Edmund, King and Martyr

Illunmination from a medieval manuscript.

Here's a paragraph from a short essay about St. Edmund of East Anglia:

Edmund was born about 840, became King of East Anglia in about 855, and in 870 faced a horde of marauding Danes, who moved through the countryside, burning churches and slaughtering villages wholesale. On reaching East Anglia, their leaders confronted Edmund and offered him peace on condition that he would rule as their vassal and forbid the practice of the Christian faith. Edmund refused this last condition, fought, and was captured. He was ill-treated and killed. His burial place is the town of St. Edmundsbury.

And here's something else about him:

St. Edmund was fair-haired, tall, well-built, with a natural majesty of bearing. By the piety and chastity of his life he won the respect of all the Christians. He was a defender of the Church, a protector of orphans and widows, and a supporter of the poor. No man sought for justice from him and failed to get redress, and no innocent pleaded in vain for mercy.

I also learned today that he spent a year sequestered at Hunstanton memorizing the Psalter. That impresses me hugely!