Comminges in the Middle Ages

The County of Comminges

In the Middle Ages, Comminges was a powerful and relatively autonomous county centered around the town of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges.

Comminges is the territory of the Convènes (an Aquitanian people) who, in ancient times, were concentrated around Lugdunum Convenarum (Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges).

The county’s origin dates back to between the 9th and 10th centuries. After the fall of the Carolingian Empire, the region was structured around a feudal county: the County of Comminges.

In the Middle Ages, the territory’s capital was Muret. The Val d’Aran belonged to Comminges until^{the 13th} century.
Local noble families gradually took control of the territory.
The authority of the Frankish kings was distant: the counts governed almost independently.

Comminges held a strategic position, bordering the Pyrenees and Spain, and on trade routes between Toulouse and Aragon.

The dynasty of the Counts of Comminges ruled the region for several centuries.
Among the most important figures of the 12th century was Bernard III (son of Bernard I and Dias de Samatan, brother of Bernard II), who took the name Dodon de Samatan and gave the town of L’Isle-en-Dodon its name. Bernard VII consolidated the town of L’Isle-en-Dodon by building upon existing fortifications, the castle, and the church—which he expanded and which became the Church of Saint-Adrien after the collapse of the church that had stood there since the time of the “sauveté.”
Bernard IV of Comminges (son of Dodon and a daughter of Alphonse Jourdain, who was Count of Toulouse) took part in the feudal struggles in the Midi and strengthened the count’s authority; Bernard V of Comminges (son of Bernard IV and Comtors de la Berthe; he received the territory of Aurignac from his mother, on which he built his castle in 1240), he was involved in the rivalries among the great families of the south and fought alongside his father in the Albigensian Crusade.
The counts had to constantly negotiate with powerful neighbors, including the counts of Toulouse, the kings of Aragon, and the lords of Gascony.

The changes in Comminges followed the Albigensian Crusade in the 13th century.
The region was less affected than central Languedoc, but was still involved. The counts sought to maintain a balance in their relations between the crusaders from the north and the great Occitan families.

After the crusade, French royal power gradually expanded in the south, and the autonomy of the smaller counties diminished.

Medieval Comminges society was typically feudal, with the nobility, who owned castles in the Pyrenean valleys, remaining loyal to the count. The clergy, including the bishopric of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, played a central role. Religious influence grew, and pilgrimages multiplied. Peasants developed agriculture, particularly in the mountains, livestock farming, and forestry.
Villages were often organized around a church, a castle, or a feudal motte.

Several factors weakened the county:

• demographic crises (Black Death)
• economic difficulties
• gradual extinction of the dynasty.

In 1454, Comminges was attached to the French crown under the reign of Charles VII.
It then became a province integrated into the kingdom, while retaining a strong regional identity.

There are three former county towns in our destination: Saint-Marcet, Aurignac, and L’Isle-en-Dodon. Each of these towns had its own castle; ruins can still be seen in Aurignac and Saint-Marcet, while in L’Isle-en-Dodon, only one wall of the castle remains visible on Maubec Street.

The Great Medieval Castles of Comminges