Centule III (
French: ''Centulle''; died 1178) was the
Count of Bigorre from 1163 until his death. He was the eldest son of
Beatrice II and
Peter of Marsan[Lacarra, J. M. ''Documentos para el estudio de la reconquista y repoblación del Valle del Ebro'', ''Estudios de Edad Media de la Corona de Aragón'', opseg V (Zaragoza, 1952.) 366, str. 585.] and succeeded his mother in Bigorre on her death.
In 1170 he became a
vassal
A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...
of
Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II (1–25 March 1157Benito Vicente de Cuéllar (1995)«Los "condes-reyes" de Barcelona y la "adquisición" del reino de Aragón por la dinastía bellónida» p. 630-631; in ''Hidalguía''. XLIII (252) pp. 619–632."Alfonso II el Casto, h ...
in return for receiving the
Val d'Aran
Aran (; ; ) (often known as the Aran Valley, or Val d'Aran in Aranese Occitan; in other forms of Occitan: ''Vath d'Aran'' or ''Vau d'Aran'', in Catalan: ''Vall d'Aran'', in Spanish: ''Valle de Arán'') is an autonomous administrative entity (form ...
in full. Under his watch the communal movement began to sweep Bigorre, but he avoided violent confrontations by granting the towns of his realm charters. The first charter was granted to
Bagnères in 1171.
Personal life
In 1155 Centule had married Matelle de Baux, and left one child, a daughter,
Beatrice III of Bigorre, who passed Bigorre and the Viscounty of Marsan, which Centule had inherited from his father, to
Bernard IV of Comminges.
Sources
*Bisson, T. N. ''The Medieval Crown of Aragon: A Short History''. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986. . For Centule, see p. 37.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Centule 03 Of Bigorre
1185 deaths
Counts of Bigorre
People of the Reconquista
Year of birth unknown