Feast day: October 13
St. Edward the Confessor
One of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England, remembered for his gentleness, justice, and generosity to the poor, and as the builder of Westminster Abbey.
Edward, called 'the Confessor' because he died at peace rather than as a martyr, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England before the Norman Conquest. Born about 1003, a son of the royal house, he spent much of his youth in exile in Normandy while Danish kings ruled England, and came at last to the throne in 1042, a man of deep and gentle piety.
His reign of nearly a quarter-century was remembered, with some idealization, as a time of peace, just laws, and good order — a golden age looked back on with longing after the upheaval of the Conquest. The king was famous for his personal holiness, his accessibility and generosity to the poor and the sick, and a reputation for miracles, including cures of disease by his touch.
He had married Edith, daughter of the powerful Earl Godwin, but, according to tradition, lived with her in continence by a mutual vow of chastity — the origin of his patronage of difficult or troubled marriages. Childless, he left the succession contested, opening the way to the Norman invasion of 1066, the year of his death.
His greatest monument is Westminster Abbey, which he rebuilt magnificently and which was consecrated just days before he died; he was buried there, and his shrine remains its sacred heart. Canonized in 1161, Edward was for centuries a patron saint of England, until later displaced in that role by St. George.
He rebuilt Westminster Abbey, where English monarchs have been crowned ever since, and was for centuries England's royal patron saint before St. George.
Image: Myrabella (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.
Source: newadvent.org/cathen/05322a.htm
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