Lives Of The Saints
October 13
St. Edward the Confessor
Quick answer
At a glance
- What it is
- Edward the Confessor returned from exile to rule England with prayer and generosity, rebuilt Westminster Abbey, and left the memory of a king.
- Feast
- October 13
- Source
- Butler's Lives of the Saints, Volume IV (October-November-December), October 13, St Edward the Confessor, Christian Classics 1990, pp. 101-103. Read the source standards.
Saint Edward the Confessor in stained glass at Canterbury
Brief life
Edward returned from long exile in Normandy to rule England in a difficult age. As king, he was known for prayer, almsgiving, and a desire to govern with justice and peace.
His great visible work was Westminster. Unable to fulfill a vowed pilgrimage to Rome, Edward rebuilt and richly endowed the Benedictine abbey beside his royal palace. The church was dedicated shortly before his death, and his tomb soon became one of England's great places of pilgrimage.
Edward's reign knew political strain and powerful rivals, yet his memory endured because he tried to place reverence for God above royal display. Later stories about his marriage and miracles belong to tradition; his piety and his care for Westminster are secure parts of his witness.
Historical note
Edward re-endowed the Benedictine monastery at Westminster and built the great church dedicated shortly before his death. The tradition of continence in his marriage is not historically certain.
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