Bernard was the son of Count William I of Périgord and Regelindis, daughter of Raymond I, Count of Toulouse, who was a relative of his grandmother.
Immediately after the death of Alduin I of Angoulême in 916, Bernard killed the viscount of Marcillac, Lambert, and his brother Ranulf, who were responsible for an attack on his aunt, Sancia, the sister of William I and wife of Aymer I of Angoulême.
[1] His father William died in 918 and was succeeded by Bernard as Count of Périgord.
Bernard co-ruled Angoulême with his cousin William Taillefer I and his son Aymer II, donating property to the Abbey of Saint-Cybard with them in 942.
[2] Bernard died in 950 and was succeeded by his son Arnald I.