Roussillon is situated in the
Regional Park of the
Luberon, region
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
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Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former
Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern
French département of Pyrénées-Orientales (
Eastern Pyrenees). It may also refer to
Northern Catalonia or
French Catalonia, the first used by Catalan-speakers and the second used by French-speakers. A
1998 survey found that 34% of respondents stated they speak
Catalan, and a further 21% understand it.
History
============
Also a
French province before the
Revolution (and
Spanish before the
Thirty Years' War), Roussillon derived its name from Ruscino (Rosceliona, Castel
Rossello), a small fortified place near modern-day
Perpignan where
Gaulish chieftains met to consider
Hannibal's request for a conference. The region formed part of the
Roman province of
Gallia Narbonensis from 121 BC to
AD 462, when it was ceded with the rest of
Septimania to the
Visigoth Theodoric II. His successor,
Amalaric, on his defeat by
Clovis in 531 retired to
Hispania, leaving a governor in Septimania.
In 719, the
Saracens crossed the
Pyrenees and maintained political hegemony of Septimania until their final defeat by
Pepin the Short in 759, who went on to occupy Roussillon after conquering
Narbonne. Roussillon was occupied by Carlolengians in 760. On the invasion of Hispania in 778,
Charlemagne found the
Marca Hispanica wasted by war and the inhabitants settled in the mountains. He granted some lands in the plains to
Visigothic refugees from
Moorish Hispania and founded several monasteries. In 792, the Saracens again invaded
France, but they were repulsed by
William, Count of Toulouse - regent of the child
Louis the Pious,
King of Aquitaine - whose hegemony extended into
Catalonia.
The different portions of his kingdom in time grew into allodial fiefs, and in 893,
Sunyer II became the first hereditary
Count of Roussillon. But his rule only extended over the eastern part of what became the later province. The western part, the
Cerdanya (
French, Cerdagne), was ruled in 900 by
Miró as first count, and one of his grandsons, Bernat, became the first hereditary count of the middle portion, or
Besalú.
The Counts of Roussillon were allied to their cousins the Counts of
Empúries in a centuries-long conflict with the surrounding great nobles.
Count Girard I participated in the
First Crusade in the following of
Raymond IV of Toulouse, and was one of the first to set foot in
Jerusalem when it was stormed by the
Crusaders in 1099.
At the beginning of the
12th century, the prestige of the
Counts of Barcelona began to rise to such a height that the
Counts of Roussillon had no choice but to swear fealty to them.
In 1111,
Ramon Berenguer III,
Count of Barcelona, inherited the fief of Besalú, to which was added in 1117 Cerdanya. The possession of Roussillon by its last count,
Girard II, was challenged by his illegitimate brothers. To ensure that his brothers would not inherit his territories, in his will Girard II left all his lands to
Alfonso II of Aragon, who took possession in 1172. Under the
Aragonese monarchs, economic and demographic growth of the region continued, and
Collioure (Catalan:
Cotlliure), the port of Perpignan, became an important locus of
Mediterranean trade.[citation needed]
As the French and Spanish crowns grew in power, the region of Roussillon, forming part of the border between them, was frequently a site of military conflict. By the
Treaty of Corbeil (1258),
Louis IX of France formally surrendered sovereignty over Roussillon and his claim to the title of Count of Barcelona to the
Crown of Aragon, recognizing a centuries-old reality.[citation needed]
James I of Aragon had wrested the
Balearic Isles from the
Moors and joined these islands with Roussillon to create the
Kingdom of Majorca, with its capital at Perpignan. In 1276,
James I granted this kingdom to his son, who became
James II. The subsequent disputes of this monarch with his brother
Peter III were exploited by
Philip III of France in his quarrel with Peter III for the crown of the
Two Sicilies.
Philip III espoused James II's cause and led an army into
Aragon but, retreating, died at Perpignan in 1285. Lacking the resources to continue the struggle,
James then became reconciled to his brother Peter, and in 1311 the former was succeeded by his son Sanç I, or
Sancho I, who founded the cathedral of Perpignan shortly before his death in 1324. His successor,
James III of Majorca, refused to do homage to
Philip VI of France for the seigneury of
Montpellier, and applied to
Peter IV of Aragon for aid. Peter not only refused, but declared war and seized Majorca and Roussillon in 1344.
- published: 02 Oct 2015
- views: 346