Gaston III, Count of Foix

Childhood and youth

Gaston III (pronounced [gastu] in Occitan) was born on 30 April 1331,^[c] most likely at Orthez in the Château Moncade.^[d] Gaston's childhood was not well documented, although he did describe himself as an "ungrateful child, an adolescent tormented by the desire for the flesh, and not very good at weapons", in his Livre des oraisons.^[9] Gaston III was the sole legitimate heir of Gaston II, though he had several illegitimate half-siblings. He had two half-sisters, Béarnèse (who married Raymond Bernard II of Castelnau-Tursan) and Marguerite (who married John of Châteauverdun, Lord of Caumont), and two half-brothers, Arnaud-Guilhem (who married Jeanne, heiress of the Lordship of Morlanne) and Pierre (who married Florencia of Aragon).^[6] The children grew up together, and Gaston III's brothers would remain faithful companions throughout his life.^[6] The two illegitimate sons benefited from the same physical and military education as Gaston III, the intellectual and artistic education being reserved solely for Gaston.^[6] During her husband's many absences, Aliénor educated Gaston III.^[10]

At 9 years old, Gaston III was the subject of an arranged marriage to King James III of Majorca's daughter, Infanta Isabella of Majorca.^[11] The death of Gaston II in 1343, as well as the capture of Perpignan by King Peter IV of Aragon, caused the marriage agreement to be abandoned.^[12] Gaston II died on 26 September 1343 while fighting in Andalusia for King Alfonso XI of Castile during the Siege of Algeciras.^[6] Gaston III was twelve years old when his father died, and due to Gaston II's will, Aliénor served as his tutor and regent until his legal majority at 14 years old. Aliénor continued to manage his property as curator until he was 21 years old.^[13] Little is known of Aliénor's death which occurred around 1369, near Le Mas-d'Azil in the County of Foix.^[5]

The homage tour that Aliénor organized for Gaston III aimed to introduce the new prince to the various territories belonging to the House of Foix-Béarn, allowing him to familiarize himself with the land and people he would rule.^[5] In December 1343, the tour began in Béarn, where Gaston remained until April 1344;^[14] in total, Gaston visited 126 places within his domain.^[15] The tour lasted more than a year, until January 1345.^[14] While serving as regent, Aliénor and Queen Joan II of Navarre negotiated an arranged marriage with one of the queen's daughters, Infanta Agnes of Navarre. Joan II was the only legitimate child of King Louis X of France to survive infancy but was excluded from the French throne in favor of her uncle, Philip V of France. The marriage was postponed until 1349 due to Agnes' age.^[16]

Legal majority

After reaching his legal majority on 30 April 1345, Gaston assumed complete control of the domain. The beginning of his reign is marked, from June 1345,^[17] by the resumption of the Hundred Years' War after the five-year-long truce ended.^[18] The House of Foix-Béarn's was jointly dependent on both France and England, Gaston III initially sought to continue his father's pro-French policy, although in practice he was restrained in his support of either side.^[18] After the Battle of Crécy – which was a crushing defeat for the French – Gaston began to reevaluate his support for Philip VI. When Gaston failed to respond to Philip's summons on 3 June 1347,^[19] a representative of Philip VI met with Gaston III at Orthez on 25 September 1347.^[20] During this meeting, Gaston confirmed his allegiance to the king for his territories in Foix, he asserted the neutrality of Béarn, a land he held "from God and from no man in the world".^[21][e]

Philip VI did not take offense at the declaration of independence of Béarn and continued his rapprochement with Gaston III, for fear of seeing him switch definitively to supporting the English.^[23] On 26 December 1348 at Pamiers, Gaston III paid homage to the king of France for his lands in the seneschalsies of Agen, Toulouse, and Carcassonne, but not Béarn.^[24] The Black Death led to repeated renewals of the 1347 to 1355 Truce of Calais, giving Gaston III, age 18, the opportunity to arrange his marriage.^[24] During a stay in Île-de-France, Aliénor and Fébus were invited by Joan II to celebrate the wedding.^[16] The marriage contract was signed on 5 May 1349, with a promised dowry of 20,000 livres from the Queen of Navarre, with an initial payment of 1,000 livres. The wedding was celebrated^[16] on 4 August 1349 in the Temple Church in Paris with the acquiescence of the French king.^[25][26] Through his marriage, Gaston became brother-in-law to both the King of Navarre and the King of France.^[f]

Conflicts with John II

Philip VI of France died on 22 August 1350^[27] and was succeeded by his son John II.^[28] Anglo-French hostilities resumed in April 1351,^[29] once again destabilizing the region north of the Pyrenees. In October 1352, the capitouls asked Gaston III to protect Toulouse against the English troops posted at the gates of Lafrançaise.^[30] Gaston, recognizing that it would allow him to maintain his neutrality, demonstrate his power, and fill his coffers with the profits of war, accepted.^[31] During Gaston's absence, Béarn was governed by his half-brother, Arnaud-Guilhem, who he had appointed as lieutenant general.

Following the orders of his father, King Edward III of England,^[g][28] Edward the Black Prince landed in Bordeaux in 1355.^[32] Upon arrival, the Black Prince led a grande chevauchée through Armagnac and Toulouse.^[33] Gaston did not oppose the Black Prince's army, buying him off with food and supplies.^[34] These actions, along with Gaston's refusal to pay homage for Béarn and his involvement in the intrigues of Charles II of Navarre against the throne, led John II to imprison the count^[h] for several months at Petit Châtelet [fr].^[35] Faced with the imminent threat of a new chevauchée by the Black Prince from Bordeaux to Calais, and unwilling to see him defect, John released Gaston without exacting an oath of homage for Béarn.^[35]

On Crusade

On 19 September 1356, the French were defeated at the Battle of Poitiers,^[34] which resulted in the imprisonment of John II and another truce between the French and the English. This more stable period allowed Gaston to engage in a crusade in Prussia. Alongside the State of the Teutonic Order, he embarked in Bruges, made stops in Norway and Sweden,^[36] and arrived in Königsberg on 9 February 1358.^[37] The crusaders carried out several assaults before being knighted at Malbork Castle.^[37] It was during this crusade^[38] that Gaston began using the name Fébus, his battle cry Fébus aban,^[i] and his motto Toquey si gauses.^[j] When the Crusaders returned on horseback in the spring of 1358, France was embroiled in the peasant revolt known as the Jacquerie. Gaston and his companions made use of their martial experience and aided the Dauphine of France, Joanna of Bourbon, and her infant daughter during the siege of Meaux.^[39]

From this point on, Gaston III would refer to himself as Fébus while only using Gaston in official capacities before phasing it out completely later in life.^[38] He adopted the name Fébus, using the traditional Occitan spelling, in reference to the sun-god Phoebus. The name "Gaston Phoebus" is a posthumous creation by historians of Fébus and would not have been a name that he would have used during his life.^[40] Fébus, Gaston, and Gaston III can be used interchangeably.^[k] Shortly after Fébus returned in 1359, and after 10 years of marriage, Agnes gave birth to Fébus' first legitimate son.^[l] The child died almost immediately.^[41]

Rivalry and the birth of an heir

After returning home, Fébus was informed of the negotiations between the French and English kings, who aimed to sign a peace treaty. Holding John II in captivity, the English were in a position of strength and demanded a ransom and territorial concessions from the French.^[42] The Dauphin, the future Charles V of France, opposed such unequal terms and sought to expand his influence in the South by marrying his brother, John, Duke of Berry, to a daughter of John I, Count of Armagnac.^[42] However, by allying himself with the House of Armagnac, the rivalry between the Houses of Foix-Béarn and Armagnac was rekindled.^[43] Fébus immediately launched a series of attacks in March 1359,^[43] all while offering assurances to the Dauphin of his loyalty.^[42] Ultimately, the signing of the Treaty of Brétigny on 8 May 1360 caused John of Berry to be sent to London as insurance against John II's ransom^[44] and compensated Fébus for the loss of Bigorre with a cash payout of 200,000 guilders.

However, the Treaty of Brétigny failed to resolve the rivalry between the two families.^[45] The two families brought together their allies: the House of Albret allied with the Armagnac, while the Viscount of Couserans [fr] and the Count of Astarac sided with Fébus.^[46] On 5 December 1362,^[47] the Battle of Launac took place.^[48] Although outnumbered, Fébus emerged victorious and captured much of the southern nobility, including Armagnac. The ransom of 500,000 florins that Fébus extracted from his captives laid the foundations of his financial hegemony over the whole of Southern France.^[49] In September 1362, Agnes gave birth to a male heir, Gaston.^[41] Despite this, Fébus repudiated Agnes because her brother Charles II of Navarre had failed to pay her remaining dowry. Fébus sent her to Pamplona without her belongings, and the two never met again.^[50] The life of Agnes is poorly documented,^[m] but her marriage to Fébus was likely an unhappy one.^[50] Fébus' repudiation of Agnes created an enemy out of the King of Navarre.^[n]

The sovereignty of Béarn

The Black Prince arrived in Bordeaux on 29 June 1363 to administer the new Principality of Aquitaine and take possession of the territories ceded to the English by the Treaty of Brétigny.^[52] Béarn sovereignty was quickly brought to the fore for Fébus, who remained firm in his stance, while delaying the Black Prince.^[53] Fébus formally used this tactic for the first time in March 1363^[54] against an English emissary;^[o] he avoided the Black Prince's tribute tour throughout 1363 but finally went to Agen on 14 January 1364 to meet the prince.

Fébus paid homage for all of his lands "inside the Principality of Aquitaine" in front of the Black Prince.^[55] Chandos Herald, a servant of King Edward III, then asked Fébus if he had just paid homage for the land of Béarn, to which Fébus replied that his homage only concerned Marsan and Gabardan.^[56] Fébus specified that he would pay homage for Béarn if proof of past homage was provided by a study of the archives.^[57] Although initially inclined to have him arrested, the Black Prince allowed Fébus to leave while his archivists searched for evidence of past homage.^[58] The English archivists subsequently found traces of a homage made by Margaret of Béarn in 1290 for Béarn, which was enough to convince the Black Prince of his right to claim tribute from Fébus.^[59] Fébus continued his evasive tactics throughout 1364 and 1365, seeking to wear down the Black Prince.^[56] Eventually, the Black Prince was forced to request the intervention of the new King Charles V of France^[p] by letter on 6 December 1365, informing the king that he would use force if necessary.^[60] The letter sparked a resumption of French-English hostilities, this time in Castile.

Fébus once again took advantage of the hostilities. Charles V wished to replace the English-backed King Peter with his own candidate, Henry of Trastámara, Peter's illegitimate half-brother. Fébus, like Charles, supported Henry of Trastámara, to whom he entrusted his illegitimate son, Bernard of Béarn.^[59] Henry of Trastámara seized the throne in 1366. The partisans of King Peter mounted a counteroffensive in the winter of 1366, with the Black Prince, the Albrets, the Armagnacs, and Peter himself all taking part.^[61] The expedition of the Black Prince began with success on 3 April 1367 at the Battle of Nájera, but Peter of Castile's conduct caused infighting among his supporters^[q] while disease would decimate the remaining army.^[r] The Black Prince became infected by the disease and returned from the ruined expedition "all broken".^[62] Since 8 May 1366, Fébus had been preparing Béarn for a general mobilization pending the return of the expedition; he published an ordinance to the same effect on 27 July 1367. The routed army finally crossed Béarn in the summer of 1367, with the Black Prince seeking prior authorization from Fébus and agreeing to pay for his supplies up to "the least hen".^[63] This episode amounted, for the Black Prince, to a de facto recognition of Béarn's full sovereignty.^[64]

Union of Béarn and Foix

Freed from the threat of the Black Prince, Fébus turned to face a resurgent France under the leadership of Charles V. Louis I of Anjou, Charles V's brother and lieutenant-general of Toulouse,^[65] maneuvered with the House of Armagnac to revive hostilities against the English. Charles V eventually annulled the Treaty of Brétigny, arguing that a (largely perfunctory) clause had not been respected.^[s] In January 1369, the Armagnacs and the Albrets lodged a formal complaint against the Black Prince in the Parlement of Paris, allowing Charles V to resume military operations in the South.^[66]

Fébus, when faced with the intransigence of the French in favoring the Armagnacs, took advantage of his neutrality to provoke an upheaval of the alliance in favor of the English.^[67] He met John of Gaunt, brother of the Black Prince, on 19 and 20 March 1374 in Dax to form an alliance.^[68] The agreement first related to the loan of 12,000 florins from Fébus to John of Gaunt in exchange for the Château de Lourdes as a mortgage pledge.^[68] Fébus also proposed a marriage between his son Gaston and Philippa, daughter of John of Gaunt.^[69] John of Gaunt's actions brought about numerous military operations in the Adour region, leading the Soule citizens to request protection from Fébus,^[t] a pact that concluded on 4 September 1375.^[70] The alliance between Fébus and John of Gaunt was, above all, a political maneuver; the Béarnaise lords never sought to help the English war effort.^[70] Faced with John of Gaunt's military actions, Charles V withdrew the lieutenancy-general of Languedoc from John II of Armagnac to once again promote Louis of Anjou,^[71] allowing Fébus, again, to go to battle with the Armagnacs. The death of Pierre-Raymond II, Count of Comminges, on 15 October 1375, presented Fébus with the opportunity to claim the inheritance for himself, through his mother Aliénor of Comminges, while the Armagnacs and Albrets backed Pierre-Raymond's infant daughter.^[72] This opposition provoked the War of Comminges [fr], with the decisive confrontation at Cazères-sur-l'Adour in November 1376.^[73] Fébus carried out a victorious counteroffensive there, once again capturing John II of Armagnac.^[74] It was at this battle that Fébus' sons were present; Gaston was provided with two horses, Bernard was granted fourteen, and Yvain was a personal guard for Fébus.^[69] This validated that Fébus did not like Gaston, preferring his bastard sons.^[51]

Louis of Anjou remained neutral during the conflict and organized the mediation between the two houses after the final battle. He chose Tarbes for the negotiation, with the signing of three documents between 1376 and 1377.^[75] Louis of Anjou first recognized Fébus as "Count of Foix and Lord of Béarn" in the name of Charles V. The text also gave the title of dominus Bearni for Fébus, and not vicecomes Bearni, a way of implicitly recognizing the full sovereignty of Béarn.^[76] Fébus also received an indemnity of 100,000 francs. On 3 February 1377, a peace treaty was signed, in which it was agreed that Gaston, son and heir to Fébus, and Beatrice, daughter of the Count of Armagnac, would marry.^[75] After numerous negotiations, a final agreement was signed on 3 April 1379 in Barcelonne-du-Gers, on the border between Marsan and Armagnac.^[77] The marriage between Gaston and Beatrice was celebrated on 19 April 1379 at Manciet,^[78] and in the absence of Fébus, under particularly modest conditions for a prince of his rank.^[79] The agreement signed with Louis of Anjou and the Armagnacs allowed Fébus to achieve the unification of Béarn and Foix. The hereditary acquisition of the castellanies of Mauvezin and Goudon made it possible to expand Nébouzan to the west, joining this territory to Bigorre.^[80] To the east of Nébouzan, Fébus could now rely on a dozen lords dependent on Comminges^[u] and allowed continuity with the county of Foix. With the complicity of the Compagnons de Lourdes,^[v] Fébus urged Bigorrian municipalities to seek his protection.^[81] During the summer of 1379, 26 conventions were signed between Fébus and Bigorrian communities, and Tarbes was the last to cede on 27 November 1379.^[82]

Plot and the Drama of Orthez

Fébus became more imperious as he grew older.^[84] The clergy did not appreciate the paucity of religious foundations during Fébus' reign and resented his position vis-à-vis the papacy during the Western Schism. Part of the Béarnaise nobility, notably the Baron d'Andoins, also turned away from Fébus, feeling that they were being pushed aside from power in favor of "technocrats" of humble origins.^[84] Additionally, Fébus' repudiation of Agnes in 1362 created an enemy out of Charles II of Navarre, her brother. The alliance of these discontents led to the formation of a plot against Fébus, first dating to the summer of 1378.^[85]

Gaston, Fébus' only legitimate son and heir, also took part in the plot.^[86] Gaston grew up without knowing his mother, though he maintained links to her family by visiting the court of Navarre several times on his father's authorization.^[w] During one of these trips to the Court of Navarre while in the company of Charles II of Navarre, Gaston would scheme against Fébus.^[84] He was greatly dissatisfied with his condition: playing no role in politics, serving only as a pawn for his father, and having a lifestyle deemed too modest for his rank.^[86] Aged 18, he was tasked by his uncle, the King of Navarre, with administering a poison to his father. Between late July and early August 1380, the plot was discovered before coming to fruition,^[85] and Gaston was imprisoned in the Château Moncade in Orthez. Meanwhile, Odon de Mendousse and the Baron d'Andoins were exiled to the court of Charles II. The sequence of events is uncertain; Fébus destroyed all the documents relating to the Drama of Orthez.^[40] Only the testimonies of Froissart and Juvénal des Ursins remain, both of which contain improbabilities.

Froissart's account exonerates the young Gaston by placing the burden on Charles II of Navarre. Gaston is supposed to want to give his father a love potion (actually poison) so that Fébus can reconcile with Agnes. According to Froissart, who related the words of an old squire, when Gaston and his half-brother, Yvain de Béarn, were "playing and frolicking in their beds" and

"while Gaston's cotte, containing the powder and purse, was lying on the bed, Ieuwain,^[x] Gaston's brother, Ieuwain, who was quite mischievous, smelled the powder in the purse and asked Gaston, his brother: 'What is this thing that you carry on your chest every day?'"^[88]

When the powder was given to a greyhound, it turned out to be poison.^[y] According to Froissart, Fébus went on to unintentionally kill Gaston by starvation following an argument in the prison in mid-August 1380.^[90][91]

In comparison, Juvénal des Ursins describes a different scene, with Fébus having had his son sentenced to death. However, if the prince had been condemned to death and then executed, the trace of such a case would have been much more important, with documentation of the event surviving.^[92] Both versions agree that, following a failed poisoning attempt against his father, Gaston died, probably by the hand of Fébus,^[93] in August 1380. Gaston's participation in the plot was likely the result of resentment towards his father over the favoritism of his half-brothers.^[94] The tragedy overwhelmed Fébus, who said, "Never will I have joy as perfect as before".^[89] He writes his Livre des oraisons, accrediting the thesis of the involuntary crime, and leaves Orthez for Pau, not returning to the Château Moncade until four years later.^[95] The death of Gaston deprived Fébus of a legitimate heir.

Alliance with Charles VI

Fébus began his longest stay in the Pays de Foix on 18 January 1381.^[96] At the Château de Mazères, he ruled Foix-Béarn until the middle of August 1382.^[97] On 18 September 1380, Charles V died and was succeeded by his son Charles VI. A regency composed of the young king's four uncles^[z] was formed, with the Duke of Berry serving as lieutenant-general of Languedoc. Fébus' peace agreement with the House of Armagnac had broken down following the Drama of Orthez.^[98] Wishing to mark his territory in the event of a possible rapprochement with the Armagnacs, Fébus launched an attack on 21 July 1381 against a company of about 2,500 mercenaries brandishing the standard of the Duke of Berry, successfully routing the company.^[99] This success allowed Fébus to open negotiations from a position of strength with the French dukes. The Duke of Berry came to Mazères on 9 September 1381, and negotiations opened on 28 December 1381 at Capestang.^[100] In this agreement, Fébus recognized the Duke of Berry's authority in Languedoc in exchange for the Duke's commitment not to support the Armagnacs along with an annual annuity. The agreement freed the Duke of Berry to quash the Tuchin revolt and allowed Fébus to attack the Armagnacs with total impunity.^[aa] He left the County of Foix on 4 August 1382 to return to Béarn. Fébus returned to Orthez on 5 April 1383, the first time since the Drama of Orthez in 1380, to organize the passage of Louis II, Duke of Bourbon's army in 1385 to take part in the conflict for the throne of Portugal.^[102]

In 1388, Charles VI chose to tour the southern territories^[103] and sent Louis de Sancerre to discuss topics related Fébus' administration: the succession of Foix-Béarn,^[ab] relations with the House of Armagnac,^[ac] and the status of Bigorre.^[ad] Following these discussions, a meeting between the Béarnaises and Armagnacs on 26 July 1389 laid the foundations for a peace agreement.^[104] A meeting between the king and Fébus was set to take place in Toulouse, though the Count of Foix demanded that this meeting not call into question the sovereign status of Béarn. Louis de Sancerre asked Fébus to clearly choose between the French and English in case hostilities resumed; Fébus then replied, "I hold my country of Béarn from God, from my sword, from my lineage and I have no need to put myself in bondage."^[105]

Fébus' arrival into Toulouse was noted as a spectacle,^[105] his retinue being composed of 200 knights and 200 men-at-arms. He stayed there for two days beginning 4 January 1390.^[105] The first meeting between Charles VI and Fébus took place on 5 January 1390 at Château Narbonnais;^[107] the Béarnaise lord was treated like a prince.^[ae] Afterwards, Fébus organized a sumptuous meal for 200 people to which he invited the Dukes of Touraine and Bourbon.^[109] On 5 January 1390, Fébus made Charles VI his universal legatee and received a life annuity for Bigorre along with 100,000 francs,^[110] Fébus gave his seal to the treaty, but did not sign it.^[110] The treaty was particularly favorable to the French because it incorporated the feudal inheritance of the South into France in exchange for gold payment and the temporary cession of Bigorre.^[111] Subsequent commitments he made would contradict those that he agreed to at Toulouse.^[112] In two agreements signed on 15 May and 10 June 1390 in Pamiers and Girona, Fébus joined a league against the House of Armagnac^[af] with King John I of Aragon. The agreements specified that this alliance would also be valid for their heirs.^[113]

Death and succession

Febus died on 1 August 1391^[110] at L'Hôpital-d'Orion, on the road between Sauveterre-de-Béarn and Orthez.^[114] After a hunt in the Sauveterre region, Fébus and his retinue dined at L'Hôpital-d'Orion, where he fell victim to a fatal stroke.^[115] The story of his death comes from Jean Froissart, who collected the testimony of Espan du Lion,^[ag] who was present that day.^[116] Froissart writes,

«[Fébus] got up from the seat and stretched out his hands to wash them. As soon as the cold water ran down his fingers [...], his face turned pale, his heart quivered, his feet gave way under him, he fell on the seat, which upended, saying, "I am dead. Lord, true God, forgive me". He never spoke again.»^[114]

Jean Froissart's account specified that Fébus went bear hunting that day, which was improbable for the Sauveterre region in August, deer hunting being more likely.^[ah] Fébus' illegitimate son, Yvain [fr], was present when his father died and made a brief attempt to succeed him. Yvain and his conspirators at L'Hôpital-d'Orion attempted to seize the treasury of Orthez before the news of Fébus' death spread. The attempt failed,^[ai] and he was forced to let the jurats of Orthez take control.^[118] Once Fébus' death became common knowledge, his remains were first transported to the Château de Sauveterre^[117] and then to Orthez at the end of the morning of 2 August 1391.^[119] Fébus' funeral took place on 2 October 1391, probably in the convent of the Order of Preachers^[120] (also called the Jacobins convent). The coffin was buried in the church, without any recumbent statue, mausoleum, or tombstone.^[120]

Without a legitimate heir and after Yvain's attempt to seize power, succession became an urgent issue in the Foix-Béarn territory. The succession was of particular import in Béarn, which was anxious to defend its independence. On 8 August 1391, the Estates of Béarn met for the first time in Orthez;^[121] this assembly brought together the Cour majour [fr]^[aj] and the Cour des Communautés.^[ak] The treasure of Orthez was inventoried^[al] and its contents distributed, with a portion going to the illegitimate sons of Fébus. In the absence of a will, the Estates used the will of Gaston II as a precedent and designated Matthew of Foix-Castelbon as the legitimate heir,^[am] provided that several prerequisites are met, including the maintenance of Béarn's sovereignty.^[122] The Estates also demanded a greater role in government, putting an end to Fébus' practice of enlightened despotism.^[122] However, the continued sovereignty and neutrality of Béarn was the main priority of the Estates, as they "had nothing to do with the King of France", unlike the County of Foix.^[123] The annulment of the Treaty of Toulouse, concluded in 1390, was therefore of primary concern for the Foix-Bearn region. If the treaty remained in place, a legitimate heir would be deprived of succession, while if it was annulled, Béarn would regain its autonomy from Foix.^[25] In exchange for 250,000 francs, Charles VI annulled the Treaty of Toulouse and recognized Matthew as Fébus' sole heir by letters patent dated 20 December 1391.^[124] The Foix-Béarn lands were preserved, as was the sovereignty of Béarn, though the consolidated authority of Fébus gave way to co-governance between the lord and assemblies of representatives.^[125]

Military strategies

Fébus reigned during an era marked by constant conflicts,^[143] so it was important for him to have an army that could be quickly mobilized and in numbers. Fébus could muster a force of around 4,000 men^[144] and more than 1,000 horses,^[145] divided equally between Béarn and Foix. He could also raise a massive levy to defend the interior if required, transforming each able-bodied inhabitant into a soldier.^[146] Fébus' army of 4,000 men exceeded what the other princes of the South could raise but did not reach the 7,000 to 10,000 men mobilized by the kings of France and England during the battles of Poitiers or Crécy.^[147]

Military constructions

Fébus built a vast network of fortifications during his reign.^[148][143] At the end of his life, the prince controlled approximately forty fortresses along the Pyrénées, from Soule to Foix.^[149] This network was heterogeneous since Fébus had inherited a majority of the constructions.^[150] Between 1372 and 1378, his endowment was reorganized and consolidated with the Château de Pau as the center of his defensive system to the east of Béarn.^[151] Among the constructions carried out under his supervision, Morlanne^[152] and Montaner^[153] are the two most complete surviving examples.^[154] The use of brick instead of the traditional cut stone is the most characteristic element of Febusian constructions. It was inspired by the Palace of the Kings of Majorca in Perpignan and the Bellver Castle in the Balearic Islands, where its architect, Sicard de Lordat, was trained.^[154]

Fébusian constructions. Clockwise from upper left: Château de Montaner, Château Moncade, Château du Pau, Château de Mauvezin, and Château de Morlanne.

Hunting

Fébus was considered one of the greatest hunters of his time.^[194] Hunting was omnipresent in Fébus' daily life; the Château Moncade is surrounded by hunting grounds with stag and fallow deer, while the great hall was decorated with animal paintings and hunting trophies.^[195] As early as 1344, when he was 13 years old, the archives indicate that Aliénor alone received the homage of the delegates of Josbaig [fr] because Gaston III was hunting at the time. King John I of Aragon and the Black Prince sought Fébus' advice on hunting.^[195] From 1387, Fébus devoted all his free time to hunting.^[196] At the same time, he dictated his Livre de chasse to his secretaries, devoting a good part of his nights in Orthez to it until 1390.^[196] The work, dedicated to Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy^[197] and written in French,^[ax] occupies a prominent place in medieval hunting literature.^[ay] The book's clarity and detail made it an immediate success,^[201] and the naturalist Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, was still using it at the end of the 18th century.^[202] In his book, Fébus puts forward several arguments to explain his passion for hunting:^[203] it prepares for war, ensures better health,^[az] allows one to commune with nature, and opens the doors to paradise.^[204]

Writing

Fébus was capable of composing poetry (cansos), religious literature (the Livre des oraisons), a scientific work (the Livre de chasse), writing in langue d'oc, Latin, and French.^[205][206] Born and raised in Orthez, Fébus' mother tongue was Béarnese,^[205] but he was also able to speak other Occitan dialects such as Gascon Commingeois or Foix Languedocien. Froissart records that he "very willingly spoke to me not in his native Gascon but in proper and elegant French".^[207] Béarnese remained his everyday language.^[208] Fébus also mastered the langue d'oc written, codified, and unified by the troubadours. He wrote his cansos in this language, though only one has survived.^[209] This canso, which appears in a Provençal songbook (chansonnier) of 18 pieces, was presented after 1342 at the Consistoire de la gaie science of Toulouse, ancestor of the Académie des Jeux Floraux.^[210] Likely written by a Fébus in his mid-20s, takes on the classic theme of a burning lover's lament for an unapproachable lady.^[209]

In addition to his Livre de chasse, he wrote a Livre des oraisons, a collection of 37 prayers, the first three of which are in Latin, and the others in French.^[211] Fébus addresses God directly, frightened by his life of sin but showing absolute confidence in divine mercy.^[212] The most widespread hypothesis is that the Livre des oraisons follows the Drama of Orthez.^[213] Claudine Pailhès [fr] in her work Gaston Fébus – Le Prince et le Diable believes this collection would be the fruit of a crisis due to a "sin of the flesh", in the words of Fébus.^[214] In addition to his talents as an author, Fébus built up a rich library in Orthez. He collected books with translations into langue d'oc of the Elucidari of Bartholomaeus Anglicus^[215] and the Surgery of al-Zahrawi,^[216] but also adaptations of many books including Valerius Maximus, the Speculum Maius by Vincent of Beauvais, and the Book of the Marvels of the World by Marco Polo.^[217]