Jurnet of Norwich

Jurnet of Norwich, also known as Eliab HaNadib (the generous), was the senior figure in the most prosperous Jewish community in England in its day.

Jurnet was significant tax collector for the Crown. He acquired land and buildings in Norwich, land in the county and helped to boost trade with the Continent. However, he lost money in a failed loan to the Crown in 1177, then fled to the Continent and was only allowed back on payment of a £2,000 fine. After Jurnet’s death in 1197, his son Isaac had to pay a fine of £1,000 to inherit his father's estate. In 1210, Isaac fell victim to the confiscations of King John and was imprisoned in Bristol and later in the Tower of London. He was released in return for a fine of £10,000.

Both Jurnet and his son were generous patrons of the Jewish educators, and may have been rabbis themselves. At their peak the family was worth at least £8,000, about 0.72% of net national income in the thirteenth century and would be worth £7.98bn in 2010s money.