Edward the Confessor Harthacnut, but a diploma issued by Harthacnut in 1042 describes him as the king's brother. Following Harthacnut's death on 8 June 1042, Godwin, the most powerful of the English earls, supported Edward, who succeeded to the throne. The "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" describes the popularity he enjoyed at his accession – "before he [Harthacnut] was buried, all the people chose Edward as king in London." Edward was crowned at the cathedral of Winchester, the royal seat of the West Saxons, on 3 April 1043. Edward complained that his mother had "done less for him than he wanted before he became king, and
George the Confessor council and was subsequently exiled by Emperor Constantine V. He later returned from exile and attended the restoration of the veneration of icons at the Second Council of Nicaea in 787. George criticised the restoration of iconoclasm at the onset of the reign of Emperor Leo V, and once more refused to remove icons from churches within his diocese. The emperor banished George, who died in exile in 814. For his dedication to the Orthodox Church, George was named a Confessor of the Faith. George the Confessor Saint George the Confessor (Greek: "Ἅγιος Γεώργιος ὁ Ὁμολογητής"), also known as Saint