Citizen of London: Richard WhittingtonThe Boy Who Would Be Mayor

A vivid, richly informative biography of the medieval entrepreneur, social reformer and influencer at court.

The extraordinary story of Richard Whittington, from his arrival in London as a young boy to his death in 1423, against a backdrop of plague, politics and war; turbulence between Crown, City and Commons; and the unrelenting financial demands of Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V, to whom Whittington was mercer, lender and fixer.

A man determined to follow his own path, Whittington was a significant figure in Londons ceaseless development. As a banker, Collector of the Wool Custom, Kings Council member and four-time mayor, Whittington featured prominently in the rise of the capitals merchant class and powerful livery companies. Civic reformer, enemy of corruption and author of an extraordinary social legacy, he contributed to Henry Vs victory at Agincourt and oversaw building works at Westminster Abbey. In London, Whittington found his second family: a mentor, Sir Ivo Fitzwarin, and an inspirational wife in Fitzwarins daughter Alice.

Todays Dick Whittington pantomimes, enjoyed by millions, have a grain of truth in them, but the real story is far more compellingminus that sadly mythical cat.