Rudolf III gave the bishop the county of Vaud in 1011, but the title is bigger than the power.
What the bishop really holds is his city of Lausanne with its countryside, the vineyards of Lavaux (from Henry IV, 1079), and the small towns of Avenches, Lucens, Bulle and Riaz. The Zaehringen dukes, rectors of Burgundy, are the church's advocates and the real power in the Vaud plateau; the counts of Geneva and, soon, Savoy press from the south. Roger, an Italian of the curia's choosing, is a fighting bishop.
Who holds it
- Name
- Roger de Vico Pisano
- Title
- Bishop of Lausanne (count of Vaud in name)
- Since
- 1178
- Confidence
- high
Of a distinguished family of Vico (Vicopisano) west of Pisa. Pope Alexander III put him in after forcing out Landri de Durnes. He found the see's estates depleted and spent his reign rebuilding them by law and by war: against the counts of Geneva (1186-1195) and later against Thomas of Savoy (1203-1210). He resigns on 8 January 1212 and dies a canon of Lausanne on 5 March 1220.
What it holds
- Lausanne and its surrounding countryside: city lordship
- Lavaux, the vineyard coast east of Lausanne (from Henry IV, 1079)
- Avenches, Lucens, Bulle and Riaz: episcopal towns and castles
- The county of Vaud in name (1011), not in fact
How it was acquired
Comital rights over the city from the Rudolfings at the end of the ninth century; the county of Vaud in 1011; Lavaux from Henry IV in 1079; the other holdings from tenth-century divisions of church property and later acquisitions (La Roche only in the fourteenth century).
How things stand that morning
A lull between Roger's wars: the Geneva war ended in 1195 and the Savoy war begins in 1203. Berthold V of Zaehringen, who sold his claim to the German crown to Philip of Swabia in 1198, is the dominant prince of the region.
Wealth
Wine of Lavaux; the city's market and the cathedral pilgrimage; tolls on the road along the lake and over the Jura.
Threats
- The Zaehringen advocates' grip on the church's lands
- Savoy, whose war with the bishop begins in 1203
- The counts of Geneva
Advocates and rivals
The Zaehringen (Berthold V), advocates of the church of Lausanne and rectors of Burgundy; the counts of Geneva (war of 1186-1195); Thomas I of Savoy (war of 1203-1210); the cathedral chapter and the nobility of the Vaud.
Places of note
- Cathedral of Notre-Dame: Seat of the bishop, rebuilding in Gothic style
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Holdings from the HLS article on the prince-bishopric; the Zaehringen advocacy in 1200 rests on general accounts.
On the map: Holdings follow the HLS list; Lavaux is drawn as five modern municipalities. Lutry, with its priory of Savigny, is left out.
Primary sources for Zähringen
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Annals of Marbach (compiled to 1238, the section on 1198 to 1210 written in the early 13th century). Alsatian annals on the Staufen side of the Upper Rhine. Read online
- Chronicle of Burchard of Ursberg, Burchard of Ursberg (about 1229 to 1230, reworked by Conrad of Lichtenau). Written a generation later by a fierce partisan of the Staufen and a critic of Innocent III. Read online
- Chronicle of Otto of St Blasien, Otto of St Blasien (about 1209 to 1210). A Swabian continuation of Otto of Freising written from the Staufen side. Read online
Sources and studies
- Lausanne (Furstbistum) (HLS)
- Roger de Vico Pisano (HLS)
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg (en.wikipedia)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.