Forez


Forez is a former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire département and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme départements.
The final "z" in Forez is not pronounced in the Loire département; however, it is pronounced in the western part of the former province, essentially when referring to the correspondent Forez mountains (on the border between Puy-de-Dôme and Loire. The name is derived from the city of Feurs. Franco-Provençal is the language that was historically spoken in the region.
The city of Montbrison, Loire is considered the historical capital of the Forez.
Residents of the Forez are called Foréziens.
The rue du Forez in the third arrondissement of Paris was built in the late 16th century and appears on Turgot's map of Paris.
Honoré d'Urfé was a native of Forez, and set his novel L'Astrée there.

List of counts of Forez

The origins of the county of Forez are obscure. There are several early figures who are sometimes supposed to have been counts of Forez. Whether these are considered counts or not can affect the numbering offered for the later counts.
  • William, recorded as a count in 925 in a document of the Abbey of Savigny
  • William, recorded as a count in 944 in a document of the Abbey of Cluny
  • Artaud, alleged brother of William, died 960
  • Gerard, alleged son of Artaud, died 990
The counts of Forez were also counts of Lyon in the Empire until 1173, when the countship of Lyon passed to the Archbishop of Lyon.

House of Forez

  • Artaud I
  • *Pons, from the ruling house of Gévaudan, ruled Forez through marriage
  • Artaud II
  • Gerard I
  • Artaud III
  • William I
  • William II
  • Eustace
  • *Guy, from the ruling house of Guînes, ruled Forez through marriage
The period between 1096 and 1115 is uncertain owing to a lack of sources.

House of Albon

  • Guigues I , son of Guiges-Raymond and Ide-Raymond, daughter of Artaud III
  • Guigues II
  • Guigues III
  • Guigues IV
  • Guigues V
  • Renaud
  • Guigues VI
  • John I
  • Guigues VII
  • Louis
  • John II
  • Jeanne
  • Anne

    House of Bourbon

  • John I
  • Charles I
  • John II
  • Charles II
  • Peter
  • Suzanne
  • *Charles III, count by marriage

    House of Savoy

  • Louise
United to the French crown in 1531.

Appanage

United to the French crown permanently in 1574.