Sunyer I. (Barcelona)

Suniario I. ( Spanish Suñer I , Catalan Sunyer I. ) († October 15, 950 ) was Count of Barcelona , Girona , Urgell and Osona from 911 to 947.

He was the son of Wilfried the Hairy and Guinidilda, and the younger brother of his predecessor as Count of Barcelona, Wilfried II Borrell . He worked with his brothers in the administration of the property left by his father in 897, but did not rule independently until his brother Wilfried II died in 911.

Family conflict

With the death of his uncle Radulf I, Count of Besalú, probably in 920, he came into conflict with his brother Miró II , Count of Cerdanya , about the succession in this county. The dispute was resolved by the fact that Miró waived all claims on Barcelona, Sunyer on Besalú.

politics

Sunyer made great efforts in his counties, especially settlement policy in Ausona. He strengthened the position of the church, gave her land and thus income.

Outwardly, he gave up the defensive stance of his predecessors and attacked the Moors in the south, fought battles at Lleida and Tarragona . At the same time he took up diplomatic relations with the Emir of Cordoba , who had largely lost control of his northern provinces. In 912 his army was attacked and destroyed by the Moorish Wali of Lleida in the Tàrrega valley. Sunyer's counterattack in 914 threw them back. He then settled the area of Penedès , which had previously often been the scene of clashes between the Franks and the Muslims, all the way down to Olèrdola (929).

In 936/937 he led another campaign against the Muslims. He defeated the Kingdom of Valencia including the Germanic tribe of the Quadi . The Moors then gave up Tarragona, which was now no man's land, while Tortosa was forced to pay tribute to the Count of Barcelona.

progeny

In his first marriage he married Aimilda, who probably died in 920, and who presumably had a daughter, Guinidilda, who became the wife of Hugo von Rouergue , Lord von Quercy .

In 920/925 Sunyer married Richilda von Toulouse , † after 954, daughter of Count Armengol von Rouergue , with whom they had four sons and one daughter:

Ermengol , † 940/943, Count of Osona ,
Borrell II. , † 992, Count of Barcelona etc.
Miró , Count of Barcelona and Osona
Adelaida (Bonafilla), † before 955, abbess of San Juan de Ripoll
Wilfried, † after 986

In 947 he handed the government over to his sons Borrell and Miró, and retired to a monastery. He died in 950 in La Grasa monastery in Conflent

literature

Sunyer I de Barcelona. In: Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana. Volume 14, 1st edition. Barcelona 1980, ISBN 84-85194-10-1 , p. 26.
Sunyer I de Barcelona. In: Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana. Volume 22, 2nd edition, Barcelona 1989, 3rd reprint November 1992, ISBN 84-7739-064-9 , page 27
Sunyer I from Barcelona in: Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana. (Catalan)

predecessor	Office	successor
Wilfried II.	Count of Barcelona 911-947	Borrell II.

personal data
SURNAME	Sunyer I.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Suniario I .; Suñer I (Spanish)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Count of Barcelona, Girona, Urgell and Osona
DATE OF BIRTH	9th century
DATE OF DEATH	October 15, 950