Which claimant was proclaimed king by the Witenagemot after Harold died at Hastings?

Edgar Ætheling was proclaimed king by the Witenagemot after Harold Godwinson died at Hastings. He was the teenage great-nephew of Edward the Confessor and the last prominent male member of the royal house of Wessex.

Edgar had the strongest hereditary claim among the English survivors, but he had been passed over earlier in 1066 because he was young and lacked the powerful political network needed to defend the kingdom. Harold’s death on 14 October created a brief succession crisis. English leaders, including Archbishop Ealdred and the earls Edwin and Morcar, supported Edgar’s elevation in London.

Edgar was never crowned, and his kingship lasted only briefly in practical terms. William of Normandy moved quickly to consolidate power, while the English leadership failed to assemble an effective army against him. By early December 1066, Edgar and other leaders submitted to William at Berkhamsted. Edgar later resisted Norman rule, found support in Scotland, and took part in further campaigns, but he never recovered the English throne. His title Ætheling meant a prince eligible for kingship.