The Duchy of Berry (; ; ) was a former province located in central France. It was a
province of France
The Kingdom of France was organised into provinces until the National Constituent Assembly adopted a more uniform division into departments (''départements'') and districts in late 1789. The provinces continued to exist administratively until ...
until
departments replaced the provinces on 4 March 1790, when Berry became divided between the ''départements'' of
Cher (Upper Berry) and
Indre (Lower Berry).
History
Berry is notable as the birthplace of several kings and other members of the French royal family, and was the birthplace of the knight
Baldwin Chauderon, who fought in the
First Crusade
The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic r ...
. In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, Berry became the center of the
Duchy of Berry's holdings. It is also known for an
illuminated manuscript produced in the 14th–15th century called ''
Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry''.
In later times, the writer
George Sand
Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. One of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, bein ...
spent much of her life at her Berry estate in
Nohant
Nohant-Vic () is a commune in the Indre department in central France.
It is located near La Châtre, on the D943, approximately southeast of Châteauroux and consists of two villages, Vic and Nohant, extended along the road.
Geography
The co ...
, and Berry's landscape and specific culture figure in much of Sand's writings.
The Duchy was governed by the
Duke/Duchess of Berry, who after 1601 was a senior member of the
French royal family
France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the Kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions.
Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I () as the firs ...
. The title of 'Duke of Berry' was by this period divested of territorial significance, and instead held by princes of the royal house, the last of which was
Charles Ferdinand d'Artois.
In c.750, the Counties of Berry and Bourges were created by the
King of the Franks. In 843, the County of Berry became part of the
Royal domain or crown lands controlled by the king. From 878 to 892, the county was part of the
County of Auvergne
The history of the Auvergne dates back to the early Middle Ages, when it was a historic province in south central France. It was originally the feudal domain of the Counts of Auvergne.
History
Auvergne was a province of France deriving its name ...
, but became independent once more in 893. In 972, the County of Bourges was reduced to a Viscounty as the ''Viscomte de Bourges'', and in 1101 was annexed by France. In 1360, the county was raised to a duchy as the Duchy of Berry. In 1221, the
Seigneuries of
Châteauroux
Châteauroux (; ; oc, Chasteurós) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French.
Climate
...
and
Issoudun
Issoudun () is a commune in the Indre department, administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is also referred to as ''Issoundun'', which is the ancient name.
Geography Location
Issoudun is a sub-prefecture, located in the east ...
were annexed into the duchy.
The first governor of the province appears to have been appointed on 14 March 1698, when
Adrien Maurice de Noailles, Duke of Noailles became military governor when he was only 19 years old.
In 1778,
Louis XVI
Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...
convened the provincial assemblies of Berry, and considered expanding the assembly to other provinces, but abandoned this idea after experiencing the opposition of the privileged classes in Berry.
In 1790, when the former provinces were dissolved, the Duchy of Berry was split between two departments:
Cher in Upper (eastern) Berry and
Indre in Lower (western) Berry. Some communes also became part of the
Allier,
Creuse
Creuse (; oc, Cruesa or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the ea ...
,
Loiret, and
Loir-et-Cher departments as well.
Governors
The governors of French provinces during the Ancien Régime were typically military commanders and provided military oversight in the region. This included recruitment, movement of troops, and – if needed – dealing with civil disobedience. Below is a list of the governors of Berry during its time as a province.
Duke of Berry
In October 1360, the title 'Duke of Berry' was created by
King John II of France for his third-born son,
John of Poitiers. The duke was followed by several members of the senior royal family, establishing a tradition of the duke being a member of the
House of Valois
The Capetian house of Valois ( , also , ) was a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty. They succeeded the House of Capet (or "Direct Capetians") to the French throne, and were the royal house of France from 1328 to 1589. Junior members of the f ...
. In 1505 however, the last Duchess of Berry
Joan of France died of natural causes and the title was merged into the
royal domain. In 1527, the title was re-created for
Marguerite de Navarre
Marguerite de Navarre (french: Marguerite d'Angoulême, ''Marguerite d'Alençon''; 11 April 149221 December 1549), also known as Marguerite of Angoulême and Margaret of Navarre, was a princess of France, Duchess of Alençon and Berry, and Queen ...
until the title was once again dissolved in 1601 following the death of Duchess
Louise of Lorraine.
In 1686,
King Louis XIV re-created the title for his third grandson
Charles de Bourbon, however the title was dissolved following the death of the Duke in 1714. In 1754, Louis XV re-created the title for his grandson
Louis-Auguste de Bourbon (later King Louis XVI), who dropped the title in 1765 when he became
Dauphin. In 1778, Louis XVI one again re-created the title for his nephew
Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry
Charles Ferdinand d'Artois, Duke of Berry (24 January 1778 – 14 February 1820) was the third child and younger son of Charles X, King of France, (whom he predeceased) by his wife Maria Theresa of Savoy. In June 1832, two years after the overthro ...
. In 1820, the title was finally dissolved once more when the last duke was assassinated.
While Berry was a province, the Duke of Berry was de-jure leader of the area. The dukes included:
Etymology
The name of ''Berry'', like that of its capital, Bourges, originated with the Gaulish tribe of the
Bituriges,
[Compare: ] who settled in the area before the Roman armies of
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...
conquered Gaul. The name of the tribe gave name to the region, often mentioned in
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functione ...
sources as: ''Bituria''.
Brenne
La Brenne, located west of
Châteauroux
Châteauroux (; ; oc, Chasteurós) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French.
Climate
...
and east of
Tournon-Saint-Martin in the
Indre department, is a region which of old straddled on the former provinces of Berry and
Touraine
Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...
, and is now a protected natural area (
Parc naturel régional de la Brenne) as well called ''Pays des mille étangs'', because of its many ponds created since the 8th c. by the monks of the local abbeys for
pisciculture.
See also
*
Berrichon dialect
*
Saint-Benoît-du-Sault
Citations
General and cited sources
*
*
External links
Pictures
Accommodation
Former provinces of France
History of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
History of Centre-Val de Loire
History of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
History of Allier
History of Cher (department)
History of Creuse
History of Indre
History of Loir-et-Cher
History of Loiret
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