Henry II (

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language, spoken in parts o ...

: ''Enric II de Rodés'') (c. 1236–1304), of the House of Millau, was the

Count of Rodez The County of Rodez was a fief of the County of Toulouse formed out of part of the old County of Rouergue in what is today Aveyron, France. Its capital was Rodez. At its height, it was a centre of troubadour culture. On the death of Hugh of Ro ...

and

Viscount 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 judicia ...

of Carlat from 1274 until his death. He was the son of

Hugh IV of Rodez Hugh IV ( oc, Uc) (c. 1212–1274), of the House of Millau, was the Count of Rodez and Viscount of Carlat and Creyssel from 1221 until his death. He was the son of Henry I of Rodez and Algayette of Scorailles. In 1242 Hugh was in revolt agains ...

and Isabeau de Roquefeuil. Henry II was a

troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairi ...

and patron of troubadours. He composed six poems that survive: four ''

tenso A ''tenso'' (; french: tençon) is a style of troubadour song. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position; common topics relate to love or ethics. Usually, the tenso is written by two different poets, but several examples ...

s'' and two ''

partimen The ''partimen'' (; ca, partiment ; also known as ''partia'' or ''joc partit'') is a cognate form of the French jeu-parti (plural ''jeux-partis''). It is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry composed between two troubadours, a subgenre of the '' ten ...

s'' (alternatively five ''

torneyamen A ''torneyamen'' (; ca, tornejament ; "tournament") or ''certamen'' was a lyric genre of the troubadours of the thirteenth century. Closely related to the ''tenso'', a debate between two poets, and the ''partimen'', a question posed by one poet ...

s''). His short ''

vida Vida means “life” in Spanish and Portuguese. It may refer to: Geography * Vida (Gradačac), village in Bosnia and Herzegovina * Lake Vida, Victoria Valley, Antarctica * U.S. settled places: ** Vida, Montana ** Vida, Oregon ** Vida, Missour ...

'' records an exchange of couplets between ''lo coms de Rodes'' (the count of Rhodes) and

Uc de Saint Circ Uc de Saint Circ (San Sir) or Hugues (Hugh) de Saint Circq (fl. 1217–1253Aubrey, ''The Music of the Troubadours'', 22–23.) was a troubadour from Quercy. Uc is perhaps most significant to modern historians as the probable author of sever ...

. The count claims to have got Uc back on his feet through his generous patronage. Among the other troubadours who were supported at Henry's court were

Guiraut Riquier Guiraut Riquier de Narbona ( 1230 in Narbonne – 1292 in Narbonne or Rodez) is among the last of the Occitan troubadours. He is well known because of his great care in writing out his works and keeping them together—the New Grove Encyclopedia c ...

Folquet de Lunel Folquet de Lunel (1244 – c. 1300) was a troubadour from Lunel (in the modern Hérault) in the Languedoc. He left behind nine recorded lyric poems, including five ''cansos'', two ''partimens'', and two ''sirventes The ''sirventes'' or ''s ...

Cerverí de Girona Cerverí de Girona (; fl. 1259 – 1285) was a Catalan troubadour born Guillem de Cervera in Girona. He was the most prolific troubadour, leaving behind some 114 lyric poems among other works, including an ''ensenhamen'' of proverbs for his s ...

Bertran Carbonel Bertran Carbonel (fl. 1252–1265) was a Provençal troubadour from Marseille. He is a polarising figure among scholars and his reputation varies between authorities. Eighteen of his lyric works survive, as well as seventy-two (Gaunt and Kay) ...

, Raimon de Castelnou and Bernart de Tot-lo-mon.

Marriages and children

Henry II married three times. His first wife, married in 1256, was Marquise, daughter of Barral des Baux. They had one daughter named Isabeau who inherited the viscounty of Carlat and married the troubadour Geoffrey, lord of Pons. Though Marquise died in 1276, she was repudiated sometime before that in favour of Mascarosse, daughter of

Bernard IV of Comminges Bernard (''Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "brav ...

. The latter bore Henry four children: *Hugh *Cecilia (1275–1313), successor, married (1298)

Bernard VI of Armagnac Bernard VI, ( 1270 – 1319), Count of Armagnac and Fezensac, was the son of Gerald VI, Count of Armagnac, and Mathe de Béarn. Service for King of France In 1302, Bernard fought in Italy under the command of Charles of Valois. Subsequently, he p ...

*Beatrix de Rodez, lady of Scorailles and Saint-Christophe, married (1295) Bernard IV

de La Tour La Tour (as distinct from Latour) is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Charles de Saint-Étienne de la Tour (1593–1666), French Governor of Acadia * Georges de La Tour (1593–1652), French Baroque painter * Frances de la To ...

(died 1325) *Valpurge, viscountess of Creyssel and lady of Roquefeuil, married (1298) Gaston d'Armagnac (died 1326), viscount of Fézenzaguet Henry was widowered in 1292 and remarried for the last time in 1302 to Anne (died 1351), daughter of

Aymar III of Valentinois Aymar is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname: *Luciana Aymar (born 1977), Argentine field hockey midfielder *Marcel Aymar, Franco-Ontarian musician, composer, writer and actor *Robert Aymar, Director Gener ...

. The couple had no children and the widowed Anne remarried to John I, Dauphin of Auvergne.

Sources

*Egan, Margarita, ed. and trans. ''The Vidas of the Troubadours''. New York: Garland, 1984. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry 02 of Rodez 1230s births 1304 deaths Year of birth uncertain Counts of Rodez 13th-century French troubadours