The Battle of Hastings - 1066

Edgar the Aetheling Claim

  • Key events preceding the Battle of Hastings
  • Who was Edgar the Aetheling?
  • What was the Edgar the Aetheling Claim to the English throne?
  • Why was he not crowned as the rightful King of England?
  • Vital Key Events

Medieval Knights in the Battle of Hastings - 1066

Edgar the Aetheling Claim

Background to the Edgar the Aetheling Claim

  • Edgar the Aetheling's claim to the throne of England was based on a strong blood tie with the Anglo Saxon Kings of England
  • He was the grandson of Edmund Ironside
  • He was a direct descendent of Alfred the Great - the most respected of all Anglo-Saxon Kings

Edgar the Aetheling's claim to the English throne

  • Edgar the Aetheling was the rightful heir to Edward the Confessor and should have been crowned King of England
  • But he was only ten years old when Edward the Confessor died
  • He did not have the wealth, power or strength of Harold Godwinson
  • He did not have the support of the Witan (the English council which consisted of 60 of the most powerful nobles in England)
  • Edgar the Aetheling was not considered strong enough to hold the throne and defend the realm from the Normans and the Vikings
  • He did not stand a chance against the might of Harold Godwinson

To find out more about their claims to the English throne please click one of the following links:

The Duke William the Bastard of Normandy claim
The Hardrada the Viking claim
The Harold Godwinson of Wessex claim
Wessex and the Anglo Saxons
The Kings of England 871 - 1066
 

Edgar the Aetheling Claim

The Battle of Hastings
1066
Battle of Hastings Index

The Battle of Hastings - 1066

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