Edward the Confessor
Anglo-Saxon King of England from 1042 to 1066
Feast: 13 October (1962 Missal, III class) · not on the current Roman calendar
Who they were
Edward, son of King Ethelred II and Emma of Normandy, was born in 1003 and at about ten was sent to Normandy when the Danes took England, spending his best years in exile, where he grew up loving the Mass and the company of religious. In 1042, aged about forty, he was acclaimed king.
His reign was one of almost unbroken peace. Without personal ambition, he sought only his people's welfare, remitted the hated Danegeld and gave generously to the poor. He rebuilt Westminster Abbey, where he was buried after his death on 5 January 1066.
The miracles
He was the first King of England said to cure the 'king's evil' by his touch. His feast, 13 October, is the day his incorrupt body was translated.
Why that counted as sanctity
Edward was a king who sought not power but the good of his people and the glory of God, a peacemaker and a friend of the poor.
Connected on this site
- Eadsige Saint“He crowned Edward the Confessor as king of England in 1043.” — Wikipedia
- Edward the Martyr Saint“The epithet "Confessor" reflects his reputation as a saint who did not suffer martyrdom as opposed to his uncle, King Edward the Martyr.” — Wikipedia
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Edward the Confessor
- Wikidata Q130005 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Edward the Confessor (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.