Edith of Polesworth

Saint Edith of Polesworth (also known as Editha or Eadgyth; died ?c. 960s) was an Anglo-Saxon abbess venerated in the Kingdom of Mercia. She is traditionally associated with Polesworth Abbey in Warwickshire and the royal centre of Tamworth, Staffordshire. Though widely revered as a saint, her historical identity and period of activity (floruit) remain uncertain.

Later medieval sources offer conflicting accounts of her lineage. Some traditions identify her as a daughter of King Edward the Elder (r. 899–924), possibly by his first wife Ecgwynn or second wife Ælfflæd, while others claim she was the daughter of Ecgberht, King of Wessex (r. 802–839). A 12th-century tradition links her to the royal marriage diplomacy of King Æthelstan, suggesting she may have been wed to Sihtric Cáech, the Norse-Gaelic king of Northumbria, before retiring to religious life.

Edith's feast date, and thus probably her death day, was 15 July, and her cult was especially prominent in the English Midlands, where several churches bear her name.