Saint Edward "the Martyr", King of England

Other Events and Attributes:

• General Information: According to Panton (2011) "Edward’s brief, three-year reign as king of the English was marked by growing opposition to the monasteries and ended in violence. Scholars agree that he was the son of King Edgar of England, but they are less certain about his legitimacy and about his mother, who was probably Aethelflaed Eneda, whom Edgar later married. He was chosen as the new ruler when his father died in 975, but the accession was contested by Aelfthryth (or Elfrida), Edgar’s second wife, who advanced the cause of Aethelred, her own seven-year-old child, later known as Aethelred the Unready. Although the decision in favor of the older boy was made by the witan (the king’s group of advisors), Aelfthryth refused to accept defeat and allied herself with men who opposed her late husband’s policy of granting land to religious bodies, primarily because they wanted it for themselves. Edward sided with the church and appeared to be popular with his people, but he was only 13 when he succeeded to the throne, and there is little doubt that the inexperience of youth was reflected in some of his judgments."
• Reign: From 975 to 978; King of England
• Crowned: 8 Jul 975, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, England; Edward was the eldest son of King Edgar the Peaceful but was not his father's acknowledged heir. On Edgar's death, the leadership of England was contested, with some supporting Edward's claim to be king and others supporting his younger half-brother Æthelred the Unready, recognized as a legitimate son of Edgar. Edward was chosen as king and was crowned by his main clerical supporters, the archbishops Dunstan of Canterbury and Oswald of York on 8 Jul 975 at Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, England. ; : 13
• History: 976; Widespread famine struck England in 976, and it led to a breakdown in the rule of law; disgruntled, fearful, and opportunistic Anglo-Saxons took to violence, even sacking monasteries, which had grown more rich and powerful with Dunstan’s advocacy.
• Canonized: 1001; He was canonized in 1001 and his feast day is 20th November.
• Last Full Review: 13 Aug 2020

Notes:

Name:

Died:
During a hunting expedition, the king called at Corfe
Castle, where Ælfthryth and Æthelred were living. His stepmother offered him mead, and while he was drinking, she or one of her retinue stabbed him. He rode off, mortally wounded, but slumped from his horse; his foot caught in a stirrup and he was dragged into a bog, where, according to legend, the location of his body was revealed to searchers by a pillar of light This was the result of a plot hatched by his step-mother Ælfthryth so her son Æthelred II the Unrede could become king.

According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle "No worse deed for the English race was done than this was, since they first sought out the land of Britain. Men murdered him, but God exalted him. In life he was an earthly king; after death he is now a heavenly saint. His earthly relatives would not avenge him, but his Heavenly Father has much avenged him".

Buried:
During the sixteenth century and English Reformation, King Henry VIII led the dissolution of the monasteries and many holy places were demolished. Edward's remains were hidden so as to avoid desecration.

In 1931, the relics were recovered by Wilson-Claridge during an archaeological excavation; their identity was confirmed by Dr. T. E. A. Stowell, an osteologist. In 1970, examinations performed on the relics suggested that the young man had died in the same manner as Edward. Wilson-Claridge wanted the relics to go to the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia. His brother, however, wanted them to be returned to Shaftesbury Abbey. For decades, the relics were kept in a cutlery box in a bank vault at the Midland Bank in Woking, Surrey because of the unresolved dispute about which of two churches should have them.

In time, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia was victorious and placed the relics in a church in Brookwood Cemetery in Woking, with the enshrinement ceremony occurring in September 1984. The St Edward Brotherhood of monks was organized there as well. The church is now named St Edward the Martyr Orthodox Church, and it is under the jurisdiction of a traditionalist Greek Orthodox community. However, while the bones are of approximately the right date, they are of a man in his late twenties or early thirties rather than a youth in his mid teens.