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When Henry II 's reign came to an end, Edward the Confessor was considered the patron saint of England until 1348 when he was replaced in this role by St. George.
Edward along with his brother Alfred were taken to Normandy ( where he spent 25 years in exile) by their mother Emma, sister of Normandy's duke Richard II, to escape the Danish invasion of England in 1013. Edward’s familiarity with Normandy and its leaders was to become hugely influential later in his rule. Edward tried to return to England with Alfred in 1036, in an attempt to over throw their step-brother Harold Harefoot from the throne. The perusing attempt was disastrous and lead to the capture and subsequent death of Alfred. Edward once again had been seen fleeing across the channel to Normandy. In 1041, Edward was invited back to England by the then Anglo-Saxon nobility, as co-ruler with his half-brother Harthacanute, when upon his death in June, 1042, saw Edward claiming the throne. Edward was crowned at the cathedral of Winchester on April 3, 1043.
Edward the Confessors's rule was marked by peace and prosperity and which needed Edward coming to an agreement with three powerful earls: Godwin, Earl of Wessex; Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and Siward, Earl of Northumbria. His time spent in Normandy played an influential part in the way Edward bestowed favouritisms upon the Normans to the continual frustration of the ruling Saxon and Danish nobles, giving rise to the growth of anti-Norman opinion led by Godwin. The final straw came with Edward’s choice for the post of the archbishop of Canterbury: Edward had rejected Godwin's favoured choice and instead appointed the bishop of London, Robert of Jumièges, a trusted Norman. Matters boiled over when during a riot at Dover which went unpunished at the request of Edward by Godwin; the cities townsfolk had a running altercation with one of Edward’s kinsman, Eustace, count of Boulogne. Leofric and Siward backed the King, and Godwin and his family were all exiled in 1051. Earl Godwin returned armed the following year, forcing the king to restore his title. Godwin died in 1053, and after his death, his son Harold accumulated even greater territories for the Godwin’s, who held all the earldoms except for one - Mercia after 1057. During 1063, Harold led a succession of successful raiding parties into Wales and through careful negotiation with his inherited rivals in 1065, and in January 1066, was proclaimed king upon Edwards’s death.
Edward's rule marked a transition between the 10th century West Saxon kingship of England and the Norman monarchy which followed Harold's death. The great earldoms established under Canute grew in power, while Norman influence became a powerful factor in government and in the leadership of the Church.
Through the efforts of Henry II and Osbert de Clare who was a monk of Westminster, elected Prior in 1136, saw Edward being canonized by Pope Alexander III in 1161. In 1163, the newly sainted king's remains were enshrined in Westminster Abbey. When Edward was sanctified, there were two types of saints: martyrs and confessors. Martyrs were people who died in the service of the Lord and confessors were people who died natural deaths. Since Edward died a natural death, he was stylised Edward the Confessor. The Roman Catholic Church regarded Edward the Confessor as the patron saint of kings, difficult marriages, and separated spouses. When Henry II reign came to an end, Edward was considered the patron saint of England until 1348 when he was replaced in this role by St. George. Edward the Confessor was not a particularly successful king, but his personal character and piety endeared him to his people. In appearance he is represented as tall, dignified and kindly with rosy cheeks and a long white beard.
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Edward the Confessor was the last but one of the Anglo-Saxon kings who ruled England from 1042 until his death in 1066.
