A map of Gascony, showing a wide definition of the region. Other definitions may encompass a smaller area.
Gascony (/ˈɡæskəni/;French:Gascogne[ɡaskɔɲ]ⓘ;Occitan:Gasconha[ɡasˈkuɲɔ])[1] was aprovince of the southwesternKingdom of France that succeeded theDuchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until theFrench Revolution (1789–1799), it was part of the combined Province ofGuyenne and Gascony. The region is vaguely defined, and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; by some they are seen to overlap, while others consider Gascony a part of Guyenne. Most definitions put Gascony east and south ofBordeaux.
Gascony was historically inhabited byBasque-related people who appear to have spoken a language similar toBasque. The name Gascony comes from the same root as the word Basque (seeWasconia below). From theMiddle Ages until today, theGascon language has been spoken, usually classified as a regional variety of theOccitan language.
The Aquitanians inhabited a territory limited to the north and east by the riverGaronne, to the south by the Pyrenees mountain range, and to the west by the Atlantic Ocean. The Romans called this territory Aquitania, either from the Latin wordaqua (meaning "water"), in reference to the many rivers flowing from the Pyrenees through the area, or from the name of the AquitanianAusci tribe, in which case Aquitania would mean "land of the Ausci".
In the 50s BC, Aquitania was conquered by lieutenants ofJulius Caesar and became part of theRoman Empire.
Later, in 27 BC, during the reign of EmperorAugustus, the province ofGallia Aquitania was created. Gallia Aquitania was far larger than the original Aquitania, as it extended north of the Garonne, in fact all the way north to the riverLoire, thus including theCelticGauls that inhabited the regions between the rivers Garonne and Loire.
In 297, as EmperorDiocletian reformed the administrative structures of the Roman Empire, Aquitania was split into three provinces. The territory south of the Garonne River, corresponding to the original Aquitania, was made a province calledNovempopulania (that is, "land of the nine tribes"), while the part of Gallia Aquitania north of the Garonne became the province ofAquitanica I and the province ofAquitanica II. The territory of Novempopulania corresponded mostly to that of modern Gascony.
The Aquitania Novempopulana orNovempopulania suffered like the rest of theWestern Roman Empire from the invasions ofGermanic tribes, most notably theVandals in 407–409. In 416–418, Novempopulania was delivered to theVisigoths as their federate settlement lands and became part of the Visigoth kingdom ofToulouse, while other than the region of the Garonne river their actual grip on the area may have been rather loose.
The Visigoths were defeated by theFranks in 507, and fled into Spain andSeptimania. Novempopulania then became part of theFrankish Kingdom like the rest of southern France. However, Novempopulania was far away from the home base of the Franks in northern France, and was only very loosely controlled by the Franks. During all the troubled and historically obscure period, starting from early 5th-century accounts, thebagaudae are often cited, social uprisings against tax exaction and feudalization, largely associated to Vasconic unrest.
The Duchy was meant to hold sway over the Basques (Vascones).
Old historical literature[example needed] sometimes[when?] claims the Basques took control of the whole of Novempopulania in theEarly Middle Ages, founding its claims on the testimony ofGregory of Tours, on the etymological link between the words "Basque" and "Gascon" – both derived from "Vascones" or "Wasconia", the latter being used to name the whole of Novempopulania.
Modern historians reject this hypothesis, which is sustained by no archeological evidence. For Juan José Larrea, and Pierre Bonnassie, "a Vascon expansionism in Aquitany is not proved and is not necessary to understand the historical evolution of this region".[2] This Basque-related culture and race is, whatever the origin, attested in (mainly Carolingian) Medieval documents, while their exact boundaries remain unclear ("Wascones, qui trans Garonnam et circa Pirineum montem habitant" -- "Wascones, who live across the Garonne and around the Pyrenees mountains", as stated in theRoyal Frankish Annals, for one).[3]
The wordVasconia evolved intoWasconia, and then intoGasconia[4] (w often evolved intog under the influence ofRomance languages; cf.warranty andguarantee,warden andguardian,wile andguile,William andGuillaume). The gradual abandonment of the Basque-related Aquitanian language in favor of a localVulgar Latin was not reversed. The replacing local Vulgar Latin evolved into Gascon.It was heavily influenced by the original Aquitanian language[citation needed] (for example, Latinf becameh; cf. Latinfortia, Frenchforce, Spanishfuerza, Occitanfòrça, but Gasconhòrça).The Basques from the French side of theBasque Country traditionally call anyone who does not speak Basque a "Gascon".[citation needed]
Meanwhile, Viking raiders conquered several Gascon towns, among them Bayonne in 842–844. Their attacks in Gascony may have helped the political disintegration of the duchy until their defeat byWilliam II Sánchez of Gascony in 982. In turn, the weakened ethnic polity known as Duchy of Wasconia/Wascones, unable to get around the general spread of feudalization, gave way to a myriad of counties founded by Gascon lords.
In 1248,Simon de Montfort was appointed Governor in the unsettled Duchy of Gascony. Bitter complaints were excited by de Montfort's rigour in suppressing the excesses of both theseigneurs of the nobility and the contending factions in thegreat communes.Henry III yielded to the outcry and instituted a formal inquiry into Simon's administration. Simon was formally acquitted of the charges, but in August 1252 he was nevertheless dismissed. Henry then himself went to Gascony, pursuing a policy of conciliation; he arranged the marriage betweenEdward, his 14-year-old son, andEleanor of Castile, sister ofAlfonso X. Alfonso renounced all claims to Gascony and assisted thePlantagenets against rebels such asGaston de Bearn, who had taken control of thePyrenees.[6]
In December 1259,Louis IX of France ceded to Henry land north and east of Gascony.[7] In return, Henry renounced his claim to many of the territories that had been lost byKing John.
In 1324, whenEdward II of England in his capacity asDuke of Aquitaine failed to pay homage to the French king aftera dispute,Charles IV declared the duchy forfeit at the end of June 1324, and military action by the French followed. Edward sent his wifeIsabella, who was sister to the French king, to negotiate a settlement. The Queen departed for France on 9 March 1325, and in September was joined by her son, the heir to the throne, Prince Edward the laterEdward III of England. Isabella's negotiations were successful, and it was agreed that the young Prince Edward would perform homage in the king's place, which he did on 24 September and so the duchy was returned to the English crown.[9]
When France's Charles IV died in 1328 leaving only daughters, his nearest male relative was Edward III of England, the son of Isabella, the sister of the dead king; but the question arose whether she could legally transmit the inheritance of the throne of France to her son even though she herself, as a woman, could not inherit the throne. The assemblies of the French barons and prelates and the University of Paris decided that males who derive their right to inheritance through their mother should be excluded. Thus the nearest heir through male ancestry was Charles IV's first cousin, Philip, Count of Valois, and it was decided that he should be crownedPhilip VI of France. Philip believed that Edward III was in breach of his obligations as vassal, so in May 1337 he met with his Great Council in Paris. It was agreed that Gascony should be taken back into Philip's hands, thus precipitating theHundred Years War between England and France.[10][11] At the end of the Hundred Years' War, after Gascony had changed hands several times, the English were finally defeated at theBattle of Castillon on 17 July 1453; Gascony remained French from then on.[12]
From the 17th century onwards, the government of Gascony[13] was united withGuyenne.[14] The government of Guyenne and Gascony (Guienne et Gascogne), with its capital at Bordeaux, lasted until the end of theAncien Régime in 1792.[14]
.svg)
