There lived in Scotland during his reign an ambitious nobleman named Macbeth, who invited Duncan, the King of Scotland, to his castle and murdered him. He tried to make it appear that the murder had been committed by Duncan's attendants and he caused the king's son and heir, Prince Malcolm, to flee from the land. He then made himself king of Scotland. Malcolm hastened to England and appealed to King Edward for help. When the king was told the number of soldiers Malcolm would probably need he gave orders for double that number to march into Scotland. Malcolm with this support attacked Macbeth, and after several well-fought battles drove the usurper from Scotland and took possession of the throne. Edward did a great deal during his reign to aid the cause of Christianity. He rebuilt the ancient Westminster Abbey in London and erected churches and monasteries in different parts of England. Edward was long supposed to have made many just laws, and years after his death the English people, when suffering from bad government, would exclaim, "Oh, for the good laws and customs of Edward the Confessor!" What he really did was to have the old laws faithfully carried out. He died in 1066 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR KING FROM 1066-1087 I On the death of Edward the Confessor the throne of England was claimed by William, Duke of Normandy. When Edward took refuge in Normandy after the Danes conquered England, he stayed at the palace of William. He was very kindly treated there, and William said that Edward had promised in gratitude that William should succeed him as king of England. One day in the year 1066 when William was hunting with a party of his courtiers in the woods near Rouen, a noble came riding rapidly toward him shouting, "Your Highness, a messenger has just arrived from England, bearing the news that King Edward is dead and that Harold, the son of Earl Godwin, has been placed on the English throne." William at once called his nobles together and said to them, "I must have your consent that I enforce my claim to England's throne by arms." [Illustration: HAROLD RECEIVING NEWS OF THE NORMAN INVASION] The barons gave their consent. So an army of sixty thousand men was collected and a large fleet of ships was built to carry this force across the channel. During the months of preparation William sent an embassy to the English court to demand of Harold that he give up the throne. Harold refused. Soon all England was startled by the news that William had landed on the English coast at the port of Hastings with a large force.