Pey Berland

Blessed Pey Berland (or Peyberland, from Pierre Berland; c. 1380 – January 1458) was the Archbishop of Bordeaux from 1430 until his abdication, during a pivotal time in the history of the city and of Gascony. During his tenure, the city of Bordeaux remained staunchly faithful to the King of England in the last phase of the Hundred Years' War, but the French took the city in 1451.

Education and early career

Berland was born in the hamlet of Saint-Raphael in the parish of Avensan in central Medoc. Though a peasant, he was educated early on by a retired local notary before moving to Bordeaux to continue his studies and enter the Church. He eventually enrolled in the University of Toulouse and received a bachelor's certificate in canon law. He was ordained at that point, though still young by the standards of the time, when most boys who entered the church put off priesthood until it was required by their office. He then caught the attention of Francesco Uguccione, the old Archbishop of Bordeaux (1384–1412), who drafted him to serve as his personal secretary.