Peter De Birmingham (Peter Fitz William?)
William left Peter land of little value; Birmingham was one of the poorest manors in Warwickshire. There was little woodland and it was covered largely in scrub.
He applied to hold a cattle and food market every Thursday in the grounds of his "castle" and was granted the right by King Henry II in 1154 (some say 1166). He and his heirs were responsible for its jurisdiction. Outsiders were charged to come to the market, encouraging many merchants to live within Birmingham town and hence to pay Peter rents that far exceeded the land's agricultural value. Birmingham became the most successful market in the whole of England. From a population of 50 people in 1086 the town grew to 1500 by 1300.
In 1166 Peter is recorded to have owned a "castle" at Birmingham, to have been the Steward of Gervais Paganell and to have held nine Knight's fees by military service. The "castle" is thought to have been the Birmingham Manor House - a fortified stone manor house surrounded by a circular moat and a range of outbuildings and was probably built in the 12th century. It was rebuilt in the 13th century and remained there until the 18th century. The moat has now been filled in and the house is now the site of the Bull Ring.
Peter bore for his coat of arms:- azure, a bend lozenge, of five points, or.
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