Archbishop William Courtenay

William Courtenay was a great-grandson of King Edward I (r. 1272-1307) and the fourth son of the Earl of Devon. Such family pedigree and the fact that he was the fourth son, and thus far from inheritance, meant that he was destined for great clerical career.

He studied law at the University of Oxford, where he became chancellor in 1367. In 1370 he became bishop of Hereford, Herefordshire, and then of London in 1375. Naturally his rise in the clerical hierarchy was smoothened by his powerful family. In 1381 he became Archbishop of Canterbury, and was regarded as one of the ablest prelates of the later Middle Ages.

At the time of his death Courtenay was worth around £10,000 - which would translate into about £3.6bn in 2010's terms.