Death of Edward the Confessor

January 5, 1066

The pious Anglo-Saxon king died at Westminster with the abbey just consecrated, leaving the question of succession unresolved between Harold Godwinson, William of Normandy, and the Norwegian Harald Hardrada. Chroniclers recorded his deathbed murmurings, which could be interpreted to favor whichever claimant one preferred. The Bayeux Tapestry shows his final moments with pointed ambiguity, his hand reaching simultaneously toward Harold and toward heaven.