Gévaudan (; oc, Gavaudan, Gevaudan) is a historical area of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
in
Lozère ''
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety ...
''. It took its name from the
Gabali, a
Gallic tribe subordinate to the
Arverni
The Arverni (Gaulish: *''Aruernoi'') were a Gallic people dwelling in the modern Auvergne region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. They were one of the most powerful tribes of ancient Gaul, contesting primacy over the region with the n ...
.
History
After the conquest of Gaul, the Romans preserved the capital city of the
Gabali, ''Anderitum'', which they renamed ''Gabalum'', since called
Javols.
Middle Ages
In the early
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
Gévaudan was known as ''Pagus Gabalum'' and was placed under the rule of the
Count of Toulouse
The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings,
the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundi ...
. In the beginning of the 10th century,
Mende had supplanted Javols as religious and administrative capital of the Gévaudan. The western part of Gévaudan constituted the Viscounty of
Grèzes. In 1096 the Count of Toulouse, leaving for the
Crusade
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...
, transmitted his rights on the eastern part of Gévaudan to the
Bishop of Mende
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Mende (Latin: ''Dioecoesis Mimatensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Mende'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese covers the department of Lozère.
The diocese was already i ...
.
It was inherited in 1166 by
Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II (1–25 March 1157Benito Vicente de Cuéllar (1995)«Los "condes-reyes" de Barcelona y la "adquisición" del reino de Aragón por la dinastía bellónida» p. 630-631; in ''Hidalguía''. XLIII (252) pp. 619–632."Alfonso II el Casto, hi ...
. In the 12th century, Adalbert, Bishop of Mende, decided to take advantage of the lack of interest of the nominal rulers of Gévaudan to increase his personal power.
Louis VII of France
Louis VII (1120 – 18 September 1180), called the Younger, or the Young (french: link=no, le Jeune), was King of the Franks from 1137 to 1180. He was the son and successor of King Louis VI (hence the epithet "the Young") and married Duchess ...
granted him temporal power over the region by the
Golden Bull of Gévaudan (''Bulle royale du Gévaudan''). Therefore, Gévaudan was the first
Occitan-speaking area to acknowledge the nominal suzerainty of the king of France. Gévaudan was divided into eight
baronies which were in constant rebellion against the Bishop of Mende.
According to the 1307 peerage the Bishop of Mende was granted the title of count of Gévaudan and could mint coins and dispense lower justice. Although being nominally part of
Languedoc
The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) 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 ...
, Gévaudan kept its own
States General until 1789. During the same period, Gévaudan was a crossroads of pilgrimage trails.
Modern period
In the beginning of the 16th century Gévaudan was extremely wealthy, but the
religious wars ruined the country. The
Huguenots
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster B ...
settled in the city around 1550.
The area was victim to a series of vicious attacks of people in the 18th century by an unidentified
beast or series of beasts.
Gévaudan ceased to exist after the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
on March 4, 1790. The department of
Lozère was created from the former county of Gévaudan.
In Popular Culture
The
Beast of Gévaudan
The Beast of Gévaudan (french: La Bête du Gévaudan, ; oc, La Bèstia de Gavaudan) is the historic name associated with a man-eating animal or animals that terrorised the former province of Gévaudan (consisting of the modern-day department of ...
has been the subject of many works of fiction.
See also
*
Beast of Gévaudan
The Beast of Gévaudan (french: La Bête du Gévaudan, ; oc, La Bèstia de Gavaudan) is the historic name associated with a man-eating animal or animals that terrorised the former province of Gévaudan (consisting of the modern-day department of ...
*
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gevaudan
Crown of Aragon
Former provinces of France
Geography of Lozère
History of Occitania (administrative region)
Languedoc