02Knights Templar - Julian Emperor

CELTIC AND EARLY ENGLISH SAINTS
a reformation of organisation. When King Edgar took the
throne in 957 AD, St Dunstan was appointed Bishop of
Worcester.Two years later he became Bishop of London and
then rose to the rank of Archbishop of Canterbury the following
year.The strong relationship between King Edgar and
St Dunstan allowed for new and dramatic reforms within the
English Church. St Dunstan implemented monastic rules
which demanded that monks lead pious and dedicated lives
and succeeded, to some extent, in ending corruption within
the Church such as the practice of simony or selling church
positions for money. He also made celibacy an important feature
of monastic life. A strong and clear link was made between
the monasteries and the king, which largely freed them
from the power of local lords. By the same token, the kingdom
as a whole saw a greater degree of coherent organisation
and unification. For example, the king assembled a navy to
protect the land fromViking raids and units were formed with
the express purpose of repelling any such attacks in the north
of England.
In retrospect, and particularly in the period following the
Norman invasion, this phase of English life came to be seen as
a time of great peace and prosperity, characterised by the
maintenance of high standards of law and order. St Dunstan
was such an important figure within English society that he
had the king put off his own coronation. He waited a full fourteen
years before being officially crowned king.This may have
been as some form of penance or punishment imposed by St
Dunstan. When the coronation took place in 973 AD, it was
performed by St Dunstan who had planned the ceremony
himself. It was envisaged as a high point in the king’s reign and
other powerful rulers of the time, including kings from
Scotland, recognised Edgar as effectively the High King.
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