After Me, Conquest
Edward the Confessor, a model of medieval piety, was a surprisingly effective ruler.
Godwine, a man who had risen to become Earl of Wessex during the reign of Cnut (d. 1035), sailed up the Thames in 1052. Having paused in Southwark to recruit Londoners, Godwine took advantage of a rising tide to continue upriver, his ships sticking to the southern bank. After his exile from England the year before, Godwine’s aim was clear: to threaten Edward the Confessor with war so that he (and his children) could be restored to their former positions of power.
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