Two Gascon viscounties that Bearn has held since 1134 and that, unlike Bearn itself, are held of the duke of Aquitaine: Gabardan, a pine-and-heath country round Gabarret on the edge of the Landes and Armagnac, and Brulhois, a rich strip of the Garonne valley across the river from Agen.
They give Gaston VI a footing, and a homage, inside Eleanor's duchy.
Who he is
- Name
- Gaston VI, viscount of Bearn
- Title
- Viscount of Gabardan and of Brulhois
- Since
- 1173, with Bearn
- Born
- 1173
- Family
- See Béarn. The two viscounties came to Bearn with Peter of Gabarret, viscount of Bearn from 1134.
- Confidence
- medium
French Wikipedia (Gaston VI de Bearn): viscount of Bearn, Gabardan and Brulhois; in 1187 Alfonso II in effect recognised Gabardan and Brulhois as lands of the duchy of Aquitaine. FMG notes that the 13th-century heiress Mathe de Marsan held Gabardan, the Eauzan and part of Brulhois.
Overlord
The duke of Aquitaine (Eleanor). Brulhois lies in the diocese of Agen, and since Richard gave the Agenais to Raymond VI with his sister Joan in 1196, its overlordship may run through the count of Agen (not pinned).
What it holds
- Gabardan: the castle of Gabarret and the parishes round it
- Brulhois: the left bank of the Garonne opposite Agen, round Laplume and Layrac (the priory town of Layrac belongs to Moissac's Cluniacs)
How it was acquired
Inherited: Gabardan came to Bearn with Peter of Gabarret, viscount of Bearn from 1134; Brulhois was held with it by the late 12th century (how it was acquired is not pinned).
Allies and rivals
The count of Armagnac (east of Gabardan); the viscount of Marsan's lands (his own wife's) to the west; the Albret to the north; Raymond VI as count of Agen across the Garonne from Brulhois; the viscount of Lomagne next to Brulhois.
How things stand that morning
Held by Gaston VI, who is the duke's man for them while he is Aragon's man for Bearn.
Wealth
Brulhois: wheat, wine and the Garonne trade facing Agen. Gabardan: poor heath and pasture.
Military
Castle of Gabarret; small castles of Brulhois (not pinned).
Threats
- The count of Agen's claim to overlordship over Brulhois
- Armagnac pressure on Gabardan
Places of note
- Gabarret: Castle and seat of Gabardan.
- Layrac: Priory town of Brulhois on the Garonne.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: That Gaston VI held both viscounties is well attested; their limits in 1200 and the overlordship of Brulhois after 1196 are not.
On the map: Both drawn from the later pays; the Eauzan (Eauze), which went with Gabardan in the 13th century, is left to Armagnac.
Primary sources for Angevin lands
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.
- Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- Chronicles of Saint-Martial of Limoges, Bernard Itier and other monks of Saint-Martial; Geoffrey of Vigeois for the earlier chronicle (Geoffrey's chronicle to 1184; Bernard Itier's notes about 1195 to 1225). Bernard Itier, librarian of Saint-Martial, kept dated notes through 1200 of what reached Limoges: Richard's death at Chalus in 1199, the viscounts of Limoges and the lords of the Limousin, John's passage through Aquitaine in 1200 and the affairs of Angouleme and the Lusignans, and the abbey's own elections and prices. Read online
- Chronicles of the Churches of Anjou (Saint-Aubin, Saint-Serge, Saint-Florent and others), Various (monks of Angers and the Loire) (11th to 13th centuries; the Saint-Aubin annals run to the 1220s). The Angevin houses' own annals of the succession crisis in their city: Arthur received at Angers in 1199 with Constance and the Breton and Angevin barons, John's counter-moves, the defection of William des Roches and the Angevin lords to John, and the peace of 1200 that left Arthur John's vassal. Read online
- The Great Chronicle of Tours, Anonymous (a canon of Saint-Martin of Tours) (about 1227). The Loire valley's view of the Angevin succession. Read online
- Universal Chronicle of the Anonymous of Laon, Anonymous (an English-born canon of Laon) (about 1219). A Picard chronicle whose author had lived in England and keeps an eye on both kingdoms. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
- English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
14 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.