Garsenda, Countess of Forcalquier

Who was Garsenda, Countess of Forcalquier?

Garsenda or Garsende de Sabran was the Countess of Provence as the wife of Alfonso II from 1193 and the Countess of Forcalquier in her own right from 1209. She brought Forcalquier to the House of Barcelona and united it to Provence. She was also a patron of Occitan literature, especially the troubadours, and herself wrote some lyric poetry and is counted among the trobairitz as Garsenda de Proensa or Proença. She was, in the words of her most recent editors, "one of the most powerful women in Occitan history".