Gaston V (died 1170, before 30 April) was the

Viscount of Béarn A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, Gabardan, and Brulhois from 1153 to his death. He was the son of Peter II and a Matelle de Baux. When his father died in 1153, he inherited his title under the regency of his grandmother Guiscarda. When Guiscarda died in 1154, the Bearnese assembly put him under the tutelage of

Raymond Berengar IV of Barcelona Ramon Berenguer IV (; c. 1114 – 6 August 1162, Anglicized Raymond Berengar IV), sometimes called ''the Saint'', was the count of Barcelona who brought about the union of the County of Barcelona with the Kingdom of Aragon to form the Crown of Ara ...

and did homage to the Catalan at

Canfranc Canfranc () is a municipality in the Aragón Valley of north-eastern Spain consisting of two villages, the original village and ''Canfranc Estación'', which developed with the establishment of Canfranc International railway station to serve railw ...

. Up until this point, Béarn had been ''de facto'' independent. It had long ceased to recognize the suzerainty of the

Duchy of Aquitaine The Duchy of Aquitaine ( oc, Ducat d'Aquitània, ; french: Duché d'Aquitaine, ) was a historical fiefdom in western, central, and southern areas of present-day France to the south of the river Loire, although its extent, as well as its name, fluc ...

and had interacted with the

King of Aragon This is a list of the kings and queens of Aragon. The Kingdom of Aragon was created sometime between 950 and 1035 when the County of Aragon, which had been acquired by the Kingdom of Navarre in the tenth century, was separated from Navarre ...

as an equal. With this act, however, it passed into the vassalage of the

Aragonese Empire The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of B ...

. After attaining his majority, Gaston married Sancha, daughter of

García Ramírez of Navarre García Ramírez ( eu, Gartzea Remiritz), sometimes García IV, V, VI or VII ( 1112 – 21 November 1150), called the Restorer ( es, el Restaurador, eu, Basque: ''Berrezarlea''), was the King of Navarre (Pamplona) from 1134. The election of Gar ...

, in 1165. However, the couple had no children and he eventually retired to a monastery of the

Hospitallers The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

and there he died, leaving Béarn to his sister who became Mary, Viscount of Béarn.

References

1170 deaths Viscounts of Béarn Viscounts of Gabardan Viscounts of Brulhois Year of birth unknown {{Europe-noble-stub