The Duchy of Berry (; ; ) was a former province located in central France. It was a
province of France until
departments
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
* Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
replaced the provinces on 4 March 1790, when Berry became divided between the ''départements'' of
Cher
Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
(Upper Berry) and
Indre
Indre (); is a department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administrative region of Cent ...
(Lower Berry).
History

Berry is notable as the birthplace of several kings and other members of the French royal family, and was the birthplace of the knight
Baldwin Chauderon, who fought in the
First Crusade
The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Muslim conquest ...
. In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, Berry became the center of the
Duchy of Berry's holdings. It is also known for an
illuminated manuscript
An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared manuscript, document where the text is decorated with flourishes such as marginalia, borders and Miniature (illuminated manuscript), miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Churc ...
produced in the 14th–15th century called ''
Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry''.
In later times, the writer
George Sand
Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. Being more renowned than either Victor Hugo or Honoré de Balz ...
spent much of her life at her Berry estate in
Nohant, and Berry's landscape and specific culture figure in much of Sand's writings.
The Duchy was governed by the
Duke/Duchess of Berry, who after 1601 was a senior member of the
French royal family
France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions.
Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...
. The title of 'Duke of Berry' was by this period divested of territorial significance, and instead held by princes of the royal house, the last of which was
Charles Ferdinand d'Artois.
In c.750, the Counties of Berry and Bourges were created by the
King of the Franks
The Franks, Germanic peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dux, dukes and monarch, reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Franks, Salian Mero ...
. In 843, the County of Berry became part of the
Royal domain or crown lands controlled by the king. From 878 to 892, the county was part of the
County of Auvergne, but became independent once more in 893. In 972, the County of Bourges was reduced to a Viscounty as the ''Viscomte de Bourges'', and in 1101 was annexed by France. In 1360, the county was raised to a duchy as the Duchy of Berry. In 1221, the
Seigneur
A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...
ies of
Châteauroux
Châteauroux ( ; ; ) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French.
Climate
Châteauroux te ...
and
Issoudun
Issoudun () is a commune in the Indre department, administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is also referred to as ''Issoundun'', which is the ancient name.
Geography Location
Issoudun is a sub-prefecture, located in the eas ...
were annexed into the duchy.
The first governor of the province appears to have been appointed on 14 March 1698, when
Adrien Maurice de Noailles, Duke of Noailles became military governor when he was only 19 years old.
In 1778,
Louis XVI
Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...
convened the provincial assemblies of Berry, and considered expanding the assembly to other provinces, but abandoned this idea after experiencing the opposition of the privileged classes in Berry.
In 1790, when the former provinces were dissolved, the Duchy of Berry was split between two departments:
Cher
Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
in Upper (eastern) Berry and
Indre
Indre (); is a department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administrative region of Cent ...
in Lower (western) Berry. Some communes also became part of the
Allier
Allier ( , , ; ) is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region that borders Cher (department), Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire (department), Loire to the east, Pu ...
,
Creuse
Creuse (; or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the east, Cor ...
,
Loiret
Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434. , and
Loir-et-Cher
Loir-et-Cher (, ) is a Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region of France. It is named after two rivers which run through it, the Loir in its northern part and the Cher (river), Cher in its southern p ...
departments as well.
Governors
The governors of French provinces during the Ancien Régime were typically military commanders and provided military oversight in the region. This included recruitment, movement of troops, and – if needed – dealing with civil disobedience. Below is a list of the governors of Berry during its time as a province.
Duke of Berry
In October 1360, the title 'Duke of Berry' was created by
King John II of France for his third-born son,
John of Poitiers. The duke was followed by several members of the senior royal family, establishing a tradition of the duke being a member of the
House of Valois
The Capetian House of Valois ( , also , ) was a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty. They succeeded the House of Capet (or "Direct Capetians") to the List of French monarchs, French throne, and were the royal house of France from 1328 to 1589. ...
. In 1505 however, the last Duchess of Berry
Joan of France died of natural causes and the title was merged into the
royal domain. In 1527, the title was re-created for
Marguerite de Navarre
Marguerite de Navarre (, ''Marguerite d'Alençon''; 11 April 149221 December 1549), also known as Marguerite of Angoulême and Margaret of Navarre, was a princess of France, Duchess of Alençon and Berry, and Queen of Navarre by her second mar ...
until the title was once again dissolved in 1601 following the death of Duchess
Louise of Lorraine.
In 1686,
King Louis XIV re-created the title for his third grandson
Charles de Bourbon, however the title was dissolved following the death of the Duke in 1714. In 1754, Louis XV re-created the title for his grandson
Louis-Auguste de Bourbon (later King Louis XVI), who dropped the title in 1765 when he became
Dauphin. In 1778, Louis XVI once again re-created the title for his nephew
Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry. In 1820, the title was finally dissolved once more when the last duke was assassinated.
While Berry was a province, the Duke of Berry was de jure leader of the area. The dukes included:
Etymology
The name of ''Berry'', like that of its capital, Bourges, originated with the Gaulish tribe of the
Bituriges,
[Compare: ] who settled in the area before the Roman armies of
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...
conquered Gaul. The name of the tribe gave name to the region, often mentioned in
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. It was also the administrative language in the former Western Roman Empire, Roman Provinces of Mauretania, Numidi ...
sources as: ''Bituria''.
Brenne
La Brenne, located west of
Châteauroux
Châteauroux ( ; ; ) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French.
Climate
Châteauroux te ...
and east of
Tournon-Saint-Martin in the
Indre
Indre (); is a department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administrative region of Cent ...
department, is a region which of old straddled on the former provinces of Berry and
Touraine
Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...
, and is now a protected natural area (
Parc naturel régional de la Brenne) as well called ''Pays des mille étangs'', because of its many ponds created since the 8th c. by the monks of the local abbeys for
pisciculture
Fish farming or pisciculture involves commercial animal husbandry, breeding of fish, most often for food, in fish tanks or artificial pen (enclosure), enclosures such as fish ponds. It is a particular type of aquaculture, which is the controlled ...
.
See also
*
Berrichon dialect
*
Saint-Benoît-du-Sault
Citations
General and cited sources
*
*
*
External links
Pictures
Accommodation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry (Province)
Former provinces of France
History of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
History of Centre-Val de Loire
History of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
History of Allier
History of Cher (department)
History of Creuse
History of Indre
History of Loir-et-Cher
History of Loiret