Edward the Exile
|
|
Edward the Exile (1016- February 1057), son of King Edmund Ironside and of Ealdgyth, gained the name of "Exile" from his life spent mostly far from the England of his forefathers. When only a few months old, he was sent by the usurper Canute to be murdered in Denmark, rather than on English soil. Instead, he was secretely brought to Kiev and then made his way to Hungary. On hearing the news of his being alive, Edward the Confessor recalled him to England and made him his heir. However, Edward the Exile died shortly after his return, causing a succession dispute that ultimately led to the Norman Conquest of England.
The paternity of his wife Agatha is debated: the medieval sources agree that she was a sister of Hungarian Queen, and disagree as to other details. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and Florence of Worcester's "Chronicon ex chronicis" describe Agatha as a blood relative of the Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor. Her rare Greek name was recently interpreted in favour of a different version, expounded by Geoffrey Gaimar and Roger of Howden, that her father was a "Russian king", i.e., Yaroslav the Wise. Their children included Edgar Ętheling and Saint Margaret of Scotland.