Henry IVth sells the seigniory of Sombrum

In the first half of the XVIth century, the count of Armagnac, and then the seigniory, but also the Viscount of Béarn, Count of Foix and lord of numerous fiefdoms including Sombrun. His grandson became King of France, known as Henry the Fourth and, contrary to tradition, he refused to integrate his personal estates into the kingdom of France. Heavily indebted by 10 years of war of accession to the throne, and perhaps also as a result of his many female conquests, our Spry Gallant sold parts of his estate to repay his debtors. Consequently, on 18th March, 1604, his emissaries auctioned the seigniories of Sombun, Lascazéres and half of Vidouze. Pierre of the Torte, Lord of Caussade, purchased the entire group of Seigniories for the sum of 12,000 pounds.
A month later, Pierre of Cassasade permitted his brother Raimond to purchase the seigiory of Sombrun for the sum of 3,500. This sale was a crucial point in the village's history: this act established the seigniory of Sombrun, whose ties of vassalage extended thoughout the centuries. In actual fact, the Counts of Foix, and then the Kings of Navarre, had possessed immense estates, the financial management of which they entrusted to their administrative officers. Sombrun was henceforth to fall under the governance of a resident, and even omnipresent , Lord. But in establishing a Lord of Sombrun, Henry IVth was obliged to sever ties with a share of the the estate of the kingdom of France, and one of which had formed an unassailable and integral part of that kingdom since the time of François I.
The future lords of Sobrun would also discover that the validity of the rights granted to them by this "bill of sale" was brought into question time and time again. The inhabitants of Sombrun, in their unending struggle against the powers of the Lords, did not fail to exploit this infringement of their rights with a succession of ruling lords.
Raimond of Caussade must have been very a diplomatic personage as he lived on good terms with the inhabitants of Sombrun. His residence was qualified as a stately home: it was most probably a modest place of residence that was not recorded, for that matter, in the bill of sale. On the other hand, the Mill of Sombrun was considered, in this bill, as the "jewel" of the siegniory. It produced an annual income of 65 pounds. Raimond of Caussade died childless in 1632: his nephew, Joseph of Monet, succeeded him.
The monets, as well as the Caussades, were natives of Béarn and were strong followers of the Catholic faith. Under Louis XIIIth, Etienne of Monet, Joseph's brother, persecuted the protestants in his native Béarn. In the previous century, his family was forced to seek refuge in Aragon when Jeanne of Albret imposed the reformed religion.