List of the Counts of Barcelona
The county of Barcelona was the most important of a series of counties that the Frankish kings founded on the Iberian Peninsula and formed the Spanish mark .
The Spanish Mark was the politico-military border region of the Franconian Empire on the Iberian Peninsula. Emperor Charlemagne introduced this border mark around Barcelona in what is now Catalonia in 801 to defend the borders against the Arabs in the rest of Spain .
Counts appointed by the Frankish kings
The first counts of Barcelona were appointed as vassals by the Frankish kings ( Carolingians ).
- 801-820 Berà : After joint siege and conquest of Barcelona Affiliate William of Aquitaine , a confidant of Charlemagne , the area in the Frankish Empire and sat his son Berà one as counts. In 820 Berà was deposed and banished by Emperor Ludwig the Pious .
- 820–826 Rampó : After Berà was forcibly deposed , Emperor Ludwig the Pious thought it wiser to transfer the county to a Franconian. Rampó conquered areas occupied by the Moors up to the Segre River .
- 826–832 Bernhard von Septimanien , First Reign: Was appointed Count of Barcelona by Emperor Ludwig the Pious . He was the leader in the war against the Moors and friendly to the Franks. Therefore it was against the interests of the local (i.e. Visigothic ) nobility . Bernhard was accused of infidelity and lost all of his possessions.
- 832–835 Berengar of Toulouse : Received the possessions of the disgraced Bernard of Septimania .
- 835–844 Bernhard of Septimania , Second Reign: After the death of Berengar of Toulouse and after he had reconciled with the emperor, Bernhard got his title back. He ruled despotic and again disregarded the wishes of the Visigoth population. After a rebellion against Charles the Bald , he was captured and executed.
- 844–848 Sunifred I : Fought back the troops of Abd ar-Rahman II on the way to Septimania and forced a peace treaty.
- 848–850 William of Septimania , son of Bernard of Septimania, occupied the counties of Barcelona and Empúries . After an uprising against Charles the Bald, he was captured by noblemen loyal to the king and later executed in Barcelona.
- 850–852 Aleran and Isembart were used as "co-counts". Fought and defeated the rebellious William of Septimania supported by Abd ar-Rahman II .
- 852–858 Odalric did not succeed in preventing the resumed looting campaigns under the new Emir Muhammad I. Charles the Bald also doubted his abilities and his loyalty. He was deposed.
- 858-864 Humfried
- 865–878 Bernhard II.
- Note: Many counts carried the title of Margrave of Gothien (another common name for the Spanish mark ), as this territory was a politico-military border region of the Frankish Empire . When they ruled numerous counties in Gothia or Septimania , they carried the title of duke . The title was awarded by the emperor if enough merits had been accumulated. The Duke of Septimania often owned counties in Gothia. In these cases the count or margrave was also a duke. The title “Count” was tied to a territory, “Margrave” to some counties but not all of the Grenzmark , and the “Duke” was a personal title of nobility.
Hereditary Counts
From the end of the 9th century the kings lost the power to determine the new counts. As a result, the titles of counts were inherited, usually from father to son. Nevertheless, the Counts of Barcelona remained vassals of the King of the Franks or of France.
House Barcelona
| image | Name Catalan (life dates) |
Reign | relationship | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Wilfried I the Hairy Guifré el Pilós († August 11, 897) |
878-895 | Son of Sunifred | |
|
Wilfried II. / Borrell I. Guifré Borrell († April 26, 911) |
895-911 | Son of the predecessor | |
|
Sunyer I. († October 15, 950) |
911-947 | Brother of the predecessor | |
 
|
Borrell II. (* Around 920; † 992) |
947-992 | Son of the predecessor | Ruled first with his brother and after his death alone. In 988 he refused to renew the vassal oath of the new West Franconian king, Hugo Capet , thereby establishing the de facto independence of the county of Barcelona. |
|
Miró I. (* 926; † 966) |
947-966 | Brother of his co-regent | Ruled with his brother | |
|
Raimund Borrell (Borrell III.) Ramon Borrell (* 972; † 1017) |
992-1017 | Son of Borrell II. | |
|
Berengar Raimund I the hunchback Berenguer Ramon el Corbat (* 1005 - † May 26, 1035) |
1017-1035 | Son of the predecessor | |
|
Raimund Berengar I the old Ramon Berenguer el Vell (* around 1023; † 1076) |
1035-1076 | Son of the predecessor | |
|
Raimund Berengar II. The flax head Ramon Berenguer al Cap d'Estopes (* 1043/54; † December 5, 1082) |
1076-1082 | Son of the predecessor | |
|
Berengar Raimund II the fratricide Berenguer Ramon el Fratricida (* 1053/54; † 1097) |
1076-1096 | Twin brother of his co-regent | First ruled with his brother until he murdered him. Lost Carcassonne to the Trencavel . | |
|
Raimund Berengar III. the great Ramon Berenguer el Gran (* 1082; † 1131) |
1096-1131 | Son of Raimund Berengar II. | |
|
Raimund Berengar IV. Saint Ramon Berenguer el San (* around 1113 - † August 6, 1162) |
1131-1162 | Son of the predecessor | As the husband of Queen Petronella of Aragón , he was "Prince of Aragón" ( Príncípe de Aragón ). Through their marriage, the Catalan county of Barcelona was united with Aragón. |
|
Alfonso I the Chaste Alfons el Cast (25 March 1157 - 25 April 1196) |
1163-1196 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Alfonso II) |
|
Peter I the Catholic Pere el Catòlic (* 1174; † September 13, 1213) |
1196-1213 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Peter II). Victory in conjunction with the other Christian kings of Spain in 1212 in the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa over the Almohads. Fell in 1213 in the battle of Muret against the crusaders of the Albigensian crusade . |
|
James I the Conqueror Jaume el Conqueridor (February 2, 1208 - July 27, 1276) |
1213-1276 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon. Conquered the Balearic Islands from the Muslims until 1235 and was crowned King of Mallorca . In 1238 the conquest of Valencia followed , with which the Aragonese Reconquista was concluded. Established with Ludwig IX. (Saint Louis) established the border between Aragón and France in the Treaty of Corbeil (1258) and also gained de jure full sovereignty of Catalonia (county of Barcelona) from France. Established the supremacy of Aragon in the western Mediterranean. |
|
Peter II the Great Pere el Gran (* 1240 - 11 November 1285) |
1276-1285 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Peter III). Conquered Sicily in 1282 and was crowned its king ( Sicilian Vespers ). Defended his kingdom against the Aragonese crusade directed against him . |
|
Alfons II the Magnificent Alfons el Franc (* 1265 - † June 18, 1291) |
1285-1291 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Alfons III) |
|
James II the Just Jaume el Just (* August 10, 1267 - † November 2, 1327) |
1291-1327 | Brother of the predecessor | King of Sicily (James I) since 1285. Conquered Sardinia in 1323 for the Crown of Aragón. |
|
Alfons III the benevolent Alfons el Benigne (* 1299 - 24 January 1336) |
1327-1336 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Alfonso IV) |
|
Peter III the ceremonial Pere el Ceremoniós (born September 5, 1319 - † January 6, 1387) |
1336-1387 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Peter IV). 1343 ousted his cousin, King James III. from Mallorca , and thus permanently united the Balearic Islands with Aragón. |
|
Johann I the hunter Joan el Caçador (* December 27, 1350 - † May 19, 1396) |
1387-1396 | Son of the predecessor | |
|
Martin I the Humane Martí l'Humà (born July 29, 1356 - † May 31, 1410) |
1396-1410 | Brother of the predecessor | In 1409 he succeeded his son as King of Sicily (Martin II) and thus permanently united this crown with Aragón. With him the house of Barcelona died out in the male line, which resulted in a two-year vacancy of the throne. |
House Trastámara
| image | Name Catalan (life dates) |
Reign | relationship | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg)
|
Ferdinand I the Righteous Ferran el Just (* November 27, 1380 - † April 2, 1416) |
1412-1416 | Maternal grandchildren of Peter IV. | Second son of King John I of Castile . Was recognized as King of Aragon in the compromise of Caspe (1412). |
|
Alfonso IV the Magnanimous Alfons el Magnànim (* 1396 - † June 27, 1458) |
1416-1458 | Son of the predecessor | King of Aragon (Alfonso V) |
|
John II the Faithless Joan el Sense Fe (born June 29, 1397/98; † January 19, 1479) |
1458-1479 | Brother of the predecessor | During the Catalan Civil War (1462-1472) the rebellious Catalans were successively named King Henry IV of Castile (1462-1463), Peter of Aragón (1463-1466) and René of Anjou (1466-1472), the county of Barcelona as well offered the Crown of Aragon. Ultimately, the rebellion of King John II was suppressed. |
|
Ferdinand II the Catholic Ferran el Catòlic (10 March 1452 - 23 January 1516) |
1479-1516 | Son of the predecessor | As the husband of Queen Isabella I , he was her co-king (Ferdinand V) in Castile. This marriage initiated the unification of Castile and Aragon to form the Kingdom of Spain, to which he continued to supply the crowns of Sardinia, Sicily and, from 1504, Naples. Also annexed most of the Kingdom of Navarre in 1512 . From 1506 until his death he was the guardian of Castile for his daughter. |
|
Joana I the Mad Joana la Boja (* November 6, 1479; † April 12, 1555) |
1516-1555 | Daughter of the predecessor | As the daughter of Isabella I, Queen of Castile since 1504 and, as the daughter of Ferdinand II, Queen of Aragón from 1516. Never ruled, but was under his father's guardianship until the death of her father. Upon his death, their son Karl was immediately crowned King of Castile and Aragon, who took over the government. |
| Joan's son, Karl , was crowned King of Castile, León, Galicia, Granada, Aragón, Valencia, Mallorca, Navarra, Sardinia, Sicily and Naples in 1516. For the kings of the so founded Kingdom of Spain |
Further development
The institutions of the countries associated with the Crown of Aragón continued to exist in united Spain and were only dissolved after the end of the War of the Spanish Succession by the Decretos de Nueva Planta issued by King Philip V and united with the Castilian institutions to form a centralized Spanish state. Accordingly, the autonomy of the County of Barcelona (Catalonia) was ended in 1716.
Further use of the title
During the dictatorship of Francisco Franco (1939-1975), the Spanish infant Juan de Borbón y Battenberg raised as the son of King Alfonso XIII. a claim to the Spanish throne. This was rebuilt in 1947, but was not occupied by the dictator. To underline his claim, Juan de Borbón held the title of Conde de Barcelona , which has traditionally been associated with the Spanish crown since the 16th century.
Although Franco officially named his son Juan Carlos I as his political heir in 1969 and he was also installed as king after Franco's death in 1975, Juan de Borbón did not formally renounce his claim to the dynastic throne until 1977. However, the king left him the title of Count of Barcelona, as he wished .
After the death of Juan de Borbón, the title went back to the King of Spain in 1993.