In Short:
An uncrowned king of England, Edgar the
Aetheling’s short reign filled the period between Harold’s defeat at Hastings and William I’s full seizure of the throne. Unlike Harold, Edgar survived, becoming linked with both the Norman dynasty and its Scottish neighbours but, despite some intrigues, he never regained the throne and died in obscurity.
Dates:
Born: unknown, Hungary
Died: c.1125, unknown
Ruled: October 14 – November/December 1916
Childhood:
Edgar’s grandfather, King Edmund II, had been a rival to Cnut for the throne of England. When the latter secured the crown he sent Edmund’s children abroad to be murdered. However, they were welcomed in Hungary where Edward the Exile, Edgar’s father, married a princess and raised a family. Edward the Confessor invited his namesake back to England in the 1050’s. The family returned in 1057, but the Exile died almost immediately and King Edward raised the young Edgar as a son.
King:
Although there are hints that Edward the Confessor thought of Edgar as an heir, the former nominated Harold Godwinson as king when he died in 1066. There followed dual invasions of England and Harold’s three battles, where he – and his family – were beaten at Hastings by William ‘the Conquerer’. With Harold dead, the fifteen year old Edgar was accepted as king by the Witan, mainly thanks to the nomination of Archbishop Ealdred of York and support from Earls Edwin and Morcar.
Defeat:
Edgar was too young to act decisively on his own – his election is often regarded as an act of defiance to William rather than the selection of a man to defeat him – and England’s leaders slowly accepted William as the victor. His power base falling, Edgar submitted to William around the start of December 1066. Fortunately for Edgar, William – now King William I of England – accepted him peacefully. When William returned to Normandy in 1067, Edgar went too as a mixture of guest and hostage.
Rebellion:
In 1068 Edgar may have participated in the rebellion of Earls Edwin and Morcar; both were killed and Edgar fled to Scotland and the court of Malcolm III. Edgar certainly rebelled in 1069, when the combined forces of Malcolm, whom had married Edgar’s sister Margaret, and King Swein of Denmark, who 'recognised' Edgar as King, invaded north England, but their combined forces were beaten after an initially successful capture of York.
A Vassal:
William achieved domination over Malcolm in 1072, the latter agreeing to end his support for Edgar, who was forced out of Scotland and over to Flanders. He returned in 1074 and was persuaded to try and reconcile with William, who accepted, loaded Edgar with gifts and sent him off to a residency in Normandy, practically making him an honorary member of the dynasty. In 1086 Edgar actually led a Norman army sent by William in Italy, but there are no records as to the result.
William II and Henry I:
Edgar’s experiences with William were repeated with the next two monarchs of England. After being involved with Robert Curthose of Normandy’s challenge to William II in 1091, which again caused Edgar to flee to Scotland, the Aethling was friendly enough with William in 1097 for the latter to equip him with a large army and send him back to Scotland, where Edgar beat Malcolm's successor, Donald Bane, and placed a namesake in the throne: King Edgar of Scotland, the son of Malcolm III and Margaret.Edgar went on Crusade c.1102, but was again fighting for Robert Curthose - the two had met at William I’s court - when he was captured in 1106 at the Battle of Tinchebrai by the enemy, Henry I. Edgar was – perhaps because the Henry had married one of Edgar’s nieces – and the Aethling ‘retired’ to an estate in England. Edgar lived into his seventies but details become much sketchier towards the end of his life. He probably moved back to Scotland around 1120 and died perhaps shortly after 1125.
