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.

History

Middle Ages

Modern period

In Popular Culture

See also