Roger Bernard II de Foix

He first appeared in the sources in January 1203 , when his father, Raimund Roger , married him to Ermezind , the daughter of his ally Arno I , Viscount de Castelbon and de Cerdan. Since Ermezinda was the heiress of her father, this marriage allowed the Counts of Foix in the future to extend to the south, to Catalonia, primarily to the Andorran valley, which was also claimed by the bishops of Urhel , who from the 10th century were considered seniors of the valley, but they have this right constantly disputed by local feudal lords. This marriage immediately caused a military conflict. Seeing in this marriage a threat to their interests, Bishop of Urhel Bernat de Vilamour and Count of Urhel Ermengol VIII united and attacked Raimund Roger and Arno, capturing them in February 1203, in which they remained until September. They were freed only thanks to the intervention of King of Aragon Pedro II , who was interested in an alliance with the Count of Foix to conquer Occitania .

During the Albiguian Wars, Roger Bernard helped his father in the fight against the Montforts . In 1217, he defended Montgrenier Castle for 6 weeks from attacks by the army of Simon de Montfort . In 1218, he distinguished himself during the defense of Toulouse , captured on September 13, 1217 by the army of Raimund VI of Toulouse , from the army of Simon, who died under the walls of the city on June 25 . In 1220, Roger Bernard helped his father in the capture of Lavor and Puyloran, and also took an active part in the reconquest of his father's possessions lost during the Albiguian Crusade. Before his death, Raimund Roger did not have time to return only Mirepua , having died on March 27, 1223 during his siege. Having become a count, Roger Bernard managed to finish the siege begun by his father.

In 1224, Roger Bernard, together with Raimund VII , who became Count of Toulouse after the death of Raimund VII, besieged Carcassonne , who held Amory de Montfort , who inherited his conquest in Occitania after the death of Simon de Montfort. And on September 14, peace was concluded between the crusaders and the Occitan, while the Occitan reconciled with the church.

Unable to keep his father’s conquests, Amaury ceded to the King of France Louis VIII of Viscountry Carcassonne and Beziers , in exchange of the lord of Montfort became a county. This gave Louis reason to intervene in Occitan affairs, restoring the sovereignty over the south of France, lost by the kings of France during the reign of the last Carolingian .

In 1225, the cathedral in Bordeaux excommunicated from the church of Raimund VII of Toulouse. And in 1226, Louis personally led a new crusade. Not wanting to expose their possessions to the dangers of a new war, the Occitan feudal lords sided with the king, opening him the gates of their cities. Only the city of Avignon tried to resist, the siege of which lasted 3 months. Roger Bernard went to Avignon to Louis to try on behalf of Raimund VII to make peace, but the king refused to accept it. The Count of Foix had to fight with the Count of Toulouse against the army of Louis. However, Louis never reached Toulouse, having become ill with dysentery, after which he died in November 1226 . Seneschal Humber de Bozhe , appointed commander of the crusader army Blanca of Castile , widow of Louis VIII and regent with his young son Louis IX , did not dare to besiege Toulouse and began to devastate the surrounding countryside. Roger Beranard led the resistance to the crusaders, but the forces were not equal. In addition, in March or April 1227, he was excommunicated. As a result, in 1229, the feudal lords laid down their arms one after another. Earl of Toulouse, Raimund VII, was the first to leave, concluding an agreement with the king in the city of Moe near Paris (sometimes called the Treaty of Paris), having bought peace on humiliating conditions. The contract was signed on April 12 , according to which Raimund became a vassal of the king of France and lost half of his possessions, and also undertook to give his only daughter to marry the king’s brother , who was supposed to inherit the possessions of Raimund.

Roger Bernard resisted the longest, but had no support in June 1229 and he was forced to ask for peace. At the same time, unlike Raimund VII, he retained his main possessions, having lost only a few territories. He returned his share of the pareage to Pamme , Saverdun, as well as several enclaves in Carcassonne , which had become an agreement by the Council of Mo. However, the rights of the lord Mirepua were transferred to Guy de Levy , one of the crusaders. Also with Roger Bernard was removed and excommunication.

Having made peace, Roger Bernard focused on strengthening his position in his Catalan possessions. Back in 1226, Roger Bernard finally took over Castelbon in the aftermath of the death of Viscount Arnaud I. In 1231, a double marriage was made with the Viscount de Cordon's house. Roger Bernard also strengthened a number of cities on the road to Andorra and Urhel, and also tried to gain a foothold in the Caboe Valley, which later led in May 1233 to a conflict with the Bishop of Urhel. Later Roger Bernard resisted the spread of the Inquisition in his possessions, and in April 1239 he refused to accept Bishop Urhel, but in the end he made peace with the church.

In 1240, a revolt broke out in Occitania against French rule, led by Raimund II Trenkavel , Viscount Beziers , who wanted to return the contractual loss to Mo Carcassonne. However, Roger Bernard did not support his relative, trying to agree on a peace.

Roger Bernard died in May 1243 . The exact date of death is unknown. The will made by Roger Bernard is dated May 20. The Chronicle of Guillaume de Puylorana announces his death on May 4, but this contradicts the date of the will. Roger Bernard inherited his only son Roger IV .

1st wife: from January 10, 1203, Ermezinda de Castelbon (d. After December 28, 1229), Viscountess de Castelbon and de Cerdan, lady of Andorra, daughter of Arno I , Viscount de Castelbon, and Arnalde de Caboé. Children:

• Roger IV (d. 24 February 1265), Count de Foix, Viscount de Castelbon and de Cerdany from 1241
• Esclarmonda ; husband: from February 17, 1231 Ramon Folk IX , Viscount de Cardona

2nd wife: from January 23, 1232 Irmengard , daughter of Emery (Manrique) III de Lara , Viscount Narbonne . Children:

• Cecile (d. 1270); husband: from 1256 Alvaro de Cabrera (1239–1267), Count of Urgel from 1243

• COMTES de FOIX . Foundation for Medieval Genealogy . Date of treatment December 8, 2009. Archived on April 5, 2012.
• Roger-Bernard II (Fr.) (link unavailable) . Histoire biographique des comtes de Foix . Date of treatment December 8, 2009. Archived April 12, 2012.
• Foix, Count's family // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.