Edmund I was killed at Pucklechurch in Gloucestershire on 26 May 946.

His death was sudden. The usual account says he was killed during a confrontation at a feast or court gathering, after trying to intervene against a man with a violent reputation. That makes it different from the more familiar royal deaths in battle, by illness or after a long political struggle.

The detail is limited. The surviving account is enough to say that Edmund was killed, but not enough to rebuild the scene with confidence. This was a king killed away from battle.

That mattered because Edmund’s reign was still short. He belonged to the West Saxon royal line that had been building power across England after earlier Viking control and continuing pressure in the north. His rule formed part of the effort to hold a kingdom together and extend royal authority.

His death created a practical succession problem. Edmund had sons, but they were too young to rule. The crown passed instead to his brother Eadred.

That answered the immediate problem. Kingship was dynastic, but the kingdom also needed an adult ruler. In 946, that meant passing the crown sideways rather than from father to son.

The killing itself remains partly uncertain. The consequence is clear enough: Edmund was dead, and the crown passed to Eadred.