Ermengol VII (or Armengol VII) (died 1184) was the
Count of Urgell
This is a list of the counts of Urgell, a county of the Principality of Catalonia in the 10th through 13th centuries.
c. 798–870 Counts appointed by the Carolingians
*798–820 Borrell, count of Urgell and Cerdanya
*820–824 Aznar Galínde ...
from 1154 to his death. He was called ''el de Valencia''.
The son of
Ermengol VI and his first wife, Arsenda of Cabrera, in 1157, Ermengol VII married Dulce, daughter of
Roger III of Foix
Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ...
and Jimena de Osona, who acted as his regent during his absences in
Castile. Without any possibility of expansion into surrounding territory, Ermengol was attracted to the Castilian possessions that he inherited from his grandmother. Thus, a major part of his reign was spent in the vassalage of
Ferdinand II of León
Ferdinand II (c. 1137 – 22 January 1188), was a member of the Castilian cadet branch of the House of Ivrea and King of León and Galicia from 1157 until his death.
Life Family
Born in Toledo, Castile, Ferdinand was the third but second surv ...
, to whom he was
majordomo and tenant of many castles in
Extremadura
Extremadura (; ext, Estremaúra; pt, Estremadura; Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is an autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central-western part of the Iberian Peninsula, it ...
.
Around 1166, he founded the canons of
Bellpuig de les Avellanes. In 1163, he granted a charter to the people of
Agramunt
Agramunt is a municipality (''municipi'') in the ''comarca'' of the Urgell in Catalonia. It is situated in the north of the ''comarca'', near the border with the Noguera. The town centre is protected as a historic-artistic monument, especially t ...
and in 1174 to
Balaguer
Balaguer () is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Noguera, in the province of Lleida, Catalonia, Spain. It is located by the river Segre, a tributary to the Ebre. The municipality includes an exclave to the east. Balaguer also has a sister city i ...
. In 1164, he coined his own comital currency in Agramunt.
He died at
Requena and left Urgell to his son
Ermengol VIII. He also left a daughter, Marquesa, who married
Ponç III of Cabrera in 1194.
1184 deaths
Counts of Urgell
Year of birth unknown
12th-century Catalan people
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