Gaston VII de Montcada (Latin:Guasto de Biarde; 1225 – 26 April 1290), calledFroissard, was the twentiethViscount of Béarn from 1229. He was the son and heir ofGuillermo II de Montcada of theHouse of Montcada and of Garsenda, daughter ofAlfonso II of Provence andGarsenda of Forcalquier.[1] He was succeeded byRoger-Bernard III of Foix.
On the domestic front, Gaston issued a series offueros, part of theFors de Bearn, for each of the Béarnais valleys. He issued two forAspe, one in 1247 and another in 1250. In that same year Gaston declared his second daughter,Margaret, to be the heir of Béarn, but his third daughter and her powerful husband,Geraud VI of Armagnac, would not accept it. Towards the end of his life he reneged and declared as his heir his youngest daughter, Guillemette, but upon his death Béarn was seized by Margaret's husband,Roger-Bernard III of Foix.
Gaston was highly reputed as a warrior, staunch defender of theBéarnais, ally of theFrench, and enemy of theEnglish. A powerful and independent figure inGascony, he was the first major patron of theOrder of the Faith and Peace. He was defeated and captured bySimon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, in 1248. In 1250 he was brought to England with Simon, who pardoned him there.
However, in 1252 Gaston once more rebelled when he allied withAlfonso X of Castile, who had laid claim to theDuchy of Gascony. This timeHenry III pursued a diplomatic strategy; he arranged a marriage between his sonEdward and Alfonso's daughterEleanor. Fourteen-year-old Edward was then granted the duchy by his father.[2] In January 1276 Gaston surrendered to Edward and was imprisoned atWinchester. Three years later he made an agreement with Edward whereby his lands were restored.[3]
Between 1245 and 1250 Gaston marriedMartha, Viscountess of Marsan,[1] daughter ofBoson de Mathe, lord ofCognac, andPetronilla of Bigorre. The couple had:
Widowed, Gaston married again on 2 April 1273 toBeatrice,[4] daughter ofPeter II of Savoy andAgnes of Faucigny, widow ofGuigues VII of Viennois