Roger Bernard II (c. 1195 – 26 May 1241), called the Great, was the seventh count of Foix from 1223 until his death. He was the son and successor of the count Raymond-Roger and his wife Philippa of Montcada.

Albigensian crusade

He made his name famous in 1217 when, for six weeks, he defended the castle of Montgrenier against the onslaught of

Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester {{Infobox noble , name = Simon de Montfort , title = 5th Earl of Leicester , image = File:Simon4demontfort.gif , caption = Seal of Simon de Montfort, depicting him riding a horse and blowing a h ...

. That same year, he distinguished himself at the siege of Toulouse. In 1220, he assisted his father in the recapture of Lavaur and

Puylaurens Puylaurens (; oc, Puèglaurenç) is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France. The poet Suzon de Terson was born here in 1657. See also *Communes of the Tarn department The following is a list of the 314 communes of the Tarn de ...

and was instrumental in helping his father retake his lost dominions. The resumption of

Mirepoix A mirepoix ( ; ) is a flavor base made from diced vegetables cooked—usually with butter, oil, or other fat—for a long time on low heat without coloring or browning, as further cooking, often with the addition of tomato purée, creates a dar ...

wasn't accomplished until his own reign, however. At the moment of his accession, he and the new

count of Toulouse The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...

, Raymond VII, besieged

Carcassonne Carcassonne (, also , , ; ; la, Carcaso) is a French fortified city in the department of Aude, in the region of Occitanie. It is the prefecture of the department. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Carcassonne is located in the plain of the Au ...

. On 14 September 1224, the Albigensian Crusaders surrendered and the war came to an end, each southern lord making peace with the church. However, in 1226, the new king of France,

Louis VIII Louis VIII (5 September 1187 – 8 November 1226), nicknamed The Lion (french: Le Lion), was King of France from 1223 to 1226. As prince, he invaded England on 21 May 1216 and was excommunicated by a papal legate on 29 May 1216. On 2 June 1216 ...

, called ''the Lion'', renewed the conflict in order to enforce his royal rights in

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

. Roger-Bernard tried to keep the peace, but the king rejected his embassy and the counts of Foix and Toulouse took up arms again. Roger-Bernard and a small contingent of his feudatories constituted a pocket of resistance in

Limoux Limoux (; oc, Limós ) is a commune and subprefecture in the Aude department, a part of the ancient Languedoc province and the present-day Occitanie region in southern France. Its vineyards are famous for being first to produce sparkling w ...

from June 1226 to June 1227, but the war was largely a discontinuous series of skirmishes. In January 1229, Raymond of Toulouse signed the Treaty of Meaux with Louis the Lion's successor,

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the d ...

. Already excommunicated (since March or April 1227) and with his only ally gone and a new royal army in the field against him, Roger-Bernard sued for peace in June. By the ensuing treaty, he received back much of his land, but not Mirepoix, which he had previously fought so hard to reconquer.

Life

In 1208, Roger-Bernard married

Ermesinde Ermesinde is a civil parish in the municipality (''concelho'') of Valongo, in continental Portugal, northeast of Porto. The population in 2011 was 38940,Arnau de Castellbò, viscountess of Castellbò and a

Cathar Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Follo ...

. By his wife, he had a son,

Roger IV of Foix Roger IV (died 24 February 1265), son and successor of Roger-Bernard II the Great, was the eighth count of Foix from 1241 to his death. His reign began with the south again at war with the north in France and, though he was reluctant to join his ...

, and a daughter, Cecilia of Foix. Cecilia of Foix married Álvaro, Count of Urgell. When his relations with his French sovereign allowed it, he concentrated on expansion and fortification southwards. He fortified the towns guarding the way to

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

and Urgel, and fell into conflict with the

bishop of Urgel The Diocese of Urgell is a diocese in Catalonia (Spain) and Andorra in the historical County of Urgell,

over the valley of Caboet in May 1233. He opposed the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

and got into even more conflict with the bishop in April 1239. He did not involve himself in the war of Raymond Trencavel, though he did negotiate an honourable treaty in 1240.

Death

Roger-Bernard ended his days at peace with the established church, having been excommunicated a second time in 1236. He took the

habit A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

at the abbey of Boulbonne, and was buried there in 1241. He was succeeded by his son Roger IV, whom he had married to Brunissende, the daughter of Raymond Folc IV and heiress of Viscounty of Cardona.

Notes

References

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External links

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Histoire des comtes de Foix
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roger-Bernard 02 Of Foix 1241 deaths House of Foix Counts of Foix People temporarily excommunicated by the Catholic Church People of the Albigensian Crusade Occitan nobility Year of birth uncertain