County of Empúries
Encyclopedia
The County of Empúries was a medieval county centred on the town of Empúries
and enclosing the Catalan region of Peralada
. It corresponds to the historic comarca
of Empordà
.
After the Franks
conquered the regions in 785, Empúries and Peralada came under the authority of the County of Girona. Around 813, Empúries, with Peralada, became a county itself under Ermengar. He and the other early counts were probably Goths
. In 817, Empúries was united to the County of Roussillon
. Thereafter until 989 except Empúries was attached to Roussillon. From 835 to 844, Sunyer I ruled Empúries and Peralada while Alaric I ruled Roussillon and Vallespir
.
At the death of Gausfred I
in 989, Roussillon and Empúries were separated. Gausfred's elder son, Hugh I
, received Empúries while Giselbert I
received Roussillon. Hugh's comital dynasty lasted until 1322, when
Empúries passed to a collateral branch of his family. The last count, Hugh VI, sold the county to Peter I of Ribagorza in 1325 for the barony of Pego
and the towns of Xaló and Laguar (all within the Kingdom of Valencia
). Peter lated exchanged it with Raymond Berengar I for the county of Prades
in 1341. From that point on, Empúries was an apanage of the Crown of Aragon
.
Empúries
Empúries , formerly known by its Spanish name Ampurias , was a town on the Mediterranean coast of the Catalan comarca of Alt Empordà in Catalonia, Spain. It was founded in 575 BC by Greek colonists from Phocaea with the name of Ἐμπόριον...
and enclosing the Catalan region of Peralada
Peralada
Peralada is a village in province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. It was the home of the Frankish Counts of Perelada who controlled this portion of the Marca Hispanica before becoming part of the lands held by the Count of Barcelona....
. It corresponds to the historic comarca
Comarca
A comarca is a traditional region or local administrative division found in parts of Spain, Portugal, Panama, Nicaragua, and Brazil. The term is derived from the term marca, meaning a "march, mark", plus the prefix co- meaning "together, jointly".The comarca is known in Aragonese as redolada and...
of Empordà
Empordà
Empordà is a historical region of Catalonia divided since 1936 into two comarques, Alt Empordà and Baix Empordà....
.
After the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
conquered the regions in 785, Empúries and Peralada came under the authority of the County of Girona. Around 813, Empúries, with Peralada, became a county itself under Ermengar. He and the other early counts were probably Goths
Visigoth
The Visigoths were one of two main branches of the Goths, the Ostrogoths being the other. These tribes were among the Germans who spread through the late Roman Empire during the Migration Period...
. In 817, Empúries was united to the County of Roussillon
County of Roussillon
The County of Roussillon was one of the Catalan counties in the Marca Hispanica during the Middle Ages. The rulers of the county were the Counts of Roussillon, whose interests lay both north and south of the Pyrenees.-Visigothic county:...
. Thereafter until 989 except Empúries was attached to Roussillon. From 835 to 844, Sunyer I ruled Empúries and Peralada while Alaric I ruled Roussillon and Vallespir
Vallespir
Vallespir is a historical Catalan comarca of Northern Catalonia, part of the French Département of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca is Ceret, and it borders Conflent, Rosselló, Alt Empordà, Garrotxa and Ripollès...
.
At the death of Gausfred I
Gausfred I
Gausfred I was the count of Empúries and Rosselló from 931 until his death. He was the son and successor of Gausbert. He spent his whole life consolidating his authority in his counties, but he divided the realm amongst his sons...
in 989, Roussillon and Empúries were separated. Gausfred's elder son, Hugh I
Hug I of Empúries
Hugh I , Count of Empúries from 991, was the son of Gausfred I and his first wife, Ava, daughter of Raymond II of Rouergue....
, received Empúries while Giselbert I
Giselbert I of Roussillon
Giselbert I , count of Roussillon , was the son of Gausfred I. His father divided his lands between his sons, giving Ampurias to Hugh and Roussillon to Giselbert....
received Roussillon. Hugh's comital dynasty lasted until 1322, when
Empúries passed to a collateral branch of his family. The last count, Hugh VI, sold the county to Peter I of Ribagorza in 1325 for the barony of Pego
Pego, Alicante
Pego is a municipality located in the province of Alicante.Lying just inland from the northern Costa Blanca resort of Dénia, the town of Pego sits in a depression, surrounded by mountains...
and the towns of Xaló and Laguar (all within the Kingdom of Valencia
Kingdom of Valencia
The Kingdom of Valencia , located in the eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula, was one of the component realms of the Crown of Aragon. When the Crown of Aragon merged by dynastic union with the Crown of Castile to form the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Valencia became a component realm of the...
). Peter lated exchanged it with Raymond Berengar I for the county of Prades
Prades
-Places:* Prades, Ardèche, in the Ardèche département, France* Prades, Ariège, in the Ariège département, France* Prades, Haute-Loire, in the Haute-Loire département, France...
in 1341. From that point on, Empúries was an apanage of the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
.
List of counts
- ErmengarErmenguerErmenguer was the first known ruler of the county of Empúries .It seems that he was a Goth, a member of the local nobility. He was given the county when the region was stabilised under the Franks, but it was given to Gaucelm, count of Roussillon, four years later.Ermenguer led a local fleet that,...
813-817 - Gaucelm 817-832 (united to Roussillon)
- Berengar the Wise 832-835
- Sunyer I 835-841 (united to Roussillon)
- Sunyer I 844-848, again
- WilliamWilliam of SeptimaniaWilliam of Septimania was the son of Bernard and Dhuoda. He was the Count of Toulouse from 844 and Count of Barcelona from 848....
848-850 (united to Roussillon) - IsembartIsembartIsembart or Isembard was the count of Barcelona, Empúries, and Roussillon and margrave of Septimania together with Aleran from 849 or 850 to 852.He was the son of Garí of Burgundy, count of Autun.He was named at the assembly of Narbonne in 849...
850-852 (united to Roussillon) - Odalric 852-858 (united to Roussillon)
- Unifred 858-862 (united to Roussillon)
- Sunyer II 862-915 (united to Roussillon)
- DelaDelaDela , count of Empúries , was the son of Sunyer I of Empúries, whom he succeeded along with his brother, Sunyer II of Empúries, in 862....
862-894, associated - GausbertGausbertGausbert was the count of Empúries and Rosselló from 915 until he died. He was the son of Sunyer II of Empúries and brother of Bencion....
915-931 (united to Roussillon and Perelada as a county) - BencionBencionBencion was the count of Empúries and Rosselló from 915 to his death. He was the son of Sunyer II of Empúries, whom he succeeded.He married Godlana, daughter of Miro the Elder of Conflent and Roussillon....
915-916, associated - Gausfred IGausfred IGausfred I was the count of Empúries and Rosselló from 931 until his death. He was the son and successor of Gausbert. He spent his whole life consolidating his authority in his counties, but he divided the realm amongst his sons...
931-989, again - Hug IHug I of EmpúriesHugh I , Count of Empúries from 991, was the son of Gausfred I and his first wife, Ava, daughter of Raymond II of Rouergue....
989/91-1040 - Ponç I 1040-1078 (transferred Perelada, as a viscountcy, to his son Berengar)
- Hug II 1078-1116
- Ponç II 1116-1154, also as Ponç Hug I
- Hug III 1154-1173
- Ponç III 1173-1200
- Ponç Hug II 1173-1175, associated, also known as Ponç Hug d'Entença
- Hug IV 1200-1230
- Ponç IV 1230-1269, also as Ponç Hug III
- Hug V 1269-1277
- Ponç VPonç Hug IV of EmpúriesPonç V or Ponç Hug IV was the Count of Empúries from 1277 until his death and viscount of Bas from 1285 to 1291. He was the son and successor of Hug V and Sibila de Palau....
1277-1313, also as Ponç Hug IV (also viscount of Bas) - Ponç VI 1313-1322, also as Ponç Hug V Malgauli (also viscount of Bas)
- Marquesa 1322-1327
- Hug VI 1322-1325
External links
- List of the Counts of Empúries: List in Catalan languageCatalan languageCatalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
.