Edwy the Fair

Edwy (Eadwig) (941-959), known as the “All-fair”, king of England (955-959), succeeded his uncle Edred and immediately caused a stir by giving affairs of the heart precedence over those of State. His short reign is marked by a row with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Odo, and his uncle’s old friend, St. Dunstan, over his marriage to a lady “too closely related”. Dunstan fled the country, but Edwy’s marriage was annulled and his wife disfigured and exiled. The kingdom was fortunate that his reign coincided with the start of an unprecedented period of peace with the Scandinavians; however a revolt in Mercia and Northumbria left Edwy’s rule limited to Wessex while his younger brother (and successor) Edgar ruled in the north.

Reference: “Anglo-Saxon Chronicle” trans. Anne Savage