The campaign had been very successful, but the English triumph would be only temporary. Government and law Character as king Edward had a reputation for a fierce and sometimes unpredictable temper, and he could be intimidating; one story tells of how the Dean of St Paul's, wishing to confront Edward over the high level of taxation in 1295, fell down and died once he was in the King's presence, and one 14th-century chronicler attributed the death of Archbishop Thomas of York to the King's harsh conduct towards him. When Edward of Caernarfon demanded an earldom for his favourite Piers Gaveston, the King erupted in anger and supposedly tore out handfuls of his son's hair. Some of his contemporaries considered Edward frightening, particularly in his early days. The Song of Lewes in 1264 described him as a leopard, an animal regarded as particularly powerful and unpredictable. At times, Edward exhibited a gentler disposition, and was known to be devoted to his large family. He was close to his daughters, and frequently lavished expensive gifts on them whenever they visited court. Despite his harsh disposition, Edward's contemporaries considered him an able, even an ideal, king. Though not loved by his subjects, he was feared and respected, as reflected in the fact that there were no armed rebellions in England during his reign. Edward met contemporary expectations of kingship in his role as an able, determined soldier and in his embodiment of shared chivalric ideals. In religious observance he also fulfilled the expectations of his age: he attended chapel regularly, gave alms generously and showed a fervent devotion to the Virgin Mary and Saint Thomas Becket. Like his father, Edward was a keen participant in the tradition of the royal touch, which had the supposed effect of curing those who were touched from scrofula. Contemporary records suggest that the King touched upwards of a thousand people each year. Despite his personal piety, Edward was frequently in conflict with the Archbishops of Canterbury who served during his reign. Relations with the Papacy were at times no better, Edward conflicting with Rome over the issue of ecclesiastical taxation. Edward took a keen interest in the stories of King Arthur, which were highly popular in Europe during his reign. In 1278 he visited Glastonbury Abbey to open what was then believed to be the tomb of Arthur and Guinevere, recovering "Arthur's crown" from Llywelyn after the