Simon Islip
[3] Simon was educated at the University of Oxford where he took his doctorate in canon and civil law and became a fellow of Merton College in 1307.He enjoyed the trust and confidence of Edward III, who relied on him in political and diplomatic as well as Church affairs, and gave him extensive powers during his absence in France.He believed that the times required strict economy, and this combined with a naturally frugal character, gained him a reputation for meanness.He succeeded in settling a long dispute with the Archbishop of York as to the latter's right to carry his episcopal cross in the province of Canterbury.Islip died on 26 April 1366[5] at Mayfield, Sussex, having for three years been unable to exercise his office due to a stroke which deprived him of the power of speech.