Gerberga
Countess of Provence
Bornc. 1060
Died1115
Noble familyBosonids
Spouse(s)Gilbert I of Gévaudan
IssueDouce I, Countess of Provence
FatherGeoffrey I of Provence
MotherEtiennette

Gerberga (1045/65–1115), also spelled Gerberge or Gerburge, was the Countess of Provence for more than a decade, until 1112. Provence is a region located in the southeastern part of modern-day France that did not become part of France until 1481 (well after Gerberga's time).

Countess Gerberga was a daughter of Geoffrey I of Provence and his wife Etiennette of Marseille.[1] She became Countess of Provence upon the death of her brother, Bertrand II, in 1093.

She and her husband, Gilbert I of Gévaudan, were considered virtuous.[2] He participated in the Crusades, donating many relics from the Middle East to churches in Provence.[3] Gilbert later died in 1108. Gerberga then took control of the government, and is said to have ruled wisely.[4] In 1112, her eldest daughter Douce was married to Raymond Berengar III of Barcelona at which point Provence was ceded to him.[5] Her second daughter, Stephanie, would lay claim to the county and thus precipitate the Baussenque Wars in 1144.

References

  1. ^ de Manteyer 1908, p. 298.
  2. ^ Fouque, Claude. Fastes de la Provence ancienne et moderne: Contenant l'histoire politique, civile, héroi'que et religieuse de ses principales villes, Volume 1 , p. 346 (Barile et Boulouch, 1838).
  3. ^ Cook, Theodore. Old Provence, p. 205 (Interlink Books, 1905).
  4. ^ Clement, Francois. L' Art De Vérifier Les Dates Des Faits Historiques, Des Chartes, Des Chroniques, Et Autres Anciens Monumens, Depuis La Naissance De Notre-Seigneur, p. 436 (Jombert, 1784).
  5. ^ Cheyette 1999, p. 154-155.

Sources

Preceded byBertrand II Countess of Provence 1093–1112 Succeeded byDouce IRaymond Berengar I
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