build their empires, so that they would take better care of his. The chapter looks into Tostig's dealings with the Scots that had been effective in the eight years he had occupied the northern earldom. It describes how Tostig negotiated a truce with Malcolm and brought him to submit to Edward with the aid of the northern bishops.

Introduction

This chapter provides a background on the reign of Edward the Confessor, which was followed by the Norman Conquest that intensified the spotlight on his performance. It confirms whether Edward was a weak king who doomed England by promising it first to William then Harold. The chapter begins with events on how Edward obtained the throne in ruthless times and held it almost twenty-four years from 1042 to 1066. The chapter also analyzes whether Edward's survival was due more to luck or judgement or whether he merely occupied the throne or made his reign a success. It describes the era of Edward, when a king was regarded as successful if he ruled justly enough not to be called a tyrant, held his kingdom in relative peace, and passed it safely to an heir.

Conclusion

This chapter analyzes how Edward the Confessor strived for the throne and how he was ruled by his in-laws. It points out that Edward regarded the throne as a birthright that he strived for and obtained. It talks about the decades spent awaiting Edward's inheritance that translated into a conscientious ethic of service. The chapter explains Edward's preference for peace for himself and his neighbors, which is an indication of how suffering left him with little appetite for harshness and with a need to cling to favourites. It mentions the innovative systems he implemented for defending the coast and the Welsh march as well as the work he has done for the military and spiritual safeguarding of his subjects. It also looks into Edward's response to reform the papacy with practical initiatives.

Edward the Confessor

One of the last kings of Anglo-Saxon England, Edward the Confessor regained the throne for the House of Wessex and is the only English monarch to have been canonized. Often cast as a reluctant ruler, easily manipulated by his in-laws, he has been blamed for causing the invasion of 1066—the last successful conquest of England by a foreign power. This book navigates the contemporary webs of political deceit to present a strikingly different Edward. He was a compassionate man and conscientious ruler, whose reign marked an interval of peace and prosperity between periods of strife. More than any monarch before, he exploited the mystique of royalty to capture the hearts of his subjects. This book provides a much-needed reassessment of Edward's reign—calling into doubt the legitimacy of his successors and rewriting the ending of Anglo-Saxon England.

The Piety of Henry III

This chapter focuses on the piety of Henry III. King Henry III was widely regarded by his contemporaries as a ‘rex Christianissimus’, ‘a most Christian king’. Everything known about his religious practices confirms that opinion. In some areas, notably the distribution of alms and the hearing of masses, he was doing what all his predecessors had done, but on a new scale and with a new intensity. In other areas, notably in his efforts to convert the Jews to Christianity and his adoption of Edward the Confessor as his patron saint, he was doing something very new. His devotion to the Confessor, in particular, became central to his life and led to the greatest monument of his kingship, the rebuilding of Westminster Abbey. One reason for Henry's piety was almost certainly his father's reputation for impiety. Henry also lived in a new spiritual environment, one created by the decrees of the Fourth Lateran Council, the work of pastorally minded bishops, the preaching and example of the friars, and the ideas developed in the twelfth century about purgatory, confession, penance, and the eucharist.

Henry III

Nine years of age when he came to the throne in 1216, Henry III had to rule within the limits set by the establishment of Magna Carta and the emergence of parliament. Pacific, conciliatory, and deeply religious, Henry brought many years of peace to England and rebuilt Westminster Abbey in honour of his patron saint, Edward the Confessor. He poured money into embellishing his palaces and creating a magnificent court. Yet this investment in ‘soft power’ did not prevent a great revolution in 1258, led by Simon de Montfort, ending Henry's personal rule. This book brings to life Henry's character and reign as never before. The book stresses the king's achievements as well as his failures while offering an entirely new perspective on the intimate connections between medieval politics and religion.