Esclarmonde de Foix
| Esclarmonde de Foix | |
|---|---|
| Born | after 1151/ 1165-1167 Occitania, France |
| Died | 1215 Occitania, France |
| Other names |
La Grande Esclarmonde |
| Occupation | Albigense Delegate to Council at Pamiers 1207 |
| Spouse(s) | Jordan III of L'Isle-Jourdain m abt 1180 |
| Parent(s) | Roger-Bernard I of Foix and Cecile Trencavel |
La Grande Esclarmonde
Esclarmonde de Foix (Occitan: Esclarmonda de Fois; after 1151 – 1215), was a prominent figure in Catharism in thirteenth century France. Her biography is difficult to establish, because several noble women of the time and of the region had this rare firstname. This name Esclarmonde means "Clarity of the world" in the Occitan language.
She was the daughter of Roger Bernard I, Count of Foix, and of Cecile Trencavel.
She was the sister of Raymond-Roger de Foix, Count of Foix. In 1175, she married Jordan III of L'Isle-Jourdain, lord of L'Isle-Jourdain. They had 6 children :
She was widowed in October 1200 and, sometime thereafter, turned to the Catharism, a Christian religion seen as heresy by Catholicism and at that time largely developed in southern France. She received the Cathar sacrament, the consolamentum, for becoming a Cathar Perfect from the hands of the Cathar bishop Guilhabert de Castres in 1204 in Fanjeaux with three other women of high rank, Aude de Fanjeaux, Fays de Durfort, and Raymonde of Saint-Germain. The ceremony was conducted in the presence of her brother, Raymond-Roger de Foix, Count of Foix.
She settled in Pamiers and was probably involved in the initiative to rebuild the fortress of the Château de Montségur. She belonged to the conference of Pamiers (1207) which followed the "conference of Montreal" (1206). It was the last debate between the Cathars and the Roman Catholic Church, represented by Dominic Guzman, founder of the Dominican order and later known as Saint Dominic.
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