Soule is the easternmost Basque valley, the upper Saison round the castle of Mauleon, with the high pastures of Larrau and Sainte-Engrace below the passes.
Its viscount holds of the duke but looks to Navarre: in 1196 he took his quarrel with Gaston VI to Sancho VII at Olite. In 1234 his grandson will do homage to Theobald I of Navarre for Mauleon.
Who he is
- Name
- Raymond-William II (Raimond-Guillaume II)
- Title
- Viscount of Soule (Zuberoa)
- Since
- 1178
- Born
- Not pinned
- Family
- Succeeded his distant kinsman Bernard Sancho. His son Raymond-William III succeeds during 1200 (month not pinned) and holds until 1230.
- Confidence
- medium
Aunamendi encyclopedia, 'Zuberoa: history': Raymond-William II 1178-1200; in 1196 he took his dispute with Gaston VI of Bearn to Sancho VII of Navarre at Olite; his son witnessed the homage of Vivien II of Gramont to Sancho VII in 1203. French Wikipedia (Gaston VI) has a peace between Bearn and Soule in 1196.
Overlord
The duke of Aquitaine (Soule has been under the Angevin dukes since the mid-12th century), with growing ties to Navarre.
What it holds
- Castle of Mauleon
- The valleys of the Saison: Tardets, Barcus, Larrau, Sainte-Engrace
- Pasture rights and the paths over to Navarre (Roncal and Salazar)
How it was acquired
Inherited.
Allies and rivals
Sancho VII of Navarre, arbiter and patron; Gaston VI of Bearn, rival until the peace of 1196; the lords of Mixe (Tartas-Dax) to the west.
How things stand that morning
Held of the duke by Raymond-William II, who dies during 1200.
Wealth
Flocks and transhumance, cheese, wool; tolls on the passes into Navarre.
Military
Castle of Mauleon; valley levies.
Threats
- A succession during 1200
- Bearn to the east
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
In 1200
- 1200, month not pinnedRaymond-William II dies and his son Raymond-William III succeeds.Depends on: His health. Stopped by: Nothing known.
Later, on the likely course
- 1204 (after the year)An alliance of Sancho VII and John turns back Alfonso VIII's invasion of Soule and Labourd.Depends on: Castile pressing its Gascon claim after Eleanor's death. Stopped by: Castile staying out of Gascony.
Places of note
- Castle of Mauleon: Seat of the viscounts.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Viscounts and dates from the Aunamendi encyclopedia; the 1196 arbitration at Olite is dated.
On the map: Traced on the communes of historic Soule.
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.