Geoffrey Fitzpeter

Geoffrey Fitzpeter was a knight from Wiltshire who rose to be Justiciar of England, a cross between Lord Chief Justice and Prime Minister, and held the post from 1199 to his death in 1213.

It is not known how he came to royal notice but by 1181, he was witnessing royal charters and had become sheriff of Northampton and Chief Forester. By marriage he had acquired part of the estates of the earldom of Essex. In 1199, Fitzpeter was supervising the Exchequer, a rich source of “commission” and was the main tax collector, another rich source of commissions.

At the time of his death he was worth £10,000, 0.9% of net national income of £1.1m. This would make him worth £9.9bn in 2010.