Sancho IV Garcés (
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
: ''Antzo Gartzia'',
Gascon: ''Sans Gassia'',
French: ''Sanche''; died 950 or 955) was the
duke of Gascony from 930 until his death. During his tenure, Gascony shrank considerably as his brothers inherited important regions and the ''de facto'' and perhaps ''de jure'' independent duchy slipped into historical near-oblivion.
He is mentioned in the
cartulary
A cartulary or chartulary (; Latin: ''cartularium'' or ''chartularium''), also called ''pancarta'' or ''codex diplomaticus'', is a medieval manuscript volume or roll ('' rotulus'') containing transcriptions of original documents relating to the fo ...
of
Auch
Auch (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in southwestern France. Located in the Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie, it is the capital of the Gers Departments of France, department.
Geography
Localiza ...
, as a son of
García Sánchez, and the ''
Códice de Roda
The ''Códice de Roda'' or ''Códice de Meyá'' (Roda or Meyá codex) is a medieval manuscript that represents a unique primary source for details of the 9th- and early 10th-century Kingdom of Navarre and neighbouring principalities. It is current ...
'', which mentions him as the heir of Gascony. On his father's death, he inherited the duchy itself, which included the viscounties of
Lomagen,
Gavarret,
Tursan, and
Bruillois. His younger brothers,
William
William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
and
Arnold, inherited
Fézensac (including
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
Astarac respectively with the comital title. Thus was Gascony divided and diminished.
In 932,
Flodoard records that the brothers
Ermengol of Rouergue and
Raymond Pons of Toulouse,
Princes of Gothia, brought a "Lupus Aznar Vasco" with them to do homage to
Rudolph of France. Lewis considers this "Vasco" to be the duke of Gascony and calls him "Sánchez." The duke meant, however, would be Sancho.
Sancho had two illegitimate sons,
[Cartulary of Auch.] Sancho, who later succeeded him, and
William
William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
, who likewise succeeded his childless brother. A third son was
Gombald, a noted pluralist bishop, who held the various sees of Gascony as one until being reappointed to the long-vacant
archdiocese of Bordeaux
The Archdiocese of Bordeaux (–Bazas) (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 Lati ...
. A fourth son Udalrich or Odulric is attested in charters; probably all were bastards.
Notes
Sources
*Lewis, Archibald R.
The Development of Southern French and Catalan Society, 718–1050'. University of Texas Press: Austin, 1965.
Monlezun, Jean Justin. ''Histoire de la Gascogne''. 1846.*Collins, Roger. ''The Basques''. Blackwell Publishing: London, 1990.
Dukes of Gascony
950s deaths
Year of birth unknown
Year of death uncertain
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