Aimery II of Narbonne
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Aimery II (died 17 July 1134) was the Viscount of Narbonne
from around 1106 until his death.
He was the eldest son of Aimery I of Narbonne and Mahalt (also Mahault or Mafalda), daughter of Robert Guiscard
and Sichelgaita and widow of Raymond Berengar II of Barcelona. This made him a half-brother of Raymond Berengar III. He initially ruled as a minor under the regency of his mother. After he came of age he married Ermengard.
Probably in 1112 or 1113, Aimery received the Fenouillèdes and the Peyrepertusès from his half-brother in return for swearing an oath of fealty against Bernard Ato IV
of Béziers
, with whom Raymond Berengar was at war. The lords of the Fenouillèdes and the Peyrepertuseès remained vassals of Narbonne until the Albigensian Crusade
and the viscounts of Narbonne took the lordship of Rouffiac
near Peyrepertuse
into their own hands. When Douce I, Countess of Provence died and Raymond Berengar claimed the County of Provence, Aimery received the fief of Beaucaire and the terre d'Argence near the mouth of the Rhône
in Provence.
Sometime during his rule, Aimery granted the merchants of Narbonne
the right to form a consulate in imitation of Genoa
. Probably he saw the self-organisation of his merchants and their formation of a military in their own defence as an aid to his own rule so long as the consulate remained under vicecomital control, which in the end it did not. Aimery also participated in 1114–15 in the Balearic Islands expedition led by the Republic of Pisa
and Raymond Berengar.
In 1114, Aimery put an end to conflicting claims in the village of Le Lac on the Via Domitia
by transferring his rights there to the abbey of Lagrasse in return for a large loan of gold and silver. He also entered into a conflict with his cousin Richard de Millau, Archbishop of Narbonne
, who may have been a compromise candidate between Aimery and the pope
for the archiepiscopal throne. Richard claimed that Aimery fecit mihi hominium propriis manibus ("did homage to [him] with his own hands") received fedovia ("fiefs") from the Church "in the presence of the universal synod of the province of Narbonne." The archbishop accused Aimery of deceiving him concerning the extent of the Church's fiefs and attempting to hold land as his by inheritance which was his by grant of the Church; he also accused Aimery of withholding revenues from taxes and imposts that should have gone to the Church. Aimery was recorded to have even abused church property violently and there were disputes concerning who controlled the towers on the city walls. The whole dispute lasted a long time, but Aimery was made to come to terms by the Papacy's support of Richard. In the end, he had to swear oaths of fealty to the archbishop, recognise the archbishop's independent temporal lordship, and concede that some of the rights he held in the city of Narbonne constituted a fief of the archbishopric.
In 1124, Bernard Ato of Béziers declared war on Aimery, who responded by razing the castle (pro justicia, "out of justice") at Montséret
, which had been held by Aimery's vassal Bernard Amati until he had treacherously turned it over to Bernard Ato. Not long after this Aimery turned towards Iberia
and joined the Reconquista
being waged by Alfonso the Battler
in the Ebro
valley.
In July 1131, Aimery was at the deathbed of his half-brother to witness his final testament, of which he was to be the executor. Aimery died in battle before the walls of the Moorish city of Fraga
, which Alfonso had been besieging. Aimery had a son and a daughter by Ermengard; the son, Aimery, predeceased him (ca. 1130), and he was succeeded by his daughter Ermengard, who was only four or five at the time. He married a second time to a woman named Ermessende and left by her a daughter of the same name.
Viscount of Narbonne
The Viscount of Narbonne was the secular ruler of Narbonne in the Middle Ages. Narbonne had been the capital of the Visigoth province of Septimania, until the eighth century, after which it became the Carolingian Viscounty of Narbonne. Narbonne was nominally subject to the Carolingian Counts of...
from around 1106 until his death.
He was the eldest son of Aimery I of Narbonne and Mahalt (also Mahault or Mafalda), daughter of Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
and Sichelgaita and widow of Raymond Berengar II of Barcelona. This made him a half-brother of Raymond Berengar III. He initially ruled as a minor under the regency of his mother. After he came of age he married Ermengard.
Probably in 1112 or 1113, Aimery received the Fenouillèdes and the Peyrepertusès from his half-brother in return for swearing an oath of fealty against Bernard Ato IV
Bernard Ato IV
Bernard Ato IV was the Viscount of Nîmes of the Trencavel family from 1074 to his death.Bernard Ato was the son of Raymond Bernard of Nîmes and Ermengarde of Carcassonne.In 1125, Bernard Ato retook Carcassonne....
of Béziers
Béziers
Béziers is a town in Languedoc in southern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the Hérault department. Béziers hosts the famous Feria de Béziers, centred around bullfighting, every August. A million visitors are attracted to the five-day event...
, with whom Raymond Berengar was at war. The lords of the Fenouillèdes and the Peyrepertuseès remained vassals of Narbonne until the Albigensian Crusade
Albigensian Crusade
The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade was a 20-year military campaign initiated by the Catholic Church to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc...
and the viscounts of Narbonne took the lordship of Rouffiac
Rouffiac
Rouffiac may refer to the following places in France:*Rouffiac, Cantal, a commune in the department of Cantal*Rouffiac, Charente, a commune in the department of Charente*Rouffiac, Charente-Maritime, a commune in the department of Charente-Maritime...
near Peyrepertuse
Peyrepertuse
Peyrepertuse is a ruined fortress and one of the so-called Cathar castles located high in the French Pyrénées in the commune of Duilhac-sous-Peyrepertuse, in the Aude département, and has been associated with the Counts of Narbonne and Barcelona...
into their own hands. When Douce I, Countess of Provence died and Raymond Berengar claimed the County of Provence, Aimery received the fief of Beaucaire and the terre d'Argence near the mouth of the Rhône
Rhône River
The Rhone is one of the major rivers of Europe, rising in Switzerland and running from there through southeastern France. At Arles, near its mouth on the Mediterranean Sea, the river divides into two branches, known as the Great Rhone and the Little Rhone...
in Provence.
Sometime during his rule, Aimery granted the merchants of Narbonne
Narbonne
Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea...
the right to form a consulate in imitation of Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
. Probably he saw the self-organisation of his merchants and their formation of a military in their own defence as an aid to his own rule so long as the consulate remained under vicecomital control, which in the end it did not. Aimery also participated in 1114–15 in the Balearic Islands expedition led by the Republic of Pisa
Republic of Pisa
The Republic of Pisa was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late tenth and eleventh centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and...
and Raymond Berengar.
In 1114, Aimery put an end to conflicting claims in the village of Le Lac on the Via Domitia
Via Domitia
The Via Domitia was the first Roman road built in Gaul, to link Italy and Hispania through Gallia Narbonensis, across what is now southern France. The route that the Romans regularised and paved was ancient when they set out to survey it, so old that it traces the mythic route travelled by Heracles...
by transferring his rights there to the abbey of Lagrasse in return for a large loan of gold and silver. He also entered into a conflict with his cousin Richard de Millau, Archbishop of Narbonne
Ancient Diocese of Narbonne
The former Catholic diocese of Narbonne existed from early Christian times until the French Revolution. It was an archdiocese, with its see at Narbonne, from the year 445, and its influence ran over much of south-western France and into Catalonia. Diminished by the creation of other dioceses in...
, who may have been a compromise candidate between Aimery and the pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
for the archiepiscopal throne. Richard claimed that Aimery fecit mihi hominium propriis manibus ("did homage to [him] with his own hands") received fedovia ("fiefs") from the Church "in the presence of the universal synod of the province of Narbonne." The archbishop accused Aimery of deceiving him concerning the extent of the Church's fiefs and attempting to hold land as his by inheritance which was his by grant of the Church; he also accused Aimery of withholding revenues from taxes and imposts that should have gone to the Church. Aimery was recorded to have even abused church property violently and there were disputes concerning who controlled the towers on the city walls. The whole dispute lasted a long time, but Aimery was made to come to terms by the Papacy's support of Richard. In the end, he had to swear oaths of fealty to the archbishop, recognise the archbishop's independent temporal lordship, and concede that some of the rights he held in the city of Narbonne constituted a fief of the archbishopric.
In 1124, Bernard Ato of Béziers declared war on Aimery, who responded by razing the castle (pro justicia, "out of justice") at Montséret
Montséret
Montséret is a commune in the Aude department in southern France.Monséret is a small wine-producing village in the wine district of Corbiers.The village's annual fête is held in early- to mid-July and includes a community dinner.-Population:...
, which had been held by Aimery's vassal Bernard Amati until he had treacherously turned it over to Bernard Ato. Not long after this Aimery turned towards Iberia
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
and joined the Reconquista
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
being waged by Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso I , called the Battler or the Warrior , was the king of Aragon and Navarre from 1104 until his death in 1134. He was the second son of King Sancho Ramírez and successor of his brother Peter I...
in the Ebro
Ebro
The Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
valley.
In July 1131, Aimery was at the deathbed of his half-brother to witness his final testament, of which he was to be the executor. Aimery died in battle before the walls of the Moorish city of Fraga
Fraga
Fraga is the major town of the comarca of Bajo Cinca in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. It is located by the river Cinca.King Alfonso I of Aragon died at its walls in 1134 while trying to conquer it...
, which Alfonso had been besieging. Aimery had a son and a daughter by Ermengard; the son, Aimery, predeceased him (ca. 1130), and he was succeeded by his daughter Ermengard, who was only four or five at the time. He married a second time to a woman named Ermessende and left by her a daughter of the same name.
Sources
- Cheyette, Fredric L. Ermengard of Narbonne and the World of the Troubadours. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2001.