The rise and rise of Adam's career from the time he joined Simon Langham in 1369 right the way through to1385 had been astonishing. He had left the wretched life of a Norfolk peasant far behind and risen to the highest levels in society. He was by now a cardinal, a prince of the church (and to be fair, the Church was one of the few organisations in the mediaeval world where this would have been possible) and he served Urban VI loyally throughout his troubled reign. But Urban was starting to show disturbing tendencies and several of the cardinals were beginning to question his sanity.