Edward the Confessor (Penguin Monarchs) : The Sainted King

Author(s): Woodman, David,
Binding: Paperback,
Date of Publication: 05/11/2020,
Pagination: 160 pages,
Series: Penguin Monarchs,
Imprint: Allen Lane,
Published By: Penguin Books Ltd,
Book Classification: Biography: historical political & military, Biography: royalty, British & Irish history, British monarchy
ISBN13\EAN\SKU: 9780241383001

Description:
Edward the Confessor, the last great king of Anglo-Saxon England, canonized nearly 100 years after his death, is in part a figure of myths created in the late middle ages.

In this revealing portrait of England's royal saint, David Woodman traces the course of Edward's twenty-four-year-long reign through the lens of contemporary sources, from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the Vita AEdwardi Regis to the Bayeux Tapestry, to separate myth from history and uncover the complex politics of his life.

He shows Edward to be a shrewd politician who, having endured a long period of exile from England in his youth, ascended the throne in 1042 and came to control a highly sophisticated and powerful administration.

The twists and turns of Edward's reign are generally seen as a prelude to the Norman Conquest in 1066. Woodman explains clearly how events unfolded and personalities interacted but, unlike many, he shows a capable and impressive king at the centre of them.