Gaston III, known as Gaston Phoebus or Fébus (30 April 1331 – 1 August 1391), was the eleventh

Count of Foix The Count of Foix ruled the County of Foix, in what is now Southern France, during the Middle Ages. The House of Foix eventually extended its power across the Pyrenees mountain range, joining the House of Bearn and moving their court to Pau in B ...

(as Gaston III) and twenty-fourth

Viscount of Béarn A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a Title#Aristocratic titles, title used in certain European countries for a nobility, noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case ...

(as Gaston X) from 1343 until his death. Due to his ancestral inheritance, Gaston III was overlord of about ten territories located between the and

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (, , ; ) 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 . History ...

. He took advantage of the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

to establish his domination over the , playing on the conflicts between French and English monarchies. He authored the '' Livre de chasse'', a famous illustrated manuscript on

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

. The only legitimate child of

Gaston II, Count of Foix Gaston II of Foix-Béarn (1308 – September 1343), son of Gaston I of Foix-Béarn and Jeanne of Artois, was the 10th Count of Foix.Roland Viader, ''L'Andorre du IXe au XIVe siècle: montagne, féodalité et communautés'', (Presses du Universit ...

and , Gaston inherited a fragmented territory that partly depended on the kings of France and the kings of England. Playing on the Franco-English conflict, he claimed

sovereignty Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...

over

Béarn Béarn (; ; or ''Biarn''; or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in Southwestern France. Along with the three Northern Basque Country, ...

on 25 September 1347. He won decisive victories against the

House of Armagnac The House of Armagnac is a French noble house established in 961 by Bernard I, Count of Armagnac. It achieved its greatest importance in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The House of Armagnac, at the end of the thirteenth century, was not y ...

(the ancestral enemies of his house), thus ensuring the union between Béarn and Foix. Gaston's nickname ''Fébus'' refers to the solar myth associated with the Greco-Roman god

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

(also named ''Phoibos''). Gaston left no legitimate issue, as he had likely killed his only son in 1380 for plotting his downfall. Gaston constructed and strengthened several fortresses during his long career. Endowed with immense wealth, Gaston III notably built the

Château de Montaner The Château de Montaner is a castle in the '' commune'' of Montaner in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ''département'' of southern France. A castle was built on a motte in the 11th century by the Viscounts of Montaner. It was reconstructed in 137 ...

to symbolize the union between Béarn and Foix. Known as the ''Prince of the Pyrenees,'' Gaston ruled as an enlightened despot, playing the role of lord protector for his people. Gaston III occupies a special place in Pyrenean history due to his political and military activities, but also from the impact of the stories of several chroniclers and contemporaries, including

Jean Froissart Jean Froissart ( Old and Middle French: ''Jehan''; sometimes known as John Froissart in English; – ) was a French-speaking medieval author and court historian from the Low Countries who wrote several works, including ''Chronicles'' and ''Meli ...

in his ''Chronicles''.

Life

Heritage and early years

Inheritance

As the son of Gaston II of Foix-Béarn and Eleanor of Comminges, the future Gaston III was heir to the Foix-Béarn dynasty. This house was established through the 1252 marriage of

Margaret of Béarn Margaret of Béarn – also known as Margaret or Marguerite of Montcada (c. 1245–1250 – c. 1319) was a noblewoman, who ruled (with her husband or for her son's) lands near the Pyrenees mountains and in the southwestern part of present-day ...

(the daughter and heiress of

Gaston VII, Viscount of Béarn Gaston VII de Montcada (; 1225 – 26 April 1290), called ''Froissard'', was the twentieth Viscount of Béarn from 1229. He was the son and heir of Guillermo II de Montcada of the House of Montcada and of Garsenda, daughter of Alfonso II of Prove ...

) to

Roger-Bernard III, Count of Foix Roger-Bernard III (1243 – 3 March 1302) was the Count of Foix from 1265 to his death. He was the son of Roger IV of Foix and Brunissende of Cardona. He entered into conflicts with both Philip III of France and Peter III of Aragon, who held ...

. With the death of Gaston VII in 1290, the new dynasty occupied a fragmented territory along the chain of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

. To the west, the countries of Béarn, , and

Captieux Captieux (; ) is a commune of Southwestern France, located in the Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Aquitaine). It lies near the border with the Landes and Lot-et-Garonne departments. The commune is in the east of the ''P ...

are part of the

Duchy of Aquitaine The Duchy of Aquitaine (, ; , ) was a historical fiefdom located in the western, central, and southern areas of present-day France, south of the river Loire. The full extent of the duchy, as well as its name, fluctuated greatly over the centuries ...

, whose ruling

dukes Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

were also the

kings of England This list of kings and reigning queens of the Kingdom of England begins with Alfred the Great, who initially ruled Wessex, one of the heptarchy, seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which later made up modern England. Alfred styled himself king of the ...

. These western territories are geographically diverse, consisting of high mountain valleys in the south and marshy moors in the north. Despite the geographic differences, the western holdings were economically cohesive, linked by continuous boundaries and regular economic exchanges. The other part of the domain lay further east, in territory directly under the

King of France 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

County of Foix The County of Foix (, ; , ; , ) was a medieval fief in southern France, and later a province of France, whose territory corresponded roughly the eastern part of the modern ''département'' of Ariège (the western part of Ariège being Cousera ...

was the major part of this territory and contains , while in the south the counts of Foix were co-princes of Andorra jointly with the

Bishops of Urgell The Diocese of Urgell (; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Catalonia (Spain) and the Principality of Andorra in the historical County of Urgell,Lautrec and the lowlands of

Albigeois Albi (; ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (, ). It is the seat of the Archbishop of Albi. The ...

. Lastly, the House of Foix-Béarn ruled a province known as the

Nébouzan Nébouzan (; Gascon language, Gascon: ''Nebosan'' ) was a small province of France located in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains, in the southwest of France. It was not a contiguous province, but it was made up of several detached territories ...

, which was small and isolated yet strategically located between the western holdings around Orthez and the eastern lands surrounding Foix.

Childhood and youth

Gaston III ( pronounced [] in Occitan language, Occitan) was born on 30 April 1331, most likely at Orthez in the Château Moncade. The Viscounty of Béarn in the west and the County of Foix in the east represent the two strong points of his heritage, but maintaining cohesion between these two distant territories was a major challenge, as was managing the conflict with the

over the

County of Bigorre The County of Bigorre was a small feudatory of the Duchy of Gascony in the 9th through 15th centuries. Its capital was Tarbes. The county was constituted out of the dowry of Faquilène, an Aquitainian princess, for her husband Donatus Lupus I, ...

, all this in the context of the

between the English

House of Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet (Help:IPA/English, /plænˈtædʒənət/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''plan-TAJ-ə-nət'') was a royal house which originated from the Medieval France, French county of Anjou. The name Plantagenet is used by mo ...

and the French

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. ...

. With territory falling partly under the kings of England (as

Duke of Aquitaine The duke of Aquitaine (, , ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom ( ...

) and partly under the kings of France, the Foix-Béarn dynasty found themselves in a delicate situation when this conflict broke out. Gaston II immediately sided with the French House of Valois, but many Béarn knights were then in the opposing camp, and the Béarnaise nobility could not be cut off from the English-held ports of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

and

Bayonne Bayonne () is a city in southwestern France near the France–Spain border, Spanish border. It is a communes of France, commune and one of two subprefectures in France, subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departments of France, departm ...

. About the childhood of Gaston III were few traces, apart from the count's later description of himself as an "ungrateful child, an adolescent tormented by the desire for the flesh and not very good at weapons". Gaston came into his inheritance upon the death of his father, on 26 September 1343 during a crusade in Andalusia. Gaston was twelve years old when his father died, and his mother, Eleanor, ruled as regent until he was fourteen. Phil6france

In December 1343, Eleanor took her son Gaston on a tour of homage of all the family territories. The tour began in Béarn, where the young count remained until April 1344; in total, Gaston completed 126 stages. There he met lords, peasants, and bourgeois of the localities, promising at every opportunity to respect the freedoms and customs embodied by the Fors of Béarn. Gaston's tour lasted more than a year, until January 1345. After reaching his legal majority on 30 April 1345, Gaston took the reins of government into his own hands. The beginning of his reign is marked, from June 1345, by the resumption of clashes between English and French, after a truce of five years. The House of Foix-Béarn's joint dependency on France and England became the first issue in the reign of Gaston III, who initially sought to continue his father's pro-French policy. In deeds, however, the young count was restrained in his support. On 26 August 1346, the crushing English victory at Crécy, caused Gaston to reevaluate his support for Philip VI (such as it was). On 3 June 1347, Gaston failed to respond when Philip summoned his vassals to

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

. On 25 September 1347, a representative of Philip VI met with Gaston III at Orthez, and while Gaston confirmed his allegiance to the king for his territories in Foix, he asserted the neutrality of Béarn, a land he held "from God and from no man in the world". Aged 16, the count thus played a decisive role in the birth of the The events of 1347 illustrate the line of conduct followed by Gaston III throughout his political career: always leaving a way out for his adversary to avoid overly violent reactions. Philip VI, in a very delicate situation after Crécy, did not take offense at this declaration of independence and continued his rapprochement with Gaston III, for fear of seeing him switch definitively to the English camp. On 26 December 1348 at

Pamiers Pamiers (; ) is a commune and largest city in the Ariège department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It is the most populous commune in the Ariège department, although it is not t ...

, Gaston III paid homage to the king of France for his lands in the seneschalses of

Agen Agen (, , ) is the prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne, southeast of Bordeaux. In 2021, the commune had a population of 32,485. Geography The city of Agen l ...

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

and

Carcassonne Carcassonne is a French defensive wall, fortified city in the Departments of France, department of Aude, Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the department. ...

, but not Béarn, implicitly confirming his sovereignty. The devastation of the

Black Death The Black Death was a bubonic plague pandemic that occurred in Europe from 1346 to 1353. It was one of the list of epidemics, most fatal pandemics in human history; as many as people perished, perhaps 50% of Europe's 14th century population. ...

led to repeated renewals of the 1347-55

Truce of Calais The Truce of Calais () was a truce agreed by King Edward III of England and King Philip VI of France on 28 September 1347, which was mediated by emissaries of Pope Clement VI. The Hundred Years' War had broken out in 1337 and in 1346 Edward ha ...

, giving Gaston III the opportunity to arrange a royal marriage: on 4 August 1349, he married Agnes of Navarre at the

Temple Church The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner Temple, Inner and Middle Temple, Middle Temple, London, Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their En ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, with the acquiescence of the French king.

Early career

Conflicts with John II

Philip VI of France Philip VI (; 1293 – 22 August 1350), called the Fortunate (), the Catholic (''le Catholique'') and of Valois (''de Valois''), was the first king of France from the House of Valois, reigning from 1328 until his death in 1350. Philip's reign w ...

died on 22 August 1350 and was succeeded by his son

John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–114 ...

, who would prove an impulsive yet indecisive monarch. Anglo-French hostilities resumed in April 1351, once again destabilizing the region north of the Pyrenees. In October 1352, the asked Gaston III to protect

against the English troops posted at the gates of Lafrançaise. Gaston accepted because it allowed him to maintain his neutrality, demonstrate his power, and fill his coffers with the profits of war. During Gaston's many absences, Béarn was governed by his half-brother Arnaud-Guilhem. The latter faced a revolt of the peasantry of Orthez in October 1353, which gave Gaston III an opportunity to assert his authority within his domains. After Arnaud-Guilhem restored order, Gaston III punished the culprits with heavy fines, thus respecting the spirit of the Fors of Béarn by balancing firmness with flexibility in his management of the crisis. Following the orders of his father King

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

(who wanted him to conduct his policy on the continent),

Edward the Black Prince Edward of Woodstock (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), known as the Black Prince, was the eldest son and heir apparent of King Edward III of England. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, succeeded to the throne instead. Edward n ...

landed in

in 1355. Upon arrival, the Black Prince led a terrible ''chevauchée'' (mounted raid) through

Armagnac Armagnac (, ) is a distinctive kind of brandy produced in the Armagnac (region), Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. It is distilled from wine usually made from a blend of grapes including Baco 22A, Colombard, Folle blanche and Ugni ...

and Toulouse. Gaston did not oppose the Black Prince's army, buying him off with food and supplies. These actions, along with Gaston's refusal to pay homage for Béarn, and his involvement in the intrigues of

Charles II of Navarre Charles II (, , , 10 October 1332 – 1 January 1387), known as the Bad, was King of Navarre beginning in 1349, as well as Count of Évreux beginning in 1343, holding both titles until his death in 1387. Besides the Kingdom of Navarre nestled in ...

against the throne, led John II to imprison the Count for several months at . Faced with the imminence of a new ''chevauchée'' by the Black Prince from Bordeaux to

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

, and unwilling to see him defect, John released Gaston without exacting an oath of homage for Béarn.

On Crusade

On 19 September 1356, the French suffered a new debacle at the

Battle of Poitiers The Battle of Poitiers was fought on 19September 1356 between a Kingdom of France, French army commanded by King John II of France, King JohnII and an Kingdom of England, Anglo-Gascony, Gascon force under Edward the Black Prince, Edward, the ...

, which resulted in the imprisonment of John II and another truce between the French and the English. This more stable period allowed Gaston to engage in a crusade in

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

. Alongside the

State of the Teutonic Order The State of the Teutonic Order () was a theocratic state located along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea in northern Europe. It was formed by the knights of the Teutonic Order during the early 13th century Northern Crusades in the region ...

, he embarked in

Bruges Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amoun ...

, made stops in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, and arrived in

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

on 9 February 1358. The crusaders carried out several assaults in the tradition of the Teutonic Order, before being knighted at

Malbork Castle The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork, commonly known as Malbork Castle (; ), is a Brick Gothic castle complex located in the town of Malbork, Poland, built in the 13th and significantly expanded in the 14th century. It is the largest cast ...

. It was during this crusade that Gaston III acquired his nickname ''Fébus'', his battle cry ''Febus aban'' and his motto ''Toquey si gauses''. When the Crusaders returned on horseback in the spring of 1358, France was embroiled in the peasant revolt known as the

Jacquerie The Jacquerie () was a popular revolt by peasants that took place in northern France in the early summer of 1358 during the Hundred Years' War. The revolt was centred in the valley of the Oise north of Paris and was suppressed after over tw ...

. Gaston and his companions made good use of their martial experience and aided the

Dauphine of France The dauphine of France (, also , ) was the wife of the dauphin of France (the heir apparent to the French throne). The position was analogous to a crown princess (the wife of a crown prince and heir apparent to a throne). List of dauphines of F ...

Joanna of Bourbon Joanna of Bourbon (''Jeanne de Bourbon''; 3 February 1338 – 6 February 1378) was Queen of France by marriage to King Charles V. She acted as his political adviser and was appointed potential regent in case of a minor regency. Life Earl ...

and her infant daughter during the

siege of Meaux The siege of Meaux was fought from October 1421 to May 1422 between the English and the French during the Hundred Years' War. The English were led by King Henry V. Henry became ill while pressing this long siege, which took place during the wint ...

. It is here that Gaston III would have uttered his war cry ''Febus aban'' for the first time.

The Prince of the Pyrenees

The Battle of Launac

Back in his country, Gaston Fébus was made aware of the negotiations between the French and the English, with a view to signing a peace treaty. Holding John II in captivity, the English were in a position of strength and demanded an enormous ransom and major territorial concessions from the French. The Dauphin Charles (the future Charles V of France) opposed such unequal terms and attempted to consolidate his power in the France. In particular, the Dauphin sought to expand his influence in the South by marrying his brother

John, Duke of Berry John of Berry or John the Magnificent (French language, French: ''Jean de Berry'', ; 30 November 1340 – 15 June 1416) was Duke of Berry and Rulers of Auvergne, Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. His brothers were King Charles ...

to a daughter of

John I, Count of Armagnac John I of Armagnac (French: Jean d’Armagnac; 1311–1373), son of Bernard VI and Cecilia Rodez, was Count of Armagnac from 1319 to 1373. In addition to Armagnac he controlled territory in Quercy, Rouergue and Gévaudan. He was the count who ...

. However, by allying himself with the

, the Duke of Berry awakened the old rivalry between the Houses of Foix-Béarn and Armagnac. Fébus immediately launched hostilities with a series of attacks in March 1359 all while offering assurances to the Dauphin of his loyalty. Ultimately, the signing of the

Treaty of Brétigny A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, conventio ...

on 8 May 1360 removed John of Berry from the scene, and compensated Fébus for the loss of

Bigorre Bigorre (; Gascon: ''Bigòrra'') is a region in southwest France, historically an independent county and later a French province, located in the upper watershed of the Adour, on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees, part of the larger region k ...

with a cash payout of 200,000

guilder Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' (" gold penny"). This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Rom ...

s. However, the

failed to resolve the rivalry between the two families over Bigorre. The two parties took advantage of the delayed arrival of the English (who were tasked with enforcing the treaty) to settle their quarrel. The two families brought together their allies: the

House of Albret The House of Albret, which derives its name from the lordship (''seigneurie'') of Albret (Labrit), situated in the Landes of Gascony, Landes, was one of the most powerful feudal families of Kingdom of France, France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarr ...

took the Armagnac side, while the and the Count of

Astarac Astarac () (or Estarac) is a region in modern-day departments of Gers and Hautes-Pyrénées. It was historically located in Gascony, a county in the Middle Ages. Astarac was formed as a county out of the partition of the Duchy of Gascony: followi ...

sided with Fébus. It was in Launac on 5 December 1362 that the decisive battle took place. Although outnumbered, Fébus emerged victorious and captured much of the southern nobility, including Armagnac. The ransom of 500,000

florin The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

s that Fébus extracted from his captives laid the foundations of his financial hegemony over the whole

Southern France Southern France, also known as the south of France or colloquially in French as , is a geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', Atlas e ...

. Fébus stored this money in the Château Moncade, where he also created a gallery of portraits and military trophies to commemorate the event. Around the same time, Fébus' wife Agnes gave birth to his son and heir, Gaston. Despite this, Fébus unceremoniously repudiated Agnes because her brother

had failed to pay her dowry. While Fébus had defeated his primary rivals and now had an heir, he could not rest on his laurels.

Fébus facing the Black Prince

The Black Prince arrived in Bordeaux on 29 June 1363 to administer the new Principality of Aquitaine, and take possession of the territories ceded to the English by the

. The question of Béarn sovereignty soon became the main issue for Fébus, who deployed his usual strategy of delaying and not provoking his opponent, while remaining firm in the background. Fébus used this tactic for the first time in March 1363 against an English emissary; he avoided the Black Prince's tribute tour throughout 1363, but finally went to

on 14 January 1364 to meet the prince there. Fébus paid homage for all his lands "inside the Principality of Aquitaine" in front of the Black Prince. Chandos, a servant of King Edward III, then asked Fébus if he had just paid homage for the land of Béarn, to which Fébus replied that his homage only concerned Marsan and Gabardan, because "it did not hold (the Béarn) from anyone". In accordance with his habits, Fébus left his adversary a way out, specifying that he would pay homage for Béarn if proof of this were provided by a study of the archives. Although initially inclined to have this proud lord arrested, the Black Prince allowed Fébus to leave while his archivists searched for evidence of past homage. The English archivists subsequently found traces of a homage made by

in 1290 for Béarn, which was enough to convince the Black Prince of his right to claim tribute from Fébus. This game of hide and seek continued throughout 1364 and 1365 on the part of Fébus, who sought to wear down his opponent. The Black Prince eventually was forced to request the intervention of the new King Charles V of France by a letter from 6 December 1365, informing the King that he would use force if necessary. Fébus once again took advantage of the circumstances as French-English hostilities resumed, this time in Castile. Charles V wished to replace the English-backed King Peter with his own candidate,

Henry of Trastámara Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first King of Castile and León from the House of Trastámara. He became king in 1369 by defeating his half-brother Peter the ...

, Peter's illegitimate half-brother. Like Charles, Fébus supported Henry of Trastámara, to whom he entrusted his illegitimate son Bernard of Béarn. Fébus' maneuver eventually paid off as Henry of Trastámara seized the throne in 1366. The partisans of King Peter nevertheless mounted a counter-offensive in the winter of 1366, with the Black Prince, the Albrets, the Armagnacs and Peter himself all taking part. However, they needed to cross the bridges of Orthez and

Sauveterre-de-Béarn Sauveterre-de-Béarn (, literally ''Sauveterre of Béarn''; ; ) is a medieval village perched above the Gave d'Oloron and facing the Pyrenees in south-western France. It is a Communes of France, commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques Departments ...

to reach the

Roncevaux Pass Roncesvalles Pass, Ronceval Pass or Roncevaux Pass (; ; ; elevation 1057 m) is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees near the border between France and Spain. The pass itself is entirely in Spain. Location The pass is located between the towns of ...

and then Navarre. Fébus enforced the neutrality of Béarn but feared what would happen when the army would eventually return. The expedition of the Black Prince began with success on 3 April 1367 at the

Battle of Nájera The Battle of Nájera, also known as the Battle of Navarrete, was fought on 3 April 1367 to the northeast of Nájera, in the province of La Rioja, Castile. It was an episode of the first Castilian Civil War which confronted King Peter of Ca ...

, but would later turn to grief as Peter of Castile's conduct caused infighting among his supporters while disease would decimate the remaining army. The Black Prince was himself infected by this disease, and he returned from the ruined expedition "all broken." Since 8 May 1366, Fébus had been preparing Béarn for a general mobilization pending the return of the expedition; he published an ordinance to the same effect on 27 July 1367. The routed army finally crossed Béarn in the summer of 1367, with the Black Prince seeking prior authorization from Fébus and agreeing to pay for his supplies up to "the least hen." This episode amounted, for the Black Prince, to a ''de facto'' recognition of Béarn's full sovereignty.

Union of Béarn and Foix

Freed from the threat of the Black Prince, Fébus turned to face a resurgent France under the assertive leadership of Charles V.

Louis I of Anjou Louis I, Duke of Anjou (23 July 1339 – 20 September 1384) was a French prince, the second son of John II of France and Bonne of Bohemia. His career was markedly unsuccessful. Born at the Château de Vincennes, Louis was the first of the Ang ...

, Charles V's brother and Lieutenant-general of Toulouse, maneuvered with the

to revive hostilities against the English. Charles V eventually annulled the

, arguing that a (largely perfunctory) clause had not been respected. In January 1369, the Armagnacs and Albrets lodged a formal complaint against the Black Prince in the

Parlement of Paris The ''Parlement'' of Paris () was the oldest ''parlement'' in the Kingdom of France, formed in the 14th century. Parlements were judicial, rather than legislative, bodies and were composed of magistrates. Though not representative bodies in the p ...

, allowing Charles V to resume military operations in the South, with the right for him. A coalition of Louis of Anjou, the Armagnacs, and Albrets assembled to take back the lands of the South from the English. Despite Louis of Anjou's efforts to spare Fébus, Charles V persisted in his desire to regain control of

by relying on the Armagnacs, at the risk of rekindling tensions between the two enemies. In June 1373, the allied troops gathered at

Montauban Montauban (, ; ) is a commune in the southern French department of Tarn-et-Garonne. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, and the sixth most populated of Oc ...

and obtained the capitulation of the garrisons of Tuzaguet and Mauvezin without difficulty. The castle of

Lourdes Lourdes (, also , ; ) is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for its Château fort, a ...

, however, was the castle was held by the ''Compagnons de Lourdes'', formidable warriors led by two bastard cousins of Fébus. Louis of Anjou had no other solution than to go through a negotiation to obtain the rallying of the ''Compagnons'', thing done on 5 July 1373. With Bigorre back, theoretically, under French control, the coalition continued its mission in

Agenais Agenais (), or Agenois (), was an ancient region that became a county (Old French: ''conté'' or ''cunté'') of France, south of Périgord.Mish, Frederick C., Editor in Chief. "Agenais". ''Webster's Dictionary#The Collegiate Dictionary, Webster's N ...

and

Périgord Périgord ( , ; ; or ) is a natural region and former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne department, now forming the northern part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It is divided into f ...

. His mission accomplished, Louis of Anjou handed the lieutenancy-general of

over to John II, Count of Armagnac on 30 August 1373. As usual, Fébus took advantage of his neutrality to switch to the camp favoring his interests. Faced with French intransigence in favoring the Armagnacs, Fébus provoked a reversal of the alliance in favor of the English camp. He met

John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...

, brother of the Black Prince, on 19 and 20 March 1374 in

Dax The DAX (''Deutscher Aktienindex'' (German stock index); ) is a stock market index consisting of the 40 major German blue chip companies trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. It is a total return index. Prices are taken from the Xetra t ...

to conclude an alliance. The agreement first related to the loan of 12,000 florins from Fébus to John of Gaunt, in exchange for the Château de Lourdes as a mortgage pledge. Fébus also proposed a marriage between his son Gaston and

Philippa Philippa is a feminine given name meaning "lover of horses" or "horses' friend", from the Greek Philippos, which is derived from ''philein'', meaning to love and ''hippos'', meaning ''horse''. The English masculine form is Philip, which was form ...

, daughter of John of Gaunt. John of Gaunt's actions provoke numerous military operations in the , leading to the request of the

Soule Soule (; Basque language, Basque: Zuberoa; Zuberoan/ Soule Basque: Xiberoa or Xiberua; ) is a former viscounty and France, French Provinces of France, province and part of the present-day Pyrénées-Atlantiques ''département in France, départ ...

citizens for the protection of Fébus, a pact concluded on 4 September 1375. The alliance between Fébus and John of Gaunt was, above all, a political maneuver; the Bearnaise lords never sought to help the English war effort. Faced with the troubles, Charles V withdrew the lieutenancy-general of Languedoc from John II of Armagnac, to entrust it again to Louis of Anjou, allowing Fébus to do battle again with the Armagnacs. The death of Pierre-Raymond II,

Count of Comminges This is a list of counts of the County of Comminges. Counts of Comminges House of Comminges Aznar I-Sanche was created Count of Gascony by Pepin I, King of Aquitaine, around 820. He made his son Garcia Aznar Viscount of Comminges in 833. W ...

, on 15 October 1375, presented Fébus with the opportunity he sought. Fébus, through his mother Eleanor of Comminges, claimed the inheritance for himself, while the Armagnacs and Albrets backed the claims of Pierre-Raymond's infant daughter. This new opposition provoked the , with the decisive confrontation at Cazères-sur-l'Adour in November 1376. Fébus carried out a victorious counter-offensive there, once again capturing John II of Armagnac. Louis of Anjou remained neutral during the conflict and organized the mediation between the two camps after the final battle. He chose

Tarbes Tarbes (; Gascon language, Gascon: ''Tarba'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of southwestern France. It is ...

as a place of negotiation, with the signing of three documents between 1376 and 1377. Louis of Anjou first recognized Fébus as "Count of Foix and Lord of Béarn" in the name of Charles V, the text also gave the title of ''dominus Bearni'' for Fébus, and not ''vicecomes Bearni'', a way of implicitly recognizing the full sovereignty of Béarn. Fébus then obtained an indemnity of 100,000 francs. On 3 February 1377, a peace treaty was signed, in which was agreed the marriage between Gaston, son heir to Fébus, and Beatrice, daughter of the Count of Armagnac. After numerous negotiations, a final agreement was signed on 3 April 1379 in Barcelonne-du-Gers, on the border between Marsan and Armagnac. The marriage between Gaston and Beatrice was finally celebrated on 19 April 1379 at

Manciet Manciet (; ) is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France. Geography Population See also *Communes of the Gers department The following is a list of the 458 communes of the Gers department of France. The communes coope ...

. The agreement signed with Louis of Anjou and the Armagnacs allowed Fébus to achieve his ultimate design: the unification of his possessions in Béarn and Foix. The hereditary acquisition of the castellanies of Mauvezin and Goudon made it possible to expand Nébouzan to the west, joining this territory to Bigorre. To the east of Nébouzan, Fébus could now count on a dozen lords dependent on Comminges and allowed continuity with the county of Foix. The control of Bigorre represented the last piece of this puzzle between Béarn and Foix. With the complicity of the ''Compagnons de Lourdes'', Fébus urged Bigorrian municipalities to seek its protection. During the summer of 1379, 26 conventions were signed between Fébus and Bigorrian communities, and Tarbes was the last to cede on 27 November 1379.

End of rule and succession

Plot and the Drama of Orthez

Emboldened by his successes, Fébus became more imperious as he grew older. He created discontent in Béarn, which eventually resulted in a plot in 1380. The leader of this plot was apparently the

Bishop of Lescar The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lescar (Latin: ''Dioecesis Lascurrensis;'' French: ''Diocèse de Lescar''; Basque language, Basque: ''Leskarreko elizbarrutia''), in south-western France, was founded in the fifth century, and continued until 1790. ...

, . The clergy did not appreciate the paucity of religious foundations during Fébus' reign and resented its position vis-a-vis the Papacy during the

Western Schism The Western Schism, also known as the Papal Schism, the Great Occidental Schism, the Schism of 1378, or the Great Schism (), was a split within the Catholic Church lasting from 20 September 1378 to 11 November 1417, in which bishops residing ...

. Part of the Bearnaise nobility also turned away from Fébus, notably the Baron d'Andoins, feeling that they were being pushed aside from power in favor of "technocrats" of humble origins. Additionally, Fébus' repudiation of Agnes in 1362, created an enemy out of

. The conjunction of all these malcontents led to the formation of a plot against Fébus, the first traces of which date back to the summer of 1378. Froissart Bruxelles 16

The last piece of the plot was represented by Gaston, Fébus' only legitimate son and heir: he was greatly dissatisfied with his condition, playing no political role, serving as a pawn for his father, and having a lifestyle deemed too modest for his rank. Aged 18, the prince was the central piece of the plot; he was tasked with administering the poison that would kill his father. It was not to be. Between late July and early August 1380, the plot was discovered before Gaston could administer the poison and he was imprisoned in the Château Moncade in Orthez, while Odon de Mendousse and the Baron d'Andoins were exiled to the court of Charles II. The sequence of events cannot be told with certainty, but Gaston probably died in mid-August 1380 under the hand of his own father. The tragedy overwhelmed Fébus who said: "Never will I have joy as perfect as before". He writes his ''Livre des oraisons'', accrediting the thesis of the involuntary crime, and leaves Orthez for Pau, not returning to the Château Moncade until four years later.

Alliance with Charles VI

Fébus began his longest stay in the Pays de Foix on 18 January 1381. At the Château de Mazères, he ruled Foix-Béarn until the middle of August 1382, holding a geographical position that had become essential in the face of the new French policy. On 18 September 1380, Charles V died and was succeeded by his son Charles VI. The new king was too young to govern, and a regency composed of his four uncles was formed, with the

Duke of Berry Duke of Berry () or Duchess of Berry () was a title in the Peerage of France. The Duchy of Berry, centred on Bourges, was originally created as an appanage for junior members of the French royal family and was frequently granted to female royal ...

serving as lieutenant-general of Languedoc. Fébus had much to fear from Berry's appointment as his peace agreement with the House of Armagnac had automatically broken down following the Drama of Orthez. Wishing to mark his territory vis-à-vis the Duke of Berry, in the event of a possible rapprochement with the Armagnacs, Fébus launched an attack on 21 July 1381 against a troop of about 2,500

mercenaries A mercenary is a private individual who joins an War, armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rath ...

brandishing the standard of the Duke of Berry. The army of Fébus routed it and caused a great stir in the region. This success allowed Fébus to open negotiations from a position of strength with the French camp. The Duke of Berry came to Mazères on 9 September 1381, and negotiations opened on 28 December 1381 at

Capestang Capestang (; ) is a commune in the Hérault department in southern France. History In antiquity, the nearby marshes were crossed by the 1500-metre-long Roman Pont Serme.Colin O’Connor: Roman Bridges, Cambridge University Press 1993, , p. 99 ...

. In this agreement, Fébus recognized the Duke of Berry's authority in Languedoc in exchange for the Duke's commitment not to support the Armagnacs along with an annual annuity. The agreement freed the Duke of Berry to quash the Tuchins and allowed Fébus to attack the Armagnacs with total impunity. He left the County of Foix on 4 August 1382, returned to Béarn from October 1382, and began his longest stay at the

Château de Pau The Château de Pau (, ) is a castle in the centre of the city of Pau, the capital of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Béarn. It dominates that quarter of the city. Henry IV of France and Navarre was born here on December 13, 1553, and it was once ...

until March 1383. Fébus returned to Orthez on 5 April 1383, the first time since the tragedy of 1380, to organize the passage of

Louis II, Duke of Bourbon Louis de Bourbon, called the Good ( – 1410), was the third Duke of Bourbon. He was also the Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis and Lord of Beaujeu. Life Louis was the son of Peter de Bourbon and Isabella de Valois. His mother was the siste ...

's army in 1385 to take part in the conflict for the throne of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Aged 20 in 1388, Charles VI decided to get rid of the tutelage of his uncles to govern by himself. The decision was made to begin a long journey in the South, a territory that had not received a visit from a sovereign for almost a century. The purpose of this journey was then to put an end to the multiple abuses that had taken place in these countries during the successive governments of the Dukes of Anjou and Berry. Beforehand, a representative of the king was sent to Orthez to discuss a marriage proposal, but above all to carry out an overview of the main subjects concerning the Midi Pyrenees with the host.

Louis de Sancerre Louis de Sancerre (1341 or 1342 – 6 February 1402; aged 60-61) was a Marshal of France and Constable of France during the Hundred Years' War. Early life Sancerre was born as the second son of count Louis II de Sancerre and Béatrix de Ro ...

and Fébus discussed several topics at length: the succession of Foix-Béarn, relations with the House of Armagnac, and the status of Bigorre. Following these discussions, the first result was quickly obtained with the convention of a 26 July 1389 meeting between the Bearnaises and Armagnacs to lay the foundations for a peace agreement. On 2 September 1389, Charles VI began his journey to the South by descending the Vallée du Rhône and meeting

Antipope Clement VII Robert of Geneva (; 1342 – 16 September 1394) was elected to the papacy as Clement VII () by the cardinals who opposed Pope Urban VI and was the first antipope residing in Avignon, France. His election led to the Western Schism. The son of ...

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

. A meeting between the king and Fébus was set to take place in

, though the Count of Foix demanded that this interview not call into question the status of the sovereignty of Béarn. Louis de Sancerre asked Fébus to choose clearly between the French and English camp in case hostilities resumed; Fébus then replied: "I hold my country of Béarn from God, from my sword, and from my lineage; I have no need to put myself in servitude." Fébus made a striking entry into Toulouse and stayed there from 4 to 6 January 1390. The first meeting between Charles VI and Fébus took place on 5 January 1390 at Château Narbonnais, the Bearnaise lord was then treated like a prince. Afterwards, Fébus organized a sumptuous meal for 200 people to which he invited the Dukes of Touraine and Bourbon. The king made an appearance at the end of this dinner. Then invited to Mazères by Fébus, the king was received with the greatest care. Knowing that it was impossible to compete with the royal festivities of Saint-Denis, Fébus organized an unusual party without trying to dazzle the king. It was during these meetings that the Treaty of Toulouse was carried out secretly by Fébus and the French camp. On 5 January 1390, Fébus made Charles VI his universal legatee and received a life annuity for Bigorre and 100,000 francs, Fébus gave his seal to the treaty, but did not sign it. The treaty was particularly favorable to the French camp because it incorporated the most important feudal inheritance of the South into France in exchange for gold payment and the temporary cession of Bigorre. For Fébus, this treaty allowed him to reign as a sovereign prince during his life, though his work would die out completely with him. No longer having any legitimate descendants, perhaps he wanted to deprive the Foix-Castelbon branch of any inheritance. The life of Fébus was marked by many unrespected treaties, so it is difficult to know what his real intentions were. The commitments he subsequently made would contradict those agreed at Toulouse. In two agreements signed on 15 May and 10 June 1390 in

and

Girona Girona (; ) is the capital city of the Province of Girona in the autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 106,476 in 2024, but the p ...

, Fébus joined a league against the House of Armagnac with King

John I of Aragon John I (27 December 1350 – 19 May 1396), called by posterity the Hunter or the Lover of Elegance, or the Abandoned in his lifetime, was the King of Aragon from 1387 until his death. Biography John was the eldest son of Peter IV and his third ...

. The agreements specifying that this alliance would also be valid for their heirs, it is difficult to imagine Fébus engaging the King of France in a conflict with a vassal like the Armagnacs.

Death and succession

Febus died on 1 August 1391 at

L'Hôpital-d'Orion L'Hôpital-d'Orion (, literally ''L'Hôpital of Orion''; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the 545 Commun ...

, on the road between

and Orthez. After a hunt in the region of Sauveterre, Fébus, and his retinue dined at L'Hôpital-d'Orion, where he fell victim to a fatal

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

. The story of his death comes from

, who collected the testimony of Espan du Lion, who was present that day. Froissart writes: Jean Froissart's account specified that Fébus went bear hunting that day, an unlikely story in the Sauveterre region in August, deer hunting being more logical. Fébus' illegitimate son was present when his father died and made a brief attempt to succeed him. Yvain and some conspirators of L'Hôpital-d'Orion attempted to seize the treasury of Orthez before the news of Fébus' death spread. His attempt failed, and he was forced to let the ''jurats'' of Orthez take control. Once Fébus' death became common knowledge, his remains were first transported to the Château de Sauveterre and then to Orthez at the end of the morning of 2 August 1391. Fébus' funeral took place on 2 October 1391, probably in the convent of the

Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilian priest named Dominic de Guzmán. It was approved by Pope Honorius ...

(also called the Jacobins convent). The coffin was buried in the church, without any recumbent statue, mausoleum, or tombstone. Without a legitimate heir and after Yvain's aborted attempt to seize power, succession became an urgent issue in the Foix-Béarn territory. The question was particularly central in Béarn, which was anxious to defend its independence. On 8 August 1391, the

Estates of Béarn Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...

met for the first time in Orthez; this assembly brought together the ' and the ''Cour des Communautés''. The treasure of Orthez was inventoried and its contents distributed, with a portion going to the illegitimate sons of Fébus. In the absence of a will, the Estates used the will of Gaston II as a precedent and designated Matthew of Foix-Castelbon as the legitimate heir, provided that several prerequisites are met, including the maintenance of Béarn's sovereignty. The Estates also demanded a greater role in government, putting an end to Fébus' practice of

enlightened despotism Enlightened absolutism, also called enlightened despotism, refers to the conduct and policies of European absolute monarchs during the 18th and early 19th centuries who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, espousing them to enhance ...

. However, the continued sovereignty and neutrality of Béarn was the main priority of the Estates, as they "had nothing to do with the King of France", unlike the County of Foix. The cancellation of the Treaty of Toulouse, concluded in 1390, was therefore the challenge of this succession, at the risk of seeing Béarn regain its autonomy from Foix. Matthew of Foix-Castelbon was barely of legal age (14 years old), when he received the homage of the main nobles of the country of Foix on 17 August 1391. Consequently, his mother, Géraude de Navailles, and advisers, Espan du Lion and Roger d'Espagne, led the negotiation of the Treaty of Toulouse. It was necessary for them to act quickly because the '' Marmousets'' of Charles VI's administration seemed determined to enforce the Treaty of Toulouse. Espan du Lion and Roger d'Espagne traveled to

Tours Tours ( ; ) is the largest city in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabita ...

at the end of 1391 to negotiate with the French king. With Bureau de La Rivière and ,

Bishop of Noyon The former French Catholic Diocese of Noyon lay in the north-east of France, around Noyon. It was formed when Saint Medardus moved the seat of the bishopric at Vermandois to Noyon, in the sixth century. From 545 to 1146, it was united with the ...

, Roger d'Espagne developed the following argument: the Treaty of Toulouse was not honorable for the King of France, the populations of Foix and especially of Béarn would be hostile to a seizure of the king, and it would be dangerous to oppose the heir supported by the Kingdom of Aragon. In a tense context in

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

for the ''Marmousets'' and the opening of peace negotiations between France and England, caution was required to preserve the stability of the entire Pyrenean region. In this context, and in exchange for 250,000 francs, Charles VI annulled the Treaty of Toulouse and recognized Matthew as Fébus' sole heir by letters patent dated 20 December 1391. The Foix-Béarn unit was preserved, as was the sovereignty of Béarn, though the consolidated authority of Fébus gave way to co-governance between the lord and assemblies of representatives.

Exercise of power

An enlightened despotism

Fébus ruled as an

enlightened despot Enlightened absolutism, also called enlightened despotism, refers to the conduct and policies of European absolute monarchs during the 18th and early 19th centuries who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, espousing them to enhance ...

, especially in Béarn. He dismissed the nobility and the traditional assemblies and imposed a personalist regime. Fébus established a privy council without a fixed composition while appointing lieutenant generals who could replace it at any time. This function was reserved for members of his family, including , before the abolition of this role in 1365. Fébus made all major policy decisions and exercised control over appointments, favoring family members and lawyers but usually excluding the nobility. However, Fébus did not rule Foix as he ruled Béarn. Fébus monopolized the administration of Béarn, notably in judicial matters, where previous Viscounts had played a more limited role. The traditional courts of Béarn (''Cour Majour'' and ''Cour des Communautés''), as well as the

Seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

, were marginalized in favor of the "audience deu senhor," which was entirely under Fébus' control. Fébus' stranglehold over power was just as strong in Foix, though less personalist. Fébus preferred to delegate his authority to the Seneschal, as Foix was not his primary residence, though he maintained a firm grip over fiscal and military matters. Fébus was considered a strict but fair ruler. He tolerated neither failure nor opposition and was rigorous when collecting payments he felt he was due. As he grew older, Fébus became more and more authoritarian and inflexible. However, his actions were considered just and reasonable. He did not take social classes into account when making legal decisions and would condemn a baron against a simple peasant. Additionally, Fébus usually extracted fines as punishment, only rarely resorting to imprisonment and never execution. Fébus also had the common touch and made himself visible to his subjects. For example, Fébus would hear legal cases in the open air, on the banks of the

Gave de Pau The Gave de Pau () is a river of south-western France. It takes its name from the city of Pau, through which it flows. The river is long ( including the Gaves réunis), and although its source is considered to be on the Cirque de Gavarnie in t ...

in imitation of Saint Louis, who famously rendered justice beneath an oak tree.

Residences and court life

Like all his ancestors since

Gaston VII of Béarn Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to: People First name *Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315) * Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343) *Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391) *Gaston ...

, Fébus held court at the Château Moncade in Orthez. He only occasionally visited his other Béarn castles, except in that of Pau from 1375. When in Foix, Fébus sometimes resided at the Château de Pamiers or the of Foix, but from 1375 stayed exclusively at the Château de Mazères. During his reign, Fébus welcomed notable figures in his residences: the Black Prince in Mazères in 1355, King

Peter I of Cyprus Peter I (9 October 1328 – 17 January 1369) was King of Cyprus and titular King of Jerusalem from his father's abdication on 24 November 1358 until his death in 1369. He was invested as titular Count of Tripoli in 1346. As King of Cyprus, ...

in 1363–1364 in Orthez, the Duke of Bourbon in 1388 (also at Orthez), and Charles VI at Mazères in 1390. Archaeological studies show, as at Montaner or Orthez, that the "Febusian" residences were composed of a seigniorial main building with two levels. The ground floor was used by his servants and the top floor was the habitat of the lord and his entourage. The great hall was the main place of public and courtly life. At the Château Moncade the great hall was possibly decorated with hunting scenes and tapestries illustrating the Battle of Launac. Froissart's long visit to Orthez, between 1388 and 1389, allows us to describe court life under Fébus. The large hall, or ''tinel'', was the occasion for meals, shows, music,

minstrel A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. The term originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist enter ...

songs, literary evenings, and other various celebrations. The most original characteristic of the courtly life at Orthez was the appreciation of

troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) 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 equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...

s, but the relative absence of tournaments, contrary to the medieval fashion. Froissart also noted that the court of Orthez was well informed of the latest events, thanks to Fébus' remarkable intelligence network. Fébus installed a treasure room and a prison on the vast ground floor of the tower of the Château Moncade. The first floor retained a defensive role with its loopholes and niches, while the upper levels were devoted to living quarters. Equipped with four large windows with cushions and a chimney per level, they probably resulted from work commissioned by Fébus in 1374, concomitant with those of the Montaner tower. The adjoining main building, accessible by the monumental staircase opening onto the courtyard, contained the ceremonial room. Located on the first floor, it was caught between the servile spaces on the ground floor and the apartments of Fébus on the second floor. According to the chronicles of Froissart, the gallery had such a large fireplace that one of Fébus' companions, Arnauton d'Espagne, could hold all the logs carried by Fébus' largest donkey. Morlàas was another important city and was the capital of Béarn until Gaston VII moved his court to Orthez. Morlàas was home to the Béarn monetary minting workshop, where Fébus had gold coins minted alongside the Aragonese florin. Fébus set up a residence there, now destroyed, to replace the old count's castle. As early as 1373, he acquired a series of plots and houses from villagers. The following year, he annexed the masonry of a tower and the timber of a resident who was indebted to him. As a text from 1375 indicates, this residence was built in the typical Febusian mold, with a curtain wall, a gate tower, and a drawbridge spanning a ditch. Inside, the building possessed a large hall, a kitchen, and three superimposed bedrooms.

Family

Ancestry

Fébus was the only legitimate child of Gaston II of Foix-Béarn and Eleanor of Comminges. His father was a scion of the house of Foix-Béarn, founded by the marriage of his grandparents

and

. The Foix-Béarn family was linked to all the southern families:

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

Narbonne Narbonne ( , , ; ; ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and was ...

and even

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

. Gaston II's mother, Joan of Artois, was the great-granddaughter of

Robert I, Count of Artois Robert I (25 September 1216 – 8 February 1250), called the Good, was the first Count of Artois. He was the fifth (and second surviving) son of King Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile. Life He received Artois as an appanage, in accorda ...

, brother of Saint Louis. This French princess brought the prestige of the royal house to Foix-Béarn but also many worries. She was accused of licentiousness, leading her husband Gaston I and then her son Gaston II to banish her from court. Before his death, Gaston I divided his domains between his sons Gaston II and , who received the Viscounty of Castelbon and the other Catalan possessions inherited from the Foix and the Moncade; his grandson,

Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chinese Elm ''Ulmus parvifolia'' Christianity * Matthew the Apostle, one of ...

, eventually became in the successor of Fébus. Despite the close kinship, Fébus despised the Foix-Castelbon branch because he suspected that Matthew's father, , was involved in the 1380 plot against him. Bertrand, Baron de L'Isle-Jourdain and uncle to Eleanor of Comminges, tutored Gaston II and was instrumental in marrying his niece to the Count in 1325, despite the age difference. Eleanor was the youngest child of and was either dedicated to celibacy or the convent until her uncle's intervention. After several children who died in infancy, Eleanor was approaching her forties when she gave birth to Fébus. Though the marriage between Gaston II and Eleanor was not particularly warm, Gaston II still regarded his wife with respect and esteem. Gaston II spent most of his life fighting for the French king, and it was during a truce between the French and the English that he left for

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

at the call of King

Alfonso XI of Castile Alfonso XI (11 August 131126 March 1350), called the Avenger (''el Justiciero''), was King of Castile and León. He was the son of Ferdinand IV of Castile and his wife Constance of Portugal. Upon his father's death in 1312, several disputes ...

. Gaston would not return, dying on 26 September 1343 during the Siege of Algeciras. During her husband's many absences, Eleanor played an essential role in educating Fébus. Thanks to the will left by Gaston II before his departure for Andalusia, Eleanor served as tutor and regent of the heir until his legal majority (14 years). Fébus' mother would continue to manage his property as curator until he was 21 years old. The homage tour that Eleanor organized for Fébus was a major achievement and proved fundamental for her son's career and demonstrated her considerable administrative skills. Eleanor died around 1369, near

Le Mas-d'Azil Le Mas-d'Azil (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Ariège (department), Ariège Departments of France, department in southwestern France, containing a cave that is the typesite for the prehistoric Azilian culture. The ''Mas d'Azil cav ...

in the County of Foix.

Siblings

Fébus was the sole legitimate heir of Gaston II, though he had several illegitimate half-siblings. Fébus had two half-sisters, Béarnèse (wife of Raymond Bernard II of Castelnau-Tursan) and Marguerite (wife of John of Châteauverdun, Lord of Caumont), and two half-brothers, Arnaud-Guilhem (who married Jeanne, heiress of the Lordship of

Morlanne Morlanne (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques Departments of France, department in south-western France. Residents are referred to as the ''Morlannais''. See also * Château de Morlanne *Communes of the Pyrénées- ...

) and Pierre (who married Florencia of Aragon). The children grew up together, and Fébus' brothers would remain faithful companions throughout his life. The two illegitimate sons seem to have benefited from the same physical and military education as Fébus, the intellectual and artistic education being surely reserved for the heir. Arnaud-Guilhem was considered to be the "main collaborator" of Fébus, the latter not hesitating to entrust him with the fate of Béarn during some of his trips outside. Thanks to his marriage, Arnaud-Guilhem became the heir to the domain of Morlanne, and he participated in the construction of the Château de Morlanne, desired by his brother to strengthen the defense system of Béarn. Arnaud-Guilhem seemingly died just before his brother in 1391.

Wife and mistresses

Aged 9, Fébus was the subject of a marriage project between his father and King

James III of Majorca James III ( – ), known as James the Rash (or the Unfortunate), was King of Majorca from 1324 to 1344. He was the son of Ferdinand of Majorca and Isabella of Sabran. Life James was born in Catania, Sicily. Margaret of Villehardouin, Jame ...

. On 10 February 1340 in

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...

, Gaston II signed a marriage contract for his son and the daughter of James III, infanta

Isabella of Majorca Isabella of Majorca ( Catalan: ''Elisabet'') (1337–1406) was the titular Queen of Majorca and Countess of Roussillon and Cerdanya from 1375 to her death. She was the last titular monarch of Majorca. Life Early life She was the daughter of ...

. But the death of Gaston II in 1343, as well as the capture of Perpignan by King

Peter IV of Aragon Peter IV (Catalan: ''Pere IV d'Aragó;'' Aragonese; ''Pero IV d'Aragón;'' 5 September 1319 – 6 January 1387), called the Ceremonious (Catalan: ''El Cerimoniós''; Aragonese: ''el Ceremonioso''), was from 1336 until his death the king of ...

, caused the project to be abandoned. Having become regent, Eleanor turned to the royal family of Navarre for a potential bride. She and Queen

Joan II of Navarre Joan II (, , ; 28 January 1312 – 6 October 1349) was Queen of Navarre from 1328 until her death in 1349. Joan was the only surviving child of Louis I of Navarre and Margaret of Burgundy. Her father ascended the French throne as Louis X in ...

began negotiations in 1345 in order to marry Fébus to one of the Queen's daughters, infanta Agnes of Navarre. This alliance was particularly prestigious for the House of Foix-Béarn, as Joan II was the only legitimate child of King

Louis X of France Louis X (4 October 1289 – 5 June 1316), known as the Quarrelsome (), was King of France from 1314 and King of Navarre (as Louis I) from 1305 until his death. He emancipated serfs who could buy their freedom and readmitted Jews into the king ...

to survive infancy but was excluded from the French throne in favor of her uncle,

Philip V of France Philip V ( 1291 – 3 January 1322), known as the Tall (), was King of France and List of Navarrese monarchs, Navarre (as Philip II) from 1316 to 1322. Philip engaged in a series of domestic reforms intended to improve the management of the kingd ...

. The marriage was postponed until 1349, due to Agnes' young age. During a long stay in

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

to settle Navarrese affairs in their Norman domain, Eleanor and Fébus were invited by Joan II to celebrate the wedding. The marriage contract was signed on 5 May 1349, with a promised

dowry A dowry is a payment such as land, property, money, livestock, or a commercial asset that is paid by the bride's (woman's) family to the groom (man) or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price ...

of 20,000 livres from the Queen of Navarre, with an initial payment of 1,000 livres. The wedding was finally celebrated with a grand ceremony on 4 August 1349 in the

. Through his marriage, Fébus became brother-in-law to both the King of Navarre and the King of France. The life of Agnes is poorly documented, but her marriage to Fébus was likely an unhappy one. In September 1362, she gave birth to the male heir, Gaston, only for Fébus to repudiate her a few months later, apparently because her brother had failed to pay her dowry. Fébus sent her to

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

without her belongings, and the two would never meet again. The interventions of

Pope Urban V Pope Urban V (; 1310 – 19 December 1370), born Guillaume de Grimoard, was head of the Catholic Church from 28 September 1362 until his death, in December 1370 and was also a member of the Order of Saint Benedict. He was the only Avignon pope ...

in 1364 and

Pope Gregory XI Pope Gregory XI (; born Pierre Roger de Beaufort; c. 1329 – 27 March 1378) was head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1370 to his death, in March 1378. He was the seventh and last Avignon pope and the most recent French pope. In 1377, ...

in 1373 changed nothing. Fébus' repudiation of Agnes would have drastic consequences, as it created an enemy out of the dangerous King of Navarre, indirectly provoked the 1380 Orthez plot and, by preventing him from siring more legitimate children, ultimately spelled the end for his line. Fébus fathered at least three illegitimate children; the names and social conditions of his mistresses are unknown. Only Froissart's story allows us to know the daily life of Fébus, but despite the physical and intellectual form of the prince, no woman is present in the court of Orthez. Far from having a physical detestation of them, Fébus seems to have had a psychological rejection towards women, which could explain the repudiation of Agnes as well as the absence of women throughout her life, with the exception of her mother Eleanor.

Issue

Legitimate issue

After 10 years of marriage, Agnes finally gave birth to a first son to Febus in 1359, but the child died almost immediately. Three years later, in September 1362, a second son, Gaston, was born in Béarn, whose godfather was the King of Navarre. After the almost immediate repudiation of Agnes, Gaston is raised at the court of Orthez. His life is little known until the drama of Orthez in 1380. Gaston, Prince and heir of Foix-Béarn, appears several times in the chronicles; in March 1374, a marriage was planned for him and the daughter of the

Duke of Lancaster The dukedom of Lancaster is a former Peerage of England, English peerage, created three times in the Middle Ages, which finally merged in the Crown when Henry V of England, Henry V succeeded to the throne in 1413. Despite the extinction of the ...

; in 1376 Gaston appeared in the army that Fébus mounts. But his place appears to be very limited, especially in comparison with his two illegitimate half-brothers Bernard and Yvain, enough to validate the tradition that Fébus did not like Gaston, preferring his bastard sons. Gaston reappears during his 1379 marriage to Beatrice of Armagnac to seal the peace between the two enemy families. The marriage was celebrated on 19 April 1379, in the absence of Fébus and under particularly modest conditions for a prince of his rank. Gaston grew up without knowing his mother, though he maintained links to her family by visiting the court of Navarre several times on his father's authorization. Fébus' lenience towards his son would ultimately backfire, as Gaston would scheme against him while in the company of Charles II of Navarre. The circumstances of the Drama of Orthez are not precisely known; Froissart and Juvénal des Ursins give two different versions which each include improbabilities. All the versions agree that, following a failed poisoning attempt against his father, Gaston died, probably by the hand of Fébus, in August 1380. Gaston's participation in the plot was likely the result of resentment towards his father, who only uses him as a pawn in his political ambitions without giving him the slightest responsibility, unlike his half-brothers. Gaston's death deprived Fébus of a legitimate heir, leading to the ascension of the Foix-Castelbon branch of his dynasty.

Illegitimate issue

Fébus had at least three illegitimate children from his various mistresses. The first one was

Bernard Bernard ('' Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It has West Germanic origin and is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''be ...

, born around 1350; was born a little before the heir Gaston around 1360–1361, while Gratien was born later. The life of this last son is very poorly known; he is reported for the first time by Froissart at the 1388 Christmas banquet before reappearing at the time of his father's death. Gratien could have taken part in the Berber crusade organized by

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

, before dying in 1394 in Sicily. Bernard was brilliantly established in Castile; thanks to the protection of King

Henry II of Castile Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first List of Castilian monarchs, King of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from the House of Trastámara. He became ...

, and he became the first Count of Medinaceli. Bernard appears alongside his father during the War of Comminges in 1376. By his marriage to

Isabel de la Cerda Isabel de la Cerda also known as ''Isabel de la Cerda Pérez de Guzmán'' (Seville c.1329 - after 1383) was the only surviving daughter of Luis de la Cerda and his first wife Leonor de Guzmán; she was Lady of Puerto de Santa María and titular Pri ...

(granddaughter of

Alfonso de la Cerda Alfonso de la Cerda, (Valladolid 1270 - Ávila 1333), called "the Disinherited", was the elder son of Ferdinand de la Cerda and his wife Blanche of France, and was a grandson of Alfonso X of Castile. Alfonso and his brother Fernando were ca ...

, in turn, grandson of King

Alfonso X of Castile Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, ; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, Kingdom of León, León and Kingdom of Galicia, Galicia from 1 June 1252 until his death in 1284. During the April 1257 Imperial election, election of 1 ...

), Bernard was the only one of his children to give direct descendants to Fébus, a line which continues today. Tradition designates Yvain as the favorite child of Fébus. Their ties were very close; he was already in his father's personal guard in 1376, and he led the Béarn troops in 1381 during the victory at Rabastens. Froissart also describes Fébus and Yvain as inseparable. On the death of his father and on the advice of his intimates, Yvain made an attempt to take possession of the Orthez treasury, and thus succeed Fébus. His attempt failed, but he recovered 100,000 florins in the company of his brother Gratien, as well as furniture, during the division of property. Yvain then moved to the court of France with the support of Joan II, Countess of Auvergne, entering the immediate entourage of King Charles VI. Yvain was one of the organizers of the parties given at the

Hôtel Saint-Pol The Hôtel Saint-Pol () was a royal residence begun in 1360 by Charles V of France on the ruins of a building constructed by Louis IX. It was used by Charles V and Charles VI. Located on the Right Bank, to the northwest of the Quartier de l'Ar ...

. He participated on 28 January 1393 at a costume ball that would become the famous ''

Bal des Ardents The ''Bal des Ardents'' (Ball of the Burning Men), or the ''Bal des Sauvages'' (Ball of the Wild Men), was a masquerade ballSources vary whether the event was a masquerade or a masque. held on 28 January 1393 in Paris, France, at which King C ...

''. Yvain is one of the six nobles burned during the fire caused by the torch of

Louis I, Duke of Orléans Louis I (13 March 1372 – 23 November 1407) was Duke of Orléans from 1392 to his death in 1407. He was also Duke of Touraine (1386–1392), Count of Valois (1386?–1406) Blois (1397–1407), Angoulême (1404–1407), ...

. He died childless on 30 January 1393 as a result of his wounds "with great pain and martyrdom."

Personality

Physical appearance

The physical appearance of Fébus is not precisely known, it is only possible to sketch a silhouette. A

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...

announces his "flaming hair". Froissart brings some additional elements throughout his chronicles: Many are the illuminated manuscripts representing his features and his presence, but they depict an imagined and fictitious Fébus. The most famous version of the '' Livre de chasse'' is Fr. 616 dated 1407. This version is commissioned by

John the Fearless John I (; ; 28 May 1371 – 10 September 1419) was a scion of the French royal family who ruled the Burgundian State from 1404 until his assassination in 1419. He played a key role in French national affairs during the early 15th century, part ...

; it is based on another manuscript, now in the

Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...

, commissioned by Fébus and possibly dedicated to the Duke of Burgundy. Fébus' hair is still blonde in this version, despite some inconsistencies. All these elements make it possible to imagine a handsome man, with lively eyes and blond hair. Fébus had to wear clothes as sumptuous as those worn in the manuscript Fr. 616 of the ''Livre de chasse'', with decorations symbolizing his power. The impression that the prince gave to his contemporaries can be completed with the words of

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

Behavior

Some character traits and life habits of Fébus are clearly identifiable. Apart from his predilection for war or hunting, he worked at night and slept for a good part of the day, not getting up until around noon. A rhythm of life close to that adopted in Madrid, but far from the habits of the court of France. Fébus' assiduity at work is one of his main behavioral traits, himself specifying in the prologue to his ''Livre de chasse'' that despite his passion for this entertainment, it never led him to "neglect the service of his own affairs who must import more." The registers of his notary also prove his total availability to his princely duties, exerting permanent administrative pressure. Fébus commanded his men with brief orders, applying the same method as his dogs, for which he devoted a real passion and accompanied him in all his movements. Fébus writes: "The dog is faithful to his master and of good and true love." Fébus was just as capable of charming his audience as he is of showing cruelty towards others. He did not hesitate to repudiate Agnes bluntly or to keep his first cousin, the Viscount of Castelbon, at the bottom of a pit for eight months. On the other hand, he always rendered justice in a non-arbitrary way, and apart from the Drama of Orthez, no chronicler accuses him of bodily harm or summary executions. In the context of the 14th century, Fébus was neither worse nor better than the kings and princes of his time, his actions being able to be judged as less cruel than many others. This sentence from Juvénal des Ursins can sum up the complexity of the character, adored as much as hated:

The communicator

Choosing a nickname

A unique case for his time, Gaston III of Foix-Béarn chose his nickname and gradually replaced his birth name with this creation. The nickname ''Fébus'', his battle cry ''Febus aban'' and his motto ''Toquey si gauses'', made their appearance during the ride of the prince in Prussia in 1358. The battle cry ''Febus aban'' was the first element unveiled by Gaston III during the siege of Meaux on his return from the crusade. In the middle of the 14th century, he was one of the first European princes to write a handwritten signature. But, uniquely, Gaston III chose to sign by his new nickname: the oldest document featuring the ''Fébus'' signature dates from 16 April 1360; the general look of this signature does not change until 1390 when Gaston III chose a clearly visible and detached signature to make it more striking. He also extended the scope of his nickname, by minting his coins with the inscription ''Febus comes'' and by placing on his fortresses that of ''Febus me fe''. In 1387, when he wrote the prologue to his '' Livre de chasse'', he specified the elements constituting his identity: "I, Gaston by the grace of God, nicknamed Fébus, count of Foix, lord of Béarn." The choice of the nickname ''Fébus'' was a gesture of pride to be linked to the crusade in Prussia, a triumphal ride worthy of a chivalric novel. His adoubement during the crusade surely explains this desire to change his name. The choice of Febus clearly refers to the ancient god ''Phoibos'', or

. Several reasons are put forward to explain this choice made by Gaston; his blond hair recalls the god of light, while ''Phoibos'', brother of

Artemis In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Artemis (; ) is the goddess of the hunting, hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, transitions, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. In later tim ...

, is a great hunter just like him. Nevertheless, this nickname mainly refers to the solar myth associated with ''Phoibos''. Since Roman times, Apollo was the god most intimately linked to the exercise of power. Gaston had several compilations of the ''Facts of the Romans'' in his library. Additionally, he had a version translated around 1350 in

langue d'oc Occitan (; ), also known by its native speakers as (; ), sometimes also referred to as Provençal, is a Romance language spoken in Southern France, Monaco, Italy's Occitan Valleys, as well as Spain's Val d'Aran in Catalonia; collectively, thes ...

from the encyclopedia of

Bartholomaeus Anglicus Bartholomaeus Anglicus (before 1203–1272), also known as Bartholomew the Englishman and Berthelet, was an early 13th-century Scholastic of Paris, a member of the Franciscan order. He was the author of the compendium ''De proprietatibus rerum ...

. This one described the virtues of the zodiac sign of the Sun: "In the constellation of the sun men are beautiful and light, and for this reason in painting they make him wings and the face of a child and is called Phoebus that is to say beautiful." The translation into langue d'oc is " ..''apelaven Febus que vol dire bel''." The end of this paragraph completes the qualities attributed to the Sun: "Beneath the sun is contained beauty, victory, fortune, and legacies. The sun means spirit and soul." Gaston always spelled his nickname using the langue d'oc ''Fébus'', and never Phébus or Phœbus as it is sometimes written. He also never combined "Gaston Fébus" as has been done since the 19th century, so he always separated his Christian name and his nickname. The nickname ''Fébus'' was, after his death, borne by other members of the family, including Francis Fébus,

King of Navarre This is a list of the kings and queens of kingdom of Pamplona, Pamplona, later kingdom of Navarre, Navarre. Pamplona was the primary name of the kingdom until its union with Kingdom of Aragon, Aragon (1076–1134). However, the territorial desig ...

from 1479 to 1483. Several nicknames were given to him thereafter, including "Comte soleil", "Prince des Pyrénées" or "Lion des Pyrénées."

Motto and other symbols

Elucidari de las proprietatz de totas res naturals 8

In addition to the nickname ''Fébus'', Gaston chose a set of other emblems to symbolize his action and mark the spirits. During the Prussian crusade, he chose his motto ''Toquey si gauses'' ("Touch it if you dare") to illustrate his enthusiasm for arms. This phrase is still the motto of Orthez. Fébus used two types of

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

during his rule. The first appeared in 1341, and was used at least until 1361. This seal is marked by its great sobriety, taking only the arms of Foix-Béarn. At least from 1377 and until the end of his life, Fébus used another more worked seal. This presents the quartered shield of Foix-Béarn abeam, surmounted by a crest combining a

bassinet A bassinet, bassinette, or cradle is a bed specifically for babies from birth to about four months. Bassinets are generally designed to work with fixed legs or caster wheels, while cradles are generally designed to provide a rocking or glidi ...

and a cow's head with its bell in a dominant position. The bovine figure represents the

Béarnaise cattle The Béarnaise is a French breed of domestic beef cattle. It originates in the area of the traditional province of Béarn, in the east of the département of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the northern Pyrénées in south-west France. It was merge ...

, also present on the coat of arms of Béarn. According to a hypothesis supported by several historians, the dominant position of the head of the cow indicates Béarn's sovereignty. Fébus retained his father's coat of arms, despite his marriage to Agnes, he also retained the Béarn register for his seal and crest.

Military career

Military strategies

Fébus reigned during an era marked by permanent conflicts, so it was important for him to have an army that could be quickly mobilized and in numbers. Fébus could muster a force of around 4,000 men and more than 1,000 horses, divided equally between Béarn and Foix. As a last resort, he could raise a massive levy to defend the interior of the country, transforming each inhabitant into a soldier. This army of 4,000 men exceeded all that the other princes of the South could raise but did not reach the 7,000 to 10,000 men mobilized by the kings of France and England during the battles of

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

or Crécy. Fébus skillfully combined both strategy and diplomacy as a commander. He used military force only as a last resort, preferring intimidation to open engagement. After ruling for nearly 50 years, Fébus fought only two major battles at Launac in 1362 and Cazères in 1376 to establish his domination over the House of Armagnac. He only led at the head of his army four times over his career. His motto ''Toquey si gauses'' illustrates his military strategy of using intimidation to avoid confrontation.

Military constructions

Fébus build a vast network of fortifications during his reign. At the end of his life, the prince controlled some forty fortresses along the Pyrénées, from Soule to Foix. A passage from a motet describes: "This country is surrounded by towers that rise high in the sky ..Admirable domain of the bull. The mother cow protects this garden with her horns. May the hand of the reckless man, O mother, wounded by your horns, turn away from the right place to enter it". This network was heterogeneous because Fébus inherited most of the constructions. He had this endowment reorganized and consolidated, particularly between 1372 and 1378 with the Château de Pau, which for Fébus represented the center of his defensive system to the east of Béarn. Among the constructions carried out under his supervision,

and

Montaner Montaner (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the 545 Communes of France, communes of the Pyrénées-Atlan ...

are the two most complete examples. The use of

brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

instead of the traditional

cut stone Ashlar () is a cut and dressed stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, and is generally ...

is the most characteristic element of Febusian constructions, it was inspired by the

Palace of the Kings of Majorca The Palace of the Kings of Majorca (French: ''Palais des Rois de Majorque'', Catalan: ''Palau dels Reis de Mallorca''), is a palace and a fortress with gardens overlooking the city of Perpignan in Pyrenees-Orientales, France. History The Ki ...

in Perpignan and the

Bellver Castle Bellver Castle (, ) is a Gothic-style castle on a hill 3 km to the west of the center of Palma on the Island of Majorca, Balearic Islands, Spain. It was built in the 14th century for King James II of Majorca, and is one of the few circular c ...

in the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

, where its architect,

Sicard de Lordat Sicard de Lordat was a 14th-century architect from the County of Foix, now in modern-day France, who worked for Gaston Fébus (Gaston III of Foix-Béarn). He is noted particularly for working with brick, a material that was cheap and allowed speed ...

, was trained. The Febusian fortresses all used a polygonal plan enclosing an inner courtyard and a well and sat at the top of a hillock and an artificial motte. The other main characteristic was the presence of an enormous ''donjon'', with those of Pau and Montaner rising to 40 meters in height. The fortress of Montaner represented the centerpiece of Fébus' defensive plan. It was vast, spanning a total of 5-6 hectares and using approximately 1,700,000 bricks for its

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...

es alone. At the junction of Béarn, Bigorre and Armagnac, Fébus used Montaner as a palace-fortress, serving both a military and courtly function. Additionally, the fortress served as a symbol of the united and sovereign principality that he longed to establish between Foix and Béarn. File:Château de Montaner (64).JPG, alt=The tower of the castle of Montaner, Château de Montaner File:Tour moncade.jpg, alt=The tower of the Moncade Castle, The tower of Château Moncade File:Château de Mauvezin (Hautes-Pyrénées, France).JPG, alt=The Castle of Mauvezin, Château de Mauvezin File:Château de Morlanne.jpg, alt=The Castle of Morlanne, Château de Morlanne File:Donjon Fébus Pau.jpg, alt=Gaston Fébus' tower (Castle of Pau), The Fébus' tower (Château du Pau) File:Chateau moncade.jpg, alt=Castle of Moncade, Château Moncade

The administrator

Elucidari de las proprietatz de totas res naturals 6

Ambitious in war as in politics, Fébus needed the funds to carry out his designs. In addition to the income generated from his military victories through ransoms, Fébus developed a system of taxation throughout his territories. From 1365, the prince had a "reform" carried out to investigate, place by place, all the royalties collected, in kind or in money. In Béarn, Fébus revamped the state administration, particularly with regard to forests and mountains, he also instituted tolls, as on the . In Foix, he was particularly interested in industrial income. Fébus also had gold

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

struck at the

Morlaàs Morlaàs (; Gascon Morlans) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. It is the seat of a canton. After the Roman city of Benearnum (today's Lescar) was razed by the Vikings in 841, Morlaàs became the ...

workshops to open up Béarn more widely to Aquitaine and Iberian trade. These important revenues were nevertheless insufficient for the scale of Fébus' ambitions, especially after his refusal to pay homage to the Black Prince in 1364. From 1367, the ''Fouage'' was levied: it was a flat-rate direct tax of 2 francs that each head of the family paid annually. The Fouage is based on the

Feu fiscal The term "feu" (French for "fire" from the Latin ''focus'' meaning ''hearth'') meant, especially in the Middle Ages, the hearth, first in the strict sense (the place where the fire burns) and figuratively: the family home (cf. the expression "withou ...

("''forces''"); the Febusian administration thus needed to conduct a regular census. A few of these surveys survive, in particular one of Béarn in 1385 and Foix, the Albigensian and the Lautrécois in 1390. The ''fogadger'' was responsible for collecting this tax, which was then centralized with all the other taxes at the Château Moncade. Fébus was extremely rigorous in collecting ''Fouage'' payments, not hesitating to imprison jurats and prosecutors at the slightest delay. In addition to the ''Fouage'', he found creative ways of squeezing revenue out of his estates. For example, he issued a capital gains tax in 1380 (named ''Creix''), and also made various arrangements with the

Cagots The ''Cagots'' () were a persecuted minority who lived in the west of France and northern Spain: the Navarrese Pyrenees, Basque provinces, Béarn, Aragón, Gascony and Brittany. Evidence of the group exists as far back as 1000 CE. The name the ...

. Court fines were another important source of revenue and Fébus preferred this sentence to any other because each execution cost him a potential taxpayer. In his chronicles, Froissart was amazed by the willingness of Fébus' subjects to pay taxes and the exceptional peace enjoyed by the territory of Fébus at that time was not unrelated to this observation. The prince also increased his fortune through multiple loans he granted to other lords, which allowed him to expand his political influence. While Fébus was a virtuoso at generating income, he was also described as "close to his pennies." Froissart writes about the prince and his avarice: "Never have (never) mad outrage or mad generosity loved; and he wanted to know every month what his was becoming". Fébus was frugal in his private habits, though he spent lavishly when doing so would win his political influence.

The hunter

Apart from his assiduous princely work, Fébus had a passion for

and the dogs that accompanied him. Fébus was considered one of the greatest hunters of his time. The

Chronicle of Moissac The ''Chronicle of Moissac'' (also known as ''Chronicon Moissiacense'') is an anonymous compilation that was discovered in the abbey of Moissac, but is now thought to have been compiled in the Catalan monastery of Ripoll in the end of the tenth ...

mentioned: "He had a passion for hunting and owned a thousand hunting dogs". Hunting is omnipresent in Fébus' daily world, the Château Moncade is surrounded by a

stag A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) a ...

and

fallow deer Fallow deer is the common name for species of deer in the genus ''Dama'' of subfamily Cervinae. There are two living species, the European fallow deer (''Dama dama''), native to Europe and Anatolia, and the Persian fallow deer (''Dama mesopotamic ...

park, while the large hall is decorated with animal paintings, and probably hunting trophies. As early as 1344, when he was 13 years old, the archives indicate that Eleanor alone received the homage of the delegates of for the young Gaston III, who was out hunting. Hunting and dogs were part of the exchange of good relations between Fébus and his neighbours. King

and the

Black Prince Edward of Woodstock (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), known as the Black Prince, was the eldest son and heir apparent of King Edward III of England. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, succeeded to the throne instead. Edward n ...

, for example, sought Fébus' advice on hunting. From 1387, Fébus devoted all his free time to hunting. At the same time, he dictated his '' Livre de chasse'' to his secretaries, devoting a good part of his nights in Orthez to it until 1390. The work, dedicated to

Philip the Bold Philip II the Bold (; ; 17 January 1342 – 27 April 1404) was Duke of Burgundy and ''jure uxoris'' Count of Flanders, Artois and Burgundy. He was the fourth and youngest son of King John II of France and Bonne of Luxembourg. Philip was th ...

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

and written in

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, occupies a special place in hunting medieval literature. The book's clarity and detail made it an immediate success, and the

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

Buffon was still using it at the end of the 18th century. In his book, Fébus puts forward several arguments to explain his passion for hunting: it prepares for war, ensures better health, allows one to commune with nature, and opens the doors to paradise.

The writer

] Fébus was also a man of letters, capable of composing poetry ('' Canso (song), cansos''), religious literature (the ''Livre des oraisons''), a scientific work (the ''Livre de chasse''), writing in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and

. Born and raised in Orthez, Fébus' mother tongue was Béarnese, but he was also able to speak other Oc dialects such as Gascon Commingeois or Foix

Languedocien Languedocien (French name, ), Languedocian, or Lengadocian () is an Occitan language, Occitan dialect spoken in rural parts of southern France such as Languedoc, Rouergue, Quercy, Agenais and southern Périgord. It is sometimes also called Lang ...

. Froissart records that he "very willingly spoke to me not in his native Gascon but in proper and elegant French". Béarnese remained his everyday language. Fébus also mastered the langue d'oc written, codified and unified by the

s. He wrote his ''cansos'' in this language, though only one survives to the present. This ''canso'', probably written by a Fébus in his mid-20s, takes on the classic theme of a burning lover's lament for an unapproachable lady. According to tradition, Fébus would be the author of the song ''

Se Canta "Se Canta" (; 'If It Sings'), also known as "Se Chanta" or "Aqueras Montanhas", is an anthem associated with Occitania. It is also a very old popular song, known all over Occitania. According to legend, it was written by Gaston III Fébus (1331 ...

'', a true Pyrenean hymn and which could therefore be another canso that has survived time. In addition to his ''Livre de chasse'', he wrote a ''Livre des oraisons'', a collection of 37 prayers, the first three of which are in Latin, and the others in French. Fébus addresses God directly, frightened by his life of sin but showing absolute confidence in divine mercy. The most widespread hypothesis is that the ''Livre des oraisons'' follows the Drama of Orthez. in her work ''Gaston Fébus – Le Prince et le Diable'' believes rather that this collection would be the fruit of a crisis due to a "sin of the flesh", in the words of Fébus. In addition to his talents as an author, Fébus built up a rich library in Orthez. He collected books with translations into langue d'oc of the ''Elucidari'' of

and the ''Surgery'' of

al-Zahrawi Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari (;‎ c. 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinisation of names, Latinised as Albucasis or Abulcasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was an Arabs, Arab physician, su ...

, but also adaptations of

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

, Pliny,

Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia''). He worke ...

, the ''

Speculum Maius The or (Latin: "The Greater Mirror") was a major encyclopedia of the Middle Ages written by Vincent of Beauvais in the 13th century. It was a great compendium of all knowledge of the time. The work seems to have consisted of three parts: the (" ...

'' by

Vincent of Beauvais Vincent of Beauvais ( or ; ; c. 1264) was a Dominican friar at the Cistercian monastery of Royaumont Abbey, France. He is known mostly for his '' Speculum Maius'' (''Great mirror''), a major work of compilation that was widely read in the Middl ...

or even the ''Book of the Marvels of the World'' by

Marco Polo Marco Polo (; ; ; 8 January 1324) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known a ...

Legacy

Contemporary writings

Chronicles

The political, diplomatic and military work of Gaston III occupies a special place in the history of the Pyrenees. But he would not have reached such a level of fame without his qualities as a communicator or without the influence of contemporary writers. The first of these authors is

Honoré Bonet Honoré Bonet (c. 1340 – c. 1410) was a Provençal Benedictine, the prior of Salon near Embrun. Bonet studied at the University of Avignon where he received a doctorate and traveled around France and Aragon. He wrote on philosophy, law, p ...

whose original chronicle, now lost, informed Michel du Bernis in the 15th century when he wrote his own text. The posthumous glory of Fébus owes much to the ''Chronicles'' of

. Entitled ''Voyage en Béarn'' and included in Book III of the ''Chronicles'', Froissart's work represents his most brilliant achievement, "one of the heights of medieval literature". He traveled through Europe between 1370 and 1400, investigating, questioning princes, lords and knights. Mainly active in the north of France, Froissard took advantage of a period of peace in Picardy and Flanders to visit Fébus. He stayed at the Hotel de la Lune at Orthez from 22 November 1388 until late March 1389. The chronicler paints a glowing portrait of Fébus, who in his eyes represents the ideal knight prince. His story is strewn with dramatic, humorous, brilliant or fantastic scenes, transforming in the following centuries into popular and legendary tales, allowing the image of Fébus to be kept alive. Juvénal des Ursins and also write chronicles on the life of Fébus, using eyewitness accounts of several contemporaries. Each paints a glowing portrait of the prince, describing him as a welcoming, powerful, and well-informed lord with unusual physical vigor and whose advice was worth taking. Only Aymeric de Peyrac, Abbot of Moissac, brings a discordant note in his ''Chronicle''. It presents Fébus as a brutal warmonger, who uses his wealth to further glorify himself. While Aymeric de Peyrac uses first-hand testimonies, he was a partisan of the Armagnacs. Additionally, Fébus' closefisted approach towards the church can explain the hostility of the Abbot of Moissac.

Poems and music

The court of Fébus was among the highest rank of the Western cultural elite, alongside the courts of Avignon and Aragon. Fébus was fond of music and his court was one of the crucibles of musical research in the 14th century. The musicians Fébus maintained and welcomed wrote a number of pieces in his honor, participating in the propagation of his glory. Langue d'oc troubadours,

s and cantor-composers were welcomed, particularly troubadours, as in all the southern courts of the period. The troubadours Peyre de Rius, Arnaud d'Antiis and Andreu Gasco, the minstrels Johan Parenti, Johan de Sent Diger and Fehez de Balba were some of the artists Fébus welcomed to his court. The ''

Chantilly Codex The Chantilly Codex (''Chantilly, Musée Condé MS 564'') is a manuscript of medieval music containing pieces from the style known as the '' Ars subtilior''. It is held in the museum at the Château de Chantilly in Chantilly, Oise. Most of the ...

'' brings together a few

s composed to the glory of Fébus and sometimes of Béarn, they take up the codes of

ars nova ''Ars nova'' ()Fallows, David. (2001). "Ars nova". ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'', second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan. refers to a musical style which flourished in the Kingdom of ...

with strong symbolism, often heraldry, comparisons to mythology and references to contemporary facts. The medieval musician Trebor writes for example: "If

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 ...

Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...

and

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

were renowned for their conquests in the world, and

Ywain In Arthurian legend, Ywain , also known as Yvain and Owain among other spellings (''Ewaine'', ''Ivain'', ''Ivan'', ''Iwain'', ''Iwein'', ''Uwain'', ''Uwaine'', ''Ywan'', etc.), is a Knight of the Round Table. Tradition often portrays him as t ...

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), alternatively written as Launcelot and other variants, is a popular character in the Matter of Britain, Arthurian legend's chivalric romance tradition. He is typically depicted as King Arthu ...

Tristan Tristan (Latin/ Brythonic: ''Drustanus''; ; ), also known as Tristran or Tristram and similar names, is the folk hero of the legend of Tristan and Iseult. While escorting the Irish princess Iseult to wed Tristan's uncle, King Mark of ...

and Darius had for their names praise, esteem and eloquence, today shines and armed with it all hearts he who for renown and noble destiny ''Febus avant'' in his sign bears". Other poetic forms, dissociated from music, existed in the 14th century, such as the , the

pastourelle The pastourelle (; also ''pastorelle'', ''pastorella'', or ''pastorita'' is a typically Old French lyric poetry">lyric form concerning the romance of a shepherdess. In most of the early pastourelles, the poet knight meets a shepherdess who best ...

s and the ''cansos'' of the troubadours. Froissart stages Fébus several times in pastourelles, as well as in the ''Dit du Florin'', he also appears in ''Le Vesio'' by as well as in ''

The Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse, as part of a fictional storytelling contest held ...

'' by

Aftermath

Historical studies

From the end of the 14th century to the beginning of the 17th century, Fébus remained present in the chronicles retracing southern history, but he was completely forgotten elsewhere. He was present in aristocratic circles thanks to his '' Livre de chasse''. The glory of Fébus tends to become confidential, the figure of Henry IV taking part in this eclipse. It was not until the middle of the 19th century that the decisive change occurred, with the increasing rehabilitation of 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 ...

, previously seen as a barbaric time. This period then takes on the virtues of romanticism, and the account made in particular by Froissart gave Fébus a wider audience. This renewed interest concerned men of letters, scholars, or promoters of the Béarnese language.

Historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

s also seized on the subject, Hippolyte Gaucheraud had the ''Histoire des comtes de Foix de la première race, Gaston III dit Phœbus'' printed in 1834, the archivist Paul Raymond identified and published documents linked to Fébus in the archives of the department of Basses-Pyrénées. In the 20th century, revealed new aspects of the personality of Fébus thanks to his work on medieval fortresses, while canon Jean-Baptiste Laborde gave new elements in his ''Précis d'histoire du Béarn'' in 1943. Pierre Tucoo-Chala wrote several works on Fébus, including his thesis ''Gaston Fébus et la Vicomté de Béarn (1343-1391)'' in 1959, his work ''Gaston Fébus, un grand prince d'Occident au XIVe siècle'' in 1976, then ''Gaston Fébus, prince des Pyrénées (1331-1391)'' in 1991. His research spread over half a century and played a major role in the dissemination of this character to the general public. Claudine Pailhès, Director of the , continued the biographical work around Fébus, publishing ''Gaston Fébus : Le Prince et le Diable'' in 2007.

In popular culture

The figure of Fébus is also illustrated in

popular culture Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art

f. pop art F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distributi ...

or mass art, sometimes contraste ...

, and this from the middle of the 19th century with the publication of several literary stories. In 1839,

Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...

published a long story taking Fébus as the central character, following his novel '. This text is called ''Monseigneur Phœbus, chronique dans laquelle est racontée l'histoire du démon familier du sire de Corase'', it depicts some events linked to the life of the count, including the Drama of Orthez, the story of the Demon Familiar of the Lord of

Coarraze Coarraze (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. It lies in the former province of Béarn. Due to its proximity to the town of Nay it is often normally referred to with the double barreled name ...

, the

Battle of Aljubarrota The Battle of Aljubarrota was fought between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Crown of Castile on 14 August 1385. Forces commanded by King John I of Portugal and his general Nuno Álvares Pereira, with the support of English allies, opposed the a ...

, and a ''

fantastique ''Fantastique'' is a French term for a literary and cinematic genre and mode that is characterized by the intrusion of supernatural elements into the realistic framework of a story, accompanied by uncertainty about their existence. The concept ...

'' version of the death of Fébus. Dumas was mainly inspired by the ''Chronicles'' of Froissart, but also by the works of Fébus, his Pastourelles and his ''Livre de chasse''. ''Monseigneur Gaston-Phœbus'' goes unnoticed for a long time, it is never the subject of an independent edition with a cover bearing his title, while most editions of the complete works of Dumas completely ignore it. It was not until 2000 that Pierre Tucoo-Chala rescued the work from oblivion by publishing a first independent edition with Éditions Atlantica. Also in the 19th century, the painter

Claudius Jacquand Claude Jacquand, known as Claudius Jacquand (; 11 December 1803, Lyon – 2 April 1878, Paris) was a French painter of historical tableaus, genre scenes and religious subjects. Biography He came from a family devoted to handicrafts and his fathe ...

was inspired by Froissart's account of the Drama at Orthez to create his canvas ';

Gustave Doré Paul Gustave Louis Christophe Doré ( , , ; 6January 1832 – 23January 1883) was a French printmaker, illustrator, painter, comics artist, caricaturist, and sculptor. He is best known for his prolific output of wood-engravings illustrati ...

did the same in a

vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...

for ''Voyage aux Pyrénées'' by

Hippolyte Taine Hippolyte Adolphe Taine (21 April 1828 – 5 March 1893) was a French historian, critic and philosopher. He was the chief theoretical influence on French naturalism, a major proponent of sociological positivism and one of the first practitione ...

. At the end of the 19th century, Fébus was chosen by the Béarn and Bigourdan ''félibres'' during the constitution of the '' Escòla Gaston Fèbus'' association, in order to defend the Gascon language. In the 20th century, the novel by Myriam and Gaston de Béarn, ''La Vie fabuleuse de Gaston Phœbus'' (1959), enjoyed great success. This romantic trilogy is adapted for television in 1978 in ''Gaston Phébus: Le Lion des Pyréné''es; the role of Fébus is interpreted by

Jean-Claude Drouot Jean Claude Drouot (born 17 December 1938) is a Belgian actor whose career has lasted over a half-century. At the age of twenty-five, he gained widespread fame in the French-speaking world as a result of portraying the title role in the popular ...

. Also on television, an episode of the series '' Thierry la Fronde'' (1963–1966) features Gaston, while

Maurice Druon Maurice Druon (; 23 April 1918 – 14 April 2009) was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Française, of which he served as "Perpetual Secretary" (chairman) between 1985 and 1999. Life and career Born in Paris, France, Druon was the ...

recounted Fébus' homage to John II of France for the county of Foix in his work ' (1977), seventh volume of the historical novel ''Les Rois maudits''. The Drama of Orthez inspired several plays by Jean-Claude Lalanne-Cassou or Henri Dupuch. Pierre Tucoo-Chala teamed up with cartoonist José de Huéscar in 1985 to publish the

comic a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicat ...

''Gaston Fébus et le Prince Noir'', then with Patrick Amblevert for two new volumes in 1996 and 2004. A new trilogy of comics on Fébus, using the American format, was published in 2017 by Catmalou and Joseph Lacroix. The name of Fébus is included in multiple local odonyms, such as the Gaston Fébus school city of Orthez or the

BRT BRT may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Bayrak Radio Television, a Turkish Cypriot broadcaster * Belgische Radio- en Televisieomroep (now ''VRT''), a Flemish broadcaster * Business Research and Training Center (BR&T), Ho Chi Minh Cit ...

line Fébus in the

Communauté d'agglomération Pau Béarn Pyrénées The communauté d'agglomération Pau Béarn Pyrénées is a ''communauté d'agglomération'' in the ''département'' of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine ''région'' of France. It provides a framework within which local tasks com ...

. If the original spelling, ''Febus'' or ''Fébus'', chosen by Gaston III himself is often respected, the erroneous spellings ''Phébus'' or ''Phœbus'' continue to appear.

Notes

References

Writings

* BnFbr>38857330
*

Bibliography

Chronicles

* * * *

Sources

*
Wikisource link
* Cummins, John (18 January 2001) ''The Hound and the Hawk: The Art of Medieval Hunting''. Publ. Weidenfeld & Nicolson; New paperback edition * * * BnFbr>32477397
* * . * * BnFbr>34576149
* * * ''Febus Avant! Music at the Court of Gaston Febus, Count of Foix and Bearn (1331-1391)'';

Huelgas Ensemble Huelgas Ensemble is a Belgian early music group formed by the Flemish conductor Paul Van Nevel in 1971. The group's performance and extensive discography focuses on Renaissance polyphony. The name of the ensemble refers to a manuscript of polyphoni ...

Paul Van Nevel Paul Van Nevel (born 4 February 1946) is a Belgian conductor, musicologist and art historian. In 1971 he founded the Huelgas Ensemble, a choir dedicated to polyphony from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Van Nevel is known for hunting out lit ...

; Sony, 1992.

Articles

Novels

* BnFbr>37191239
* Myriam and Gaston de Béarn, novel trilogy ''La Vie fabuleuse de Gaston Phébus'' : ** BnFbr>34639089
** BnFbr>34639090
** BnFbr>34639091
* * BnFbr>34979340

Comics

* Catmalou and Joseph Lacroix, ''Febus'' trilogy: ** ** ** * Pierre Tucoo-Chala and Patrick Amblevert, deux tomes : ** BnFbr>39211473
** BnFbr>39193252

External links

*
Exposition virtuelle : ''Le Livre de chasse'' de Gaston Fébus
on the BnF website * Véronique Rébé
''Gaston Fébus et le Château de Pau au XIVe siècle''
, National Museum of the Château de Pau {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaston 03 Of Foix-Bearn 1331 births 1391 deaths 14th-century princes of Andorra People from Orthez 14th-century French poets Occitan nobility House of Foix Counts of Foix Viscounts of Béarn