Gerberga (1045/65–1115), also spelled Gerberge or Gerburge, was the Countess of Provence for more than a decade, until 1112. Provence is a region located in the southeastern part of modern-day France that did not become part of France until 1481 (well after Gerberga's time).
Countess Gerberga was a daughter of Geoffrey I of Provence and his wife Etiennette of Marseille. She became Countess of Provence upon the death of her brother, Bertrand II, in 1093.
She and her husband, Gilbert I of Gévaudan, were considered virtuous.Fouque, Claude. Fastes de la Provence ancienne et moderne: Contenant l'histoire politique, civile, héroi'que et religieuse de ses principales villes, Volume 1, p. 346 (Barile et Boulouch, 1838). He participated in the Crusades, donating many relics from the Middle East to churches in Provence.Cook, Theodore. Old Provence, p. 205 (Interlink Books, 1905). Gilbert later died in 1108. Gerberga then took control of the government, and is said to have ruled wisely.Clement, Francois. L' Art De Vérifier Les Dates Des Faits Historiques, Des Chartes, Des Chroniques, Et Autres Anciens Monumens, Depuis La Naissance De Notre-Seigneur, p. 436 (Jombert, 1784). In 1112, her eldest daughter Douce was married to Raymond Berengar III of Barcelona at which point Provence was ceded to him. Her second daughter, Stephanie, would lay claim to the county and thus precipitate the Baussenque Wars in 1144.
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