↑ Other contenders later came to the fore. The first was Edgar Ætheling, Edward the Confessor's great nephew who was of direct descent from King Edmund II of England. He was the son of Edward the Exile, son of Edmund Ironside and after his father's return to and subsequent death in England in 1057, Edgar had by far the strongest hereditary claim to the throne. Unfortunately for Edgar,he was only about thirteen or fourteen at the time of Edward the Confessor's death and with little family to support him, his claim was passed over by the Witan. Another contender was Sweyn II of Denmark, who had a claim to the throne as the grandson of Sweyn I of Denmark and nephew of Canute the Great, but he did not make his bid for the throne until 1069. Tostig Godwinson's attacks in early 1066 may have been the beginning of a bid for the throne, but after defeat at the hands of Edwin, Earl of Mercia and Morcar of Northumbria and the desertion of most of his followers he threw his lot in with Harald Hardrada.
