David Carpenter
Professor David Carpenter
David Carpenter joined King’s College London in 1988 and is Professor of Medieval History. He is a leading authority on the history of Britain in the central middle ages. Professor Carpenter has written widely on English social, economic, architectural, military and political history in the 13th century.
Among his numerous publications are a two-part biography of the reign of Henry III and a book from the AHRC-funded Magna Carta project. In May 2025, it was revealed that he had discovered a ‘copy’ of Magna Carta owned by Harvard Law School and that it is an extraordinary rare original from 1300.
About the event
King Henry III's attachment to Edward the Confessor was unique. No other king, before or since, was devoted to a patron saint in anything like the same degree. In this talk David Carpenter explores the origins and significance of Henry's attachment. He shows how it both helped and hindered his kingship.
It gave Henry spiritual solace and was directly responsible for his greatest achievement, namely the building of Westminster Abbey. Yet it also contributed to some of his worst political decisions. The talk concludes by contrasting Henry's devotion to the Confessor with his far more qualified attitude to Thomas Becket.
Henry III: Reform, Rebellion, Civil War, Settlement, 1258-1272
Henry III: The Rise to Power and Personal Rule, 1207-1258
Magna Carta
Struggle for Mastery: Britain 1066-1284
David Carpenter
