D
ree
Docto
r
of
  Ph
ilosoph
y,
Hi
lary
stories of th
lar status.
Thesis submitted for
the degree Doc
Hilary Term, 2001
The main purpose of this thesis is to examine the perception of
Edwar
On first glance, th e  large number
of
as widespread
in the
A .
Freeman,
to  
t was a popular one. More recently, this claim has
been question
estminster Ab
bey, the
two opposing viewpoints have opened up
the question: if Edward's cult was
 
endowed with
material  evidence?
The cult'
The most rem
vitae written
ry
tex
ts
in
 
truction
of
Wardrobe Books. There
h help to
. One of  these is the sermons written
by Aelred
,
king
  contrib
uted
t
t
also
ted by later generations. While the numer
ous sources
  examination will
problematic
e Ages. This work can be divided into
two groups. The
examined
either in
 
works have been useful in
shaping
tion by noting trends and p
atterns.
ork includes:
Martyr, Fr
It is in the latter group
which th
of individual
in the fie
lso in
f Edward the Confessor, there are in
teresting
the ways
the canonisation
a litmus test;
 
 
Confessor is in  particula
dition of the Life of
H
g toget
for
xceptions,
who  o
uld be
066-1399, were
y the
king's reception
a Life
nglishma
 pos
ition.
Moreove
r,
Alexa
de
rd's feasts.
ontributed
substantially
  towards
ngs to
m on
ks insi
tion regalia
. T
he
W
estminster
munim
aint's  life
dward's
on Edward writt
evaulx, th e  illustrations
 
for Westminster Abbey.
Aelred's sermons focus
rations, like the
ity
rat
iraculous
visions
the presentation of Edward. The chronic
les  are
,
 
second
period
rs
c
hose
te
Though the the  chronicle
  othe roy
flourishing to some exten
royal
anomalies about the image
of Edward the Confessor:
unlike Louis IX and Margaret, the English king was pictured as a passive
ruler, whose
conclusions are reached when
Montfort, Thomas of Lancaster and Thomas Cantilupe are compared
with those for Edward's. The failure
of Edward's cult to achieve mass
appeal
dynamic, cults.
comparison
with other cults, it becomes clear that Edward the Confessor
was not a popular
served
context,
one,
he was never wholeheartedly embraced as a national saint. The image
of a saint
have
mass
appeal,
virtue.
connected
 
ft  
of
Chapte
duate sup
ervisor, Mich
of medieval
sources. P
articular thanks
  Reading
finding texts wh
heir manuscr
ipts.  The
  of the  college librarian,
ily, th
e   O'B
parents
Jozef and Czeslawa Hedio
William and Elsie O'Brien
109
Characters
Patrologia cursus completus s
Paris, 1844-
R
Westminster 2
ei
le
Confes
ed. J. P . Migne
R C Richard of
R S Rolls Series
England
 
ception
m bridge,
 1997); B
. W a
s re in
but
s
which his cult was used during the canonisation
petition
as a litmus
c
  Confessor is in particular need of study.
Over th e
from scholars,
of
important eleme
saints. Though this thesis aims to provide a comprehensive view
  of the
or
brea
e no discussion
5 Amongst the many works deal ing with the topic of individual saints' cults
 are: D . D a
e, St. Edmund
Medieval H istory
Pre sented to
on , 1907); P .
his Dragon,' History
g (ed.),
(Oxford, 1987) ; E . Cambrid g
e and C.
 
 
ket avant
Worcester
c
w ,  Edward the Confe
ssor, 2 n d
3
for
roy
of Edward's
p of tapes
atthew Pa
has
be
  the same as Henry Ill's reconstruction of
Westm
of Edward the
glorified predecessor to a holy, sainted
king. The
it underwent
responsible for the transformation.
the
for all land claims, thereby
the of Harold's reign. 2 However,
Edward the
without the
Abbey, who had their own
reasons
canonisation requests, made
in
acknowledged and absorbed England's past rather than rejecting it. 3
Part of this acceptance included the Norman insistence
that William the
Conqueror had inherited
in
part
the Norman
account of was founded on Edward the Confessor's legacy, the
Normans
which had been rebuilt by the king and
houses his tomb, likewise had
an interest in maintaining Edward's
legacy. This conjunction of interests
resulted in Edward's canonisation in 1161.
  I should like to thank
Jay Rubenstein for reading
and comment ing on an earl ier version of this
chapter.
2
G .
Garnett , 'Coronation and Propaganda: Some Implications of the Norman Claim to the Throne of
England in 1066,' TRHS,
of this
Chancellor, an abr idged
version of which is publ ished in A-NS 10 (1987).
4 This
argument is
The
of Harold's reign because
it was invalid. G arnett draws on evidence in the Domesday Book,
which takes tempus Edwardi as its barometer rather
than tempus Haroldi.
monarchs can most readily be perceived in the documents produced
during their reigns. The acta of William the Conqueror and subsequent
kings provide a starting point with which to chart the perception
of
Norman
antecessor
and
with Edward; the charters are replete with references to Edward
as
his
consanguineus
William the Conqueror established the basis on
which
he
claimed his
throne by recalling his kinship with Edward, and acknowledging him as
his predecessor.
 
same when
the hold
on England became more firm. As time passed, previous Norman kings
were included in the list of predecessors.
Whereas
William
tended
to
often included
to tempus regis
father and sometimes his brother with
references
to
Edward.
charters, Edward was recognised as the antecessor of the Norman
regime in England.
5 Regesta R egum
Anglo-Normannorum: The Acta of William I (1066-1087), ed. D. Bates (Oxford,
1998), nos. 4, 20, 22, 39, 80, 106, 119, 124, 126, 133, 141, 176, 181, 220, 254, 263, 286. The
same words are also found in acta nos. 290 and
324, although these are general ly assumed to
be
Regum Anglo-Normannorum, nos.
2, 80, 104, 133, 139, 150, 181, 220, 293, 298, 301,
308, 312, 327, 328. The same words are
also found in the presumably forged acta nos. 290,
303,
include other kings as Wil l iam's predecessor are unspecific:
Regesta
Regum
Anglo-Normannorum, nos. 80, 81, 134, 183, 196, 305, 345. Three
named specif ic kings: no.
39: Edmund, Cnut, Harthacnut and Edward, no. 150: Edward
and /Elfthryth, a member of the royal
household, no.
220: Edgar and
Edward. In two charters, W ill iam offered a grant in exchange for
prayers for his predecessors and
his
successors
1066-1154, ed. H. W .C. Davis etal. (4 vols., Oxford,
1913-
9 Regesta Regum
1414 .
7
In the so-called Coronation Charter issued by Henry I, the
new king
to uphold the good laws and customs of the Anglo-
Saxon king, a promise which was reiterated in Stephen's Coronation
Charter. 1 The Norman
claim to the English
of the dynasty. The acta and the
Coronation Charters established the Normans as the Anglo-Saxons' heirs
by drawing back the lines of legal practice
to Edward.
to
the monarchy's understanding of the Anglo-Saxon king. Bruce O'Brien
has recently established that the document, far from being an Anglo-
Saxon construct, was written after 1096 and before 1175, most likely
during Stephen's
which Edward's sanctity was being promoted for the first time,
presenting an opportunity to hail him as a proposed saint
instead
of
in
allusion
in the tract
attention
given
to
Edward's
is mirrored by a near total absence
of references to his laws in the
vitae.^ Though the tendency in the Lives is to ignore Edward's practice
of government,
 
Edward's laws were ment ioned in three instances in the charter. The most signif icant entry is
at the
end
of the docume nt , in article thirteen: 'Lagam regis Eadwardi vobis reddo cum illis emendacionibus
quibus pater meus earn em enda vit consi l io baronum suorum .' Two other articles, two and
five,
cite
compliance with the laws: 'Monetag ium commune quod capiebatur per civi tates e t per comitatus quod
non fuit tempore Eadwardi regis hoc ne amodo sit omnino defendo,' and
'Murdra et iam retro ab ilia die
qua in regem coronatus fui omnia condono, et
ea
secundum lagam
Brett for allowing me
1 1
Peace: The Laws of Edward the Confessor (Phi ladelphia, 1999),
pp. 44-8.
O'Br ien
1 2 O'Br ien, God's Peace King's Peace,
p. 47. The f irst reference of Solomon in a document related
to Edward is in The Life of King Edward, p. 6.
1 3 For a discussion of the
perceptions of Edward in his vitae, see Ch. 4.
8
oxically,
eges when  
it is
ly in
an earlier
its payment.   6 T
have
fa
thered
d
s
  Leges in th
harters sponsored b
s
and
good
p
whic
ould
n
diocesan bish
elred of Rievaulx contain
gravissimum quod tempore patris su i primo classi Danicae
pendebatur,
postmodum
v
t
abso
to
it
1 5 O 'Brie
um quod aliquando
pingemannis daba tur, id est xii denarii de unaquaque hyd
a per annu
ed. and trans. L.
er [Oxford,
 t imes, the laws were to take on a life
of their own, replacing the
cult of the king
host:' The Radica l Face of the Ancient
Const i tu t ions in Early M od
em English Poli t ical Thought
(Cambrid ge, 2001) .
ics.   8 Papa
  canonisatio
as
been
 th i
 the early
ier work, S
  Kuttner dem onstrate
rote
Au
  n 1234 by Gregory IX ( 'La Reser
ve papale
su
pported n   the w ritten record, Alexander I l l 's pap
acy
canonis
as 1634
 when U
salem Gives,
t
nifestation of  
dle
 of e
vidence used
nonisation in the
 
nour (Leom
53.
 of A
 
enstein n
nte rbury, '
ut these mot
Sa
ree Engl ish c
. Kulkas, The
t
ury  
e Norm
glo-Saxon cu l
  h
ave
be
  Gilb e
rtine   o
ing Joh
ard's miracle
. 2 6 Still
itled Prologus e Co
ce the ki
of Edwar
ward,
supra texuimus,
sanctum   adhu
ing Edward
, p . 126.) .
cionis Edw ardus re
  in order to s
d for
found in Osbert
for his trans
es not suggest
that th is
 
 
s of /
  1991
reprin
of M almes
 sign which indicated
p . 189.) .
testimonium suffic
ng  Edward,
uried in   Westminster
near Edward at a time when the abbey was not a recognised royal burial
site.
3
ich
an
 Authori ty, p . 38.).
ing w
  wa
und  it nece
Osbert's
bert of
ea ol im cor
  visita
adquiev
e the   new
pta , tac
r
because
Even
nlikely that Osbe
First about this time
fo r  St. Erkenwald,
fund
  saint
f at a
Londo
  the issue of rival cults   was
Westminster s
ng the abb
ey freedom fro
  original dedication,
  relates  how St.
Peter dedicated the
  to the bishop of
from Pop
e Nic
ation des
rjorie
.
Whatle y
is  diebus
rii
uolentibu s in supradicto
a
supramemorat
isque contra
ui prius
tes
xon
 
episcopal encroachment. 4 7 Had the vacant see been filled, Osbert's vit
a
The charters supposedly
Wes
tminster
f
reedom
ba
sed
ed
b
interest in Edwar
Confessor to verify Westminster's c
laims of th e
on figures to
la
the Martyr,
th eir rela
d: Edward
Dunstan als o
f the
abbey's struggle to free itself from the grip of the see of 
London. Th
lied on older,
ni seruicio
  et dominatione
cons
batis et monachorum, e t
habeat idem   locus liberum procinctum, id est ambitum et cimiterium mortu
orum circa se absque
4 8 The Life of King Edward,
p . 157.
priuilegia quae amosissimus auus meus Eadgarus,
patruusque
e
 gloriosus E aduuardus eiusdem Ead gari fi l ius, et
sanctiss imus
imus rex /
Eelredus pa
te r
rence to Alfred's
nd a refe
o types of influence
upport Westminster'
ich
includ
anonisation, it  is
supp
written by
  which woul
. It was usual fo
 
id
The
c
ross,
a
  part
of a nail used in the crucifixion, part of Christ's tunic, so me of Mary's
 vestments,
Bartholomew , Barn
lics.
tion of Edwa
Edw ard, p .
r. In a
ing's ben
If Abbo
  this passag
e, which
red at
t II, forged
er's d
 
  bot
 of th e
ot Anselm (Osbert, Letters,
E
work
  of W e
 
sis lapidibus n
ebus tempor
his in diuers
sa refloruit et sic
ut intus in moribus,
cua, qu
ot siluas
l imminutis testatu
discussi
5 7 The
concer
ome (Osbert, Lette
rs, p . 8
bil i
fr a
  He n
ostol ic
a e
 de  
h
is
q
a v
on a s
te
p le
m b
i W
n a s te
rii, p e r
 n o s t
e l a m
bon a
i a
 
n tu r . e t qu
on ia m
il i
n iu r iam
u s , p r
son is
e ccle
sto lic a
u s qu
er im o
m a
t it i am
 p e r m
oga r i' (O
s be r t
st ra
o m od
el l ing
  th a t both
 
na Carta D un
 
e rs f ro
m th e Ab
 th e
ir  R
n s h ip
. Th e
enedic
ondo
n ,
1
993 ).
 
rsa ry
is s
is ter ,
 bu
is , pr
e n c e ,
e s tio n
  glor io
de m  
 
a
de
m u s
li fa s
d ig
 e a
  in a liqu
ks   a b
ou t the
e   le
By this time
  he was an
minster s liberty
ater
posit
ions
be realised. Realising th is Osbert
c
ish Church and
  legate  Alberic. His letter
Osbert  then cited
  Edward s  peacef
reign miracles
and incorruption as evidence of the king s sanctity. 6 4
Fina
response
gate before his plans
tly w
is
al
canonisatio
s
Os
co
mprised
Ed
ward s chastity, the  1102 tomb opening and a small collection
of
mira
the numbe
tua
lo
eccle
(Osbert, Letters, p. 81.) .
SeeCh. 4, pp. 151-61 .
p. 160. Osbert ha
of
Osbert, pp. 44-6.) . From the earlier
 work he gathered material
attesting to Edward 's
he Life of King
refer to in
as 1202, when the
w ere prepari
ng their canonisation
les in Osbert's
Edward's cure of a
attributed to   royal power
personal sanctity in Gesta Regum
Anglorum 6 9 The
in England who
doubted th e  origins of this power. It is possible that A
lberic was one of
the
request
ca
petition must
o
 
ialogues that
in determining
ostensione signorum. N am sunt plerique
, qui etsi s igna
unt' (G re g
ory the Great, 'Dialogue
s,' in PL, Ixxvii,  
uential Lives in early twelfth -century
England,
S
ulpicius
ed
heavily
 
see B .
ey, 19
ecundum
sonis
quoniam,
licet 
patrata sunt que per incuriam
seu per quorumdam
ic ergo per u is um apparui t s
anctus
dicens:
  Vt quid tantu
m sol l ic i tar is super m ultis mirac
ulis
queren
 debere f idem
ificata'
(The
6 9
pe
stem
in
uitam nouerunt; unde
 non
ex
 
surrounding the miracle can
precise d efini tion o
f what d isease was cured by the
K ing's Touch.
as c lassified as anything from lepros
y
Rxcv (1980),
Henry I us
then his legit imacy in E
ngland. I n
ny
holy
trans. J . E . Anderson
[London, 1973], pp. 26-8.).
 w as
us, An
gliae   trium
n o
f Steph
en 1
glish Churc
tionable th oug
h, as the
 w
idespre
ad
En
glish
s
upport 
in
explai
one in which
II
ed to Henry I's, 8 9 a
nd the civil
an Englishman had
taken lightly and the cult  would flourish.
The latter seemed unlike
measure
within
prevailed in her attempt to take
over
E
ngland,
r
papal
t, the cult
hich to flourish. Innocent II did not wan t the
canonisation to become a
  pawn in a p
This first attempt to can
onise Edward the C
initiative came from one m
onk in Westminster
to
phen's relatio
nship to
e is
,
nrici, quia g
raues erant ' (John of Worcester, Chronicle, ed. and trans. P . McGurk
[3
vols., Oxford, 1999- ]
H i p. 296.)- There is no reference to Edward 's
sanct ity
in t
sancti ty
 
9
rity, p. 78.
ted with Alberi
c, the first
fo r
so  it must
have been t
he   bishop w
Despite
nt
evidence
gain his s
quest to have
al. Fortu
nately, the
een made.
addition
they were not enough.
. The
di
fferences
in t
he final
 
re,
th
as beneficial rath
prior.
The
nation for canonisat
onfessor,'
3
0
scene
was its connection with the papacy. The schism of 1159
opened
the
outside of
two papal claimants.
decision
to recognise Alexander III in
the summer of 1160. When Henry
became
became a political favour granted to the king who
had had an important role in backing Alexander III to claim his
pontificate. The
approval
of
II
sent
to the pope in support of the canonisation. At the outset, he told
the
pontiff of
his great joy in his attaining the office, and once more
his devotion to the Roman The implication is striking;
Henry II reminded the pope how he attained his position and then
requested a favour in return for his faithfulness. Times had
indeed
changed since Stephen. On this occasion it was the papacy which had
been
in an unstable position due to the schism and had relied on the
English king
in return for his generosity; he did
not even know if he going to
remain on
and
the
instability
of the papal see which provided the correct political climate for the
acceptance of the request.
Gervase of
change in the monastery occurred after
1157 when Osbert of
Clare
9 3 'Gratum mihi est et deo gratias refero quod, summi ponti f icatus honore sul l imatus, suscepist is
regimen ecclesie, annuente dom ino vestra Et mihi
quidem cordi est matrem nostram sanctam Romanam ecclesiam sincera semper affectione diligere,
officiis colere, ac personam vestram pura indesinenter amplect i
devotione' (Barlow, Edward the
o m e,
ri to p
the re q
upport from
  the abbo
t at
W estm
inster, it
he cas
lb ert a
ial , ecce quid
 
vt h
oc qu
am cicius
  incip ere
t a
lm esbu
omotio
sol idifi c
d his  cur
ia (K e
ry ,  Fu
lz, 'Sulc
ard of
W estm
der, he   ag
reed   the co
me
w
hen
ro
mmon practice.
She h
ad been
lso, the 
tion to
ven
Osb
closer in l
p acificus, mag
is p ac
etae Scotor
um Re
.] , 
era e t
a Angloru
sidere
ev
identibus
  ostendit'
over,
ed. L D
  xxvii.
Th
following at the time of the second
petition for
Edward's  canonisa
les attributed  to him
mmediate than
strong
 
If
ho
If he was not
ca
nonise the founder of his abbey, then at  least he could
celebrate the
founded
t
bert  and
both w
es of the
passage of Westminster's
is a
made a point of 
r's other
roy
al
founde
yal benefactor
its members
written account
of E
 
he  petiti
on. Ho
as an inducem
Alth
elred of
  was n
o
h the cutting 
m regis sullimar
1 1 3 U
eir   reig
ns, He
e to u
Henry I's reig
, Henry II ig nor
illiam
th
 
  II. 5
71-3.
  urgente, se
ffectu abnepte
see F . B arlow,
p eratrice Mathi ld i tu, vir splend issim
e, quem   nunc N o
rmannorum et Aquitanorum duc
ll of canonisa
ing's conn
  dward
t
2 5 - 7 .
uncils
1 1 9 I n
a p ar
to have An
selm   of C
The outcome
s 
questio
nable,
ed it m ight have bee n successful as Anselm
's transla
t ion
and festiva
B iograp
39-41.) . W . G
. Urry also b
on was success
selm's
honoured a
a
ough  to
ward
an
s. On the
 
th
identification
with
ndation
in
ng, burial or crown
rel
ngland from the
s it is im
Abbey for ro y
any
for royal ecclesiasti
nswered is: did Westmin
  kings devotion to Edward s
  cult? In
order to  
necessary to   exam
ine when why
lead to a dispute
how Westmi
nster was used by the monarchy. The ability to do this
comes from evidence linked w
ith th e abbey as found in chron
icles,
y
imp
ortant to note that the abbey received royal gifts before Edward
's
cre
oped that
o
progr
centre, due in  no small pa
rt to its situatio
n on the T
he Vikings, who regularly
eadquarters 
nerary,
a
ster
Abbey
ing a pilgrimage to Rome (Osbert, p p . 87-91; Ae
lred, cols. 757-60.).
G
.
bel
om
P
89), p . 30.
centre, see P . Nightinga
Husting and
ity,' EHRcn
Brooke, The Central Middle A
ges, ' p p . 31-2; D . Keene, 'L ondon in the Early Middle Ages,'
London
Court of Husting. '
ouce
in g   Edw a
u ildin
bey , ' A
 R
s o n h a s
  a ls
d the
 con s
 a n d C o n s e
cra t io
 A b
f th
,' in
  D.
chola
t ion w
ce d
  th at
th e
rch
h
 of W
regim
e
cont
of William
ubstantially enlarged in
 be
ascertaine
counc
il
 
f
the
building lay in its size not only to the medieval 
observer but also the
Like Edward th e 
stated th e importance
one comparable had been
s stated
in
reatest
im
portance
in
England.
fus raised Westminster's
significance, architecturally dw
at Winchester
m the political
function as the requirements
rediens
 
cum inspecturus primum introisset, cum ali i satis magnam uel equo
m
dinis
de
enway [Oxford, 1996],
p p . 444-6.).
  7 H . M . Colvin, A History of the King s Works (3 vo
ls., London, 1963-75), i, p . 45.
1 8 Colvin, The King s Works, i, p .  4
5.
  9
pment of the royal complex at Winchester, see M . Biddle,
Felix urbs Winthonia:
,'
Council
of
Chichester, 1975); Wincheste
d
(ed.), 
Domesday
Studies
 
 
e late twe
in  Wes
  part  
ter in th e Fourtee
nth
Centur
The Treasur
.
 the
Paris
d Anglo-Sax
on perio
ds,  and
t, and should
illiam had the ri
antecess
d. and
am the
C onque
co
s a
rc hiepiscopus
 
 
].). Th is
it' (O
wn need
s need
graphe
-1 03 .
3 4
es has  been studied
s location was not so m uch to
express an undying
more interes
r than being conn
the
ir
a
Som
etimes
t
ch
foun
  had some connec
their life or  had
founded. 4 3 According
ancestors, interest
solidarity,
but
i
r than the solidarity between
 
atronage in Thirteenth-Cen
tury England,' in
Proceedin
Ormrod [Har laxton Co
,' p. 72; C.   Daniell, Death and Burial in M ed
ieval England
continued with
Abbey
, since
in the period before 1400 only three members of the royal family, Eleanor of Castile, Richard
I I
their
principal
c
f considerable
s
they
 himself never came into Westminster 's possessi
on.
th and Burial in  M
edieval England
, p. 92 .
92, 101
evotion to a particular site,
overlooking the
  traditional aristocra
atilda, the
was buried in the abbey bec
ause she died
nt
runs
counter to all recent work done on the topic. One of the first
unsound tenets in th i
s assump
tion is
in the M iddle
made  about sending a body to be
 
an
impo
rtant
on
t her
where
she
Margaret of Scotland and a great-great-niece
of Ed
ward the
for a wife. chose Mat
ilda,
thereby
nglo-Saxon regime and
new Norman one, much as Henry VII would do later
when
  he
Anglo-Saxon
ancestry,
issioning a
in Westminster
on, 'W
estminster
Abbey
and the Monarchy between the Reigns of Wil l iam I and John  (1066-
1216), ' Journal
200.
parere et parturire
riae ualedicere, W e
mora t G
R , pp. 754-6.) .
, see Ch. 1
to the Anglo-Saxon royal
house.
Matilda's burial was not a catalyst for other royal burials during
the period before
monastic
William Rufus was buried
burial
that of
Emma, wife to Kings Aethelred and Cnut and mother of King
Edward. 4 9 Instead of
displaying familial
links by
emphasised their new roles. William the Conqueror,
in
family with interests in both countries. Though
William the Conqueror
to be buried
in Caen is in keeping with Daniell's theory of a new dynasty creating a
new burial space.
founded.
Originally,
at Grandmont
turned to for
Order of Grandmont was spilt by schism in the
1 ISO's, forcing the
instead
4 8 Henry I's entrai ls w ere buried
at the
as
buried
 
Will iam Rufus,
Emma, Kinegl is and Adulphus (J. Vaughn, Winchester Cathedral: Its Monuments and Memorials
[London, 1919],
pp. 18-19.). Whi le it did not enjoy the continuity of Westmins ter
Abbey
over
a long period of t ime were buried there, perhaps in acknowledgement of the city's
preeminence.
5 1 E.
M. Hallam, 'Henry
I I as a Founder of Monasteries, 'Journal of Ecclesiastical History 28 (1977), p.
121.
53
Anjou 
e con
itish Arch aeolo
  and   S
t. W
s 
W orcester was question
calling on Edward,  who had invested him with the office,
to
let
to  
be
, only W ulfsta
n w a
es t in old
English   saints such as
n to
  W ulfsta
son, 'St.
g
t
s choice
truggles during his reign  co
ncerning
ent
of
  Edw
  cu
d (See  C
d customs (J . C.
edn [Camb
rd's
cu
  bishop 's  acceptance
ntevrault and th
vi ng their h
earts buried at Fo
hes, but
  as
  possible
tminster 
A
ritish Archaeolo
Catho lic Church
  an d  va
r ious popes tried to m odify the pract ice
, final
ly
charging
ndult (C. A. B
ra dford, He a
on, 1 933],
onial an
he ti
me of
am is clear
e mentio
reddita,
consilio
, The Origin
me, ha
d obviously
  "two na
: A
s al
id
is d
o no  longe
is
e
 
tus e
genuer
g
endure once life left him and
his
d
dea
ned
the rank of mere mortal. There was no need for him to
claim to be anything other
than
 bounds
of
roya
lty,
the
k
With t
he re ign of Henry III, there was a movement to make
Westminster
e of all royal burials. Henry Ill's was not the
first royal burial
who predeceased him were buried in the abbey.
6 3
custom.
the Confessor
wanted to
aint, which in his case was Edward
the
a
  H o w e
ne; as seen in th e Appendix, over half
known burials  afterthe reign of
John were in Westminster Abbey.
A n act of
reconditum, tamen continue corp
humor et horribilis
coria pertransiens decurrebat, et uasis sub feretro susce ptus a ministris horrore
fatiscentibus abiciebatur.
,
  cuius os
asci solebat, cui omnes assurgere, omnes
expauescere,
omne
s
of course, Edward the
's children has
King
Henry
and the
o f
Peter's A Collecti
and Queens of
unlikely
const
onarchs 
r be se
ry The C alendar
254-1256 [London,
in 1
mare' (C M ,
r Abbey  
and C ap
etian Kings,' Journa
),
o
ristianity
threatene
  surmises  that England did
sensation
of unity by throwing their support behind one saint, they did
identify Edward as a significant
figure
. While
t to the crown,
Denis was a
bishop
martyred circa 258 A D and not a king of the old regime. By
this
compa
rison
Edward did not
move among
the Plantagenet
along the lines  of the French saint.
Translations
It has been assumed that there were no political overtones
to the
fessor until the tim
the
mo
narchy played during the
the two
re associated with times
struggle
nd Henry II's ow n struggle with th
e
C
of
of power already  obta
under Stephen. W
ith the successful
is,'
p.
43 .
 
  the promot ion of St. Edward rem ained
the
onu
s of the
m o n k s o f Westmins te r ; and
the
c
 cult and pol i t i
cs,
had
Westm
inster
A
ting to
reme m
da
y
before
la ce
some  weigh
t behi
nd  th
849-50 .
enry I I
 
  an
omaly
becau
is power ove
xa t io
n of 12
D e
velop m
l i ame n
n t e r ,
ion, ' p . 9
dicot
a t ion ,
c les ia
i a p u d W e
s tmon
ium'
requesting money to   fu
nd his son s
asked Parliament for a
nry
Ill
 
hough
re of th e plan is perhaps
 
tion of a king
his grandeur, he wa
r of th e
was n
o
n 13 October and 5
January.
y
no
ted
 s
d
 
9 was splendidly
that Henry III
's Works, i, pp. 132-3. Later, under d ifferen
t circumstances, Edward I would also
use a display of trium
ph at a parl iament when he co
nquered
the
innings of
eign of
' p.
10
3.
4,
32
minente sancti /E d
cil icet tertio idus Octobris, jussit ut conventus ei obviam
sollempniter
rocederet,
accen
  les
the ro yal
as at W es
 
was such that in 1270 when the king was suffering a potentially fatal
illness,
January ar
e even
more revealing,
showing that
II, who
feasts at Westminster. A s
we can
at Westminster. B y
 of the
 
devotion
  to
th
Lo
vernment,
p
articularly
after
  th
e
S
cottish
formidantes, in
petierunt, ibidem missam pro
Virginia celebrantes. E o modo, quo prius, ad propria rev
ertentes,
d [3 vols., R S , 1890], iii, p p . 22-3.] .
67
1 l/2d was sp ent
per pauper. The
tendency was for
dem
onstrate
su
the sain
to the  memory of
g
aking
east days. Of
to Edw
 
  280-83 ,
4-4v,
8;
Liber
Quotid
38-9 ,
Add. MS 8835,
197, fo l. 39; PR
O E101/375/8, fols. 1v, 3; P
RO
E1
4v;
BL
2v ; PRO E36/203 ,
fol.
PRO
with   Mary was cemented in th
e
Wilto
n
Diptych.
R
England was d iscovered on t
he  
staff,
ord on, 'A New Discovery in the
Wilto
17, 19, 22
fols.
1
east
days
20-22 .
69
Kin
donations in honour of
,
devotion
gi
ward's cult, a fact which will
be discussed later.
and
the C
thirteen. 1 8 W hile
fewer in than thos
fessor,
it
nd forty-one saints mentioned in
these  books, only
ere is evidence of
a stronger personal atta
nation to the saint on account of rumours
heard about the Scots.
r
H
fourteen donations made
I only four of them were given on
the
her
than
a
perfunctory
given to him, four on
  his feast, though by two kings,
Edward
r
is one of the few saints in this collection wh
o was
J. Blair
The Cloister
and the
arvey (Oxford, 1996)
nus, pp.
16, 21,
fols.
1
-1v;
Add. M S 7965, fols.
4 , 8v-9,
10;
Liber Quotidianus, pp. 21, 27; BL Add. M S 7966a, fols. 19v-20, 25 ;
BLAdd .
1 9 ' . . .propter specia les rumores quos idem
R
p.
37.).
1 1 Byerly, p
p. 275, 287, 301; BL Add. M S 7965 , fols. 4v, 9,
10 ; iber Quot id ianus,
pp. 18, 20, 28
35,
303; iber Quot id ianus,
pp. 23-4, 37; BL Add. M S 7966a, fols. 21, 22, 23v-24; BL Add.
M S 8835, fols. 1v, 3v, 5 ;
P R O   E101/376/7, fol. 5 ; P R O
E.121,
 
 
honoured by all four kings, making him the most recognised saint after
the virgin Mary. 2 While the scope of the elemosina accounts
is by no
a complete one, they do reveal some interesting patterns for
royal
the Confessor are compared with those
of other saints, it becomes
apparent that he did not command the same reverence as some other
saints.
Henry Ill's devotion to the shrine was explicitly demonstrated by
the money he donated towards Westminster Abbey's rebuilding, which
was coupled with his decision
to be
in
1246. 3 The central focus of the rebuilding project was a
new shrine
for its magnificence and
 
291-2, B L Add. M S 7965, fol 4v; Liber
Quotidianus,
43; BL Add. M S
7966a,
M S 8835, fols. 1-1v, 3v; Bodley M S Tanner
197,
fol.
39;
P R O E101/375/8, fols. 1v, 3; P R O E101/376/7, fol. 30; P R O E120, fol. 19; P R O E121, fol. 6;
BL
Add.
Add. M S 9951,
E101/396/2,
made at Canterbury Cathedral were
made
several at a t ime; on the same day Thomas Becket ,
August ine and Adr ian and the image of Mary in the church
would
all a t the
same time. Thomas and August ine: Liber Quotidianus, p. 19; PRO E121 , fol. 6; P R O
E101/401/2,
fol.
Byerly, p. 291;
Marian image:
B L
fol. 2v, P R O
E36/203, fol. 88. Thomas, August ine, Adrian and Marian image: B L Add. M S 17362, fol. 4v.
1 1 3 Calendar of Char ter Rolls, i p. 306. In a heraldic display of venerat ion,
Henry
next to those of the Confessor
in
arms were a Plantagenet
innovat ion, based on
king's
increased
to
five.
Also, it is bel ieved that the birds were original ly
me ant to be imperial eagles, though this has been modi f ied to a dove in the
fol lowing
E. Jones, 'A New Suggest ion Concerning the So-Cal led
"Mart lets" in the "Arms of
Edward the C onfessor, ' " in Anglo-Saxon Coins, Studies Presented
to
Dol ley
wi th
which
[August, 1969], p. 271.) .
1 1 4 'Eodem anno [1241], dominus rex Henr icus III.
unum feret rum e x
auro purissimo et gemmis
preciosis fecit ab elect is
aurifabris apud Londoniam, ut in ipso reliquae beati /Edwardi reponerentur, ex
sum ptibus propriis art i fic iose fabricari. In qua fabrica, l icet materia fuisset preciosissima, tamen
secundum illud poet icum, "M ater iam superaba t opus."' (CM, iv, pp. 156-7.).
7 1
rate plans  had been m ad
e for the
David Car
Edward was translated into a ha
lf-finished tomb,
II needed mone
towards
ent
jewels and precious
shrine of St. Edward, as others,
except for the regalia. 1 7 The
list of
items to
be pawned stre
tches on for four pages. 1 1 8 Henry Ill's devotion
to abbey
III. Their
en in
on
of
ult of Edward the
p. 150.
1 1 6 D . A . Carpenter, 'King Henry I I I and the Cosmat i Work at Westmin
ster Abbey, ' in The Reign o f Henry
III (London, 1996) ,
ar of Patent Rolls of
th e  
52.
of Westminste r Abbey (Dean
and
Chapter
was a statue th e C onfessor outs ide o
f the chapel, the interior was
adorned with paint ings of thirty-tw
o military
saints, a ty pe o f saint which w as dram at ica lly different in
compar ison to Edward, see C
h. 6 (Cherr
inster Kings, p. 28.).  Edward I was
part icular ly generous with offerings for saints' feas ts, in part icular that of Thomas
Becket, th ough
he
made donat ions to ma ny other cul ts bo t
h inside and outs
iety of
Edward I. ). I n
the king's Alms Rol l for 1386-9,  there are six instances when St. Ed
ward is   ment ioned.
However, in three o
the
s
aint
is
ater
other
nfessor with
those for H enry III, l inking the king w
ith
his
Edward
in
m
1 2 CM, i i i, p. 539.
72
be in g
rd w
R a th e
, he
g ive
th
rt
,' Th
ctor (Oxfo
tmins
m ost
  1
392
there
nother
  dep
arture
  f
m inster
tminste
ance at  masses
The
Westminster
shrine
in
1388 .
  Richard also took an
a
been ignored by
commons and lords
  secular
tter and
  defence
n only after the
in promoting the cult, but was also concern
ed with prote
cting its rights
th Westminster Abb
estminster
Chro
evotion to a g
alone
nicle, pp. 450, 510.
tm inster Chronic le,
pp. 3
1 4 1
 
  illis involvi,
inoscuntur; et
e nobis non
1 4 2
'Nam post horam
bine
concomitantibus 
to civium equitatu ad Westmona sterium causa
oracionis accessit, divinum ad feretrum
pre
omnino d efuit consil ium: unde ac
cedenti
propiu
s 
exque equo
essit, moram ibidem i
t
h like
ard I I
now in
ation with
the divin
inster Ch ronic
le, p. 178.
rdian style  of k
ingship ha s bee
 
chard
ll's
p,'
rs
ul, The Kingsh
ip of Richard II,' in Rich ard II: The Art of Kings
hip.
  his su
bjects h
hard II
hip,' E H R c x 
(199
to
 
the Virgin
Martyr and
entire diptych
Edward the
Confessor and John the Baptist. Edmund the Martyr and
John the Baptist are both pictured as young men, though not as young
as Richard
Confessor:
an old man with
white hair and a beard. 1 4 8 Edward's central position in the left panel
and
saint's importance
of the outside panels
of the diptych, which
II
Wilton Diptych placed
particular attention was paid
of
of
the abbey. The one
relied on several
arms
collars of
evidence was f irst put
forth by M. V. Clarke, The Wilton Diptych,' in Fourteenth Century
Studies
(Oxford, 1937) and has been subsequent ly upheld by F . Wormald, The Wilton Diptych,'
Journal o f
(1954) among others, although H.
Harvey, The Wilton
Diptych: A Re-examinat ion, ' Archaeologia 98 (1961), p. 24, argued
that the
1394
and the autumn of 1395, whi le most agree that 1395
is
connection to the
saints has been studied in D. Gordon, Making and Meaning:
The Wilton Diptych
the Martyr is linked to the
fact that both men were
very
young
when
more solid in that the king was crowned
on
his feast. His devotion to Edward was explained
in part by Richard's desire to rule England peacefully, just as his saintly
predecessor had done. S.
the
king's connect ion to other saints.
1 4 8 There is only
one picture of Edward as a youth. I t appears at the beginning of
the
Encomium
Emmae Regina.
1 4 9 For the signif icance of the impalement of Richard ll's arms w ith Edward's, see Mitchell, "Richard II,'
pp. 116-17.
he eigh
th cen
tury an
s
 
The
refore,
w
  in the late tenth
ere able
they w
lightly.
Leg
to
for
by po
those given by bishops
ice w
as frowned
days lots
of
p
Council, a limit of one year was placed on collective
indulgences
. 1 2 Local bishops also needed the permission of the local
ecclesiastical authorities for granting
 
ate
corresponde
ridge, 1909),
p. 9
correspondence.
9
Midd
; A . Boudinhon,
Text
on
Indulgen
ces:
Bulletin
of
1 For
the development of papal indulgences, see Southern, Western Society
and the
nce col lect ives, ' AB 5
(1927) ,
ted that the Westm
some ot
r nine
g o
dings indic
se, m ost likely
39
ular bishop.
86v,
-400v,
bishops from
the papal
many indulge
Eccles iast ica
 M. Owen
insistamus
operibus
W estmonsta
for which the indulge
, 395v , 3
4-404v. The
scriptum... ' and
wait
for a visiting bishop.
Once they were received, it was left to the recipient foundation to
promote
publicise
is a patent from Edward III dated 2 May, 1365
granting to Wyard to
promote
the
for
those visiting Westminster Abbey within the king's realm. 2 While this
patent illustrates that the abbey was willing to send
someone
around
there
of
of
indulgences on the
continent is an accurate reflection of the abbey's reluctance or inability
to do
so, many indulgences were rendered useless because if they were
not advertised
within the diocese, they could not be acted upon. This
meant that at
motives for
records that the abbey was
inundated
indulgences. For
purposes of simplicity, both the relics and feasts of a particular saint
will be counted
have its
his ring are
1 9 Orme, ' Indulgences in the Diocese of Exeter,' p. 21.
2 'Protect ion
of
Westminster are
sending as their protector to divers parts of the realm to
publish
places bulls and indulgences
granted and confirmed by popes and others to the faithful visit ing the
said monastery and the relics therein, for the saving of souls; and request to prelates and other
ecclesiast ical persons to admit him to their churches and permit him to publish and notify the same
there'
(The
Edward III 1364-1367
[London, 1912], p. 125.).
2 1 There is no evidence of pilgrim activity in the S acrist Rolls, Westminster Abbey Muniments 19618-
19837 .
is
multiple items; the order in
which they are listed o
n indulge
Edward the Confessor
Visiting v
the
, relic or feast. Only
reli
it was a
ne to
than two hundred and
ed in
rty-
8, 399v.
2 3
  Not li
sted  are
embers of the
its  to
se days.
the   references to unspecific
s reference to
postolorum Petr i ,
ter, p . 70.).
in an indulge
high
the abbey was mindful o
f all
relics within their collection, as there are twenty-five  indulgences wh
ich
generally at the
here al
without any individual one
at
stminster
were included in one form or another in indulgences, only a
  very small
Of these, the
number of ind
 
ulgences is
omparison, th e indulgences for
Edward the C
1207
and
seventy-one years
Additionally all
appeared  b
nterest in
Batildi
,
v, 396v, 398-402v
2 7
WAD, f . 404. The feast of relics was also celebrated at Westminster in
Aug
p. XL .
2 8
if icant that of
all the rel ics and saints which received separate m ent ion
s
is
was a popula rity for
obj
Relic
of the Holy Blood and the Iconography of th e 
Thir teenth-Century Transept
 Portal of Westminster
Thirteenth Century: Proceedings
85), p. 137 .
2 9 T he per iod is indeterminate because an exact date has
not
the
8
8
a
in 1247, and eit
 king, or both, wanted
outshine
the
saint, H enry III presided over the instillation of the
re
lic
Therefore, the
th
terest in promoting
ences opens up a w
ider
qu
estion
lgences
even
ly distributed over th e period, or were there times when
the cult
received mo
there was a
 were only
1 is base
term inus year. Both
of the charts show a definite increase in th e
number of indulge
with Chart 2 concentrating this period to the years 1220-1300.
While
Chart
r of grants
1240-1259. From these charts, the
conclusion might be drawn that, because the gre
atest distribution of
 
were made on th e 
same principles as Charts a
nd 2 respectively, shows
all the indulgences
 given to Westminst
er Abbey. Like
3 I n the case of the festa ferianda, Henry I I I acted to secure ecclesiast
ical
privi
  of indulgences for
Barbara Harvey has noted that in the
thirteenth century, the relics
3 The
iv, p p . 641 -2 .
89
. 38
ter A b
minster A bbey a
-392
  of Edward
the Confesso
by the abbe
se of
opportunity to promote the feast  via
indulgen
e
i
the Holy Blood
in 1247, it began to procure indulgences for visits to the
relics in the same year. Th
e lapse of twenty yea
rs between
that an indulgence
was not nece
s
shrine. 4 2 The abbey's interest in the promotion of Edward
's cult
 was not
vious chapter, it has
Henry Ill's requ
lists
to be celebrated as i
f they
were day
he period
1235 -83 .
still a novelty.
4 3 See
liae, mandat qu
celebrent et ab ipsoru
-1955], ii 3330.
for the translation feast as th
at was the one he at
tended more
pope, or if he acted with the support of Westminster
Abbey. However,
the ind
easts, which
going
interest
written between 1362 a
ne h
determine w
lesson
lesson is 
irtues a
story
told
feasts shows that Edward's
m the
ary
ipt, the colours
s were written
of Edw
ink, placing it in 
granted for visit ing
including  seven which
lely for them   (WAD, ff. 386v, 390v, 393-4, 406 v.).
4 6 M/ssa/e ad usu
m ecclesie Westmonasterensis,
v.
4
8
the mass, be
4 9 The t
be
-6. The January feast
l ife: h is virginity, the
legend of the
Seven Sleepers, h
written
e
feas
93
ts . 5 3 The
  other h
irg in, the feast of
St.
P
St. Joh
, birth of Joh
n  the Ba
the assum
feasts were: Aldhelm, Au
Edward th e 
e Bapt
P
estminster Abb
rd the Confessor,
ed in t
as
r E
Paul, in   additi
rd's  feasts were placed
eter an
Mary in albs,
 
, 391 v-92v, 40
ma
iturgical terms Edward s feasts were
 
the
ornaments
ere wa
impressive object
s
.
the
images of SS Peter and Edward a pair of glo
ves embroidered with
Edward s arm
s his   ring and three albs   the first with Edward pictured
with St. John the second of the king pictured with
  anoth
th the
pe embroidere
items are a visual record of how
Edward was perceive
g the evidence found
there were 
ey.
Wes
e same
5 7 There was a reversal of fortune for E dward's feasts n other missals,
particularly
reas Hereford and Sarum
sts, all three
x;
Her
B
ctor and C. Wordswort
5 8 J . Wickham Legg, 'On an In
ventory of the Ve stry n Westminster 
Abbey, taken n 1388, '
the Dissolution:
se i t co
is .
estry,   pp .  222-3, 2
nour
of
  Edwar
  Herefo
onfes
lia.
9
8
els (2 vols.,
 A bbots of
2),  
i
Martin Holmes suggested that th e 
crown of
Edward the
built for t
ted that Edward the Confessor's crown
was
coronation. 7 4 Neither provides any sources
which  attest
m Edward's
tomb. However,
Guisboroug
ward
I
 
things,
ard the Confessor. 7 5 The
concept of a king po
ssessing a single crown
the
th
belonged to
a symbol of state.
ll indications
the perception of the items at t
he
Westminster,
quarter
 
Light o
ls, i
p. 266 .
7 5 ' C u m q u e in consu lendo se diffic i les exhiberent, attestavit rex per
Sanc tum  
m q u o d ius
regni
sui et corone sanct i Edwardi cu ius ip se so lummodo conserva to r e
xt i terat vel a
bere
d e
beret vel
illud p r o s e q ue n d o ad mor tem
i
Rothwell
7],
sit au tem eidem uenerabi l i f ratr i
suo Rober to,  ut ministros ca
mere
rem fa
saur is
coronis, armis, uasis, l ibris uest ibu
sque
s
nnorum, ii, p. 186.).
  wi
cane,
o We
stminster are
f the explanation for the lack of
 
hat the c
ult was  celebrated
d Edward's
tminster. In
last
the tw o
Octob
However, fo r  m
, pp. 356,
362, 364,
reason behind
ey and G.
larger, more visible don
bey, d iscouraged
 a n d
osser, Medie
r:
1
to promote
urchases  in cash a
fair.
made a
nster (E
onto, 1 9 85], pp. 20, 22.).
8 8
e forisfacturae
  nundinae Wes t
10
4
.). T
  badge
  period
Beck
kyard (Spencer,
P ilgrim
d in co
llections in No
dep icts
these
c
eensla
de
(O
xford,
1996) ,
  vii,
  this ease
(M oore, The Fairs of Medieva l England, p
. 11.).
1
08
vitae
Indulgences and the celebration of Edward s feasts were some
ways
i
s spread throughout E
1066
is
irteenth-century.
There
of the s
he
perce
W
f ev
y
were
reco
rded
in
ledge of his
this chapter
ed in the Live
s: the first is
 
ty
he perception
sanctity went back to the beginnings of papal involveme
nt n
64.)
canonisation on  
109
John a n d the r ing. T
he lis t o f
the texts an d
 tw
962 edition
es M . B
f
author of t
he  En c
om ium Em
], p
. xiv.).
110
  I n additio
n to th
ese   claims, G
ne in
m
a
  others (A . G . R igg , A   History o f An
glo-
p . 51.
n t s
e  
ulis  
insigne
e
as he was raised
 
of Q
he s
involved
ham
workings of their
courts. The as
appropr
ite
literary credential
s demonst
onal relationship
ice to be Ed
bably the most
ists. 2 3 M. R . James was
 
topic of some debate, with scholars wavering be
tween so
on after
.
h
B
lx: A
Dutton's intro
2 Aelred is cited as th e
 source for
first w ri
tten account of St. John and the r ing (see below,
p .
148) .
g of Gre at Britain and Ireland
before 1540 (Brepols, 1997) ,
lred's manuscripts is in A . Hoste's
Bibliotheca Aelrediana: A Survey of
the
M
anuscripts,
gis,
1962).
K . Young
the
(Matthew   Paris, p p . xviii-xix.).
  4
. M .
R . Luard's bel ief
tminster Abbey in his
Confessor (RS,
ship
of
the
has  been subsequently upheld by R . Vaughn, Matthew Paris (Cambridge,
1958), p p .
168-81; K
. Wallace in Matthew   Paris, p p . xvii-xxi; P . Binski 'Abbot Barking's Tapes
tries and
Matthe w
dward the
.
n d o f t
he Li fe
ol lo w
s :  A I  
igl is e
n., (
e quotations of papal
charters, which are included
  Third
Westminster
rre Chaplais has argued
that nothing in these
  of the forged
o-Saxon provenance, as
,
documents present his
O
sbert
u
  comparing  word
5 Osbert's use  of the ife of
M
 
which gave him
Ae
. In the opening pages the write
r
r the
by A
elred's modern
s difficult to 
  to
Westmins
ter
50-61.
 
rd, pp.
.
  recedens, pauca quae vel
ut mihi videtur
g Ed
ward, p .
ard /
Ki
ai
tran
 
 Ed
ters in
Edw
ew Paris
tem,/scr ib
Ed
  s
ile, though, as
ter a hu
sing his military force against the
  king, he
parisons
vita
 
r  the N
o
had
died
nore,
turn
festine uel
  patri' The
Life o
bis   et
, quam a
am, in domi
  ob late purgation
0. In
  versions, Edwa
e hall. An earlie
rie,
exequiisqu
. 18
0-81.
em gressibus
  in c
edit, pa
omet
ariz rent
i Ha
'entrem
ette/
D'enfre
indre
ch
t encu
mbrer' (M
atthew Par
 
anes. 1 2
In the firs
t Life, the
  Danes were counted
This observation is
nd late
g the kingdom s business in the hands of native
lords. 1 5
Tostig s reputation
d
to
  Matt
hew
Paris called a felun. 1 6 With Hardrada s help T
ostig
brother. Tostig s
  fall from  grace. Instead
ding his
G o
dwin family are unclear and are not mentioned in the first
 Life
(F
or d, 1971],
was
with
a
Confessor, p. 43 .).
in M at
thew
P
aris'
descrip
tion of Alfred's death. The account of the earl handing the aethel ing over
 to
Harald Hare foot immedia
tely fol lowed a passage stating that Alfred was the rightful
 heir by
birth while
others ruled
strength (Matthew
  P a
rightful heirs, n this instance in
favour of a
ts
om he had sworn
3 8 9 5 - 9 1 2 .
1
longinqui tate dirimatur, legatis tam
en suis
longo m
,
subicit, iussusque ab eodem
Life of King Edward, p. 16.) .
1 0 4 'Sola Dacia
effera et superba adhuc sp
irabat iniquitat
 are to be fo und in Aelred, col. 746;
M
1 0 5 O f all E dward's hagiogra
phers, Matthew Paris unsurpris
inst aliens.
I n
r vitae, he requested those w ho
came with him from Normandy
be allowed  to stay in Englan
d or return  to Normand
y
ac
cording to th eir wish (The Life of King Ed ward,
pp. 1
Matthew Par is  did not
  include this
rd's reign stating that
e ki
urtoisement' I I . 916-8. ) .
13
0
's dying
words where
Lives,
es  could p
ut a m
in
i
ditions, and this resulted
eginam deinde fratri proceribus
audabat obseq
g's speech
  when he speaks of the queen: 'Ki m'a este suer e amie,/
Portez li leau cumpain ie./
 Fille m'ad es
1-3.) . Mat thew Par
men,' p 156.
sion of the Green Tree. The
auth
statemen
. 1 2 2 T
the late
f in the proph
 
of this piec
e of Norm
Edward,
p.
34 .
ro re
agente ta
atuate corde  submurmu
rat n   aur
ctum et
p 118.).
  re gina et qu
ere, quique pr o se altius audita
pensa
re ,
e
g
Ed
g in this episode
, it claims   that Edward
plain
ab
 Paris, I I . 3783-6.
old's consecrat io
n by S
f his  argumen
t for the
onation  wa
r par
to his holiness in the
fir
st vita are indicative of Leofric's reputation. The origins of this vision
are
not
frag
ury and coming from
 
the vision from Herbert,
abbot of
  Westminster from 1 1 2 1 to the later 1130's to Warin,
prior
of
cerned a monk called
opportunity for the le gend to be
spread.
Jackson
postulates
t
itself, was tran
smitted to Westm
e dates of the
fric in
ever
en in the
transformation is Edward the
peaceable
ness to listen
y cer
This command is compared by Matthew Paris
to Christ's request in Mark 9:2-9 th at n o one
tell what
they ha
seiiz
sie./
ensample traire,/ Ke nostre Sire ruva taire
/ As tres ke vindrent eu munt /Tab
or of l i e
la
  veu
unt-/
Peres
e
si
2566-73.).
manuscript and its
a paper enti t led The Sources, Context an
d
Afte rlife o f the Old English Vision ofLeofric. I should like
to thank Peter
work and our subsequen t d iscussions on the topic.
1 3 4 The fragment w
as
or
igina lly dated in Napier
  A n Old English Version  of Leofric,' p . 180. The text of
the vision is greatly abbreviated
from the one which
Christ during mass.
urse of the Lives
On
Edward should marry.'
ae which mar the manusc
ript. The
passage B
rd's court.
ing a sce
retain
y 
explanation
  St. Peter while still in exile that
,
  Hearing the
Rome asking
nsation. The pope
  releases the ki
g that he ei
ther build or rebuild a church in honour of St. Peter.
While
ward
1 3 5 ' . . .de secunda que lateri reg
is adhereat
digna sponso inter
.
1 3 6 A elred, col. 747; Matthew Par is, I I . 804-15.
1
l ro le of the hermit
 acting
in
History 60
a
been discussed by Peter Jackson in a
paper given at the Medieval
Church History Sem inar in
 
 
this way, Edward is advised by the temporal and spiritual world and
bows to the demands
of
that not only is he released from his vow
by
originally made. The
restoration of Westminster Abbey was not presented in the first Life in
this manner. According
for two reasons:
he wanted to
to
the
these changes had received divine approval. 1 4
Edward's tendency
of
its peace. Once again, he is not presented as the
one
the hagiographic tradition,
of Clare emphasised the peace
of Edward's
while at peace. 1 4 2 Similar themes
continue throughout the other Lives, implying that
peace was visited
Matthew
Paris'
account, Edward's peaceful reign is bracketed by periods marked by
conflict and invasion; the
In
this peace. All of the Lives imply
that the peace visited upon
England
1 3 8 This
episode appears in Osbert , pp. 77-82; Aelred, cols. 749-754; Mat thew Paris, I I . 1398-876.
1 3 9 'Extra m uros urbis Lundonie supra predictum amnem Teme sin erat monaster ium in honore beati
Petri, paruo
paucioribus
Christ ; res quoque
usibus a fidel ibus date tenues e t ipse erant
in amministrat ione uictus
cotidiani.
Intendit ergo deo deuotus rex locum il ium...potissimum autem ob amo rem principalis
apostoli, quern affectu colebat unico et special , eligit
ibi
Edward, pp. 66-8.).
1 4 C. Hahn in an article about Matthew Paris' vita attributes
this
to Edward's display of chivalric courtesy
( 'Proper Be havior for Knights and Kings,' p. 247 .). The inf luence of chivalric texts on the Mat thew
Paris text will be discussed below.
The Life of King Edward, p. 18 .
'Uniuerso
138
 4
42
would listen to the
The characters in the various Lives of
Edward the Confessor
person who
change
in his cult is
unsurprising, and will be addressed below in the discussion of his
virtues. The changes, for the most part, reflect
changes in political
exception of Leofric, who had
pretensions to power in pre-Conquest
England was decried as evil by the Norman
regime
their descendants became established on England's throne, there was a
secondary
However
influenced by politics these Lives were, it is essential to remember that
they were primarily written
are an example of the
way politics could be intertwined
with
religious
those
who
Edward's sanctity by showing how he did not
act. The characters
evil.
before the Normans had placed their stranglehold
on England and
claimed Edward as their antecessor. Slowly the ideas of the new regime
filtered through the later vitae, colouring the view of certain characters
while providing opportunities to highlight Edward's saintliness.
 4 3
with
a
Edward, p. 18;
denounced by K. Pearson, 'A Myth about Edward the Confessor, '
EHftxxv
(1910).
139
citam
 q
uoqu
her
rook
xand
er
I
ll's
C
onse
e early
he ancien
cient
a
uthoritie
his notion
  PL
inity could b
ing the
rved that whe
ar riage and Sexualit
981). A
hat   of a
D eGaiffer, Inta
arriage in   M
ife's virginit
: tho
he
argu
s point
ited tr
haye
  M edie
y unattainab
od s mirac
le that Mary
ty, p . 61.).
les w
al Nullit
enth In
dre de monia
R
Edw
143
 58
s and be se
en as their spiritual
 such a
was
questionable
had the right
said that
l, and that
becau
is solution was
ha
d
on his deathbed.   6 3 More important though was the increasing v
iew that
unning of his k
Edward was
fulfilling Grego
ugh at the
1 6 The concept of the mon k-king has been examine
d by S . Ridyard 'Monk-Kings 
and the Anglo-Saxon
  'Kings who  Opted
ollins (eds.), Ideal and
Society: Studies
  6 The actual
the vow was not desc
ribed in the vitae unt i l Aelred wrote (cols. 747 -8.). The first
two
a s a foregone conclusio
n .
PL, Ixxvi, cols. 127
rd's friendships with m
onks occur in The
107; Aelred, cols.
entre
on
Matthew Paris amplified this statement, saying that
the king counted hermits, priests and can
ons in
t
ami m oine,/ Hermite, prestre e chanoinne./ K i p
lus 
fu
 
ent dui.../ Moines de grant religiun' I I . 966 -70.).
1 6 4 Th
radually. The
ecclesiastical matters
, assisting them in
,
18-20.). Whi le Osbert was quiet on the topic of
Edward's style of ruling, Aelred stated that the king was remove
d from his powers, giving them to his
court so that he could concentrate on God with the result that he was able to see divine things:
'...cun
commit tens, totum se divinis mancipabat
obsequi is...
visionum suavitate
the euch arist. Matthew Paris share
d
th at the king le
 
Edward
th
e
monastic exi
stence. However,
said that increas
 
Though Edward did no
hagiographers portrayed him adopting some monastic habits b
oth in his
result of the
ing
main focused on
has
n
th
view; by remaini
ng a v
from the material
world,  as Augustine
one
w
and mode o
the Confessor.  A n
received by
receive
visio
1 6 5
who neglected to
Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum
1 6 7 J . Bugge, Virginitas:
An in the History of
a Medieval Idea
145
ngs.   6 8
The vis ions
oured Edward and
his virtuous life
astic lifestyle.
of
  l
d as though he
adopted a monastic lifestyle.
Moreover, the general pattern
n to be
casting  Edward
as an
d 
have
 
e rag
g 
that it was b
ed the visions
of this was that
was a divinely
approved status. However,
explicitly
said that. While Edward's virginity was put forth as a virtue, the worth
o
f
s
al views of
,
contemplari et futura p otuit qu
asi prae oculis sita
Life provides a good counter example,
as Harold only received visions of Edward ad
monishing him for his oath
breaking. When he
the battle a t Stamfordbridge, he appe
ared to a monk who then brought
news o f the vision to the king. Harold was only qualif
ied to
Angevin Kings:
except ions to this pattern were the so-called martyrs, Robert
of
1 7 Ridyard,
Clare was familiar with a t
leas
the a vita about Edburg
a,
which
or the letter which was attached to the work, see
O
sbert,
Jerome (Squire, Aelred of Rievaulx, p . 30.).
146
  all he could and
stributed
propert
y
fter he
image  to Rom
seco
nd
story,
evil sitting
on a
al
from
God.
ene of the a
Paris, I I . 1041-3
lica videbatu
ne aerarium, quon iam rex totu
m
, si p et
sa honur/ Des
.) .
ent about
concentrating on   the
osity were display
n . One day
beggar approa
king havin
 
brought with
the ring he w
whereupon the man disa
  an old man. The man who re ealed himself as
St.
live. 1 7 8 This story
became the
ard
legen
d was
te the story primarily
cript of th
century.   7
record  this s
suggest that
The
Besides the liter
indulgences fo r
negative views on taxation, see Vaughn,
M atthew Paris,
Edmund
1 7 9 O
le, pp. 38-4
4.
1 8 1 H . J . Chaytor, 'King Edward 's R ing,' in J
. Rothschild and
in R om
st gl
ance. Th
ere are
very fe
presented as one of happy
coincidence; the knight did not go to
Westminster hoping
can
on a feast day. 1 9 5
Rather
at
Westminster
as
an act of
faith, she was
taken there to atone for her blasphemy, because she though she had
blasphemed
against
Edward the Confessor. The only miracle where
people appeared at the tomb on their own accord was one
where six
blind men
of
by the
news of his wonderful intercessory powers, the opposite is true. For the
most
part,
Westminster rather than going there after hearing reports of his
cures, hoping
Edward was not the cure-magnet that
the hagiographers
as he was made out to be. The
dating
appearance
in
certain Lives. The cure of the Norman paralysed man was dated to
within
Osbert,
Matthew
Paris. 1 9 6 From that point on, the dating becomes
increasingly difficult.
sighted
to the third anniversary of Edward's death and a month
after Edward's
1 9 5 I t
is signif icant to note that the feast day in question was
not
one
of
Edward the
Confessor 's
but one
of his ancestor's, Edward the Martyr. The affl icted girl apparently
confuses the
ought to work
Edward of Westminster . The girl
was then taken to the relics at Westminster, identi f ied as those she had blasphemed. Confusion of
the two saints has continued to this day. One
of the most common forms of skepticism present in
medieval vi tae
work ing
on feast days (S. Reynolds, 'Social Mentalit ies and the Case
of
Medieval Skept ic ism, ' T f lHSSth ser., 1 [1991], p. 30.).
Osbert , p. 112; Aelred, col. 775; Mat thew Paris, I I .
4006-7.
Osbert , pp. 113-4; Aelred, col. 777; Mat thew Paris, I . 4033.
154
ld have
tion  to
  Norman
this
in
than being
inster. 2 2 Bar
ause they can be
3 How
ply added to Osbert s
text at a late
r date by someone
to
imag
have been in
connections to Westminster Abb
scedulae ever 
existed, it
  is imposs
value.
nything, his
curative po
t 
gi
2 0 2 These are: the
  punishment of the embro iderer,
  Osbert 's
cure, th
cure of a 
e cure of
one of
 
 between th e
Robinson,
, p. 58.
 
without the person who was seeking the cure. 2 8 Besides people
bringing themselves or sending objects to the tomb, they also
called out
to the saint when far away. In the miracles of
Wulfstan, there are a
or another coin was bent in an act of
requesting a cure away from the tomb; the coin was later donated at the
tomb. 2 9 Another
the water
his
body after his death. 2 1 Whether
or not they went to his tomb, the pilgrims came to call upon St. Wulfstan
because they
expressed a belief in his ability to cure, a belief brought
about by his fame within
England. Not only did this belief in Wulfstan's
intercessory powers bring people to his
tomb, but they also called upon
him from far away, bending
pennies
show that the saint's
curative powers were known throughout England. A s was the case with
Wulfstan, there were phrases which
indicated
tomb because
the cures which God worked
through Gilbert. 2   Only six out of the over fifty miracles were instances
when people were compelled to visit the
tomb after being told in a
dream
2 1 2 The rest of the miracles indicated that
those
were taken to the
saint's efficacy in
intent
people brought
height.
178.
2 9 Vita Wulfstani,
pp. 124,160. For the practice of bending coins, see Finucane, Miracles and
Pilgrims, pp. 94-5 .
121,126. The
use
of water touched by a saint's body was very popular as it was a
quasi-relic,
one of the most famous instances being people who used water with a drop of Thomas
Becket 's blood. During his lifetime, water used by Edward the Confessor to wash his hands was
used
which does not fit the
pattern
as
Book of
Book of
Book
158
2
other pilgrim h
ther relics a
re also u
sed by tho
 
rt
r int
were l
cle. Th
 
4,
134.
2
ort's
c
ronicle of
iti,
aux,
Collect
ury En
gland, S
hes to  
the Stud
xistence
at only one was
necessary is
confusing, and it cannot be said for certain which sermon was  given
  at
Westmins
en
could
  feast days,
because, as
though there is
  of
of Rievaulx, he had to preach at least twelve
times per year on grea
t
In total, he might have given up to three h
undred
m
4 'Deinde
sancti [Edward] et ad
 
 
red
ancti
Edwardi regis et confessoris, p ro curata per Laurentium, ex p rio
re
Dunelm
ensi,
copum Cantuariensem.
Sanctus Alredus 
regis et
accendit luce
rnam, &c.
hough both
so urces
none of the sermons cit
es the
  monastic att
. On Aelred's 
st, Preach ing in
M
anuscripts of the Per iod c. 13 5 0 - 1 4 5 0 (Cambr id
ge, 1926), p. 49.
usseig
  (e
ns of Sanc
ls of Ho
elf to b
ols ter his
 s
pree
eath.   5 At the
end o the first
to
exercise
humility
to strengt
ity.
Though
  th
hed in fro
nt of a
ere   pres
rdo studeam
vitare reatum , vitare peccatum, vitare mortem' (M S 294 , f 16
2.).
m, c
s dominum et non
pecuniam, cuius divine e
rant quia  res publica,
eius
p
auperorum
commune  
1
5
 domini Edwardus mun
ificus ecclesiast icus,
ro
g
famulatum ' (M
 
7v-8.)
dan, The
  Edward's
lin
  to Cnut.
is tempti
i
not think  that it was
suitable for the mother of the saint to marry her deceased
  husband's
ard's
lif
e stories of Edward's
s
 
by
Abbot
Barking
  of
tap
estries
which
side of the choir,
facing a set of
the life of the Virgin Mary. 3
4 These
mmons i
n the
Palace in 
appeared. However, a set of drawings made in the  eighteenth
century now  in Trin
tapestries consist of twenty
scenes: Edward
3 Matthew Paris,
I I . 17-8. The num ber of kings is uncertain because Matthew Paris
did
not
3 3 M . Harriso
onfessor
in
Early
Fourte
uld
I
Tapes
tries
and M at thew Paris ' Life of St. Edward the Confessor,' p. 85 . In
this
 
article, Binski argues tha t these tapestr ies did not inf luence Matthew Paris ' i l lustrat ion cycle in the
v
ita.
171
the Seven S leepers, the legend of St.
John
a
with historical motifs, su
h and
numbers twenty and twe
d
A
The tapestrie
included
e
de
Instead of encouraging pilgrims who were  seeking Edward's
intervention b
ed on th
The depictions
  of Edward
  the Con
d a good story
Edwa
rd's
conne
ike Matth
s whi
ey. Like the
  of the perception of
eflections on La   Estoire
Edward. To the lay audience, the illustrations and tapestries presented
a wondrous
tale of
canonisation.
Chronicles
vitae
illustrations and tapestries, which
much
carried through to the chronicles documenting his reign? The chronicles
are another legacy of Edward's reign,
written primarily to document
events for various reasons,
of
delineating their subject's
holiness. These two genres, with different purposes, have the ability to
cast
Because
chronicles
and saints' Lives were written with two different
motivations, it is necessary to discover whether or not they present
the
merged into
one. Such incidents will show if Edward's saintly reputation merged
with his historical image. The
primary purpose of this exercise is to
determine whether the historical Edward went through the same
mythologising process
different
periods:
chronicle accounts of Edward's reign, John of
Worcester William of
the period 1120-1154, thus making it necessary to examine both
their
of
historians.
173
ddition,
ace
b
4-6 ; W il
l iam of
on
o
es.
d by S.
ention that
afte r
th
ese
 
hat Edward
s from Orde
different e
deric V
italis (Ox
ford, 1
t O rd e
 written
4 8 Gesta Norman
r on, Aelr
Edward's abil ity to re ceiv
e
v
santis eliquata, et longe
n d ispone
bat  in futu
m
orical Edward
1125. 5 2
material,
namel
 
pher, who
equest, presented her as an ideal queen,
describing her as beautiful,
of Malmesbury
and unworldly, comple
ith God's
Harold's v
od use of
p . xviii.
almesbury 's use of the first vit
a, seeThe
esset
stuperes, modestiam certe animi et
spetiem  corporis
oque
tu s'
(G R
, \ p . 348.) .
5 7 ...denique uiuente Eduardo quaecumque contra eum bella incesa sunt, uirtute sua [Har
old's]
compressit ,
42
0.).
177
it ium ut
 
i u
nt iam,  
re x
ha c
  a rt
 t r
a cta
ba t,
choking was
the re
in
con
ter's chronicle follow s
ause he
debunked Edwar
the events
r
of
  the
, tho
ugh
  eve
  of
th
7 4 G F t
i
p.
572 .
io ns Anglo-Saxon Chronic
i th e
Histor ia Angloru m
is birt
rim um m
Justus
  est,
am  
s aud
m p
ane strang
f H
unting d
on's s
i tem minis
; W altham
gs Vo
orceste
e ly   that the
nish
att
us S cotus
liam
a
dire
dispo
nentem
a S
pedivit (
l. 2
ion. 
em com
m unem
7 .  T h e
e la y du e
  to He
n of  th e
e s .
bout
Edward 
ad
of
o
he  t
tagnation of the legend of Edward
th
in
n t u r y
, a
io n   in
on .
rn
r i ty o
,  th o
 s
a n d C
t ica l Stu
  is
n of O p
 H. T
a ylor
ly, A. R
e   fo
n t h ce
n t u ry
  'Ca
a t ion  a
land :
 Th
h om a
ca s te
r ' (Un iv
Ph .D
. thes is ,
eo f of  N
. H
5 i
  I I
n ised
s t t h a t
 E d
ty w a s
a n d's
t
g in i ty
a s
, s o r
ca ' (O
is ] h
a t u [m
s ' (Re g
c ia[m
ops were
twenty sees w er
clearly del ine
ated in the
ons
tu s   was the
nonisatio
ee Ch.   p. 31.).
Dunfer
rigins , see C
d. T
he form
al recogni
re
w
and  t
 
 as later t
  G eorge
se
be
nda and Pu
blic Opin ion
in  
th
e Reigns of Henry I I I and Edward I,' [O
xford Univ. D.Phil, th esis, 1985], p p . 340-4
1. ) .
us excoct
  Rege P
  in Sicil iam d e p o rtari..
. ' (G
).
gnised  as one.   4
d at th e  same hour as
Christ,
on that his subje
cts embraced th e
d petitioned his interces
trated
nd outside  of F
for Margaret
s and
tions
pe. The firs
r following
both
onouncement
r
the
anonisation surged  in th e
3 4 'E t de ce me se m ble-il que on ne li fist mie assez, quan
t on ne le
artirs, pour les
ige  de la croiz,
compaignie
ui N
D iex morut
en la croiz, aussi fist-il; car croisiez estoit-il
quant il morut a Thunes' (Jean de Joinvi l le, His t
oire de Saint
igitur hor
am veniens Christi servus, super stratum cinere respersum in modum crucis
recu
bans, fe licem spiritum reddidit Creatori; ea
scilicet hora, qua Dei fi l ius pro mund i vi ta n cruce
m o
complete
account of the history behind the canonisation of Louis IX, see Carolus-Barre,
Le proces de canon isation de S. L
ouis (1272-1297) (Palais Farnese, 1994) .
99
cause of his
ent  it would
w
a rappr
rabbing act
sion   of the k
  sanctit
y  
nd fifty for
t from vari
rief sketch of Bonifa
areer, see Carolus -B a
rre, Le pro
.
dle Ag
ught after, see below,
his death
by peop
notably by Guil laum
e
twelft
own royal
d.), Kings and
Mews
n saint, St. Denis, so unlike  
the Scott ish
eby creatin
vit
a 
to
 Testament, these lineages do not trace all of the saints'
predece
Osbert  of Clare traced Edward's origin to the pious
Edga
tions, and to 
in th
e figure
e elem
ents. Her
  figure
of
grandfathers, King Edgar and Duke  Ri
chard, rather than 
urpose
was
am ily
rather than
  to highlight
-lxvii.).
for his canon
4 6 F
or a d
iscussion on t
the
,
f
rgaret 's
connection to
oting
with
not a
m er
her
by
every availa
ble  argument.
promoting
om were models for the young
 king's
as
 tre
 
en
can
oreover, Robert Folz has
included
wever, the hagiographer
Holin