Beaujeu ( frp, Biôjor) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
of the
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
department in eastern
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
.
It lies between
Mâcon
Mâcon (), historically anglicised as Mascon, is a city in east-central France. It is the prefecture of the department of Saône-et-Loire in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Mâcon is home to near 34,000 residents, who are referred to in French as ...
and
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
.
Beaujeu gives its name to the famous
wine region
This list of wine-producing regions catalogues significant growing regions where vineyards are planted. Wine grapes mostly grow between the 30th and the 50th degree of latitude, in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. Grapes will sometimes ...
of
Beaujolais
Beaujolais ( , ) is a French ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) wine generally made of the Gamay grape, which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Whites from the region, which mak ...
(''Biôjolês''), a
former province of France of which it is the historical capital. However it was overtaken in the 14th century by
Villefranche-sur-Saône
Villefranche-sur-Saône (, ; frp, Velafranche) is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France.
It lies 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the river Saône, and is around north of Lyon. The inhabitants of the town are called ''Caladois''.
...
, which remains the main commercial centre of the region.
History
Beaujolais was a semi-autonomous fiefdom of the Lords of Beaujeu. The barony was acquired in the 9th century by Guillaume,
Comte du Lyonnais and Count of
Forez
Forez is a former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire ''département'' and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ''départements''.
The final "z" in Forez () is not pronounced in the Loire ...
; on his death, his son Bérard became the first Lord of Beaujeu.
List of rulers
Lords:
*
Berard of Beaujeu + c. 966
*
Guichard I of Beaujeu c. 966-977
*
Humbert I of Beaujeu + c. 977-1016
*
Guichard II of Beaujeu c. 1016-1050
*
Guichard III of Beaujeu c. 1050-1070
*
Humbert II of Beaujeu c. 1070-1102
*
Guichard IV of Beaujeu 1102-1137
*
Humbert III of Beaujeu 1137-1174
*
Humbert IV of Beaujeu 1174-1202
*
Guichard V le Grand of Beaujeu 1202-1216
*
Humbert V of Beaujeu 1216-1250
*
Isabelle de Beaujeu 1250-1297 (married Renaud)
*
Renaud I of Forez, count of Forez 1250-1297
*
Louis de Beaujeu 1250-1295
*
Guichard VI of Beaujeu 1295-1331
*
Edouard I of Beaujeu 1331-1351 (
Marshal of France
Marshal of France (french: Maréchal de France, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished ( ...
)
*
Antoine of Beaujeu 1351-1374
*
Edouard II of Beaujeu 1374-1400 (+1400 without succession)
After the death of Edouard II, the barony passed to his uncle
Louis II, Duke of Bourbon
Louis de Bourbon, called the Good (4 February 1337 – 10 August 1410), son of Peter de Bourbon and Isabella de Valois (the sister of French King Philip VI), was the third Duke of Bourbon.
Louis inherited the duchy after his father Duke P ...
and was used as a title first by members of the Bourbon family and then by the
House of Orléans
The 4th House of Orléans (french: Maison d'Orléans), sometimes called the House of Bourbon-Orléans (french: link=no, Maison de Bourbon-Orléans) to distinguish it, is the fourth holder of a surname previously used by several branches of the Ro ...
. In 1522,
Francis I of France
Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...
confiscated the title and gave it to his mother
Louise of Savoy
Louise of Savoy (11 September 1476 – 22 September 1531) was a French noble and regent, Duchess ''suo jure'' of Auvergne and Bourbon, Duchess of Nemours, and the mother of King Francis I. She was politically active and served as the regent of F ...
, but it reverted to the French crown on her death in 1531.
See also
*
Régnié
*
Communes of the Rhône department
The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list does not includes the Lyon Metropolis
The Metropolis of Lyon (french: Métropole de Lyon), also known as ("Greater Lyon"), is a French territorial coll ...
References
Communes of Rhône (department)
Beaujolais (province)
{{Rhône-geo-stub