Foucher de Limoges was the founder of the House of Limoges-Rochechouart, and the first

Viscount of Limoges Between Limoges, Brive and Périgueux, the viscounts of Limoges (), also called viscounts of Ségur created a small principality, whose last heir was Henry IV. Ségur was the main home of these viscounts, in the heart of their domain. The visc ...

Family

The second son of Raymond I,

Count of Toulouse The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of county of Toulouse, Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the kingdom of the Franks, Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ru ...

, and of Berteys, daughter of Rémi. The viscounts of Limoges and of

Rochechouart Rochechouart (, ; oc, Rechoard, link=no, earlier ''La Ròcha Choard'') is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, west central France. It is a subprefecture of the department. The name of the town comes from La ...

are thus descended from the Counts of Rouergue and probably from the

Count of Autun Autun () is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the e ...

and from Théodoric, who founded the Autun dynasty c. 730.

Viscount of Limoges

Foucher was a supporter of

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a ser ...

, and was rewarded for his services in the king's wars by being granted the Viscountcy of Limoges, which extended into Limousin and

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

. Foucher was crowned as viscount in 876 in

Limoges Limoges (, , ; oc, Lemòtges, locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region ...

and started minting his own coinage. The promulgation of the

Capitulary of Quierzy The Capitulary of Quierzy () was a capitulary of the emperor Charles II, comprising a series of measures for safeguarding the administration of his realm during his second Italian expedition, as well as directions for his son Louis the Stammerer, w ...

the following year simultaneously freed the lords up from royal authority and made their titles and charges hereditary, thus giving birth to the French

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...

system. Like other lords, the viscount of Limoges became an autonomous territory, administered by viscount Foucher. On his death, in 886, his son Hildebert became lord of Limoges, and then Hildebert's son Hildegaire, then Hildebert's grandson Géraud, establishing in a lasting way the dynasty of viscounts in their fiefdom of Limoges. Robert de Lasteyrie, Etude sur les comtes et vicomte de Limoges antéieurs à l'An Mil, 1874

References

{{europe-noble-stub Frankish warriors 9th-century French people 9th-century people from West Francia Carolingian dynasty