A Tour of "the Dark Ages" | Charlemagne, Vikings, Anglo-Saxons | MEGA-COMPILATION DOCUMENTARY

19th century historians referred to the early Medieval Era as the Dark Ages today historians reject that term the period after the fall of the Western Roman Empire was indeed an era of strife Fierce battles and conquering Kings but it was also an era of growth artistic achievement and the rise of new civilizations this is the Early Middle Ages roughly from the 6th Century to the start of the 11th century it was the era of the early Arab conquests of Charles Martel and the ascent of the empire of Charlemagne it was the period of the harrowing Viking invasions of Alfred the Great and the Anglo-Saxons of England and the rise of the Normans today on real Crusades history we'll journey through this exciting period that began the Medieval Era this is a tour of the Early Middle Ages once known as the Dark Ages join us foreign [Music] within a century of the Christian conversion of the Roman emperor Constantine in ad 312 the Roman Empire had become thoroughly Christian thus Roman Christian civilization existed from France and Italy to North Africa from Syria and Egypt to Spain even with the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th Century Christianity remained at the core of the old Western Empire for the Germanic conquerors of Europe such as the Anglo-Saxons the Visigoths and the Franks were themselves Christians the Germans were often admirers of Roman civilization and had become romanized in many ways thus Latin civilization endured in the West while Germanic kingdoms dotted Western Europe the Eastern Roman Empire sometimes called the Byzantine Empire Today remained intact and the most powerful force in the Mediterranean world the great capital of Constantinople endured as the heart of the Eastern Empire the Germanic kings in the west generally looked to the Eastern Roman Emperor of Constantinople as the ideal Christian ruler for centuries the great rival of the Roman Empire was the sassanid Persian Empire centered around modern-day Iran and Iraq the two great Powers fought their final and most devastating War at the start of the 7th Century from 602 to 628 this war saw the Persians press Into the Heart of the Eastern Roman World devastating Egypt the Levant Mesopotamia and even threatening the walls of Constantinople itself the Roman or Byzantine emperor heraclius led a gallant but desperate defense and ultimately drove back The Invasion by the end of the war both the Romans and the Persians had exhausted their human and material resources while achieving no territorial changes by the end of the war with Persia Christendom was vulnerable and weakened the Eastern Roman Empire was fragmented and devastated most of the emerging Germanic Christian states in the west remained Loosely organized and not yet fully formed government had collapsed in Italy so that the pope himself had to act as ruler in Rome where Mighty Greco-Roman civilization had once dominated the Mediterranean a power vacuum lay in the wake of collapsing ancient civilization now a new unexpected power emerged the desolate Arabian Peninsula had been regarded by the Romans and the Persians as a rugged uncivilized Frontier its Bedouin were Hardy soldiers taught to ride from childhood skilled with the sword and bow and capable of of traveling hard and surviving in the desert they lived in tents tended herds and excelled in their one major art form poetry in the past both the Romans and the Persians had employed Arab Warriors as mercenaries but neither imagined that they would soon dominate the greatest civilizations of the Mediterranean the story of the rise of the Arabs begins with the preaching and Prophecies of Muhammad in Mecca an Arabian trading City Muhammad stressed the Oneness of God and the importance of man's submission to the Divine in 622 Muhammad relocated to Medina where he became the city's ruler here the organization of Muhammad's religious and political Community took shape Commerce Justice diplomacy and conduct in war were all built into the heart of Islam by his death in 632 Muhammad's influence and Authority had spread across the Arabian Peninsula Islam was now the religion of the Arabs and Muhammad envisioned its expansion throughout the world before his death Muhammad had designated his father-in-law and closest friend Abu Bakr as prayer leader for the faithful leader of the Muslim Community after consolidating Muslim rule in Arabia Abu Bakr set his sights on Syria for the Arabs the desert was a highway rather than an impediment and an Arab Army could cross almost any Desert with ease Abu Bakr showed his wisdom by appointing Khalid IBN Walid general of the Syrian expeditionary Army Khalid had been another companion of the prophet and was a brilliant and Innovative Commander at the time the emperor heraclius was at homs in Syria he established a defensive line at the yarmukh river while dispatching a Roman Force under his brother Theodore by sea to caesarea to destroy a second Arab Army advancing on Southern Palestine near Beersheba this second Arab Army was led by Amer IBN al-as Khalid recognized that Amer could not defeat Theodore's Army alone the two Arab armies must unite but Theodore was on a straight road from caesarea to Beersheba while the route from the yarmukh to Beersheba was twice as long it seemed all but impossible for Khalid to reach Amer before Theodore and yet Khalid would not accept the impossible with his men traveling day and night on racing camels the great Arab General descended through the pass of Moab four thousand feet down to the sultan crusted Dead Sea Shore then made the 4 000 foot Ascent over the Judean mountains while Theodore Advanced slowly with his heavy baggage train Khalid rendezvous with armor at Beersheba United the Arab Army struck the Romans at ajnadine in July 634 and annihilated them Theodore's Army was all but destroyed in August Abu Bakr fell sick and died his successor was the caliph Umar one of Muhammad's original companions a devout energetic man and a gifted leader Umar mistrusted Khalid and dismissed him from command on the Syrian front replacing him with the inexperienced Abu ubaidah admirably Khalid did not rage over his demotion but agreed to serve under ubeda also admirably ubeda generally deferred to khalid's military judgment the Arab forces secured the Jordan Valley in January 635 then laid Siege to Damascus which fell to them in September during the Autumn the Arabs pressed farther north into Syria while also overrunning all of Palestine saved Jerusalem and the coastal cities by the Year's End Emperor heraclius understood the gravity of the situation once again he was fighting for the survival of his Empire's Eastern regions at 62 iraqius was aged Beyond his years by the Persian War but still determined to defend the empire at Antioch heraclius raised an army of around 40 000 Men set it under the leadership of the general Theodore tirthurius and dispatched it against the Arabs in the spring of 636. the Romans recaptured Damascus suddenly the Arabs were on the defensive positioned on the South Bank of the yarmukh river in the Dera Gap the Arab Army was most likely outnumbered amounting to between 24 000 and 35 000 men but commanded by the great Khalid for months the Roman and Arab armies faced each other in the Slender opening between the lava Mountains and the yarmukh canyon stretching down to the Sea of Galilee soon the Blazing summer descended causing more suffering for the Greek and Armenian troops in the Roman army than for the Arabs Khalid held his men at the ready waiting for the right moment he recognized the importance of this engagement the summer grew worse vegetation died and the sun grew hotter finally on August 20th Just Before Dawn a burning wind swept up from the south straight into the faces of the Roman army for Khalid this was a gift from Heaven he ordered the attack and the Arabs charged forward amid the sandstorm immediately Khalid seized the bridge over the Wadi al-rukhad behind the Roman lines cutting off Theodore's Avenue of retreat the Roman army was destroyed fell in the churning fiery Onslaught almost the whole of his army was slain heraclius had spent a year raising funds to assemble this Force to protect Syria now amid the Blazing August heat it was all gone the Battle of yarmukh in 636 must be regarded as one of History's decisive battles Heracles himself recognized its significance Syria and Palestine lay defenseless and the Empire could not raise another Army devastated Heracles ordered the True Cross taken from Jerusalem before the roads were entirely overrun by umar's forces as he departed Syria in 636 heraclius is recorded as saying farewell Syria what a beautiful land you will be to the enemy in Mecca Umar sat in his mod brick Hut adjoining the mosque and received the fifth of the Syrian booty That by The Prophet's law went to the commander of the faithful all this wealth meant little to Umar who was far more concerned to continue the conquest in late 636 he dispatched an army of thirty thousand to invade the Persian Empire it was scarcely three years since the death of Muhammad and already the Arabs had utterly defeated the Eastern Roman Empire in one of its key provinces and begun the conquest of the Persian Empire Mesopotamia modern-day Iraq Syria and Palestine were all under Arab control by late 637 only Jerusalem and caesarea held out against umar's armies sofronius the Eastern Roman patriarch of Jerusalem began negotiating with the Arabs for the surrender of Jerusalem he insisted that he would surrender only to Umar himself for the Muslims Jerusalem was a holy city as well described in the Quran as the location of the Prophet Muhammad's night Journey clad in a camel's robe Umar arrived at Jerusalem in February 638 he would accept no finer clothes from sofronius asaphronius accompanied Umar into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher he later recorded that he felt that he was gazing upon the abomination of desolation standing in the Holy Place foretold by the Prophet Daniel this was not the last time that medieval Christians would cast their interaction with Muslims in biblical terms for sephronius and many other churchmen over the coming centuries they would describe the Muslims sometimes called saracens as akin to the Old Testament opponents of the Israelites by 641 heraclius was dead the Arabs continued their rapid progress in 639 they attacked Egypt and by 640 Alexandria had fallen by 646 all of Egypt was under Arab rule by 654 their armies had completed the conquest of Persia sweeping aside the last remnants of the 1200 year old zoroastrian monarchy between 647 and 709 the Arabs pressed Beyond Egypt to conquer the maghreb western North Africa another ancient and important territory of the old Roman Empire in 711 Tariq even ziyad defeated the visigothic king Roderick of Spain at the Battle of guadalete and brought almost the whole of the Iberian Peninsula under Arab rule in scarcely a century the rashidun and umayyad caliphates had conquered the wealthiest most cultured and oldest portions of the Roman Empire it's difficult to overstate the importance of the early Arab conquests within a century the old Roman world had been utterly transformed and by ad750 the Mediterranean could essentially be described as an Islamic Lake the Arabs gained control of the oldest cultural political and religious centers in the Roman Empire Antioch Damascus Jerusalem Alexandria among the most important cities of early Christianity were now ruled by the Arabs the Eastern Roman Empire often called the Byzantine Empire at this phase was reduced mostly to Asia Minor and Greece with a few Holdings left in southern Italy the Byzantine Empire remained the most powerful Christian State throughout the Early Middle Ages but it was now a beleaguered Empire on the defensive aside from Byzantium all that remained of the old Christian world was the city of Rome itself and Italy as well as Western and Northern Europe the provincial Backwater and or turbulent Frontier of the old Roman Empire Germania Gaul and Britain had never been the cultural or political centers of the Roman world but now this was the bulk of what remained of Christendom over time these regions would grow to be the center of a new and dynamic civilization we can see how the early Arab conquests created the conditions for the emergence of a new Christendom Rome in many ways now stood alone with the Pope emerging as a figure of enduring leadership that would come to define the Latin Christian world the pope nurtured a strong relationship with the Frankish Kings of Gaul the Franks Rose as the champions of Latin Christianity indeed it was a Frankish ruler Charles Martel who defeated the Arabs in 732 at the Battle of Tor imposing a limit on Arab expansion in the west yet at this phase it's perhaps still too early to speak of a fully developed Western Christendom for many of Europe's tribes and peoples including some of the Germanic and Slavic tribes who'd migrated across Europe hadn't yet converted the Franks in Alliance with the papacy led the way in forging a new Christian order in Western Europe and their influence and power would spread in 7-Eleven a Muslim Army crossed from North Africa into Spain and proceeded to conquer most of the peninsula 1212 a coalition Christian Army decisively defeated the last great Muslim power on the Iberian Peninsula the almawads finally in 1492 the Catholic monarchs of Aragon Castile subdued Granada the last Muslim holdout on the Southeastern sliver of the peninsula this long period of History encompasses one of the truly great contests of the Middle Ages the battle for Spain waged between Muslim and christian powers thus the history of medieval Iberia has become almost legendary as the raycon Kista beginning with the Muslim invasion in 7-Eleven and finally concluding with the fall of Granada in 1492 the raycon Kista coincides with many key developments over the whole of medieval history the first phase from 7 11 to 1031 was an era of almost unquestioned Muslim dominance in which the emirs and caliphs of Cordoba were the hegemonic power on the peninsula this Echoes the broader flourishing and Triumph of Islamic civilization across the Mediterranean World during the Early Middle Ages second phase from 10 31 to 1212 saw the rise of the Northerly Christian states which recaptured considerable territories from the Muslims and presented a real existential threat to the remaining Islamic regions meanwhile militant verb are movements from North Africa gave the Christians a run for their money fighting back and gaining crucial successes this mirrors wider developments with the Latin Christian West on the rise across Europe and the Muslim World suddenly faced with a powerful and expanding competitor the third phase from 1212 to 1492 was an era of Christian hegemony beginning with a mopping up of the great swathe of the Muslim lands during the mid-13th century after this a small Muslim territory held out in the Emirate of Granada which endured for two more centuries before finally being liquidated by Isabel of Castile and Fernando of Aragon here now the Spanish situation doesn't reflect so neatly with more General developments in the Holy Land a newly triumphed Islam was defeating the Crusades while the ottoman Turks were beginning their long history as a great world power without question the history of the Arab conquest and the subsequent Ray conquista greatly impacted the broader character of the Nations that would become Spain and Portugal it's a fascinating story and we will cover it in full in this series [Music] the Iberian Peninsula when the Arabs conquered it in ad711 could already boast a long and Rich history Saint Isidore of Sevilla one of the most influential figures of the early medieval church and a giant of visigothic literature wrote In ad624 of all the lands from the West to the Indies you Spain o sacred and always fortunate mother of princes and peoples are the most beautiful rightly are you now the queen of all provinces from which not only the west but also the East borrows its shining lights you are the pride and the ornament of the world the most illustrious part of the earth in which the gothic people are gloriously prolific rejoicing much and flourishing greatly iberians Celts carthaginians and Greeks had all settled Spain long before the Romans began their Conquest in 218 BC the Roman impact proved enduring Spain became Latin in its language law and culture during the days of the Roman peace a massive network of Roads was established and the economy flourished this resulted in a thriving Urban civilization with romanization came christianization the religion of Christ came to dominate Spain in the late Roman era and would endure as a powerful force from then on at the start of the century vandals Allens and swavey occupied the south west and North visiting war and destruction on the Hispano Romans who seemed incapable of Defending themselves by the Century's end the Visigoths the most vigorous of the Germanic tribes to enter Spain settled in Old Castile where their legacy has echoed ever since in the local genetics language and place names over time they subdued the other tribes and took control of the remaining Roman outposts finally in the 7th Century their rule extended across the peninsula the great failure of the Visigoths was their inability to establish a hereditary succession Civil War was a constant feature of their Rule and played a key role in the rather rapid collapse of the Kingdom to the Muslim Invaders the Visigoths remained a minority of perhaps two to three hundred thousand ruling over aspano-roman population of some six to nine million under such conditions the concrete exerted considerable influence over the Conqueror the Germanic physigoths who admired Roman civilization became thoroughly latinized visigothic Kings emulated the old Roman emperors and The visigothic Chieftains took on the role of Hispano Roman aristocrats the Persistence of the term hispania for the region rather than a Germanic name is testimony to the enduring Latin influence most Visigoths became peasant farmers in the upper Darrow Valley using old Germanic names like Alfonso and Fernando singing their epic poems and maintaining their customary laws in other places Roman systems endured virtually unchanged however Muslim and Vandal piracy broke down the ancient Mediterranean trade routes and the visigotha Kings found it difficult to unify their subject peoples during this period Acclaim to visigothic blood was a marker of high status and also highlighted social divisions the most Troublesome obstacle to visigothic rule in the peninsula was religion the Visigoths were Aryans and the vast majority of their subjects followed the Orthodox Catholic Rite of Rome the issue was finally resolved in 587 when the visigothic king announced his conversion to Catholicism [Music] at the death of King rekusvinth in 672 visigothic Spain was at the height of its development the peninsula was United religious conflict had been overcome and cultural achievements were higher than those of any other post-roman Germanic successor state yet the government still grappled with essential weaknesses previous Kings had tried but failed to make the monarchy hereditary the crown remained elective encouraging rebellion and feuding among the Nobles after the death of ruckus Smith the Bishops and magnates were eager to prevent the late King's family from making a bid for the throne and so they gathered immediately for an election the crown was granted to vamba but just as he assumed the throne Rebellion erupted in septeminia the new king dispatched Duke Paul to quell the uprising but the Duke instead made common cause with the rebels and proclaimed himself King bomba was dealing with a basque Revolt in the north when he heard of Duke Paul's betrayal at once he moved on septimenia and succeeded in defeating the Duke who was condemned to lifelong imprisonment vamba's success had almost been thwarted by the old Bane of Spain's visigotha Kings a difficulty in raising troops the nobles were often reluctant or downright hostile to supporting their King in the field and The Peasants were disinterested in the endless Civil Wars to remedy the situation vama decreed that all Nobles Freeman and clergy were Bound by law to answer a summons from the King this was the Revival of an old custom but it was greatly resented by the clergy as well as the nobility Bamba had shown impressive energy during his Reign which ended abruptly in 680 when the king fell ill the courtiers assumed he was dying in keeping with visigothic custom Julian Bishop of Toledo tauntured the king and clothed him in penitential garb some sources describe the whole Affair as a plot hatched by Bishop Julian and arvig a grand nephew of the late King kindesventh vambo recovered and found himself legally deprived of the right to rule and so he renounced the throne to ervig arabic's crowning was not accepted by the whole of the visigothic elite to combat doubts about his legitimacy he Summit a council in Toledo in 681 under Bishop Julian the council released all of the Spanish magnates from their obligations to vamba Arabic tried to neutralize any remaining resistance by marrying his daughter to vamba's nephew ekika whom arvig named as his successor but no sooner had Arabic died that ekiko repudiated arvig's daughter and renounced his alliance with the late King's family he then set about punishing all those that He suspected of treachery hardening resistance among arvix faction egika made a bid to secure his own family as the monarchy's hereditary bloodline he named his son whitiza his Heir and promoted his family to key power positions this aroused resentment which was compounded when Vitas approved a poor ruler concerned primarily with carrying on affairs with women then how the visigothic monarchy in its final years was in a truly poor state The Chronic factionalism and civil conflict culminated with the disastrous reign of vidiza this vindictive hedonistic and ineffective King's rule came to an end in 710 the next year North African armies would destroy completely the visigothic state the story of how all this came about makes for one of the most intriguing and confusing chapters in Spanish history king of visigothic Spain died in 710 having spent much of his Reign attempting to solidify a hereditary monarchy son ocula was proclaimed King in the Northeast but most of the Nobles opposed this with his opponents controlled the Royal City of Toledo and they recognized Roderick grandson of the late King kindesventh as the new monarch of the visigothic realm with his factions seemed defeated but rather than accept the situation and recognize Roderick they attempted to find another route to the throne one strategy they employed was dispatching Messengers to the Muslims of Africa asking for assistance in staging a rebellion for centuries the enigmatic count Julian has figured prominently in accounts of the Arab conquest of Spain 's exact identity remains mysterious Arab Chronicles of the events mention him but Christian accounts do not various modern writers have identified him as a Byzantine Exar governing sayuta on the coast of North Africa as a Christian Berber who defended Tangier against the Arabs or as a Gothic nobleman with lands on the Spanish side of The Straits of Gibraltar none of these can be confirmed or entirely discounted the Arab chroniclers identify him as an opponent of the last visigothic king of Spain Roderick they claim that the Count's opposition began after his daughter was ravished by the king thus Julian contacted the Muslims of North Africa and plotted with them to overthrow the Visigoths regardless of the truth of this backstory the Iberian Peninsula was naturally attractive to the long triumphant Arabs having so rapidly expanded across North Africa Spain was a logical destination for Islam numbers bolstered by the newly converted berbers the Muslims of the Madrid were in a powerful position count Julian may have defended Tangier from them in 708 only to be forced to acknowledge their Overlord ship in 709 that same year Julian apparently conducted a reconnaissance of the Spanish mainland reporting back to the Arabs that the peninsula was poorly defended and beset by civil conflict whatever the case North Africa's Muslim governor Musa IBN musair consulted the caliph of Damascus on the idea of an invasion the caliph recommended caution Musa assigned Tarif IBN maluk to conduct an exploratory Expedition in July 710 Tarif LED 400 men Across The Straits of Gibraltar they landed on the coast of Tarifa which to this day Bears his name after raiding Al jasirus Tarif crossed back to Africa with considerable booty and a promising report thank you [Music] Musa wanted to learn more after some months he organized a far larger expeditionary force of seven thousand LED This Time by Tariq IBN Ziad between April 27 and 28 of 7-Eleven Tariq landed on the Rock of Gibraltar which he gave his name at the time Roderick King of the Visigoths was campaigning in Basque territory when he heard of the Southern Invasion he rushed to Cordoba and gathered an army Tariq reacted with admirable caution rather than press Inland and expose his army to attack he remained at Al jasirus reinforcements arrived from Africa increasing his army to a total of around 12 000 troops soon after King roderick's host faced off against tariq's Invasion Force at the Battle of guadalet the date was July 19 7 11. Roderick had the numerical Advantage but his Coalition was not sound cisberg and Opus members of which is faction commanded the wings of roderick's Army and during the battle they pulled back and retired leaving roderick's Center to face the Muslims alone According to some sources sister and Opus were in contact with Tariq and plan this betrayal ahead of time the Visigoths were entirely routed Roderick himself was lost in the fighting afterward the Muslims found the Fallen King's white Steed adorned with a Golden Saddle studded with rubies and emeralds the battle hardened berbers fought with unity and undaunted spirit for Tariq the victory was total by this single battle alone the visigothic monarchy was essentially wiped out what his sons were mistaken if they believed their betrayal would gain them the throne Islam had triumphed and with it a new order arose Tariq understood that he had smashed the head of the visigothic establishment his mission originally meant as a reconnaissance was now poised to capture Spain this was one of the truly great victories in the history of Islam the fractured state of the visigothic monarchy left little institutional strength to resist the Arab Invaders with Roderick dead the fragile state all but collapsed and the Muslims were able to expand their control of the peninsula fairly quickly near essiha Tariq defeated the remnants of the visigothic army then dispatched forces to seize Cordoba and to ravage and plunder the territories around Granada and Malaga he then marched on Toledo where much of the citizenry including the Archbishop had fled in a panic at his arrival he encountered no significant opposition and Toledo passed into Muslim hands the Arab sources provide elaborate descriptions of all the wealth and gold found by tariq's men in the city included among the booty was an ancient solid gold table ornamented with jewels reported to have once adorned the Temple of Solomon the chronicler IBN Abed al-haqam describes the scene the table was valued at two hundred thousand dinars because of its precious stones Tariq took all the jewels armor Gold Silver and plate he found there and besides that acquired wealth such as had not been seen before a local Hispano Roman population demoralized by long years of visigothic infighting offered Little Resistance as Berber contingents subdued the countryside Tariq rewarded with his sons by granting them their ancestral Estates other visigothic Nobles sought similar deals in the past the visigothic nobility had frequently feuded over the crown and the kingdom lacked the structure for regional resistance to a determined invader thus the Nobles mostly did what they'd done in the past tried to cut deals grasping at what they could of the spoils after disaster except this time they made deals with the Arab conquerors rather than with a rival ruling Dynasty now when it was too late The Chronic ailments of the visigothic state were all too obvious meanwhile back in North Africa Musa was enraged by tariq's success he dispatched a mission of reconnaissance not conquest and he viewed tariq's subjugation of Spain as an act of defiance he feared the Berber Chieftain would try to set himself up as Spain's independent ruler this was a dark Omen forecasting centuries of internal conflict among Spain's Muslim Powers which would endure until the last emirs were defeated in the 15th century assembling an army of 18 000 Arabs Musa crossed the Straits of Gibraltar in June of 712 arriving at Al jasirus immediately he targeted towns that Tariq had bypassed Sevilla fell to him after a Siege of several months he then pressed on to Merida where he encountered Fierce resistance from visigothic Nobles the Visigoths held out through the winter but finally surrendered in June of 7 13. a visigothic nobleman called Duke theodomer agreed to terms with Musa the details of their agreement have survived shedding light on similar deals struck between visigothic Elites and the Muslim conquerors Musa granted the ottomer rule over his duchy promising not to harm his subjects or their churches in return theodomer and his followers were not to harm the Muslims or help their enemies or Harbor fugitives the adomer agreed to pay an annual tribute finally Musa moved on Toledo near Talavera he encountered Tariq whom he struck on the head with his riding crop upgrading him for greed rebelliousness and disobedience it must have been unsettling to many of the troops to witness the public humiliation of Spain's great conqueror at the hands of his Overlord and yet Musa and Tariq seem to set aside their differences they settled together in Toledo and dispatched Messengers to the caliph in Damascus to inform him of the miraculous conquest of Spain in 714 Musa was in Zaragoza consolidating Muslim control of the region when he received a summons from the caliph he was to report to Damascus at once Musa may have been unnerved by such a command but he dared not disobey that summer he left his son Abbott al-aziz to govern Spain and made the journey across North Africa wearing golden crowns and bearing and immensity of booty and slaves from Spain Musa and Tariq arrived at the great Muslim capital there the Khalif stripped Musa of his honors charging him with corruption the caliph was so enraged he nearly had Musa crucified but he settled instead with finding the unfortunate Governor heavily neither of Spain's Muslim conquerors would ever again see their cherished prize both would die in Syria in obscurity a strange end for the men who'd achieved one of the truly outstanding triumphs in the history of Islam Spain was now a part of the Daryl Islam and Cordoba which shine as one of the epicenters of Muslim civilization all on the loose was the name given by the Arabs to this new territory they'd captured however the Muslims never managed to subdue the whole of the peninsula far to the North Christian resistance would solidify around a daring and defiant visigothic nobleman Palio of the astorias the Bold actions of this Palio would ensure the survival of Christian sovereignty in a remote Outpost and would launch the centuries-long struggle known as the ray conquista after the conquest of Spain known as alandalus to the Muslims the caliph and Damascus took steps to ensure that the peninsula would remain under his control he wanted to prevent an ambitious Muslim Adventurer from setting himself up as an independent king of al-andalus in 715 he had his men assassinate musa's son Abed al-aziz in the mosque of Sevilla from now on the caliph appointed Governors emirs directly and only for brief terms these emirs enforced umayyad rule in regions where Musa had only made a show of force this allowed new mayads to dominate essentially all of the Iberian Peninsula only one region effectively resisted Muslim rule the Astorian mountains in the North the legal status of the Concord was determined by religion According to Islamic law Christians and Jews were considered people of the book those who had received some divine revelation through sacred writings these two groups were not compelled to convert in return they were required to submit to umayad rule and pay a poll tax known as the jizya to the Muslim authorities those that had capitulated were often allowed to retain their lands those who had been subdued by force were deprived of their property and could be reduced to slavery foreign [Music] lands as well as church and state properties were divided among the Muslim Elite with one-fifth being reserved for the caliph himself [Music] Christians subject to Muslim rule began to adopt some of the customs of the Arabs they came to be called most Arabs that is like Arabs most Arab communities existed in Toledo gordoba Sevilla Merida and other cities they were governed by their Bishops who were accountable to the Muslim administrators over time many Christians and Jews converted to Islam converts and their children were no longer subject to the Jizzy attacks thus the Muslim authorities were often less than enthusiastic about conversions slaves could also gain freedom by converting however the descendants of converts were long held in contempt by the original class of Arab conquerors for many years only those related to the first Muslim settlers were eligible for the highest positions in society and government [Music] foreign s of Spain began penetrating into France at the time France was ruled by the decadent Merovingian Dynasty soon to be usurped by the carolingian Franks under Charles Martel by 717 the Muslims ruled Barcelona from which armies could more easily be launched across the Pyrenees narbone fell to the Umayyads in 720 from there the Muslims raided as far as Toulouse though in 721 they were defeated while battling Odo Duke of Aquitaine four years later the Muslims captured Carcassonne and even plundered into burgundy [Music] from the days of Tariq and Musa Muslim garrisons held fortresses in the upper reaches of the Iberian Peninsula but in the remote stretches of the central Pyrenees umayad rule could scarcely penetrate amid the Crags of the Northwest Christian Rebels congregated these were Visigoths fleeing umaya domination as well as the Mountaineers of cantabria and Galicia together these tough and resilient Warriors would lay the groundwork for the upstart kingdom of astorias and the future Ray conquista of Spain the first leader of this Christian resistance was a visigothic nobleman called Palio our earliest sources for his life are sparse and he remains a figure of obscure origin supposedly he was a grand nephew of King Roderick later accounts claimed that he was born of the royal house but this may have been an attempt to establish the Astorian Kingdom as the valid successor state to the extinct visigothic monarchy more than likely Palio is simply unmotivated and daring nobleman who threw up the banner of rebellion and rallied a band of Christian Warriors to his cause [Music] an account of polio's Uprising comes to us from a late Source the 9th century Chronicle of Alfonso III the chronicle describes Palio as the sword bearer of the visigotha Kings apparently Palio like many visigothic Nobles had submitted to munoza one of tariq's lieutenants and the governor of gihon munoza became attracted to Palio's sister and so he dispatched Palio to Cordoba on a diplomatic mission after Palio set off on this journey munoza took Palio's sister as one of his wives [Music] when palayo heard of this he was enraged at once he renounced his submission to the Umayyads gathered a band of rebels around himself and struck off into the mountains to launch a resistance since it comes to us from a later account this story cannot be confirmed nor entirely discounted historians have often noted that it seems too good A Tale To Be True and if it is not entirely legendary it might contain later Embellishments but then again if we were to discover one day that the tale was indeed based in fact it wouldn't be the first legend that surprised us for being factual what history does confirm is that sometime in the first years after the Arab Conquest Palio launched a Christian rebellion in the Astorian Mountains and the Umayyads took actions to crush him the Emir launched an expeditionary Force to the north led by the general al-kama accompanied by Bishop Opus of Sevilla one of the Visigoths who betrayed Roderick at the Battle of guadalet the chronicle of Alfonso III provides details of the encounter though our understanding of the battle that followed remains obscure Palio and his forces took a position at a cave on Mount alceva there they were surrounded by the Muslim Army alakama sent Bishop Opus to negotiate with Palio opas urged palayo to surrender insisting that he would be rewarded with great riches if only he submitted to the Umayyads palaya refused alcama now launched his forces against Palio's men and the battle began there amid the Steep Ledges and Craigs the Christian Mountaineers overcame their attackers defeated the Muslims fled through the treacherous Terrain Ohio's men gave Chase slaying many of them many of algoma's troops were killed in an avalanche or drowned in the river Akama himself was slain and Bishop alpas was captured Munoz abandoned his Sports in the astorias and Palio's rule was confirmed in the region he established a shrine to the Virgin Mary at kovidonia where a church still stands today in her honor [Music] our most detailed account of the battle of kovidonia won by palayo in 722 again the details of the battle come to us from a later Source the chronicle of Alfonso III however the basic details of the events a Christian rebellion in the cantabrian mountains led by pelayo and resulting in the establishment of the Astorian kingdom are supported by a charter from 812 the prophetic Chronicle of 883 and Muslim sources as well IBN hayan tells us that the Christians of Spain did not resist the Umayyads until stirred up by quote a Despicable Barbarian named palai who fled with his followers to a high mountain where they fed on Wild Honey he saw IBN Ahmad al-rasi gives virtually the same account and there are other Muslim authors who describe similar events Muslim historians from the period gloss over Palio's victory at coppedonia stating merely that the Muslim troops had difficulty penetrating the mountains and so they withdrew leaving pelayo and his men to hold the region one Muslim chronicler dismisses Palio's Rebellion as insignificant writing what are 30 barbarians perched on a rock they must inevitably die in hindsight this dismissal strikes us as foolish Not only would Palio survive but his kingdom would expand and in time Drive the Muslims out of Spain entirely and yet we can understand how the Muslim chroniclers of the early period would hold these Christian upstarts in contempt the umayyad emirs of Cordoba scarcely thought it worth their time to take note of this tiny Christian principality in the mountainous North palaya's victory at kovidonia had been a setback but a minor one only by the close of the 8th Century the Muslims dominated the vast sweep of Spain and pelayo's heirs in the astorias still seemed unimportant to the east of Palio's lands one Duke Pedro ruled cantabria Sun Alfonso married pelayo's daughter hermesinda uniting the two realms Civil War among the Umayyads prompted the berbers to abandon the Northern Plains in 741 this allowed Palio's son-in-law Alfonso the first of astorias to drive Southward as far as goria by 7 54 Alfonso captured all the towns abandoned by the Berber garrisons across the broad Plains of the duero as far south as Salamanca Avila and Segovia and as far east as Miranda de Abreu however Alfonso was concerned that he wouldn't be able to hold these towns in the event of a Muslim counter-attack and so he devastated the region burning all the fortifications and taking the local Christians back with him to his Northern domain thus Alfonso left to his South some hundreds of square miles of devastated territory for centuries the duero valley would remain a No Man's Land dividing the Christian and Muslim domains in the early years after the Arab conquest of Spain the Umayyads maintained a toehold in lower France centered around septimenia but frequent turnover of the emirs in Cordoba precluded the Muslims paying much serious attention to the land beyond the Pyrenees but finally in 732 the Emir avidal Ramen assembled a large army at Pamplona first the Emir defeated a Muslim Rebel manuza in the mountains of the Eastern Pyrenees munoza had sought help from duke Odo of Aquitaine and al-rahman decided to March North to punish the Duke with his troops the Emir crossed the paths of roncosvius into France he defeated Duke Odo on the banks of the garon determined to continue the pursuit al-rahman sacked Bordeaux and then burned the famous church of Saint Hillary at Poitier the Emir now pressed northward along the old Roman Road intending to sack the shrine of Saint Martin at Tour on the Loire while advancing on the road between Poitier and tours al-rahman came face to face with Charles Martel and his Franks Charles was responding to a plea for assistance from duke Otto Martel was a veteran commander and his Warriors had honed their skills in years of campaigning he was an opponent very much unlike the ill-disciplined Visigoths view my ads had faced in Spain our earliest accounts of the battle that raged that day between the Umayyads and the Franks come to us from the most Arabic Chronicle of 754. It Was Written in Spain in the two decades following the events and seems to have been based primarily on the testimonies of Muslim veterans from the campaign this is the account given by the chronicle after each side had tormented the other for almost seven days with raids they finally prepared their battle lines and fought fiercely the northern peoples remained immobile like a wall holding together like a glacier in the cold regions and in the blink of an eye annihilated the Arabs with the sword the Franks greater in number of soldiers and formidably armed killed the Emir abadal Rahman when they found him striking him on the chest but suddenly within sight of the countless tents of the Arabs the Franks despicably put up their swords saving themselves to fight the next day since night had fallen during the battle rising from their own camp at dawn the Franks saw the tents of the Arabs all arranged according to their canopies just as the camp had been set up before not knowing that they were all empty and thinking that inside them were phalanxes of saracens ready for battle they sent Scouts to reconnoit her and discovered that all the troops of the Arabs had left they had all fled silently by night in tight formations returning to their own country the Franks worried lest the saracens deceitfully attempt to Ambush them in Hidden paths were slow to react and searched in vain everywhere around having no intention of pursuing the saracens they took the spoils and the booty which they divided up fairly back to their country and were overjoyed this is the brief description of the battle it comes to us from the most Arabic text written in Al andaluz our earliest Frankish Source from the continuator of frederiger is even more laconic here is that excerpt [Music] Prince Charles boldly deployed his troops against the Arabs and Warrior that he is fell upon them with Christ's help he pulled down their tents rushing into battle to grind them to pieces and when he had prostrated and killed their Emir Avid al-rahman he defeated their forces and so he triumphed a Victor over his enemies these two early accounts are brief but they do provide us with crucial information about the Battle it's clear that the Franks were not employing Cavalry in any great numbers Charles martel's force was composed mainly of Infantry he arrayed them in a strong Shield wall on high ground with a river on their flank Martel selected the terrain for his stand well and the most Arab author's image of a glacier is a powerful metaphor for a fan lengths of warriors fighting on foot the most Arab Chronicle also makes it clear that the Franks were highly disciplined for seven days Charles held his position refusing to be drawn out by the skirmishing of the Arabs finally when al-rahman launched his Cavalry an uphill attack the Franks cut down and destroyed the Arab forces Frankish discipline is also shown in their conduct after the battle far from being a sign of weakness the hesitance of the Franks to pursue the defeated Arabs indicates a disciplined and experienced Army given a little success and ill-disciplined force is prone to break up and Rush After plunder only to be ambushed by a hidden Detachment of their foes martel's men refrain from such recklessness only in the morning when it was confirmed that the enemy had been destroyed did Charles allow his troops to plunder the Muslim camp both accounts also agree that al-rahman was slain in the fighting this points to the scope of the Frankish Victory this was a large-scale and serious defeat for the Umayyads even during the 8th Century martel's victory at tour became widely known and celebrated within a few years in Far Away northumbria the venerable bead had heard of the battle and remarked the saracens who had devastated Gaul were punished for their perfidy the Battle of tour has long been the subject of intense study and discussion on the one hand it has been regarded as a key victory for Christendom over Islam which prevented France from falling to the Muslim forces that had absorbed Spain on the other hand some commentators have argued that the umayad caliphate had reached a natural limit in Spain and lacked the resources to dominate France two years later a Muslim Army again ravaged their own Valley capturing aural and Avignon but Charles Martel again marched out and pushed them back into Narbonne Martel and his troops then defeated an Arab relieving Force dispatched from Spain nevertheless the defeat of the Muslims at tours in 732 effectively marked the end of large-scale umayyad raids into France it was clear that they would not be able to easily conquer or even continue raiding the region Charles Martel and his Franks were a force to be reckoned with and a serious deterrent to Future umayyad Commanders but also the Muslims were short of Manpower since the North African and Spanish conquests had stretched their resources thin civil conflict within the Emirate of Cordoba would weaken Muslim rule in septimenia martel's son pep in the short captured Narbonne from the Umayyads in the 750s with that Muslim rule was extinguished in France and the Franks were now positioned to push into Northeastern Spain real Crusades history is teaming up with christianchannel.com the Christian Channel provides the very best Christian content supporting thousands of movies children's programs and other entertainment the Christian channel is also the home of knights of the cross an upcoming live-action historical drama series about the Crusades written by Yours Truly J Steven Roberts if you pre-order a subscription now to christianchannel.com using the promo code Knights you'll get 10 off plus your contribution will go straight toward funding season one of the series click on the link down below for details and don't forget to use the promo code Knights in the middle of the 8th Century events in The Wider Muslim world had a dramatic impact on Islamic rule in Spain the umayyad dynasty which had ruled Islam since 661 was overthrown in 750 by The abbasids Who ruthlessly hunted down their Rivals however one umayyad Abdul Rahman grandson of the caliphisham escaped the Abbasid swords he fled across North Africa and then established contacts with his family's partisans in Spain by August 7 55 all Ramen was assembling an army and preparing to establish his power on the Iberian Peninsula however the current governor of alandalous Yusuf was on the verge of establishing himself as an independent ruler he had no intention of surrendering power to al-rahman the decisive encounter came when al-rahman marched with an Army on Cordoba the two Muslim Rivals met in battle outside the city on May 15 756 yusuf's Army was destroyed Abdul Rahman marched triumphant into Cordoba where he proclaimed himself Emir the era of an independent Emirate of Cordoba had begun over the next 30 Years Abdel Ramen worked diligently to secure his position he invited Refugee Umayyads to Spain showering them with favors he organized an army of mercenaries loyal only to him initially the Berber supported him but they eventually rebelled becoming the chief anxiety of his reign Berber gorilla attacks would plague the Emir until 776 during this period a tiny Christian state of astorias scarcely snagged the emir's notice however during this period the Astorian Kingdom developed both territorially and culturally Christian refugees from the sprawling Muslim lands continued to trickle northward growing the populations of historian Villages abbots and monks arrived from the Muslim cities and settled as whole communities in Christian territory the growing self-confidence of astorias was manifested in Oviedo where one Abbott Maximus founded an important Monastery in 761. foreign power were independent Muslim Lords in their Frontier fortresses especially in the Northeast governors in Zaragoza Barcelona and hirona had long tried to hold cordoba's Authority at Bay now they could proclaim the Emir as an unlawful rebel against the Abbasid caliph Abbasid agents approached Suleiman ruler of Zaragoza who agreed to collaborate with them seeking other allies to bolster his rejection of umayyad dominion Suleiman even appealed to one of the major christian powers of the era Charlemagne King of the Franks Suleiman traveled to paderborn where he promised to submit Zaragoza to Frankish Overlord ship Charlemagne welcomed this appeal its concerns lay chiefly in Germany and Italy but this seemed to be an opportunity for a quick success and expansion of his own power assembling his army the Frankish King prepared to March out against the Umayyads and secure Zaragoza for his new Abbasid Ally in May 778 the Frankish Army marched South and crossed the Pyrenees after occupying Pamplona Charlemagne moved on Zaragoza but the city Gates remained closed to him who signed IBN Yaya suleiman's Lieutenant left in charge of the city renege Don suleiman's terms and chose to resist the Franks although Charlemagne's Army was not equipped for a long Siege the Franks did make an attempt on the city Zaragoza held out Charlemagne at last gave the order to withdraw destroying Pamplona on his way back on August 15 778 Charlemagne's Army was at rancus vius thick forest cover the jagged hillsides so narrow was this pass that the Frankish Army was strung out for miles and thin columns from The Ledges above a force of basks hid and watched they waited until Twilight when the bulk of the army had moved through the pass then fell upon the rear guard peppering them with Boulders and arrows as the rear guard broken confusion and was separated from the main Army the Basques rushed upon them though the Franks stood and fought fiercely the Basques overwhelmed them it wasn't this Ambush that died Roland lord of the Breton marches Roland's heroism at this impossible moment would become the stuff of a legend in European literature by the time Charlemagne realized what had happened it was over and the Basques had vanished Into the Night the epic song of Roland records Charlemagne's lament over the loss of his friend in comrade my friend Roland God lay your soul on flowers in Paradise with all the Glorious host you came to Spain with a cruel Overlord no day Shall Pass henceforth that I'll not mourn [Music] thank you Charlemagne's Iberian campaign was a rare disappointment in his long career of triumphs Abdul Rahman benefited the most from it after the departure of the Franks whose sign killed Suleiman just before Abdel Ramen arrived with a vast umayyad Army to subdue Zaragoza once the city fell whose sign was dragged before the Emir and executed for Rebellion Zaragoza became the Emir of cordoba's most important Northern Fortress however Frankish designs on the Iberian Peninsula continued Charlemagne realized that progress on his Southern border would require a bit more patience he captured hirona from the Moors in 785. this was the first step in the Frankish Advance toward Barcelona three years later in 788 Abdel Ramen Emir of Cordoba was dead a ruler of remarkable energy and foresight he succeeded in carving out an independent and Powerful umayyad Spain despite a bastard opposition he also laid the groundwork for cordoba's future Glory as one of the jewels of the Muslim World beginning work on the great mosque despite his success he refused to take on the title of caliph and his successors would shrink from such an assertion for almost 200 years for the time being the Abbasid caliph was commemorated in the mosque of Cordoba the new Emir was al-rahman's son Hisham the first who took the throne in 788 renowned for his piety and his charitable works his Reign was a period of General stability a well-educated ruler Hisham cooperated closely with the malachite jurists who adopted a rigorous approach to the Quran and law the malachite School came to dominate the juridical and Theological thought of the Emirate wielding great influence in public affairs General peace in the Muslim domain allowed his sham to dispatch annual raiding parties into the Christian North these raids were devastating to the rural penurious Christian territory Astorian forces were often hopelessly outmatched towns were left ruined and thousands of Christians were taken as slaves into umayyad territory so overwhelming was Muslim military power at this time that the Astorian King ramudu abdicated in favor of his cousin Alfonso II known to history as the chaste Alfonso II has long been regarded as one of the outstanding monarchs of the Astorian era he certainly assumed the throne during a period of Crisis and he proved himself in the face of trial in 794 two separate umayyad armies entered Astorian territory ravaging alava and Oviedo respectively Alfonso II rallied his forces he met the Muslims in battle at Los lotos and defeated them slaying the Morris General abidal Malik determined to avenge this loss he Charmed the special of their Army against astorias in 795 the Muslims ravaged Central astorias While Alfonso was forced to retreat with his troops into the nalon valley view Mayans returned again in 797 to raid Castile in 796 the Sham died he was succeeded by al-haqam the first whose Reign would provide a respite to the Christian North from the incessant raids of the Umayyads for alakam's rule was a period of turbulence for the Emirate of Cordoba plagued by rebellions from the powerful Muslim Lords on the Frontiers thus after 797 Cordoba was less capable of dispatching large raiding Expeditions into Christian territory Charlemagne no other name so epitomizes the dawn of the European Middle Ages he was King of the Franks and Emperor of Western Christendom out of the turmoil of the Early Middle Ages he United the bulk of Western and Central Europe and laid the groundwork for the modern European world Charles a figure whose Legend has grown through the centuries was very much a real man complex and fascinating he was a patron of the Arts and education instigator of the flowering of learning known as the carolingian Renaissance he was also a fierce conqueror who waged brutal Wars to impose his domination on the Saxons even going so far as to slaughter thousands of sacks and prisoners at the infamous Massacre of verdenne he faced defeats as well as victories losing the rear guard of his army at the famous battle of rancus Vias where he suffered a personal tragedy as well losing his friend and companion in arms Roland undeniably Charlemagne is one of the key figures of the Medieval World and it's no surprise that he's often today remembered as the father of Europe in this presentation we will explore the life and career of Charlemagne toward the close of 753 Pope Stephen III traveled to France the first pope in history to do so the king of the Franks Pepin waited to greet the pope at ponceon but in the meantime he sent a party of Horsemen to escort the bishop of Rome as he made his way up the rugged dangerous roads among Steven's Frankish escort was a tall blonde-haired boy of 11. pepin's own son Prince of the Franks Charles as Charles greeted the pope with great reverence and Stephen gave his hand to bless the prince and his men the pope could have had little idea that the lad before him would grow to be one of the most significant men in history Charles the great Charlemagne not only King but emperor of the Franks the architect of medieval Latin Christendom in those days France was on the periphery of Mediterranean Civilization overshadowed by the great Byzantine Empire to the East and the powerful umayyad caliphate that dominated the Mediterranean but Charles's tribe the Franks already showed signs of toughness and political savvy two decades earlier Charles's own grandfather Charles Martel the hammer with a small army of grim wolf skin clad Franks had crushed a massive umayyad Army on the battlefield of tour in an age when the armies of the Prophet seem to Vanquish every Kingdom in their path the Franks held firm and in this prince who now greeted Pope Stephen would come to define a new age for Europe the occasion of the Pope's visit was an appeal for Aid in Italy the position of the Pope was threatened by istof a Lombard Chieftain who demanded tribute from the papal coffers and acknowledgment of his rule in Ravenna King Pepin called a meeting of the Frankish Nobles to make a decision on war against the Lombards in defense of the Pope the campaign was approved and the Pope in gratitude re-anointed Pepin as king of the Franks and anointed his sons carleman and Charles as his successors the pope gave all three of them the title Patrician of the Romans which seems to have indicated that they were to act as the special Protectors of the Roman Church this gives us a strong indication of the relationship that had developed and continued to evolve between the Frankish Kings and the popes of Rome Pepin was compared to David the sword of God and defense of his people while the pope anointing him took the place of Samuel the prophet spiritual father of the faithful [Music] in August Pepin won a swift victory over istof who surrendered Ravenna to the papacy by October Pope Stephen was back in Rome but his problems with the Lombards weren't over indeed the popes would struggle with the Lombards for the remainder of pepin's Reign on September 24 768 Pepin died having maintained its close alliance with the papacy throughout his reign in accordance with Frankish law the realm passed jointly to pepin's Sons Charles and karlaman however in 771 carleman died the Franks assembled and ratified Charles as the sole ruler of the realm carleman's Widow and two young Sons fled to the Lombard Court of King desiderius though Charles insisted that they had nothing to fear from him whatever the case Charles now ruled the entirety of his father's Kingdom in 772 he launched an expedition against the Saxons who had recently expelled and nearly killed the Anglo-Saxon missionary Saint lebonus Charles destroyed airmen's Soul the sacred grove of the Saxons with its treasures and shrines to the Gods in May of 773 a 35 year old King held the National Assembly of the Franks at Geneva against the Magnificent setting of The Still Blue Lake and dark looming mountains here Charles struck a Regal figure as he presided over his people's convening he was over six feet in height strong and muscular and build clad in a blue cloak with a gold-hilted sword at his belt he had large piercing eyes a long nose and a strong neck he moved easily among his people an approachable fatherly figure he received gifts graciously greeted The prominent men chatted with those he'd not seen in a long time showed respect and courtesy to the older men relaxing and laughing with the younger men and offering his attention to the clergy each morning he attended mass and each evening he went to vespers the primary occasion for this Frankish assembly echoed back to Charles's own youth the king proposed once and for all to take decisive action against the Lombards in Italy desiderius King of the Lombards refused to surrender cities to Pope Hadrian that he'd promised to Pope Stephen III 16 years earlier but what's more desiderius had also invaded the lands between Ravenna and Rome specifically secured for the pope by Charles's father only the threat of excommunication from Pope Adrian stopped desiderius from advancing on Rome itself at first Charles sought a peaceful solution offering the Lombard King 14 000 gold solady for the Italian cities the Lombard refused indeed desiderius hoped to weaken Charles by pressuring the pope into anointing the sons of karlaman as rightful Frankish Kings given the situation Charles easily secured the support of the Frankish assembly war was declared King Charles announced a two-year Italian Expedition he hoped that by wintering in Italy he could forever extinguish Lombard Defiance in the summer of 773 Charles LED his army across the Alps Lombard forces collapsed before him there were only a few minor clashes not even a battle cities submitted one after the other the duchy of spoletto formally rejected Lombard Overlord ship and vowed allegiance to Pope Adrian in the fall Charles besieged the Lombard capital of Pavia determined to accept nothing but total surrender during Holy Week of 774 Charles traveled to Rome he walked into Saint Peter's on foot as a pilgrim and heard Mass on Easter at the church of Saint Mary Charles then met with the Pope to discuss future policy the pope insisted that Charles confirmed his father's donation of Pepin Charles agreed and presented the pope with a document to be placed in Saint Peter's by June desiderius was captured and taken to France as a prisoner where he died Charles took up the iron crown of Lombardy for himself in the midst of this Victory dramatic reports arrived from Germany many of the Saxon nobles collaborated with Charlemagne accepting rewards in return for helping maintain Frankish power in Sex and territory however some of the Saxon warrior class determined to resist the Frankish occupation leading this group was whitaken a Saxon Chieftain who could not be bought off whittaken has become legendary for his resistance to Charlemagne's rule the Saxons that dwelt between the Rhine and the elbe rivers to the north of cologne launched counter invasions into Frankish territory raiding the region extensively the news greatly Disturbed Charlemagne the Royal Frankish annals from 775 describe his reaction while the king spent the winter at the Villa of querzi he decided to attack the treacherous and treaty-breaking tribe of the Saxons and to persist in the war until they were either defeated and forced to accept the Christian religion or entirely exterminated Charles marched North at once the Saxons fled before him and he launched a counter raid into Saxony members of the same Saxon tribe had long ago settled in England becoming the Christian Anglo-Saxons however the Saxons in their ancestral home region of Germany remained strong in their traditional beliefs Pagan from the perspective of the Christians in the winter of 775 Charles decided that he would put an end to his Saxon problem he resolved to conquer all of Saxony and thereby secure his Northeastern Frontier in 775 Charles invaded Saxony penetrating from the roar Valley across the Wester River close to Bremen the Saxon Chieftain whitakind launched a surprise attack but Charles defeated him and seized two important Saxon forts or birds for two years Charles returned annually to Saxony meeting an assembly with the Saxon Chieftains who swore loyalty to him offering their property as Surety many accepted baptism but these conversions made under duress to appease King Charles often proved insincere the Saxons would abandon the imposed religion of their conquerors as soon as the Royal Army withdrew and returned to their traditional belief system meanwhile vitican refused to join in Charlemagne's assemblies and instead fled to Denmark his wife's Homeland he intended to Rally his people in resistance to Frankish domination this is an early hint that the Viking age the 9th and 10th centuries which saw many Scandinavian pagans invading Christian territory in Europe may have been in some manner a reaction to Charlemagne's expansionism though this idea is still controversial and widely debated among historians whatever the case the Saxon pagans had interactions with the Scandinavians who shared the same Pantheon of Gods the second of Charlemagne's assemblies was held in 777 in Northern Germany at paderborn close to the traditional sex and Frankish border once again Charles appeared triumphant with the Saxon submitting to him as well as to the Christian religion increasingly Charles embraced his status as the most important Christian ruler west of Constantinople Charles the great Charlemagne the sword of Christendom and so he listened with interest when an ambassador arrived from Muslim Spain a moor called Suleiman governor of the city of Barcelona in the Autumn of 780 Charlemagne returned to Italy holding court at Avia in the spring of 781 he settled on a marriage agreement with the Byzantine Empress Irene at Constantinople Irene's ten-year-old son Constantine was betrothed to Charles's daughter rotrain age eight the byzantines also agreed to withhold their support from the exiled King desiderius of the Lombards who had just tried to take refuge at Constantinople this was a striking development the Franks were now negotiating as equals with the ancient Byzantine Empire of Eastern Rome in earlier times this would have been impossible but now Charlemagne's empire was coming to rival the great powers of the Mediterranean close to Easter of that year Charlemagne was introduced to an Anglo-Saxon scholar Alpine of York at Parma Italy alquin was in Italy on a diplomatic Mission and Charlemagne was deeply impressed by his intellect and learning a Frankish King asked alquin to join him at his own Court to direct the Royal school where the Royal princes and the sons of the Frankish nobility would be educated in addition Charles wanted alquin to lead a general effort to elevate the intellectual standards of Frankish Society at the time Alcon was director of the library and school of the Cathedral at York Anglo-Saxon England had long been a center of Latin learning and the literary Arts were flourishing there under Scholars like alquin at first he was reluctant to leave all this behind but he also understood the importance of the task Charles had laid out before him he agreed to Charlemagne's proposal and relocated to the Frankish Court there alquin would play a central role in the carolingian Renaissance which saw the preservation and study of many important ancient books and elevated education throughout Western Europe amid this new flowering of learning the brutal Saxon war slogged on in 782 the saxtons once again rebelled against Frankish Rule and even won a victory against their Frankish enemies at the Battle of sundul the Saxon forces on this occasion were led by vitican a charismatic figure who inspired Zeal to resist his fellow tribesmen at the time a Frankish Army not led by Charles but led by some of his high-ranking nobles was moving through Saxon territory on an expedition against the Pagan Slavs vinican ambushed the Frankish camp near the mountain of suntol the Frankish Camp was almost entirely annihilated meanwhile a Detachment of Frankish Cavalry was out on patrol and vitican managed to lure them into a trap using his archers to mow down the Frankish Horsemen it was a spectacular victory for the Saxons when Charlemagne heard news this defeat he was Furious he rushed to Saxony where he promptly quashed this brief Saxon Triumph in a rage the Frankish King ordered the massacre a 4 500 Saxon nobleman at verdenne on a single day in 782 this act has gone down in history as a stain on the career of Charlemagne historians have long debated the circumstances of the massacre and Charlemagne's own attitude about the deed some historians have argued that Charles regretted this brutal act While others have suggested that it was a cold-blooded but effective tactic which greatly reduced the ability of the Saxons to resist but there is no evidence that Charles ever repented publicly of this deed in 785 Charlemagne's most resourceful opponent the untiring and courageous whittaken finally submitted and accepted baptism Pope Adrian proclaimed a three-day Festival of Thanksgiving throughout the Frankish Empire Saxony was now considered to be a part of Christendom however Frankish rule was harsh Charles decreed the death penalty for any Saxons who violated Church law practiced their own funerary rights or damaged churches [Music] all the while Charlemagne's empire Consolidated its hold over other regions by this point the Franks occupied a small Northerly sliver of what is today Spain a piece of territory in the southern foothills of the Pyrenees here the Franks established a series of Highly militarized and self-governing counties to act as defensive buffers against the umayyad Moors of Spain this was The Logical continuation of the policy of Charlemagne's grandfather Charles Martel who had halted Moorish incursions into France thus began the early medieval history of Catalonia meanwhile the Frankish Church grew increasingly important in matters of ecclesiastical Affairs in 791 a council of Frankish Bishops met in narbone to consider the theological concept of adoptionism promoted by Bishop Felix virgel adoptionism held that Christ was the adopted son of God the Frankish Bishops joined the Pope in condemning the concept as heresy a synod held the following year in ratusband by Charlemagne denounced Bishop Felix who fled to Muslim Spain rather than abandon his teachings in response to the controversy Pope Hadrian issued a document called the churches of Spain and Galicia in which he specified that the church in Christian held Spain should be treated separately from the church and Muslim held Spain the former being free the latter being in bondage and perhaps prone to error due to the influence of Moorish rule as in Saxony the pope looked to the Franks as the Ultimate key to the church's Triumph in Spain the Frankish outposts in Catalonia would be the first step toward an eventual Frankish conquest of the Emirate of Cordoba however the umaids weren't willing to let Catalonia go so easily in 793 his sham the first the new Emir of Muslim Spain launched a well-executed attack on the Frankish counties driving right into the Pyrenees Duke William crooked nose of Toulouse one of Charlemagne's most celebrated commanders suffered defeat in battle the umayyad sacked the region as far as narbon before withdrawing home loaded with booty hisham's death in 796 allowed Alfonso II the Christian king of astorias in Northern Spain to bounce back in 797 Alfonso dispatched an embassy to Charlemagne proposing an alliance between the Franks and the Christian kingdom of astorias Alfonso's men presented Charles with a beautifully embroidered tent captured from the Muslims Charles expressed his support though ultimately Spain never seemed to become a top priority for the Frankish King in 798 Alfonso raided deep into Moorish territory as far as Lisbon and sent some of the booty to his Frankish Ally Alfonso's attitude toward the Franks further highlights how widely Charlemagne was recognized as the most important Monarch in Western Christendom by 798 his Empire was sprawling the whole of Saxony west of the L was now firmly under his control the Slavic tribes on his eastern border had been subdued and made tributary even the avar horsemen of Hungary had been defeated and their leaders baptized England too is now heavily influenced by Charles the great with Frankish Churchman being dispatched to participate in English councils during this period Pope Hadrian died replaced by Pope Leo III in 795. Leo wasted no time encouraging Charles to continue his role as champion of the Roman Church Charlemagne responded with a strong expression of agreement it is for us in accordance with the help of divine goodness outwardly to defend by Force of Arms the Holy Church of Christ in all places from incursions of pagans and the ravages of infidels and inwardly to fortify her with our confession of the Catholic faith at aachen Charlemagne established his chief residence where the German and Frankish languages met here the king built a new city and a lavish Palace to serve as his Royal Capital already his Legend was growing and the idea that he would be a new emperor for Christendom began to take shape a German poem from 799 describes him as father of Europe and likened him to Caesar Augustus Paul Linus of aquilia described him as ruler of all Christians and alquin habitually referred to him as a new David Leo was not so competent as his predecessor Pope Hadrian had hailed from the Roman aristocracy and his political Savvy allowed him to master the turbulent politics of central Italy but Leo had been a humble clerk from a Papal treasury he was determined and Pious but not a natural leader certain factions of Rome's Elite resented him as base born and even charged him with sexual impropriety in April of 799 a nephew of the late Pope Hadrian Pascal and the papal Bursar capulus carried out a brutal plot against Leo III while leading A procession through the street a gang of men attacked Pope Leo they threw him to the ground stripped him and attempted to Blind him and cut out his tongue the pope was left lying bloody in the streets while his unarmed attendants fled through the alleys of Rome Pascal and capulus's Men dragged the injured Leo into the church of Saint Sylvester where they proclaimed him deposed and again slashed his eyes and tongue he was then imprisoned in the Greek monastery of Saint Erasmus however that night the Pope's Chamberlain albinist snuck into the monastery and rescued the pope by lowering him down the wall on a rope albinus had the pope carried swiftly to Saint Peter's where it was discovered that Leo despite his injuries could still see and speak albinus and the Pope's allies rejoiced certain that this was a miracle the Duke of spoletto an agent of Charlemagne Who provided a military force for the pope sent word of the attack to the king of the Franks Charlemagne asked that Pope Leo be sent to him at paderborn Charles's son Prince Pepin and the Archbishop of cologne accompanied the pope on his journey until Charlemagne greeted him at paderborn Charles greeted the pope warmly and promised to punish the conspirators behind the attack the scene of Charlemagne's greeting of the Pope must have been striking the whole of the Frankish Army fresh from its victories over the Saxons was assembled there were trumpet blasts and Shields and Spears flashing in the Summer sun Prince Pepin guided the pope through the lanes of soldiers to where Charles stood awaiting him gloriously in the midst of His Highest Nobles and Bishops the King was clad in his finest armor a golden helmet on his head Charles knelt to receive Pope Leo's blessing then embraced him side by side they entered the church where the pope offered Mass afterward a lavish banquet was held in which wine was served in Golden goblets one longs to know the private discussions that took place between Charles and the pope on this occasion surely Charles promised the pope to clear his name and reinstate him in Rome but also the two May well have planned for the Magnificent coronation ceremony that would soon take place in Rome [Music] no one questioned Charlemagne's right to demand that the pope be sent to him by now Charles had been ruling for some 30 years and he was widely known as Charles the Great the intellectuals at his court marveled that this Frankish prince who had inherited only half of Franklin Now reigned from the Atlantic Shores in the west to the Bohemian Wilderness in the East and from the northern Fringe of Spain all the way to the elm River in the north from Calabria in the south of Italy to the frontiers of Denmark from this vast Empire immense wealth as well as Prestige flowed into the king's possession but like any capable ruler he nurtured more than military power he grasped the importance of spiritual Goods cultivating schools and the Arts reforming the church and bestowing on his people a new system of coinage designed to improve trade throughout his vast lands even in the realm of Faith Charles seemed to go beyond the pope himself often taking the lead in attacking heresy alquin no mere Court flatterer described Charles as illumine with the light of all knowledge and wise enough to see through all that is mystery and darkness it helped that alquin was among the highest circle of the Royal Court Whose advice was most prized by the king Charles would listen to alquin especially in matters of great importance so now when this Fiasco involving Pope Leo arose Charles turned to alquin for counsel [Music] the motivations for this plot against the pope are complex but do shed some light on the political realities of the period for one many members of the Roman aristocracy took issue with Leo because he had been the nominee endorsed by the Frankish Church effectively Charlemagne's preferred candidate some of the Roman nobility were increasingly uncomfortable with the growing power of the Franks and for them Leo represented the acceleration of that power historian Jeffrey barklow even speculates that Pascal and campulus were in touch with the Imperial government at Constantinople a natural Ally to anyone hoping to counter the power of the Franks Alpine urged Charles to dismiss the charges against the pope and to support him in no uncertain terms Falcon was convinced that the charges of adultery and perjury against the pope must be false we can still read alquin's letter of advice to Charlemagne on the matter of this scandal hitherto there have been three persons in the highest position in the world the first was that Apostolic Sublimity who rules as the vicar in the chair of Saint Peter and you have informed me of what has been done to him the second is the Imperial dignity and secular power of the second Rome Constantinople and everyone is talking about how impiously its Emperor has been deposed not by foreigners but by his own fellow citizens the third is the Royal dignity in which you have been placed by the dispensation of our Lord Jesus Christ so that you are ruler of the Christian people your power is more excellent than theirs your wisdom more shining your Royal dignity more Sublime behold upon you alone rest the salvation of the Churches of Christ we can see how alkman urged Charles to understand the gravity of his own responsibility the good of the Christian order in the world lays squarely on the King's shoulders alquin also gives us some insight into prevailing Western views of the situation in the Old Eastern Roman Empire at this time in Constantinople the seat of Eastern Rome the empress Irene had been Regent from 780 to 790 during which period She was Guardian to her minor son Constantine VI when he came of age Irene initially showed her support and allowed him to take up power but she then entered into conspiracy against him and in 797 her thugs kidnapped the lad and blinded him on the orders of his own mother Irene then announced herself to be emperor not empress for Charles alquin and other members of the Frankish Court this was the height of evil and disorder Irene who had mutilated her own son could never be rightful ruler but furthermore as a woman she also could not be Emperor for the Franks the Roman Empire was vacant one can see where all this was leading the Franks including Charles himself had very strong opinions about who it was that should take up the title of emperor meanwhile Charles acted to settle the papal scandal in October he sent Pope Leo back to Rome along with a 10-man commission to inquire about the charges made against him the pope was also escorted by a large body of Frankish Warriors to remind the Romans that it was Charles and no other who would determine the outcome of this matter the commission gathered for the hearings the Pope's accusers again leveled their charges but alquin argued that it was improper for the holy pontiff to be subjected to Earthly judgment to solve the issue Pope Leo himself agreed to swear an oath that the charges were false meanwhile the Pope's accusers were sent back to Franklin to face Charles himself in March of 800 Charlemagne set out on a tour of his Empire from The Straits of Dover to the Spanish Frontier he was investigating reports of recent attacks along these Shores by North seafarers Vikings as we call them today these were among the first stirrings of the Viking age which would come to a head well after Charlemagne's death to counter this growing problem Charles constructed a fleet to patrol his coastlines he dispatched a Frankish Force to occupy the Balearic Islands off the coast of Catalonia in modern Spain at this point under Charlemagne sound and United government there was little opportunity for Viking Raiders later with the decay of the carolingian order under Charlemagne's successors there would be plenty for now Charlemagne's vast Empire afforded a great deal of stability and Tranquility for the bulk of its inhabitants we can see why Scholars of the Frankish Court were tempted to believe that the old pox Romana had returned at tour Charles the great held a meeting with all three of his sons along with alquin the new Abbott of Saint Martins Charlemagne spent May in prayer perhaps preparing for the momentous event that was about to take place around this time Charles's Fifth and final wife lutzgaard died suddenly our sources describe him mourning for her bitterly but this did not stop him from announcing in August that he would travel to Rome to see to the Affairs of the papacy and of his Italian Kingdom Charles arrived in Rome in November accompanied by a large army and an abundance of gifts for the churches of the city there was still grumbling in the streets about Pope Leo among certain factions of the Roman nobility but on the 23rd of December in the presence of King Charles Pope Leo took an oath swearing to the falsehood of the charges of Pascal and his other accusers two days later on Christmas Day 800 crowds of Romans Franks bavarians Lombards Goths Basques and even some visiting Anglo-Saxons and Greeks all packed into the great Cathedral of Saint Peter's near the front of the altar stood Charles's Sons and Daughters the Royal Frankish princes and princesses at the front of the altar stood Charles himself garbed in a Roman tunic and cloak with a belt of gold and jeweled sandals in the midst of mass Pope Leo crowned Charlemagne as Emperor the gathered crowd cried out in proclamation of the coronation long life and victory to Charles Augustus crowned by God the great and Pacific emperor of the Romans the pope then prostrated himself before Charles and kissed the Hem of His cloak in the ancient ritual of the Roman Empire Charles Winston points out that this procedure acclimation by the Roman people was the proper legal form for proclaiming a Roman Emperor thus Charles became emperor of the West the first since ad476 there has been much debate about the circumstances of Charlemagne's coronation but for Charlemagne's Council of Nobles abbots and Bishops this was The Logical development for them the true original Empire was Roman while the Empire based in Constantinople no longer had any connection to Rome and indeed was now ruled by a woman who could never be a military commander the old Roman Empire of the West including Rome Ravenna Milan auro Leon Paris and Trier were now joined together again under Charlemagne's rule he was de facto Emperor he should be proclaimed Emperor by law there is strong reason to believe that this was exactly how Charlemagne himself viewed things and that he pursued this outcome in his policy [Music] today there's much debate about Charlemagne's coronation much of it sparked by Charles's own Court biographer einhard einhardt wrote that Charlemagne was so surprised and annoyed by the popes crowning him that he would never have entered the church if he'd known about Leo's intention this statement flatly contradicts all of Charlemagne's own actions in the previous months as he prepared for this momentous event the notion that Charles was not expecting to receive the Imperial title is simply beyond belief historians have offered many explanations for reinhardt's bizarre comment perhaps Charlemagne one of the Imperial rank but didn't want to receive it from the pope which would imply that the pope was a higher authority the problem with this explanation is that it's potentially anachronistic looking forward to conflicts between the popes and the Emperors in the 11th century that did not yet exist in the 9th century another theory is that Charles did not want to be proclaimed Emperor until he'd received approval from the Byzantine emperor in the East certainly in the coming years Charles Woods strived to win the recognition of the Eastern Emperor even making considerable concessions to earn the acknowledgment of his brother Emperor but Charles could never have expected Constantinople to recognize him as Emperor voluntarily surely a Savvy politician like Charlemagne knew that he must first gain the title and then bargain for the grudging approval of the Byzantine emperors Frankish policy certainly supports this thesis other historians have posited that einhardt simply wanted to portray his master as modest refusing the Imperial title until it was positively imposed on him another explanation is that he may have been revealing his own bias as he like many Franks preferred to think of Charles as a Frankish King not as a Roman Emperor the jealousy felt by Frank's the noble class at the thought of their Emperor expanding Beyond his tribal kingship was very real and might explain einhardt's strange remark in the Germanic tradition a Chieftains high-ranking men acclaimed him their leader not a Roman Pope Charlemagne's Ascension represented the final death of the old Germanic legal assembly where free men gathered together they're cheaped in the first among equals now the Franks would kneel before a man who was not only their tribal leader but a universal emperor whatever the truth behind einhardt's famous utterance Charles the great was now Emperor and he exercised his powers at once he dispatched his agents throughout the papal territories collecting taxes and taking Oaths of Allegiance from the local magnates he had coins struck which proclaimed the restoration of the Empire and even contemplated a marriage with a Byzantine Empress Irene there can be no question that Charles casts his Ascension as a new era of greatness to rival that of Caesar Augustus we get an insight into Charlemagne's conception of his Empire from an oath of loyalty he required within his domain in the year 802. Charlemagne obliged all three men to swear a personal oath of loyalty to him and to his laws he also asked each man to swear to voluntarily strive according to his intelligence and strength to keep himself entirely in the Holy service of God and to never bring any harm to churches widows orphans or strangers all regarded by Charles as being under his special guardianship Charlemagne placed the church's canon law alongside his own law both had to be obeyed in October of 802 the emperor held a great assembly at which both civil and canon law were proclaimed expanded and codified meanwhile in that same year Charlemagne's dream of uniting the empires of West and East by marriage came to an absolute end the Byzantine Empress Irene was overthrown in Constantinople by her treasure and exiled to the Island of Lesbos where she soon died the treasurer became emperor Nico Forest the first Irene had been more affable towards Charlemagne's court but forest was adamantly opposed to the Frankish ruler however Charles and Nick of forest had to deal with one another for at this point their Empires shared Frontiers Charles extended an olive branch to Nico Forest offering peace on the Borderlands in exchange for recognition as Western emperor to apply a little pressure to the byzantines Charles exchanged embassies with their greatest enemy the caliph harun al-rasheed ruler of the vast Abbasid caliphate the caliph sent Charles exotic gifts the most spectacular being an elephant named Abu Abbas at the time an elephant was a thing of true Wonder for the Franks Charles used to take the animal with him as he journeyed around his Empire and Abul became a favorite attraction for both Nobles and commoners Michaela sent the Franks a beautiful mechanical clock with 12 windows from which figurines of armored Warriors marched forth with the Striking of each hour that these negotiations produce more than fancy gifts al-rasheed granted Charles special status as protector of the Christians in the Holy Land Charles received the keys to the Holy Sepulcher and even to Jerusalem itself as a fervent Christian Charles showed an active concern for the Affairs of the holy land and its Christian inhabitants perhaps this could be regarded as the first stirring that would one day culminate in the First Crusade conducted by Charlemagne's Frankish descendants during this period Charles was intensely active intending to domestic affairs he strove to protect the poor widows and orphans within his Empire and he urged the clergy to stick to their vows and act toward the good of the Christian people many of Charlemagne's decrees during this period have a strong religious tone and the emperor himself almost sounds like a pope or a bishop he urged his people to be not quarrelsome not wrathful not proud not drunken but chasten heart and body humble modest sober merciful peaceful [Music] Charles strove to lessen military obligations for the poor poor Freeman were Exempted from military service this was possible because the vast bulk of Charles's domain was now at peace with only the Frontiers being active zones of combat on the one hand an Empire can provide such stability on the other it requires long years of Bloodshed to achieve but to Charlemagne's Christian subjects it must have been a sort of golden age but not everyone living under Frankish rule felt content in Saxony unrest continued this is not surprising given the harshness of Frankish rule the penalty for any Saxon violating a Christian principle was death even for eating meat during Lent or cremating the dead in the old traditional fashion to strengthen Christian power in Saxony Charles gave the clergy the right to absolve anyone guilty of violating Frankish law making the priests and Bishops virtually absolute in their power over life and death for ordinary people this was an obvious formula for abuse of power to rub salt in the wound the Saxons already impoverished by Decades of War had to pay taxes for the upkeep of Christian churches that Charles forced them to build thus after three decades of virtually endless war Saxon guerrillas continued to resist Frankish domination the memory of verdennes still burned fiercely in many sacks and hearts and at every opportunity bands of Saxon Warriors would Ambush Frankish convoys and slay Imperial envoys and priests as one indignant Frankish chronicler put it the Saxons like dogs return always to their own vomit for the Saxons however this was justified retaliation against a brutal oppressor and their traditional beliefs were cherished banners of resistance now in his 60s Charlemagne personally LED one of his final military campaigns once again marching into Saxony at the head of a large army he called on his Slavic allies to help in quashing the Saxons as usual the Saxon gorillas melted before the full power of a Frankish Army this time Charles didn't perform a mass execution instead he ordered the dispersal of the Saxon peoples throughout his Empire the Slavs received one whole region of Saxony for their service and vast tracts of Saxony were virtually depopulated by scattering thousands of Saxon men women and children throughout his vast lands and thus breaking their ability to live together and maintain their traditional bonds Charles at last broke sex and resistance Saxony had been pacified and christianized after three decades of unremitting brutality today it's difficult to quantify the human cost but it was undeniably immense the brutality of Charlemagne the Conqueror contrasts sharply with Charles The Family Man from our own source material it seems that the emperor enjoyed spending time with his wife and children which isn't necessarily a given among monarchs he was married at least four times outliving several wives and had many concubines Charles's favorite wife seems to have been his last loot guard famed for her beauty and poise Charles took his wife and children with him as he journeyed throughout his vast domain and they would join him for Hunting Expeditions foreign Charles would settle in with his family his Frankish Warriors and his court clergyman to enjoy a meal of the game killed in the chase during the meal one of the household Scholars such as Alcorn or Engelberg might rise to recite a poem or work of literature some of Charles's gruffer Warriors groaned at this but they knew not to argue with the Emperor who deeply prized the literary Arts there was little heavy drinking in the Hall of Charlemagne for he despised drunkenness he preferred instead as alquin put it the wine of learning at dinner he also enjoyed hearing the reading of histories or Augustine's city of God his favorite book which he pondered and discussed at length with his court Scholars Charlemagne doted on his daughters the court put Engelbert gives a striking description of Charlemagne's daughters enjoying a hunt with their father's Court there was rotary Charlemagne's favorite her pale blonde hair intertwined with ribbons of violet and strings of pearls a Coronet of gold circling her head next came the lovely Bertha wearing a golden diadem with golden filaments sparkling in her gleaming hair her snowy shoulders covered by an ermine wrap her belt shining in Many Colors then there was Lily white gisler Apparel in a purple gown shot through with mauve her face her hair gleaming with many lights even the teenage theodrid was clad in rare emeralds adorning her lovely neck Charlemagne's daughters were well educated and accompanied their father along with their brothers at various processions feasts and hunts as the fame of their beauty and Grace spread many foreign rulers tried to arrange marriage matches with Charles the Great's daughters even the Byzantine emperor wanted Charlemagne to send him a daughter for a marriage Alliance the ultimate prestige however Charlemagne refused no matter how many offers he received Charlemagne would not allow his daughters to marry why is this well the short answer is if they'd married they would have had to have left home but why didn't Charlemagne want his daughters to leave home einhardt Charlemagne's Court biographer gives us an answer he states that the old Emperor was so fond of his daughters that he simply could not part from them some historians preferring political motivations to personal have rejected this but we shouldn't be so quick to dismiss einhardt's insights there's probably a great deal of Truth in Earnhardt's statement after all Charlemagne did have his daughters with him as often as he could but there may also have been a broader purpose to Charlemagne's policy here in refusing to allow his daughters to marry he prevented the formation of foreign Cadet branches to his dynasty this prevented future competition for Frankish lands Charles spent his Reign building a vast Empire and he did not want it destroyed in A Storm of familial conflict already he was worried for his sons were said to each inherit a portion of his Empire in keeping with Frankish tradition he wanted them to reign as brother Kings acting together rather than his Rivals this was a tall order but throwing in grandsons from foreign kingdoms trying to grab a piece of the Empire with only further complicate things Janet Nelson points out that Charles's daughter served another important function they gave their father political help with the household and the court they were channels of patronage he could control and sources of information he needed they were capable and trusted advisors and supporters although they never married sacramentally Charles's daughters did take what we might anachronistically call today common law husbands high-ranking noblemen loyal to their father one of these men was Engelbert the poet mentioned earlier who was a loyal agent of Charlemagne throughout his life Engelbert was the husband of Bertha from these Partnerships came many grandchildren and Charlemagne's Palace was soon filled with rambunctious youngsters calling him grandfather Charles embraced all of these children and he enjoyed being their grandfather all the more because none of them could possibly pose a future challenge to his heirs during this early period in medieval Europe old traditions of the Germanic tribes often lingered alongside the Christian law in this environment there might be a layered idea to marriage on the one hand Christian sacramental marriage was required for official standing for the bearing of heirs and for the making of political matches but in more intimate circles earlier more tribal ideas of marriage might persist we will see this manifest later in the age of Duke Robert of Normandy father of William the Conqueror who took as His companion herleva regarded in many ways as his wife by the Norman Warrior Elite though he never married her sacramentally in the Christian church this Dynamic may be at play in the manner of Charlemagne's daughters [Applause] given the choice toward the close of his Reign Charlemagne was surely proud of what he'd built he'd turned the kingdom of the Franks into an Empire and was crowned as Roman Emperor by the Pope in Rome but as he aged Charles must have felt some anxiety about the future of his domain would his descendants be able to keep what he'd won would his Empire endure today we'll learn about the final years of Charlemagne and the forecast for his son and Heir Louis the pious in early 806 Charles the great convened with his sons and his capital of arkhan with his heirs assembled before the Frankish Lords Nobles and clergyman the emperor announced his final will the chronicler einhard carried a copy of the will to Pope Leo to be witnessed by the pontiff and proclaimed in Rome the published document affirmed the status quo Frankish custom dictated that a ruler Grant a realm to each of his sons and Charles had done just this long ago now an emperor Charles likely regretted this earlier decision to divide his realm but by now there was little he could do to change it his sons already ruled in their own sub-kingdoms and any attempt to alter this Arrangement would surely result in Civil War in his will Charles stressed endlessly that his sons must keep peace with one another and Rule together as loving Brothers he insisted that this was the very command of God they must allow their subjects to travel and marry freely across their borders and above all they must not war with one another Charles also instructed his sons to protect the church [Music] however at the close of the first decade of the 9th century plague swept through Italy and Central Europe and word arrived that the Danes planned to attack Charles's Empire expecting a Danish Invasion Charles LED his army to ferdin in 810 the very site of his Massacre of the Saxons years earlier the curse of ferdin seemed to haunt the Aging Emperor for here he received word that his beloved daughter rottrude had died of plague also Charles lost his sister gizler the emperor grieved deeply did he wonder if this was punishment for his harsh treatment of the Saxons worse was to follow still at ferdin Charles received news that his son Pepin died meanwhile throughout the Empire cattle began to perish of some strange illness even the elephant Abul Abbas succumbed to the ailment ultimately the Danish Invasion never materialized but as Charles and his army marched home a meteor flashed across the sky the emperor's horse shied and threw its Rider to the ground causing him to lose his sword and his cloak einhardt wrote he was disarmed and disrobed making it clear that he saw the fall as a dark portent finally in December of 811 young Charles also died grief seemed to endlessly assail the old Emperor only one of his sons remained Louis although he'd governed Aquitaine since his Boyhood Louis was the least capable of Charlemagne's Sons he preferred prayer to politics and this earned him the title Louis the pious [Music] but Charles was convinced that Louis could maintain the unity of his Empire and affirmed that Louis and no other would inherit the crown meanwhile the Aging Charlemagne sought solace in God he discussed Doctrine with the clergy prepared a text of the four gospels and donated the bulk of his personal Fortune to the church now in his seventies he began to suffer fevers and gout he often withdrew to his private chamber too ill to hold Court [Music] however in 812 when ambassadors from the Byzantine Empire arrived at Arkin Charles greeted them personally this visit concluded years of negotiation between the two empires in return for a treaty of Peace in which the Frank's relinquished Venezia and Dalmatia the byzantines agreed to recognize Charlemagne's Imperial title [Music] at this point Charles conferred on his son Louis the title of emperor throughout this period the emperor kept Louis at his side instructing him in the art of governance Louis was 35 Married with Children of his own Charles strove not only to educate his son in political matters but also to impart to him the virtues of a good life so that he might always conform himself to the laws of God in September of 813 Charles assembled his Dukes counts Bishops and abbots for the coronation of Louis as Emperor Charles arrayed himself in his Imperial robes which he'd rarely worn since his own coronation holding to Louie's arm for support he approached the altar of his great church at arkhan on the altar sat a magnificent Crown akin to the crown that had awaited Charles 13 years prior in the Basilica of Saint Peter Louis and his father knelt together in prayer at last the emperor Rose he turned to face the assembly and launched into a speech which turned into a long sermon like a priest King Charles preached to his son to love God to guard the church to treat his family well to honor the clergy and to protect the common people to provide for widows orphans and the poor Louis voiced his resolve to abide by his father's wishes then Charlemagne placed the crown on his son's head raising the young man to his feet Charles embraced him Louis like his father was now emperor interestingly Charles did not ask the pope or a bishop to perform this coronation does this reveal something about his attitude toward his own crowning is this proof that einhard was right that Charlemagne did not approve of the Pope having been the one to actually crown him perhaps Charles was concerned that the church might try to set the precedent of its own superiority over the authority of the Emperor or perhaps this interpretation is anachronistic looking ahead to later clashes between Emperor and Pope perhaps Charles simply didn't even consider that a clergyman was needed for the crowning what Authority could be higher than the emperor it's difficult to separate later developments from this moment in the 9th century especially given the tremendous conflict that ultimately developed between church and state we can be certain however that the coronation of Louis by Charles himself certainly reflects the emperor's own perception of authority in his Empire Emperor crowning Emperor father crowning son Nobles and Bishops looking on from the assembly Louie's coronation was the final Public Act of Charlemagne after this he recovered his old Vigor for a time and spent October indulging in the hunt but that winter he again fell ill in January of 814 he suffered a fever which soon affected his lungs on the 28th Charlemagne died having reigned as one of the most significant monarchs in history he was 71. his family and followers interred him in the church he'd built at arkhan [Music] Louis took the throne unopposed but his Reign would not at all resemble his fathers crucially Louis lacked The Towering personality of his father he was a Mika more withdrawn man however Louis can't be blamed entirely for the ultimate fate of Charlemagne's empire in some ways this new Empire was assembled rapidly attempting to meld the concepts of ancient Rome with Frankish kingship had Louis had some of his father's natural gifts this process of amalgamation might have continued and even ultimately triumphed as it was the political Unity of the Empire would not be Charlemagne's enduring Legacy other important aspects of Charles the Great's Reign lived on his Empire revived the European world after centuries of decline in the wake of the collapse of the Roman Empire depopulated regions were once again inhabited and Lively in agriculture and trade towns sprang back to life and lands were resettled Charlemagne also greatly expanded the Latin Christian World though often through brutal Warfare as in the case of the Saxons this laid the groundwork for medieval Europe which would in its Essence be Frankish the growth of towns and trade during Charlemagne's Reign would leave a lasting impact he built New Roads which facilitated safe travel increased wealth led to revived arts and crafts learning and literature painters sculptors Ivory Carvers goldsmiths and other artists and Craftsmen found employment in Charlemagne's empire some of these men came from Rome Constantinople and even Baghdad leading to a fertile cross-pollination of mode and ideas Charlemagne's patronage of learning would endure far beyond his death his grandsons and great-grandsons would continue to attract poets Scholars and philosophers to their courts the schools established in Frankish monasteries during Charlemagne's Reign would continue to preserve ancient texts and Foster a love of learning but perhaps the most enduring aspect of Charlemagne's Reign would be the impact of his figure upon the imagination of medieval civilization he would come to be the model of kingship stories were told and retold of his generosity to the poor his Justice as a judge his gallantry as a warrior and his further as a Christian Kings and Emperors would emulate him and churchmen would point to him as an example even today his memory endures as an icon of monarchy foreign only two years after Charlemagne's death Pope Leo III who had crowned him Emperor also died the new pope Stephen V traveled to France almost immediately intent on maintaining the traditional alliance between Emperor and Pope at the time Louis the Pius was presiding over a council of church reform in akhan where the rule of Saint Benedict Was Made the standard for monasteries throughout the Empire from there Louis traveled to ramps where he met with Pope Stephen blessed be the Lord Our God the pope proclaimed who has given me to see with my eyes a second King David that Sunday the pope crowned Louis as Emperor using a jeweled Crown said to have belonged to Constantine Louie's wife Erin guard was crowned as empress [Music] in 817 Louis named his eldest son lother his sole successor this was an important step and showed that Louis was conscious of the need to maintain the Integrity of his father's Empire but in keeping with Frankish tradition Louis did provide lands for his other two sons Pepin and Louis in October 818 the empress Erin guard died suddenly Louis a man who drove on the support of those closest to him was devastated at first he was inconsolable but then in early 819 he married Judith daughter of count wealth of Bavaria Judith was much younger than the emperor astoundingly beautiful and ambitious she began to exert a decisive influence on her husband in 823 she bore him a son Charles named for his legendary grandfather Judith at once began to pursue the political interests of her child that Easter lothaire was crowned co-emperer and king of Italy but after conferring with his father he agreed to Grant a territory to his four-month-old half-brother Charles although this seemed like a minor concession it revealed the pliability of Louie's will the domain assigned to Baby Charles contained parts of Bavaria Switzerland and burgundy on both banks of the Rhine all territory lother had expected to rule himself [Music] Louis sentlo there a way to rule Italy and stopped including his eldest son's name on official decrees meanwhile one of Judith's favorites Bernard of septimania was appointed Chamberlain the most important Imperial office it seemed that Louis was taking the Imperial succession away from lothaire and either preparing to name Charles as his Heir or to create some sort of equal division of the Empire many of the Frankish Bishops and Nobles were alarmed by these developments and understood that this could lead to the collapse of the Empire amid this increasing uncertainty Louis second and third Sons Pepin and Louis launched their own Revolt supported by many of Charlemagne's surviving advisors the brothers seized their father and stepmother Judith and drove the Chamberlain Bernard into Spain imprisoned by his sons the emperor Louis was forced to cancel his most recent division of the realm and restore the terms of 817. however after he was freed Louis convened an assembly in October Calling on all loyal men to Rally to him he released Judith and restored his government in 831 he formally deprived lothaire of the title of co-emperer and divided his Empire among his four Sons the Archbishop agabard of Leon wrote a scathing critique of this revival of the old policy of division subsequent events would prove the wisdom in the archbishop's words Pepin soon rebelled again Louis defeated him imprisoned him and gave his inheritance to Charles but in 833 Pepin escaped and formed an alliance with his brothers and young Louis supported by the Archbishop agabard the brothers assembled an army and met the forces of their father along the Rhine Pope Gregory IV traveled up from Rome to try to mediate between Father and Sons for five days the emperor and the pope discussed the issue but the emperor's support was collapsing more and more of the nobility rallied to the sons of Louis the pious this was the culmination of Louis fickle policies the Frankish magnates no longer trusted the emperor to maintain the stability of the Empire indeed Louis Sons argued that they were acting precisely to secure the Integrity of the realm ultimately Louis supports so collapsed that he had to surrender to his sons lothar Pepin and young Louis declared their father deposed Judith and Charles were taken from him Pope Gregory IV returned to Rome deeply Disturbed alliances continued to shift hepbin and young Louis began to mistrust their older brother and returned to the camp of their father Louis the pious was restored to power in 834 rejoined by Judith and his youngest son Charles but the empire was far from stable and fighting continued to break out among various factions of the Imperial family Louis was powerless to stop the destruction of his inheritance in 840 he died a Broken Man of 62 amidst yet another campaign against his disloyal Sons with his death any semblance of the old United Empire of Charlemagne died as well their father gone the sons of Louis the Pius would battle each other the 9th century the Viking age in England While most of Britain fell to the fierce sea Raiders from Scandinavia the kingdom of the West Saxons under Alfred the Great would resist in the 870s the Vikings intensified their efforts and Alfred's domains seemed doomed to fall finally in 878 at the Battle of Eddington the West Saxons were facing annihilation King Alfred LED his troops in a desperate Last Stand the outcome of this battle would determine the future of not only the kingdom of the West Saxons but of all England at his birth Alfred the Great was not expected to be king he was born in 849 at Wantage in Berkshire youngest son of King aval the West Saxons he had four older brothers and a sister years later Alfred's biographer would claim he'd been the favorite Child although this might be a later embellishment young Alfred grew up at the Royal Court cared for and educated by his parents and his tutors as a boy he accompanied his Royal father and mother as they traveled throughout their Kingdom no teachers were available at the time to instruct him in Latin or the liberal arts a fact about which Alfred would later complain and seek to Remedy by establishing his own schools but as a boy he loved poetry and memorized many songs of the old Anglo-Saxon Heroes Alfred's biographer Asser recounts an incident that reflected Alfred's Lifelong Love of learning one day Alfred's mother presented her sons with a beautiful book of English poetry and promised to give it to whichever of them could memorize it first Alfred was immediately enamored with the book he took it at once to his teacher and with his help quickly committed the contents to memory he then recited the Poetry before his mother at which point she proudly presented the prized book to her son a momentous early experience for Alfred was his Boyhood trip to Rome King of the wolf sent the young Alfred to the Eternal City in 853 so that he might benefit from the intellectual and spiritual resources of the papal Court Alfred traveled again to Roman 855 this time with his newly widowed father on the way Alfred and his father stopped at the Frankish Court of Charles the bald where they were warmly received Alfred's childhood trips to Rome and the Frankish Kingdom allowed him to Relish in the scholarship and culture of these important courts years later Alfred would recall these experiences as he established educational institutions in his own kingdom calling on learned men from the continent to help him Alfred's father died in 858 several of Alfred's older brothers held the throne in quick succession but it was during the reign of athelworth's fourth son athelrid that the Kingdom of Wessex faced a pivotal threat from the Vikings in 865 a viking host known to the Christian chroniclers as the great Heathen Army arrived in England this was the largest and most disciplined Danish Force yet faced by the Anglo-Saxons led by Two Brothers Afton and Ivar believed to be sons of Ragnar lodbrook this Invasion would shake the very Foundation of 9th century England dramatically altering the political situation in little over a decade the great Army wintered in East Anglia extracting tribute of horses from the East anglian King Edmond in 866 the Danes moved northward intent on capturing York northumbria was in a state of Civil War two Royal brothers osbert and Ayla were distracted battling each other and did not recognize the Danish threat the Vikings captured the ancient Roman Fort of York too late ospread and Ayla tried to fight back but both were killed the north umbrians were compelled to submit and provide tribute tragically York's great library and monastic School were lost in the words of historian Max Adams a foreign army now sat within York's crumbling ruins plundering the hinterland and dispensing Justice by right of arms now equipped with horses the Viking Army divided into mounted and Naval contingents and drove into Mercia in 867 they besieged and captured Nottingham over recent decades the neighboring Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex had developed an increasingly close Alliance now king burgrid of Mercia asked athelrid Alfred and their West Saxons for help against the Viking advance the Anglo-Saxons besieged the Vikings at Nottingham but failed to starve them into submission the two sides negotiated a truce athelren and bergrid strengthened their bond by organizing a marriage Alliance Alfred was to wet ouswith a mercy and noblewoman of royal descent Wessex joined forces with Mercia and in 868 their Coalition marched out to confront the Vikings at Nottingham no major engagement took place but the Vikings did hesitate to confront this large if not Superior Force ultimately the Vikings withdrew to York where they would remain for a year finally in age 69 the Vikings struck out down the coast of East Anglia King Edmund and his East angles marched out to face them in November the Vikings defeated and killed him and overran the region they destroyed every Monastery in the vicinity slaughtering many monks by 871 the Vikings established a base at reading raising up a defensive ramper from here they launched an attack on Wessex King athelwood and his brother Alfred LED their forces out to attack the fort but they were repulsed with heavy losses feeling confident after this Victory the Viking Army marched out of reading under Houston and a Chieftain called backseat ready to strike the decisive blow in Open Country they came face to face with the Anglo-Saxon host athlrid divided his army into two contingents commanding One Wing himself while his brother Alfred commanded the other the Vikings were also arrayed in two formations one under Houston the other under backsec this would result in an hour's long and brutal Clash of Shield walls one of the pivotal engagements of the period the Battle of Ashdown after the life of King Alfred describes the encounter the Vikings had taken the higher position first and the Christians were deploying their battle line from a lower position a rather small and solitary Thorn Tree grew there around which the opposing armies clashed violently with loud shouting from all one side acting wrongfully and the other side set to fight for Life loved ones in country when both sides had been fighting to and fro resolutely and ferociously for quite a long time the Vikings by Divine judgment were unable to withstand the Christian's Onslaught any longer and when a great part of their forces had fallen they took to ignominious flight one of the two Viking Kings and five Earls were cut down in that place and many thousands on the Viking side were slain there too or rather over the whole broad expanse of Ashdown scattered everywhere far and wide the Christians followed them until Nightfall cutting them down on all sides bagsik was killed in the engagement along with many of his Leading Men how often managed to retreat apple red and Alfred at first believed they decisively defeated the conquerors of northumbria and East Anglia but the victory only brought temporary relief two weeks later the Viking Army had reformed and in another engagement drove the West Saxons from the field the fighting would continue and 871 would come to be known as the year of the nine battles the exact outcome of this intensive period of campaigning is unknown except that the situation remained mostly unchanged with the Vikings dominating the Northeast and the kingdoms of mercy and Wessex on the defensive the Vikings were willing to travel fast and far and to strike deep into enemy territory the Anglo-Saxons were in a perilous and long-term War [Music] it was amid all this uncertainty and trial that the West Saxons lost their King by Easter Applewood was dead of battle wounds thus an unlikely situation came to pass Alfred youngest son of King alpha wolf was about to take the Throne of Wessex he could hardly have been crowned under more trying circumstances from the moment he became king of the West Saxons Alfred the Great was confronted with the Mortal threat of the Vikings but Alfred had considerable experience as a commander having fought alongside his brother the late King athlrid in addition Alfred was plagued throughout his life by a medical infirmity described by the king's friend and biographer Bishop Asser today historians believe this may have been Crohn's disease a chronic illness that can go into remission for long periods but is terribly painful during flare-ups despite this ailment Alfred was a very active and dutiful ruler the condition did not prevent him from fathering children Joanna Armand estimates that Alfred's first child and firstborn daughter athelfood was born around this time in roughly 870. Alfred the Great was crowned during a period of profound turmoil to the English of the time it must have seemed like the end of days the Vikings had destroyed all but two of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Britain Kings had been martyred houses of God had been despoiled monasteries left in ruins the thriving trade of the 8th Century had broken down learning was at a low point Alfred would later complain that south of the river Humber there was scarcely illiterate priest left a month after Alfred the Great took the throne in 871 he faced two Viking armies on the battlefield near Wilton the Viking Coalition was formidable indeed its ranks multiplied by the presence of the great summer Army in this engagement the Anglo-Saxons were defeated and Alfred concluded that he could not eliminate the immediate threat to his kingdom without buying off the Invaders this was an old but never permanent solution to Viking attacks it often only invited further hostility and increasingly Alfred was not capable of maintaining this financially ruinous policy the king's own Estates could not produce the Dane Guild and so it had to be raised from the people of Wessex and from church Estates the following year the great Heathen Army took steps to consolidate their gains under the Viking Chieftain healthton they moved into Mercia here the Vikings set up base in Repton during the winter of 873-74 northumbria and East Anglia were already under their control in the past Wessex had brought Aid to Murcia but not this time the mercians were powerless to overcome the Danes King burgrid and his wife were deposed and went into exile bergrid fled to Rome where he died the following year wife King Alfred's own sister finished her days in a nunnery never again would an independent King rule Mercia instead the Danes established their own puppet ruler the following year the Danish host divided Halton marched North to consolidate power in northumbria the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle simply States halften shared out the lands of the northumbrians and they proceeded to plow and support themselves this passage has invited much debate did the Vikings seize Land from the locals or did they purchase Estates from native Lords with the treasure now weighing down their coffers whatever the case it's clear that halton's company settled in York as a permanent home here the land was fertile an opposition non-existent this was an ideal place for these Danish adventurers to settle in and put down roots place names of the region today indicate the mixing of Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon language as the former Raiders became cultivators of the Land There was also an interaction of peoples even cooperation and trade Vikings were marrying into the local population and it was not just Warriors arriving from the Scandinavian Homeland there is evidence that the Danes were bringing their women with them as well another sign that the Vikings were settling in as farmers and no longer acting as mere Raiders [Music] meanwhile the summer host under guthrum remained in Mercia they established a base at Cambridge for the year guthrum's Ambitions were now focused on the final unconquered territory in England Wessex [Music] in 876 guthrum's Army entered the kingdom they evaded Alfred's Army seizing Wareham in Dorset at first Alfred besieged the enemy in their stronghold he was forced to withdraw when he learned of a large Viking Fleet cruising along the coast of Wessex intent on reinforcing guthrum once again the king had to negotiate guthrum swore to leave Wessex and gave hostages as assurance this time however Alfred wanted a stronger guarantee Lutheran agreed to swear the oath on a holy ring this was a solemn practice among the Vikings and the ring used on this occasion has been identified as a ring of Thor a large gold band worn on the chieftain's arm used by the Danes themselves in the exchanging of Oaths nevertheless Alfred's effort at appealing to Viking piety proved useless guthrum did not keep to his vow perhaps the Viking leader was adopting the advice of Odin from the sayings of the high one if there's a man whom you don't trust but from whom you want nothing but good speak fairly to him but think falsely [Music] guthrum and his men murdered their West sacks and hostages then Slipped Away by night to exit her the fleet mentioned earlier was at this time destroyed in a storm off the coast of swanage this resulted in the loss of some 120 ships a serious blow to guthrum's efforts following the storm Alfred and his forces encamped before Exeter the king refused to attack the town to dislodge the Invaders but the Saxons were well positioned and guthrum was unable to resupply his army once again the two sides came to terms [Music] having terrorized Wessex for more than a year guthrum finally withdrew in August 877. meanwhile discontent was brewing among the West Saxons many were frustrated with Alfred's handling of the Viking Menace the Archbishop of Canterbury wrote to the pope complaining of the king's practice of paying off the Danes recently some historians have suggested that high-ranking members of the West Saxon nobility may have even tried to depose Alfred this may be why the kingdom was so woefully unprepared when guthrum attacked again the King was celebrating Christmas at Chippenham when the Danes arrived and began spreading havoc the Vikings had executed the maneuver brilliantly achieving total surprise and if in fact Alfred's regime was collapsing and a coup was in progress this would have left the king and his inner circle all the more vulnerable the surprise of the attack along possibly with the Revolt of the West Saxon nobility left Alfred no option but to retreat into the forest with his family and his personal retinue of Warriors and followers thank you Alfred made the difficult Journey Through the Woods of Somerset he and his companions were reduced to living off what they could forage and hunt throughout the bitter winter months they lived as fugitives Asser describes the virtual chaos of this period by strength of arms the Vikings forced many Saxons to sail overseas through both poverty and fear and very nearly all the inhabitants of that region submitted to their Authority [Music] Alfred was determined to bounce back from this defeat after Easter 878 he established a fortress at athenny amidst the somerset marshes from here he dispatched intelligence gathering missions trying to Rouse the spirits of his people and to discover who would rally to his call against the enemy he also sent bands of Warriors to execute hit and run raids on the Vikings who weren't numerous enough to control the whole of the territory in May 878 with spring turning the world green again Alfred departed athlete and rode to Egbert Stone East of Sellwood in a great expanse of Woodland here the king met with those Shire forces on Whose support he could still rely ER describes the relief of the West Saxons of the sight of their King despair had been widespread in Wessex but now here was Alfred alive and rallying his men to fight back intelligence sound and his army assembled Alfred now acted decisively the king marched out with his men guthrum an excellent commander in his own right was well aware of Alfred's movements the Viking leader prepared his own forces to deal with the West Saxon counter-offensive it was guthrum who selected the site of the battle positioning his forces on a Hilltop surrounded by ditches this would oblige Alfred to fight uphill and also would prevent the Vikings from being outflanked the West Saxons now arrived at Eddington in Wiltshire here they met guthrum and his Viking Army battle began Joanna Armand writes that despite television portrayals Saxons and Vikings used similar weapons and equipment large rounded Shields with metal bosses were held in front to form a hopefully impenetrable wall swords were high status weapons owned only by the very wealthy most men would have used a long spear stabbing with it over the shield wall in an effort to penetrate enemy ranks as the shield walls met both sides would have hacked and stabbed at one another trying to exploit gaps in the opponent's formation Acer describes the engagement when the next morning dawn Alfred moved his forces and came to a place called Eddington and fighting fiercely with a compact Shield wall against the entire Viking Army he persevered resolutely for a long time at length he gained the victory through God's will he destroyed the Vikings with great Slaughter and pursued those who fled as far as the stronghold packing them down Max Adams writes that Alfred's advantages lay in his command of an army defending its Homeland and in the Tactical superiority Anglo-Saxon open field Warfare against a marine assault Force honed to perfection in the art of raiding Alfred pursued the defeated Danes all the way to their Fortress at Chippenham the West Saxon seized the enemy's livestock and settled in for a Siege after a fortnight the Vikings capitulated guthrum surrendered entirely on Alfred's terms the Vikings gave hostages Alfred gave none the Invaders also promised to evacuate Wessex immediately the terms were sealed three weeks later near athelny when guthrum and his Leading Men submitted to baptism as Christians no doubt from the perspective of the West Saxons the ceremony was a powerful symbol of Christian triumph over Danish hedonism this was a dramatic Turning Point Asser tells us that never before had the Vikings made such a capitulation Alfred's Triumph at Eddington achieved nothing less than the salvation of his kingdom he'd been on the verge of losing everything but this Victory restored his position no doubt Alfred understood that the Viking offensive was aimed at nothing less than the Total Conquest of Wessex he knew that his only option was to fight and win a complete victory the actual course of the battle remains obscure to historians but certainly Alfred and his men Rose to the occasion it's possible that the West Saxons had the numerical advantage over guthrum's Army as the Viking forces appear to have been fewer than during previous attacks after the decisive West Saxon victory at Eddington the Viking Army withdrew from Chippenham the following year they returned to East Anglia where they settled and shared out the land this marks the final stage in the establishment of the Dane law the Viking ruled territories of England no longer content to Simply extract tribute from the local populations the Danes now tried to enforce their own political rule total subjugation of England proved impossible so they contended themselves to consolidating their hold of Eastern and Northern portions distinctly Danish political structures would leave a lasting and subtle influence in these regions [Music] meanwhile Alfred's victory at Eddington marks the beginning of a period of respite for the Kingdom of Wessex which would last throughout the 880s Alfred took full advantage of this situation he recognized that his kingdom had not been prepared for the ravages of the Danes at once he implemented programs of military cultural and civil reform that transformed and strengthened Wessex this period proved that Alfred was not only a capable Commander but a truly wise and creative ruler his Innovations would not only fortify his people against future Viking aggression but Elevate the intellectual and spiritual lives of the West Saxons [Music] Alfred defeated the Vikings at Eddington but the battle had been a close run affair the West Saxons had nearly lost everything these events prompted much reflection in Alfred the king recognized that his people had been unprepared for the Viking onslaught now Alfred was determined to correct this problem he set out to strengthen his people not only militarily but culturally intellectually and spiritually Alfred understood that it had been far too easy for Viking forces to penetrate and ravage Saxon territory the king therefore established a network of fortresses called Burroughs to inhibit invasion Bishop Asser Alfred's friend and biographer tells us that the king himself was closely involved in various construction projects many of Alfred's subjects expressed doubts that the immensity of these building campaigns but the king insisted on them and ultimately had his way future events would reveal the Brilliance of Alfred's network of boroughs the building sites were strategically selected guarding the main routes into and within the kingdom the forts were distributed in such a way that most people lived no more than 20 miles from a defended position the Saxons employed great thought and planning in determining what sort of borough would be placed in a particular location in some cases Roman or Iron Age forts were modified or enhanced while some boroughs were entirely new constructions most remarkable were Alfred's fortified towns again some of these were built around earlier Roman sites streets were laid out in a grid to ensure ease of movement within the town during an attack Alfred also reorganized the West Saxon Army to maximize the effectiveness of his fortresses as the chronicle States the king had divided his army in two so that always half its men were at home half out on service except for those men who were to Garrus and the boroughs Alfred's practical defensive reforms are admirable but he sought to strengthen his kingdom on a deeper level During the period of Viking invasions Latin literacy had declined to remedy the lack of Scholars in Wessex Alfred sought learned men from abroad from Mercia he secured churchmen of learning he also dispatched Messengers to the carolingian Empire attracting the services of learned monks such as grimbled of Flanders and John the German foreign whose writings are today our most important source for the life of King Alfred was a Welsh monk from The Abbey of Saint Davids Acer came to be a close friend of the king and became Bishop of Sherborne having gathered a circle of intellectuals at his court Alfred implemented his literary Revival grimbled of Flanders John the German Aster the Welshman and the mercians all came from differing regions and brought with them a variety of intellectual Traditions they contributed manuscripts of their own and set to work refilling the libraries of England Alfred himself enjoyed long discussions with his Scholars they read aloud to him explaining various philosophical points the King was curious and deciduous asking questions and dedicating himself to the study of Latin it's noteworthy that Alfred led by example personally studying books he hoped would edify his subjects Asser says that by 887 the king himself had gained Proficiency in Latin and began translating books again we can admire Alfred's personal dedication to intellectual disciplines for a king busy with political matters it must have been challenging to fit in scholarly Pursuits and yet we know that Alfred loved poetry from childhood he clearly took joy in furthering his own education Alfred not only translated several classic Latin texts he left behind his own notes and commentary because of this we understand Alfred on a personal level far better than any other ruler from medieval England [Music] a key work for Alfred was the book of Pastoral Care by Pope Gregory the Great meant to instruct a bishop in the proper fulfillment of his role Alfred clearly believed that the work was deeply important for Kings as well he created his own translation of the book and composed an introduction that provides insight into his goals and ideals therefore it seems better to me that we too should turn into the language that we can all understand certain books which are most necessary for all men to know so that all the Freeborn young men now in England who have the means to apply themselves to it may be set to learning until the time that they can read English writings properly in addition to pastoral care Alfred was personally responsible for translations and commentaries on three other books boethius's consolation of philosophy Saint Augustine soliloquies and the first 50 Psalms all these books had a personal importance to Alfred and he drew inspiration from them as a ruler Scholars at Alfred's Court prepared translations of other works the king considered crucial Saint Gregory's dialogues histories against the pagans by erosius and Beads ecclesiastical history other English prose writings and translations from the period are also associated with Alfred's reforms Alfred viewed Saint Gregory's pastoral care to be the Cornerstone of his literary Revival for this book urged Bishops to not only pursue wisdom in themselves but to Foster learning in the faithful as well the king had the book distributed to all his Bishops Saint Gregory insists that learning is of primary importance for those in Authority Alfred agreed and stressed that Earl's a noblemen should dedicate themselves to the study of wisdom pastoral care describes how trials and tribulations strengthen and instill virtue in a leader and this surely resonated with Alfred who'd faced grave dangers in the Viking Wars Alfred also cherished the saints insistence that leaders must resist worldly distractions and temptations preferring always the rigors of Duty boethius's consolation of philosophy held a place of personal importance for Alfred 6th Century Noble Roman who at the end of his life faced imprisonment and execution boethius's work wrestles with issues of Injustice and unhappiness and the role of Divine Providence in the fortunes of men although the book was not written from a Christian perspective its themes resonated with Alfred's own view of God's role in the universe Alfred's translation reveals a mind that had thoroughly pondered the questions posed by the text the king's commentary recasts boethius's philosophical problems in terms of his own struggles and trials as a ruler the soliloquies of Saint Augustine provided Alfred a springboard for his own Reflections on the human soul in his preface Alfred Compares his intellectual project to that of a builder making many trips to the forest to select timber for his building projects so too Alfred makes many trips to the church fathers he names Augustine Gregory and Jerome to select the materials for constructing an eternal home for the soul in addition to his own works and the work of his circle of Scholars Alfred established a royal school as an integral part of his efforts not only were his own children educated here but the children of the nobility and even the sons of lesser-born men the study of important books from the classical world was emphasized as well as English Literacy By this Alfred hoped to ensure that the Future Leaders of his kingdom were well-educated men Alfred's reforms laid the groundwork for a blossoming of learning and religious life in the 10th century when his heirs would triumph over the Vikings and Anglo-Saxon culture would flourish but Alfred's own struggles with the Vikings weren't over in the coming years the value of his military and educational reforms would be put to the test when Viking attacks on England resumed wisdom is the highest virtue and it has within it four other virtues one is caution the second moderation the third courage and the fourth Justice wisdom renders those who love it wise and honorable and temperate and patient and just and it fills him who loves it with every good quality this is from Alfred the Great's translation of the consolation of Philosophy by boethius the 880s were years of great activity for Alfred but also years of reflection and study the king spent this period bolstering the military defenses of his kingdom as well as reading and translating The Works of thinkers like boethius Alfred sought to instill wisdom not only in himself but in his subjects as well he knew that his people needed to be strong not only in body but in Mind and Spirit Alfred also spent this period strengthening bonds with his neighbor mercium the crown of Wessex had deep ties to the mercians Alfred was married to a mercian lady Ellsworth and she'd brought with her many family members and clerics from her Homeland historians have long noted that the 880s and 890s particularly saw Alfred's Court filled with mercians it was at this time that athelren lord of the mercians became a fixture at the court of Wessex joining the King on numerous military campaigns the two rulers got to know one another well both on the warpath and in the council chamber Alfred arranged for his eldest daughter athelet to marry the Valiant young Lord of Mercia by the time athlid set off for Mercia in 886 to begin her life as a married woman she was already well acquainted with her husband athelrid and confident that Unity of purpose existed between him and her father at the foot and her brother Edward would carry forward Alfred's Dynasty as children they were educated in the rich literary traditions of the Anglo-Saxons the heroic poetry that had thrilled Alfred as a youngster would have also been inculcated in the young atholfoot and Edward this instilled in them a sense of the Majesty of their own Royal Line Bishop assert tells us of Alfred's legendary ancestry which even included ancient Germanic Scandinavian Gods like Odin Alfred's younger children and other Anglo-Saxon youngsters would benefit from an even more extensive education with the establishment of Alfred's Royal School here Scholars taught classical Latin texts meant to edify young Anglo-Saxons with high wisdom despite these enlightened Pursuits Saxon domains remained harried by violence even after 878 Viking raids still continued to be a problem for Alfred's Kingdom though on a mostly small scale guthrum the Danish king of East Anglia had been a quiet neighbor since his defeated Eddington content to abide by his treaty with Alfred but in 890 guthrum died and this created an opening for other more ambitious adventurers Vikings who had been active on the continent since 879 suffered a major defeat at the Battle of the river dial in 891 a famine the following year drove them to return to the coast of Flanders from there they struck at England landing on the coast and attempting to penetrate a sparsely defended thickly forested area known as the great wood the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recounts this attack of 892. in this year the great Viking Army came up the Estuary of the Lyman with 250 ships this Estuary is an Eastern Kent at the East End of the great wood the wood from east to west is 120 miles long or longer and 30 miles wide the river flows out of that Forest they rode their ships up the river as far as the forest four miles from the outer part of the Estuary and there they attacked a fortification located in the Marshland a few commoners were present inside and it was only half made then shortly afterwards past Stein came up the Thames Estuary with 80 ships and made a fortification for himself at Milton and the other Viking Army made one at appledore this passage captures the Brilliance of the Viking strategy two separate Naval forces penetrated the kingdom by river at a remote heavily forested location overcoming light local resistance and establishing two separate bases the Army as the chronicler noted was under the leadership of hasstein a charismatic Norse adventurer who would replace guthrum as king Alfred's Arch opponent has Stein's backstory has all the makings of a Viking Legend he'd previously raided in Spain and North Africa and even attempted an attack on Rome now he had his sights set on Wessex the chronicle describes how Alfred handled the sudden assault and then King Alfred assembled his army and advanced so that he encamped between the two Viking armies at a point where he had the best access both to the forest stronghold at appledore and the river stronghold at Milton so that he could reach either one if they chose to make for any open country then the Vikings set out afterwards through the forest in small bands and riding companies along whatever side was undefended by the English army and they were also pursued by other troops almost every day either by day or by Night both from the English army and also from the boroughs Alfred's intention was to prevent the Danes from freely raiding throughout his kingdom or from breaking out of their forts he dispatched his own raiding parties to harass both Viking armies and to intercept their Communications we can see now the benefits of Alfred's Burl system neither Danish Army could move about as it wished everywhere they went they were confronted by strong local forces and the towns were well defended easy plunder was scarcely to be found after a few months Alfred opened negotiations with hastein accompanied by Lord athlren the king met with the Viking leader and the two parties agreed to terms Hast Stein swore to depart the kingdom and offered hostages two of these hostages were hastine's own Sons both were baptized with Alfred and aforeid acting as their Godfathers the chronicle even tells us that Alfred paid the Vikings quote a good deal of money it seems unbelievable that the victor of Eddington would return to the hated old practice of paying Dane Guild and yet this appears to be exactly what happened in assessing this moment in Alfred's career we should consider the dangerous situation he was facing his victory at Eddington had been a close run Affair and indeed he'd nearly lost his kingdom now for the first time in years two powerful Viking forces were on his doorstep Alfred was surely nervous about the prospect of another existential crisis for Wessex perhaps he decided to try for an easy solution and see if he could convert hastine to another guthrum post 878 guthrum's rule in East Anglia had been mostly stabilizing for Wessex by having guthrum's son baptized the king may have hoped to recreate such a favorable situation as it turned out Alfred would be disappointed Pastime crossed the Thames settled with his army at Ben Fleet in Essex and it once resumed pillaging Alfred's lands at Easter of 893 the other larger Viking Army at appledore set off in their ships to join hastein at Essex Alfred Was preparing to set out against the enemy when the worst possible news arrived in the weeks after Easter a third Viking Army composed of Danes from northumbria and East Anglia landed at Exeter Alfred set off to meet this new Invasion while his son Prince Edward marched to confront the appledore Vikings although he was only about 20 years old Edward was expected to lead troops in the field the chronicle of alderman Applewood recounts the battle that followed and after Easter of that year the Viking Army which had arrived from gaulish Parts broke camp and by following the hiding places of a certain vast Forest which is commonly called the Great wood they got as far as Western England and devastated the provinces thereabout these matters were made known to Prince Edward the son of King Alfred he had been conducting a campaign throughout the southern parts of England but afterward he was joined by the Western English the engagement took place at Farnam with the dense throng shrieking with threats without delay the young men attacked with weapons they were duly liberated by the prince's arrival the Viking leader was wounded and the Saxons drove the filthy crowds of his supporters Across the River Thames to Northern parts thus young Edward won his first battle the Saxons recovered a great deal of booty and the Vikings fled to thorny Island here Edward besieged the enemy in their campsite however Edward ran into a serious problem the levees under his command were running short of provisions and nearing the end of their terms of service they grumbled at the prospect of a long Siege many of these men were due to return to their Garrison assignments at various boroughs the situation was saved by the arrival of Lord athoren with a mercian army from London Edward and apple would open negotiations and the Vikings agreed to depart the area atherad now further demonstrated his capabilities leading a combined force of mercians and West Saxons he surprised halstein at its base of benfleet the chronicle provides a memorable account of this battle and then the English arrived and put the Viking Army to flight and stormed the fortification and seized everything that was inside in the way of goods women and children as well and they brought everything to London and then they either broke up or burned all the ships and hastines two sons and his wife were brought to the king hastine's Fortress was destroyed at benfleet but he managed to slip away with most of his men this was the norseman's most remarkable Talent making him an enduring thorn in the side of the Anglo-Saxons hastine established a new fortified camp at shoebury then he made a dash across England for the Welsh borders to establish camp at Buddington from the Welsh Hills this was a remarkable Trek across hostile territory in which the Vikings managed to avoid detection by Saxon garrisons a testament to the mobility and effectiveness of the Norseman also this place has Stein very near to the northumbrian east anglian Viking Army confronting King Alfred at Exeter but as halstein began pillaging Wales the northumbrian East anglian Invaders suddenly abandoned their position and returned home Alfred's operations had been effective the Vikings simply realized that they would not be able to make any Headway with the Royal Army in the field [Music] this development eased pressures on the Anglo-Saxons now Lord athelwood organized for a decisive strike against hastein he was joined by two important West Saxon eldermen of Somerset and AppleOne of Wiltshire as well as substantial Welsh contingents Mercia and Wales had often been at odds but fear of the Vikings brought them together now in a firm Alliance for weeks the anglo-welsh Coalition besieged tastein's Vikings at Buddington unable to dispatch foraging parties the Danes quickly began to starve and were reduced to eating their horses Hast I decided to attempt a breakout across the river this resulted in a bloody battle casualties were high on both sides Danish losses were higher ultimately the Anglo-Saxons and their Welsh allies were victorious characteristically hastine and many of his men managed to escape but this was the end of the Viking leaders legendary career his forces were treated into East Anglia and from there hastine disappears from history we can't be sure of his fate but it's possible that he simply retired by now he was probably in his 50s and a wealthy man after a lifetime of raiding across France and the Mediterranean thus as 893 Drew to a close out for the great and his allies had defeated a dangerous opponent though not without months of hard fighting this demonstrated the effectiveness of Alfred's military reforms the Saxons had been unable to prevent the Vikings from penetrating their territory but Alfred's system of forts had seriously hindered Viking movement and dramatically reduced opportunities for plunder villagers found refuge in the Fortified boroughs and local levees effectively harassed and pursued Danish raiding parties far from a lucrative Expeditions of the past the Vikings found this war to be grueling leaving them with little but battle wounds to show for their trouble by now Alfred was an old man and took a less active role in the campaigning his son-in-law athlete of Mercia provided crucial leadership in some of the most difficult fighting and the King's son and Heir Edward also proved his worth the West Saxons cooperated smoothly with the mercians and the Welsh as well and multiple Christian armies moved to where they were needed throughout the crisis at the same time the situation revealed limitations in the Anglo-Saxon military establishment Prince Edward nearly saw his victory at Farnham collapse into defeat when his troops threatened to disperse because they had nearly completed their period of service and were running low on Provisions one also might question the continued tendency to negotiate with Viking forces and acknowledging the shortcomings of Alfred's armies we must also take into account the remarkable competence of their opponents these Vikings were no disorganized plunderers but highly efficient Swift and Elusive Invasion units the Danes continued to make good use of the waterways often evading sacks and counter-offensives Pastime himself was the sort of Daring Commander to inspire the best in his men and to be a persistent irritant to Alfred and his followers past Stein out for the Great's final Viking Arch Enemy was gone but much of his army still remained in East Anglia late in 894 these Vikings set up a new Fortress north of London on the river Lee they were well positioned to raid into Mercia in 895 at the head of his army ailing an aged Alfred the Great set out for London once again intent on opposing Viking Invaders concerned that the Danes might disrupt the Harvest the king constructed Earth and ramparts on both banks of the river a double Borough blocking the enemy's path forward the Vikings understood what the king intended and they were hesitant to risk pitched battle with a superior Anglo-Saxon Force meanwhile Alfred's trusted friend and Alderman athelmuth had established good relations with the Danish king of York gunfrith so the Viking Army could expect Little Help from northumbria recognizing the futility of their situation the Viking Army at last disbanded and departed the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom in 896. again Alfred's preparations in the 880s had paid off his new system of forts made the kingdom unattractive to hastein's Remnant Army same year 896 the king's ships clashed with the force of Viking Pirates off the coast of Wessex after a bloody battle two of the Danish vessels were captured gone were the days when Alfred was willing to be lenient he promptly ordered the crew hanged finally Alfred had peace after 896 the king faced no further Viking attacks during his reign in his last remaining years Alfred continued to promote learning among his people he also spent time on his own intellectual Pursuits focusing on his translations of the Psalms after so many harrowing years the king could be satisfied he completed his days with Wessex and Mercia securely defended his people strengthened both physically and spiritually despite all this Warfare King Alfred received some peaceful Danish visitors Adar of Norway a dedicated Viking traitor visited Alfred's Court around this time Adar described himself as hailing from the furthest North of any who lived in the North Robert Ferguson says we might see Adar seated and ringed around by one or more of the Curious scribes at Alfred's Cosmopolitan Winchester Court a learned courtier leans forward chin in one hand quilt pen and the other and questions the well-traveled Norwegian it's clear that Alfred's courtiers found oddar's accounts of distant lands quite useful and interesting Alfred himself used information from Adar to supplement his translation of orosius's History of the World Robert Ferguson adds the homely account Adar gives of Life In the far north of Norway is in Striking contrast to the violence otherwise associated with the Scandinavian homelands during the Viking age and his talk of tame reindeer and 20 pigs is a world away from Odin human sacrifices blood Eagles and Raven banners Alfred scribes asked Adar about his economic status in his home country and recorded his reply he was a very wealthy man by the standards they used to judge wealth that is to say endear at the time of his visit to the king he had 600 unsold tamed deer they called these animals reindeer and six of them are decoy deer these are very valuable among the Sami for they used them to trap the wild reindeer he was one of the most powerful men in his country yet he owned no more than 20 cows 20 sheep and 20 swine and the little bit of Earth he plowed he plowed with a horse but their wealth consists mainly in the tax paid to them by the Sami this tax takes the form of hides feathers whale bone and rope made of whale skin and steel skin this account seems to indicate that Adar wasn't exactly successful in convincing his hosts to share his view of wealth nevertheless oddar's visit to King Alfred's Court reminds us that the Viking world wasn't all Raiders and Warriors and that friendly exchanges between Anglo-Saxon and Dane weren't uncommon finally in the last year of the 9th century Alfred the Great died aged 50 or 51. the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records he was King over the whole English people except for that part which was under Danish Rule and then his son Edward succeeded to the kingdom the king's Alderman athelward leaves a moving dedication Alfred passed from the world King of the Saxons a man replete with Justice vigorous in Warfare learn it in speech above all instructed in Divine learning for he had translated unknown numbers of books from rhetorical Latin speech into his own language so variously and so richly that his book of boethius would arouse tearful emotions not only in those familiar with it but even in those hearing it For the First Time The King died on the seventh day before the Feast of All Saints body lies at peace in Winchester now readers say o Christ Our Redeemer save his soul out for the Great's reputation would only growth time having taken his kingdom from a point of near destruction to strength and rebirth he has often been praised as The crucial founding figure in the history of England after his death his actions would bear even richer fruit upon the firm foundations of his reforms his heirs his son Edward the Elder his daughter the lady atholphlid and his grandson athelston would bring to fruition and Anglo-Saxon England triumphant militarily artistically and religiously in the 9th century Viking Raiders assailed the collapse in carolingian Empire but as the Vikings entrenched themselves in France they began to look farther south to the Iberian Peninsula modern Spain and Portugal most of Spain was ruled by the Emirate of Cordoba the wealthiest and militarily strongest state in Western Europe during this period the emir's well-organized armies posed a real danger to any Viking Raiders but the wealthy cities of Muslim Spain known in Arabic as al-andalus were too tempting to resist two Viking leaders hastein and Bjorn iron sides formed an alliance and struck out for the Iberian Peninsula their target the rich towns of the Emirate Cordoba once Vikings entrenched themselves on the river Loire in France it was only a matter of time before they pressed farther south to explore the wealthy Muslim Holdings in the Iberian Peninsula that is modern day Spain and Portugal The Riches of Cordoba were attempting Prospect in the 9th century the umayyad Emirate of Cordoba was the westernmost stronghold of Muslim civilization the bulk of the Iberian Peninsula was under Muslim rule only in the rugged cantabrian mountains of the Northwest did Christian rule endure Cordoba with a population of some 200 000 was by far the largest and richest city in Western Europe but Muslim Spain would be no easy pickings the Emirate boasted a strong and well-organized Military of infantry and like Cavalry during this period the emir's Armory manufactured 20 000 arrows every month both infantry and Cavalry were male or scale armor as well as iron helmets which only wealthier Vikings could afford the Emirates leading warriors were the mamluks slave soldiers raised from Boyhood to be the emir's elite fighting force cordoba's standing army could react more quickly to a viking attack than the levees of France or England indeed the Iberian Peninsula as a whole was primed for war in the face of the Muslim military Powerhouse to its South the Christian kingdom of astorias had to maintain a high level of combat Readiness the poor but determined Christian states of the Iberian mountains also posed a considerable challenge to Viking Raiders in the East Muslim geographers described the Vikings they met in Russia as al-rus in Spain they called them Al majus the term was not created for the Vikings but for the zoroastrians of Persia for whom fire was a primary symbol Arab writers misinterpreted The Cremation in Viking funerary rites as fire worship their religion is that of the Magi wrote the chronicler al-watwat and they burned their dead with fire the geographer IBN Syed offered his own interpretation of fire worship among Northern peoples nothing to them seems more important than fire for the cold in their lands is severe history records 8 44 as the year of the first Viking raid on the Iberian Peninsula from the Loire a viking band sailed South to the gerund Charles the bald the king of West Francia was distracted by a dispute with the Pippin of Aquitaine and so the Vikings managed to sail up the river garum as far as to lose they moved on to plunder the coast of Galicia and astorias when they attacked La Corona they encountered a strong Christian Force led by King Ramiro the first Ramiro's troops fought cohesively and effectively Galaxy and ballistas giant crossbows inflicted serious casualties on the Vikings the Christians captured 70 of the norseman's long ships and Ramiro ordered them burned on the beach the surviving Norsemen sailed farther south down the coast of modern Portugal which at the time was controlled by umayad Cordoba the Vikings landed near Lisbon in August Arab chroniclers state that their Fleet numbered around 100 vessels which means that it must have been almost twice that large when it's set out from the Loire for 13 days the Vikings plundered lands around Lisbon the umayyad governor of Lisbon dispatched Messengers to Cordoba to raise the alarm the Emir ABD al-rahman II put the governors of the coastal districts on alert meanwhile the Vikings sacked kadis and the Fortress of Medina cedonia they next traveled on the guadalcavir river into the emir's wealthiest districts Cordoba itself lay in their path on September 29 the Vikings established a base on Isla Menor an island in the guadalcavir from here they began to systematically ravage the region on October 1st the fleet continued up River another 15 miles until they reached Sevilla to these Vikings Sevilla must have been a tantalizing sight aside from Cordoba Sevilla was the greatest and wealthiest city in Iberia it was well beyond anything the Norseman would have found in England or France where the towns were poor and small since the decline of the Roman Empire and the establishment of Arab control of the Mediterranean Sea Sevilla by contrast benefited from the vast Trade Network secured by the great Muslim conquests as they approached This Magnificent City the Vikings must have been giddy Imagining the loot within its walls when the townspeople saw the Vikings disembarking on the riverbank they sallied out to challenge them this was Brave but ultimately foolish the Vikings were experienced Warriors and when they attacked the townsmen panicked and Scattered in the turmoil the Vikings rushed into the city where they indulged in a week's worth of unhindered plundering many of the town's people were killed were taken captive though a large number of them fled into the mountains once they finished looting Sevilla the Vikings returned loaded with booty and prisoners to their camp at Isla Menor from here they continued to dispatch rating parties throughout the region days later they journeyed back to Sevilla hoping to capture returning towns to people but the city was still mostly deserted small group took refuge in a mosque where the Vikings slaughtered them the sheer boldness of the attack on Sevilla took umayad Cordoba off guard but the Emir finally did organize a military response with the help of catapults the cordoban Army drove the Vikings out of Sevilla umaya detachments began ambushing Viking raiding parties the emir's men captured a large number of Norse ships killing all the Raiders on board as the weeks wore on the Umayyads continued to pressure the Vikings making their position increasingly untenable in early November the Muslims ambushed the bulk of the Vikings near Sevilla killing many of them including their leader to celebrate the Emir dispatched the severed heads of the Viking commander and some 200 of his men to the Berber Emir in Tangier the surviving Vikings were now trapped on their Island base they negotiated with the Umayyads exchanging their prisoners for passage out of Spain the remnant of the Norse Fleet past Lisbon as it headed back for the Loire historian John Haywood estimates that less than a quarter of the original Expedition returned home from their Showdown with the astorians to their audacious sacking of Sevilla the first Viking attack on Iberia proved to be a deadly Caper marked by The Reckless adventurism that characterizes the Viking age in the aftermath of this jarring episode The Emir took steps to bolster his defenses look out posts were established on the Atlantic coast and a new Armory was installed at Sevilla the Emir also organized a fleet to patrol his coastline the Muslim warships were large Swift sailing galleys they bore Crews of 50 to 100 Sailors and Warriors the Emir placed catapults on his vessels to counter any future Viking raiding parties [Music] but the most famous Viking attack on Iberia was launched by two of history's most renowned Viking commanders the Oren iron sides and hastine later Legend cast Bjorn as the son of Ragnar lodbrick a semi-mythical figure of the Nordic sagas as a child Bjorn's mother was said to have imbued him with magic invulnerability to wounds earning him the title iron sides hastein was one of the 9th Century's most well-traveled Viking leaders ending his career as the final great opponent of Alfred the Great in England in 859 past Stein and Bjorn set out from a base on the Loire with a fleet of some 62 ships Bound for the Iberian coastline first they tried to attack Galicia and astorias but the Christians confronted them with a resistance that proved too strong so they moved on to plunder the emir's western coastline where initially they found easier pickings but the emir's fleet responded quickly capturing two Viking ships already loaded with plunder and prisoners with Muslim ships in Pursuit Bjorn and hastein made a drive up the guadal Kabir perhaps intent on attacking Sevilla when the emir's ships attacked with incendiary weapons the Vikings lost several ships to Fire and narrowly escaped the usual Viking tactic was to avoid strong resistance and look for an easier Target and Bjorn and hastein did just that they moved on to alhasirus near Gibraltar where they launched a surprise attack the inhabitants were completely overwhelmed the Vikings sacked the town and burned the chief mosque hoping to find more plunder bjornin hastine now crossed the Straits of Gibraltar and entered the Mediterranean they struck the African Coast attacking nakur they made short work of local troops and then plundered freely for a week they captured the Harem of a local Emir which was later ransomed by the Emir of Cordoba himself from Africa the Vikings veered back to Muslim Spain plundering the coast of Mercia and the Balearic Islands from here they moved back to plunder parts of France before setting up a winter camp on an island in Kamar a large Delta of the river Rhone in the spring hastine and Bjorn sailed some 100 miles up the Rhone plundering neem arrow and Valance as they went but the Franks defeated them in battle and so they decided to head back out into the Open Sea [Music] according to Legend during this time Pastime and Bjorn sacked Rome but this is a myth and did not in fact occur historically instead they moved along the Tuscan Coast plundering as they went in 861 they crossed the Straits of Gibraltar intent on returning home they didn't know that the Emir of Cordoba had prepared an ambush for them in the narrow passage of The Straits the emir's fleet waited for them attacking the Vikings as they made the crossing a desperate battle ensued in which the Muslims emerged Victorious the Viking Fleet was devastated of hastine and Bjorn's original 60 ships only 20 escaped ever undaunted Bjorn and hastine continued raiding with their Remnant Fleet just before they exited Spanish Waters they attacked the tiny Christian kingdom of Navarre sacking the town of Pamplona amazingly they managed to capture King Garcia the first for his Ransom the Vikings collected an incredible 70 000 gold dinars thus despite the final disaster of their expedition the survivors of Bjorn and hastein's band returned to the Loire in 862 very rich indeed it's one of those twists of faith that seemed to characterize Viking history [Applause] the daring nature of Bjorn and hastein's Expedition earned them Fame that endures today but the cost had been high less than a third of the original Force survived to return home future Viking leaders took this into account they continued to raid Spain but in the future avoided the Mediterranean local Naval forces could too easily Ambush a Viking Fleet trying to negotiate the narrow Straits of Gibraltar after this operation hastein and Bjorn went their separate ways Bjorn returned to Denmark hoping to use his wealth to gain the throne but he lost his wealth in a shipwreck and died in phrygia on November 24 885 a viking Army under a Danish leader called Siegfried sailed up before the walls of Paris by now the Danes expected Little Resistance from the carolingians and they likely expected a quick surrender the next day Siegfried met with Jocelyn the bishop of Paris sick for demanded that his Vikings be allowed passage Upstream where they could plunder the countryside of France in return Siegfried swore to leave Paris unmolested [Music] think of the horrors that your people will endure said Siegfried if you refuse to comply with my terms the Viking Chieftain was amazed when this Churchman flatly refused his demands I have been made responsible for the defense of this city by King Charles said the bishop and I will not betray his Trust this Charles referenced by Jocelyn was Charles the fat Charles had done a poor job in defending France from Viking attacks so the stakes were all the higher for Paris the citizens knew well they could expect little support from their emperor what treatment would you deserve the bishop asked Siegfried if you were entrusted with a city and allowed an enemy to pass unmolested siegford replied I should deserve that my head be cut off and thrown to the dogs nevertheless if you do not give in to my demand I must tell you that tomorrow our war machines will destroy you with poison arrows you will be prey of famine and pestilence and these evils will renew themselves every year Siegfried had hoped to easily frighten Jocelyn into compliance disappointed anticipating future Viking attacks the bishop had spent years strengthening the defenses of Paris in an age of corruption and cowardice among the carolingian authorities Jocelyn was a bishop committed to the defense of his people and his City Paris sat on the IL de la site along slender island in the sen strong walls protected the island making it a difficult Target for the Vikings a bridge called the grandpa joined the city to the North Bank of the river guarded by a partially built stone tower another smaller Bridge the Petit Bond joined the city to the South Bank with a wooden Tower standing in defense two Bridges totally controlled traffic on the river to continue with their plundering Expedition the Vikings would have to overcome these fortifications the bishop was not the only Resolute leader in Paris count Otto son of Robert the strong led the military operations against the Danes Odo represented the tough crop of Frankish Nobles stepping up to fill the void of leadership left by the failing carolingian Kings Otto's Garrison contained no more than 200 soldiers but like the bishop Odo was determined in the face of impossible odds courageous leadership can go a long way manganels and ballistas equipped the walls of Paris giving the Defenders a Fighting Chance Against The Siege equipment of the Danes we are unsure as to the exact size of siegfried's army but Christian chroniclers recall that it was enormous historians today estimate that the Danish ships numbered around 300 and their army was probably composed of thousands or even tens of thousands of men at dawn Siegfried began his assault the chronicler Abba of San German says the city resounded with clamor the people were aroused the bridges trembled all came together to defend the tower there Odo his brother Robert and the count Ragnar distinguished themselves for their bravery inspired by their commanders the Christians fought hard the bishop himself planted a crucifix on the city walls and personally used a bow to launch arrows of enemy troops for Jocelyn the desperate circumstances overrode his Priestly vow against shedding blood as night fell the Danes withdrew dragging their debt along with them through the hours of Darkness Odo and the bishop oversaw repairs to the damaged Tower the Franks added an extra story and when the Danes awoke they found that the tower stood even higher than it had yesterday now the Vikings tried to mine the towers foundations the Franks countered this by pouring boiling pitch and oil down onto them the shrieks of the Danish miners echoed hideously with some of them tearing off the skin of their own scalps as they burned to death from the walls the Christians cheered defeated the Danes scoped away to their camp where they were now assailed by the jeers and mockery of their wives and concubines Siegfried was enraged and determined to avenge this humiliation the Danes gave up on the idea of a quick Victory their ire aroused by the doggedness of the Franks they committed to a long Siege in January Siegfried launched a three-pronged Attack One Division of the Viking Army attacked the stone tower on the North Bank while their comrades assaulted the city from their ships the Danes tried to fill in the moat using logs straw and even dead animals and captives for three days the Vikings struggled to move their Siege Towers into position but the Frank sallied Fort from the city and managed to burn two Danish engines a few Vikings broke into Paris only to be slaughtered by the citizens after suffering another humiliating defeat the attackers benefited from the weather in February the sin flooded and surging water smashed up a deep bone during the night Bishop Jocelyn dispatched a band of Franks to occupy the wooden Tower so that the bridge could be repaired but Siegfried spotted this maneuver and quickly attacked the tower from the walls of Paris the Franks could only watch helplessly as their Brave comrades were massacred on the South Bank the Vikings threw the bodies in the river and burned the wooden Tower to the ground Siegfried could now accomplish his original goal he could now move his army past Paris to plunder the French Countryside but the proud Viking had no intention of letting the stubborn parisians off the hook with part of his Force he maintained The Siege while the rest of his men plundered shatra to the west and Avro to the South by Spring of 886 disease and hunger plagued The Defenders of Paris the cemeteries could no longer hold their dead the Franks suffered a terrible blow when their beloved Bishop Jocelyn fell ill and died on April 16. with a small band of followers count Otto struck out on a secret mission to personally plead with the emperor to bring his army to Paris Charles replied with the non-committal assurances disappointed Odo returned it once to rejoin the beleaguered parisians describes what happened when Odo returned from this desperate errand one day Odo suddenly appeared in splendor in the midst of three bands of Warriors the sun made his armor glisten and greeted him before it illuminated the country around the parisians saw their beloved Chief at a distance but the enemy hoping to prevent his gaining entrance to the tower crossed the sin and took up their position on the bank nevertheless Odo his horse at a Gallop got past the northmen and reached the tower whose Gates were opened to him finally in October the Archbishop of Rollins warned the emperor that if he lost Paris he would lose his kingdom at last Charles raised an army and marched but when he arrived at Paris much to the dismay of the Defenders the emperor simply opened negotiations with the procedures incredibly Charles granted the Vikings exactly what they had originally wanted permission to sail past Paris and ravage the burgundians the count of burgundy had been disloyal to the carolingian regime and Charles didn't mind punishing him with a viking violence The Defenders of Paris were disgusted they refused to honor the terms of Charles the vat by now the bed Depot had been repaired and the parisians blocked the Danish ships from advancing the Vikings had to drag their vessels over land and relaunch them Upstream of Paris as a final demonstration of his weakness Charles paid the Danes a hefty 700 pounds of silver in return for peace the outcome of the siege of Paris destroyed what little credibility still clung to Charles the fat during a council at Frankfurt the East Franks deposed Charles and elected his nephew Arnold in his place abandoned even by his close retainers Charles retired to a private estate in the Black Forest where he died in January 888 rumor held that our North had ordered his uncle strangled at last the ancient empire of Charlemagne collapsed completely while the East Franks recognized Arnold burgundy Italy and Provence all elected their own rulers meanwhile the West Franks crowned as their King Odo the hero of Paris in Odo the Vikings would face a very different sort of opponent over the coming years men like Odo and Arnold would fundamentally shift the trajectory of the Viking age in France today the United Kingdom is among the world's most celebrated monarchies it is also one of the longest running the roots of the British Monarchy lie deep in the Early Middle Ages who was the first king of England interestingly the harrowing Viking invasions of the 9th century led to the birth of a United English Kingdom today on real Crusades history we'll delve into England's distant past and discover the first king of England to emerge from the near apocalyptic clash between Anglo-Saxons and Vikings at the start of the 9th century there was no indication that the region today known as England would ever be united into a single Kingdom instead there existed several small Anglo-Saxon kingdoms each ruled by its own Chieftain however as the Viking age began Scandinavian ships mostly from Modern Denmark began to show up along the English Coast inflicting devastating rains on the local populations by the middle of the century these raids had turned to full-scale invasions in 865 a United Viking Army the great Heathen Army attacked the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms within 10 years nearly all of the old Anglo-Saxon kingdoms had fallen northumbria in 867 East Anglia in 869 and most of Murcia between 874 and 877. all of these territories known as the Dane law regions under the law of the Danes would be ruled by the Vikings only the Kingdom of Wessex ruled by Alfred the Great survived however the Vikings also threatened Wessex and it seemed that Wessex too would soon fall to the Danish Invaders Alfred the Great and his dynasty stood as the final Defenders of anglo-saxon England in 878 Alfred the Great and a small army of Anglo-Saxons finally turned things around from their Fortress of atholny hidden deep in the marshes of Somerset they struck out and defeated the Vikings at the Battle of Eddington the Viking Chieftain guthrum surrendered and withdrew from Wessex the Vikings still ruled northumbria East Anglia and Eastern Mercier but where six under King Alfred was saved and Western Mercier was secured under Anglo-Saxon control Alfred the Great launched a series of reforms laying the foundation for a Revival of anglo-saxon rule in England Alfred was fortunate to have two very capable children his eldest son Edward and his eldest daughter ever flat in the early 880s Apple Vlad married Ethel red lord of the Martians ruler of Western Mercier strengthening the alliance between the last two Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in 895 when Alfred was an elderly King his son Edward welcomed the birth of a baby boy applestat King Alfred presented his little grandson with the regalia of kingship a Saxon sword and belt and a royal cloak [Music] when Alfred the Great died in 899 his son Edward the Elder succeeded him as king of Wessex as Lady of the mercians Ethel fled cooperated closely with her brother Edward Ethel fled appears to have cherished her nephew athelstan treating him like her own son when Avil Stan was a small boy he went to live in Murcia in the household of his aunt Ethel flat here athelstan was educated at the monastery School of Worcester [Music] Apple stand was literate from childhood reared on the same anglo-saxon poetry that had inspired his grandfather though he was born in Wessex athelstan's childhood in the household of his aunt strengthened his ties with the mercians Scholars aren't sure but it seems possible that King Edward and the lady ethelflad plan for athelstan to assume rule in Mercia as well as Wessex thus fulfilling their father's goal of uniting the two kingdoms there's also speculation that Edward never intended for athelstan to be king of Wessex at all but that he intended for him to Simply Be Lord of Mercia while another son elf word would be king of Wessex Edward the Elder died on July 17 924. it appears that Alfred then became king of Wessex for 16 weeks before he himself died of unknown causes the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle fails to mention elfword's Reign while some later sources describe him as reigning briefly whatever the case shortly after his father's death Apple Stan was ruler of both Mercier and Wessex he may have encountered some resistance in Wessex from some of the high-ranking men in the Kingdom again Scholars aren't certain one of his brothers the effling Edwin appears to have tried to assassinate him in Winchester but by 925 athelstan became king of Wessex he was crowned in September at Kingston upon Thames the symbolic border between Murcia and Wessex foreign was now around 30 years old already a seasoned politician who had benefited from the wisdom of both his father and his aunt in the Early Middle Ages no King ever succeeded just as a matter of course even if he had the endorsement of his father rebellious factions often attempted to thwart his succession athelstan's coronation in 925 was as much a statement of the results of a power struggle as it was a smooth State managed changeover clearly athelstan had won the political Victory and the other Royal brothers would remain at links avostan and his advisors followed the 9th century Frankish tradition athelstan was anointed not only as ruler but as the special servant of God like a bishop the carolingian Franks viewed anointing as crucial to kingship and the Anglo-Saxons adopted this tradition fully thus the church played an indispensable role in solidifying the power of the king initiating him into the divine order as God's agent on Earth at his coronation athelstan was named King of the Anglo-Saxons in addition to being Anointed with oil by the clergy he received the Royal ring the sword crown and scepter of kingship before the gathered Nobles and clergyman he made a three-fold vow to keep his people in peace to forbid robbery and wrongdoing by all men no matter their Rank and to promote Justice and mercy through maintenance of the law these were not mere platitudes but addressed the most pressing concerns faced by 10th Century Anglo-Saxon Society those with power and energy must not simply be permitted to Prey Upon the weak and vulnerable it was the king's role to ensure rule by law not by brute strength in this age as in perhaps all ages The Descent into Lawless chaos lay just below the surface as a symbol of his role and indeed of his humility the king then freed a slave and his family this was an ancient tradition performed by many early medieval kings although athelstan faced opposition from some of his siblings historian Christopher Brooke still concludes that he was as readily accepted as King in Murcia as in Wessex the local particularities between these two kingdoms were dissolving athelstan sought to continue his family's work of subduing the Vikings in 927 he began a series of energetic military operations which would spread West Saxon military power over the whole of Britain at the time York in northumbria was ruled by the Viking Clan Evar which also controlled the Irish city of Dublin in 927 athelstan invaded northumbria demolished the Viking Forts and seized control of Europe from the chieftain Olaf of the clan ibar it was a spectacular Triumph from the booty taken athelstan enriched his army for the first time a king from the house of Wessex controlled York as a result Constantine II King of Scotland and Owen the Welsh king of strathclyde both submitted to athelstan's Overlord ship in 928 athelstan subdued the five Kings who ruled Wales coins from the time produced by athelstan bear the inscription Rex totius Britannia king of all Britain in Easter of 928 atho stands sat in glory on his throne at Exeter he had made a clean sweep of his enemies and achieved the subjugation of the whole island he was as David wood writes the most powerful man to rule in Britain since the Romans athelstan's Fame spread throughout Christendom and ambassadors arrived from foreign kingdoms bringing gifts and requesting marriage alliances with his sisters Otto the great of Germany exchanged books with athelstan and ultimately Otto himself married a West Saxon princess Edith of England having acquired a far larger Kingdom than any previous ruler athelstan sought to reduce criminality and abuses by local magnates ethelstan's law codes are an important Advance on the Mosaic Old Testament I for an eye legislation that existed prior to his reign his work is an example of the advance Beyond tribal thinking to the need to enact Justice on a wider scale 's greatest challenge came in 937. that year his old enemies sought to overthrow his power at last Constantine II King of Scotland formed an alliance with the Viking Olaf of the clan Evar and Owen King of the Welsh speaking Kingdom of strathclyde in Southwest Scotland Olaf at the head of an army of Vikings from both Ireland and northumbria raided Mercia leaving terrible destruction in his wake in 937 athelstan and his brother Edmund responded they assembled a considerable Army and marched North the Anglo-Saxons met Olaf and Constantine's Viking Scottish Welsh Coalition Army at brunumbo here took place one of the most memorable battles in the history of the British Isles standing opposite one another the two armies advanced in Shield wall formation arrayed in the Infantry fighting style typical of the period the brutal hand-to-hand fighting lasted all day the Anglo-Saxons endured serious casualties but ultimately Olaf's Northern Coalition was destroyed [Music] Olaf fled to the Viking held city of Dublin in Ireland while Constantine returned to Scotland where he eventually abdicated in 943 ending his days as a monk at the monastery of Saint Andrews the sources of the time provide no clear details as to the action of the battle however the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle does offer a stirring account in this year King Apple stand Lord of nobles dispenser of treasure to men and his brother also Edmund etheling won by The sword's Edge undying glory in battle around bruneburg Edward's Sons clothed The Shield wall hewed the Lindenwood Shields with hammered swords their enemies perished the people of the Scots and the northmen fell doomed the field grew dark with the blood of men from the time when the Sun that glorious luminary the bright candle of God of the Lord Eternal moved over the Earth in the hours of the morning until that Noble creation sack at its setting they lay many and Men destroyed by the spears many a northern Warrior shot over his shield and likewise many are Scott lay weary sated with battle the Battle of brunabar was the landmark event of athelstan's Reign this Victory meant that England would remain United under athelstan because of this athelstan has often been considered the first proper King of the English hundreds of years later the 12th century chronicler William of malmesbury would write that no one more just or more learned ever governed the kingdom than Avil Stan historians still debate the significance of avalstan's Reign David Dunville calls evil Stan the father of medieval and modern England Michael Wood describes ethelstan as one of the more important lay intellectuals in Anglo-Saxon history other historians insist that athelstan was more critical in developing the idea of the kingdom of England rather than the reality of it George Molino writes the tendency of some Modern historians to celebrate ethelstan as the first king of England is problematic since there is little sign that in his day the title regs anglorum was closely or consistently tied to an area similar to that which we consider England when athelstan's rule was associated with any definite geographical expanse the territory in question was usually the whole island of Britain while the question remains open to debate it's certainly true that Ethel Stan held more territory than any ruler of Britain since the Romans and the kingdom he established clearly lies at the heart of the medieval Kingdom of England when he died in 939 ethelstan was recognized as one of the leading Kings of Christian Europe today some even describe athelstan as the English Charlemagne the Vikings who assailed the shores of Britain and France were mostly Norwegian or Danish but Viking adventurers from Sweden were drawn East to the Baltic Sea and Beyond what drove their Wanderlust was the dram a high-grade silver coin minuteed and circulated throughout the vast Abbasid caliphate in the 9th century the caliphate's wealthy markets teamed with luxury goods bulgars and nomadic khazars from north of the Caspian Sea sold beeswax honey Furs and tragically slaves to Arab Merchants who paid well with silver dirams these coins found their way to Sweden and sparked the Curiosity of enterprising Chiefs on the Swedish island of gotland vast silver hordes filled with Arab drams confirmed the activity of Swedish Vikings trading and plundering in the Baltic and Russia Christians of England and France left Vivid accounts of their battles with Vikings but Swedish Vikings in the 9th century mostly encountered peoples without literate cultures what we know comes largely from Arab Travelers and Byzantine chroniclers but neither dealt with Vikings frequently enough to provide a coherent account of their history both were intrigued by the Norse called the ruse and left behind fragmentary glimpses of their customs and trade [Music] describes a series of Mythic battles between early Swedish Chieftains in which the defeated party often fled to a life of seafaring these wandering sea Kings set out with their warbands for the mysterious East snorri even describes the ancient homeland of the swedes as existing somewhere in the Caucasus one Legend describes a Swedish Sea King named svegdir who braved the Baltic on a quest to find the home of the Gods and Odin himself his journey lasted five years and eventually took him to the land of the Turks and Sweden the great where he met many Kinsmen foreign 9th century dragon-headed Viking long ships blazed trade routes from the Baltic through the black and Caspian Seas some pressed all the way to Constantinople capital of the Byzantine Empire and Baghdad The Hub of the Abbasid caliphate the sprawling glittering city of Constantinople in particular dazzled the Vikings who called it miklagarde the great City Vikings operating in this Eastern World acquired the name Bruce the origins of the term remain mysterious it may be rooted in The Finnish name for swedes or from the old Norse word for a crew of oarsmen it could also be rooted in a Byzantine term to describe the blonde hair of Scandinavians the trade route for the ruse moved first through the Gulf of Finland up the river Neva along the Southern Shores of lake lariga and onto the river volkov along this River the ruse established permanent settlements and further south Novgorod Novgorod means new gorod it sprang up on the North End of Lake ilham here archaeologists have found necklaces with pendant hammers prized by devotees of Thor amulets with runic inscriptions and even the small carved figure of a valkyrie the Arab chronicler even rustar visited this town and estimated its population to number in the thousands they have no Fields records IBN rooster but simply live on what they get from the Slavs lands when a son is Born the father will go up to the newborn baby sword in hand and throw it down I shall not leave you with any property he says you have only what you can provide for yourself with this weapon [Applause] like their Western cousins the swedes were conquerors as well as Traders They seized control of Slavic and Finnish settlements along the river routes and became the ruling Elite of a growing network of trading towns from these bases the Vikings raided other Finnish and Slavic tribes extracting tribute in Furs and slaves which the byzantines and Arabs were always willing to buy spring was the trading season and by Autumn most of the trading convoys had broken up but when the ground froze War bands moved more easily over land winter was the season for raiding our most intriguing early account of the ruse comes from the court of Louis the pious emperor of the Franks and son of Charlemagne in 839 a Byzantine Embassy sent by the Eastern Emperor Theophilus at Constantinople arrived at Louie's court at ingleheim the mission of this Embassy was to confirm a treaty of alliance between the Western and Eastern Emperors among the Byzantine diplomats was a band of Viking ruse who asked for the Friendship of Louis they had with them a letter from Theophilus himself who requested that the Frankish Emperor give the ruse safe Passage through his own territories as they traveled back to their home in the North the ruse explained that by this roundabout diversion they could avoid certain hostile tribes they'd encountered during their trip from Constantinople the Frankish analyst tells us that these roofs were of Swedish origin Louis didn't trust them the Franks had grown suspicious of Nordic adventurers recently the ruse's Danish cousins had sacked the Frankish Port of dorostat in replying to the Byzantine emperor Louis explained that he would detain the ruse at his court for an investigation if he could confirm that they posed no danger to his lands he would provide them with the assistance they desired otherwise he would require them to return to Constantinople unfortunately the account ends here we have no idea what became of these mysterious Travelers at the court of Louis the pious [Music] thank you [Music] as the 9th century wore on the ruse outposts were united into one Kingdom the Russian primary Chronicle says that the local Slavic tribes tired of endless into Nissan Warfare invited the ruse to rule them according to their law historian John Hayward calls this improbable to say the least and the tale is likely a later Legend rurik the first ruse Prince of the United settlements died around 879 succeeded by Oleg the wise known as such because he laid the groundwork for State Administration in 882 Oleg organized an army of Vikings and Slavs struck out from Novgorod and captured Kiev he made Kiev his capital and so was born the kingdom of the Kevin ruse it's even reported that Oleg made a failed attack against Constantinople in 907 though the byzantines make no mention of this what we do know is that around this time the byzantines afforded trading privileges to the roofs so favorable that they must have been obtained by some military threat ruse Merchants were allowed to receive Food anchors and sales for their boats in Constantinople and granted use of public baths in return the ruse paid a fee in silver per ship but the byzantines would not allow the roost to live within the city walls or to bring in weapons or to travel about the city without an imperial escort in 911 the ruse struck a treaty with the byzantines in which they agreed not to plunder Byzantine ships and to help any Byzantine vessels they found in danger treaty also contains stipulations for ruse who wanted to join the Imperial Army for the emperor recognized the value of having Vikings in his ranks shortly after this treaty Oleg died the primary Chronicle provides us with a Whimsical Legend of his death that belies his famed wisdom a soothsayer warned the prince that his favorite horse would cause his death Oleg therefore refused to ride or even look at the animal five years later the horse died and Oleg mocked the soothsayer as a fraud recklessly the prince inspected the bones of the dead animal only to be bitten by a poisonous Viper hiding in the skull historians are more inclined to believe that he died during a raid on the Caspian Sea Oleg was succeeded by Igor who in 941 waged a disastrous attack on Constantinople his fleet was annihilated by Greek Fire launched from the Byzantine galleys and Igor himself barely escaped being burned to death in 944 he tried again but this time the byzantines bought him off though on terms far less favorable than the previous trade deal this setback LED Igor to make harsher demands from the local Slavic tribes in 945 he raided The drevliance Who counter-attacked and captured the Viking Chieftain the Byzantine chronicler Leo the Deacon says that the drevlians bent down two trees tied each one to one of Igor's legs and then let them spring apart so that he was torn in two Igor's son was still a baby and so his widow Olga took charge of the ruse State she vowed revenge on the drevliance when they made peace offerings of Furs and honey Olga responded by attacking iscarosten modern day car Austin in Ukraine utterly destroying the town Legend says that Olga burned or buried alive drevervillian prisoners whatever the case she was a formidable ruler and preserved the Kevin State until her son assumed the throne in 963. [Music] to trade with the Arabs the roost Vikings had to travel far beyond their own settlements to bulgar some 20 miles Downstream from the meeting of the Volga and the Kama Rivers Arab Merchants took the Volga River or the Silk Road to bulgar where they traded with the ruseful slaves Furs beeswax honey baltic amber walrus tusks Falcons and the prized Frankish swords Viking grave Goods confirm that these Frankish swords famous for their craftsmanship were as valued by Scandinavians as they were by the Arabs from the Arabs the ruse gained not only silver coin but silk spices perfumes and beautifully colored ceramic beads that delighted Roots women the roofs had their own quarter in bulgar where they raised wooden dwellings and set up a shrine to their gods here religious rituals were performed as success in trade was considered a gift of the Gods if trading went well sheep and cattle were sacrificed in thanks foreign [Music] visitor to bulgar was IBN fadlan who found the ruse fascinating and extensively documented his impressions of them IBN fadlan generally portrays the ruse negatively as barbaric pagans but his account also betrays admiration medieval writings of the foreign other are notoriously biased and we have no accounts from The Roots themselves against which to compare Eben fatlan's impressions he sought to portray the ruse as exotic strange and horrifying heathens and he fashioned his stories to both titillate and repulse the reader we must treat his writings with caution even fadlan described the ruse as washing daily but he was disgusted by their use of communal water he portrays them as mistreating their slaves although other Muslim writers say that they treated their slaves well he provides lengthy accounts of ruse sex practices lingering over each racy detail IBN fadlan expresses outright admiration for the physical appearance of the ruse never have I seen more perfect bodies than theirs he wrote they are as tall as palm trees fair and Ruddy they wore cloaks and baggy trousers and at all times carried an ax a sword and a knife the ruse covered their bodies in tattoos a practice they adopted from the nomadic turkic peoples they interacted with in the region IBN fadlan also expresses admiration for the beauty of ruse women who adorned themselves with jewelry of silver and gold he wrote that as soon as a viking had ten thousand direms he melted them down into a necklace for his wife the ruse preferred to wear their wealth both to show it off and to keep it safe [Music] IBN fardlan writes eloquently of the imposing ruse King who at the time of this account would have been Igor Seated on a duel encrusted Throne Igor was surrounded by 40 beautiful concubines and was liable to seize any one of them to satisfy his urges right there in public 400 Warriors attended him in his Hall all loyal to their King to the death each Warrior had one slave girl to wash and dress him and another to act as his bed mate most famous of all is IBN fadlan's supposed eyewitness account of a Viking funeral in which the slave girl of the Dead Chief is ritualistically debauched and murdered in a brutal human sacrifice Scholars have long debated the accuracy of this horrific description human sacrifice and slavery were a reality in the Viking world as in March of the pre-modern world but some historians suggest that parts of the account reflect practices more common among the turkic-speaking peoples in whose lands the events of the account take place could the ruse have adopted some of the customs of the locals other scholars believe that even fardlan's account is mostly consistent with Norse funerary rights While others still argue that it reflects Traditions that sprang up exclusively among the ruse ultimately we can never be certain of the whole truth ship burials were certainly a common feature of pre-christian Scandinavian culture at the close of the funeral described by IBN fadlan the chief's closest male relative walks naked toward the ship a burning torch in his grasp he then lights the ship others now come forward each heaping on wood and burning brands soon the ship is Ablaze the chief is dispatched to the afterlife [Music] IBN fadlan records how one of the roosts told him the Arabs were wrong to put their loved ones in the ground where they can be eaten by worms we burn them in the fire in an instant so that they enter Paradise immediately and without delay this use of the term Paradise reflects even fadlan's Islamic worldview and must have differed with actual Roost concepts of the next world Muslims from the period in particular Associated the ruse with the veneration of fire IBN Saeed a 13th century traveler offers an explanation for his idea that Northern peoples worship fire nothing seems more important to them than fire he writes for the cold in their lands is severe as the carolingian empire fell apart a new power would come to emanate across the Latin World from the duchy of Normandy the Normans would become christendom's Chief Crusaders strangely were rooted in the Heathen Viking Raiders that plagued France for Generations it all began with a Norris Chieftain a follower of Odin Rallo a Seafarer from Scandinavia with the death of Charlemagne's son Louis the pious the carolingian Empire slipped into crisis the mid 9th century was a period of civil conflict as the sons of Louis struggled with one another for power and the empire was ultimately cleaved into three separate entities The Strife proved fertile ground for the seafaring Raiders of the North penetrating France via the river sin Viking commanders such as Ragnar and esku plundered all the way up to Paris in the 840s ask your ravaged and occupied ruon in 841 and when he returned in 851 Ruan served as a base from which his Raiders spread out on foot two Viking forces attacked Paris and sacked shartra in 857 hathstein who had later become an opponent of Alfred the Great in England rated up the sen in 858 the carolingian government was increasingly incapable of dealing with these devastating assaults the Norse new well the situation in the once powerful Empire of Charlemagne the collapse of carolingian legitimacy meant that local Governors no longer derived their Authority from the King but were increasingly becoming autonomous Lords in their own right the people looked to the regional counts for protection and these counts began to solidify their own geographically determined power bases Viking violence simply broke the old imperial system and the counts began working to ensure the Loyalty of the local fighting men the beginning of the feudal relationship [Music] meanwhile the carolingian church all but refused to cooperate with the King Charles the bald could not rely on Church wealth to finance his troops impoverished and unable to field effective armies the carolingian kings were reduced to publishing impotent decrees crime was rampant and the Monarch was issuing proclamations that thieves should be admonished with Christian love to repent and that punishment should be administered to the guilty quote as far as the local officials could remember them as things grew worse the Kings even asked Royal officials to solemnly swear that they themselves would not turn to theft and plunder [Music] all the while Viking violence made much of the northwest uninhabitable the Norse leaders Hast Stein and Bjorn so ravaged the kotentin peninsula that it became a deserted Wasteland from The Mists of Norse Legend a man named Rallo emerges and begins to play an important role in these late 9th century events dudo an early chronicler for the Normans records that Rallo was a Dane expelled from his home country along with other warlike young men thought to be a threat by the Danish King Rallo took to the Sea and began his career as a viking Raider in England he took up with his fellow Danes who controlled the northern and Eastern portions of the island the Dane law Rallo formed a bond with guthrum the Viking Chieftain who ruled East Anglia guthrum had given up his life of plundering after he was defeated by Alfred the Great at the Battle of Eddington baptized guthrum took the Christian name athelston and kept his treaties with King Alfred dudo writes that Rallo and guthrum both of Danish origin became close allies no region brings forth extraordinary men and ones actively instructed in arms more than does the kingdom of the Danes said guthrum perhaps from guthrum Rallo began to gain an understanding of the success he might achieve not in raiding the Christians but informing associations with them dudo's account of Rallo while compelling is not uncontested in our scant sources for the mysterious Viking in snory's Saga of Harold fairhair Rallo is Norwegian not Danish and is described as being so large that no horse could carry him therefore he is called Rallo The Walker so the founding figure of the Normans the apex calvaryman of the 11th century is cast here as a man with no use for horses Rallo plundered France as ruthlessly as any other Norse Chieftain some time between 876 and 886. Rallo LED his Vikings before the French city of ruong the Franks who defended ruon fought on Horseback but Rallo was determined to undercut their advantage the ruse he devised might be considered an appropriate Prelude to the famous cunning of the Normans he had his Viking crew dig pits between the river sin and the city walls which were then concealed with Turf once the battle was underway the Vikings pretended to retreat to their ships the Franks gave Pursuit on their horses at which point they fell straight into the traps set by the Norsemen Rallo and his men then entered Rohan unopposed in 9 11 King Charles the simple invited Rallo to the negotiating table historian Robert Ferguson says that Charles formerly recognized rallo's right to rule a large area of Northwest France bluntly described as too often laid waste by hastein and by you in return Rallo and his Norsemen would convert to Christianity and assist Charles in the defense of his kingdom The Pact was sealed by a marriage between Rallo and Charles's daughter Gisela dudo includes two anecdotes that emphasize the ideal of the independent and proud Viking Warrior apparently once the agreement had been made between the carolingians and the Norsemen Rallo was told that he must now demonstrate his submission to the King by kissing Charles's foot Rollo refused I will never bow my knees at the knees of any man and no man's foot will I kiss he commanded one of his men to perform the gesture for him the Viking came forward seized the king's foot and flung him over so that Charles went tumbling backward this provoked laughter among the Norsemen but outrage among the Franks the story seems like a campfired tale passed down among the Normans to remind themselves of their Superior prowess but it does illustrate the undeniable reality that Charles's Grant was as Robert Ferguson calls it a concession to reality dudo describes another occasion when one of Charles's emissaries asked a group of Vikings by what title their leader was known the Vikings answered by none since we are all equals this emphasizes the old equality of the Viking warband warriors were equal to one another but agreed to follow a commander who demonstrated competence the Emissary then asked if the Vikings would be willing to swear loyalty to Charles the simple in return for lands and titles the Norsemen replied we will never subjugate ourselves to anyone nor cling to anyone's service nor take favors from anyone the favor that would please Us best is the one that we will claim for ourselves by force of arms and in the hardship of battle again coming from a Chronicle commission by rollo's grandson we see here depicted an old ideal that the Normans continued to prize [Music] two more grants of land followed as a result rallo's territory roughly corresponded to modern day Normandy a charter from 918 describes the grant as being made to Rollo and his companions for the defense of the Kingdom it seems strange to solve the problem of chronic brigandage by handing territory to a Pillager and yet Charles is treated with Rollo seems to have accomplished this goal Robert Ferguson compares the granting of Normandy to offer the greats agreement with guthrum in both cases a Christian ruler sought to neutralize an enemy by legitimizing his power and bringing him into the Christian fold in their own way both succeeded once Rallo was established as duke of Normandy Viking attacks up the sand came to an end Rallo made sure of that a volatile region was stabilized and Paris was secured [Music] in 923 Rallo and his men fought alongside the carolingians in a military campaign led by King Charles meanwhile according to dudo Rallo divided the land among his followers by measure and rebuilt everything that had been deserted and restored it by restocking it with his own Warriors and with peoples from abroad Rollo seems to have taken his role as the king's man seriously and worked to restore Law and Order to Normandy we don't know how Rallo organized his administration if we can use that term at this point whether he ruled more as a viking Chieftain or as a Frankish count perhaps he was in some parts both there is evidence however that he ruled mostly as a Frankish autocrat he passed laws making robbery and violence punishable by death a far stricter sentence than was imposed in carolingian lands this foreshadows the destiny of Normandy which would become the most well-ordered region in France in one account Rallo decrees that farm implements should be left out in the field overnight one farmer's wife hid her husband's tools and then reported them stolen Rallo had once replaced the man's equipment and then began investigating the theft however when the Duke discovered what had really happened he had the offending woman scourged until she confessed at last the husband admitted that he'd known the truth all along Rollo handed down two convictions the one that you are the head of a woman and ought to have chastised her the other that you were an accessory to the theft and were unwilling to disclose it both the man and his wife were hanged and dudo claims that this outcome so deterred future thefts that Normandy remained free of petty criminality for a hundred years dudo also recounts that two of King Charles's Warriors paid a visit to rallo's wife gisler Gisela entertained the two men in private and afterward rumors circulated that Rallo had not consummated his marriage suspecting geeseless visitors of starting the rumors the Duke executed both men in the public market of Ruan today many questioned the validity of rallo's conversion to Christianity certainly his conversion had a political Dimension but to claim that Rallo was entirely cynical in the adoption of his new Faith might be to reimagine him as a nihilistic modern Vikings stood in awe of the supernatural though there must have been a divide between rallo's conception of the Divine and that of his Frankish partners he might have perceived himself as holding some sort of dual Allegiance dudo predictably portrays Rallo as entirely sincere in his conversion but other chroniclers are not so certain [Music] Adam or Shaban writing some 100 years after rallo's death described the ruler's final days as a time of religious Madness in which Rallo the Heathen battled with Raul of the Christian seeing that he was dying Rallo grew terrified of the wrath of Thor and Odin and ordered 100 Christian captive sacrifice to assuage the anger of the old gods but the ailing ruler next grew afraid that Christ would now condemn him to hell and so he distributed vast quantities of gold and wealth to the churches of his realm dudo would never have recalled such uncomfortable incidents and it's possible that adamer's tail is either exaggerated or false but Robert Ferguson says that the story provides a rare and persuasive insight into the violent tensions that could arise when devout men change the object of their devotion as a matter of political convenience in rallo's case they were seemingly mind-wrenching some of rollo's followers refused to convert or return to their previous beliefs after baptism we have a 10th Century letter written by the Archbishop of Ruan to a colleague asking for advice on dealing with apostate he then converts archaeologists have also uncovered 10th Century Viking burial sites in Normandy Edward Gibbon insists that within a couple of generations the conversion was genuine and the sons of rallo's Vikings forgot Thor and Odin and fully embraced faith in Christ R Alan Brown says that the religious revival in Normandy began almost at once and that it was mostly led by the Dukes rallo's successor William longsword refounded the monastery of zumie edge around 9 40 and longed to become a monk there himself his son Richard The Fearless restored the Abbey of sant1 at Roan the monastic life was at the center of the Norman religious revival from early on the Normans could relate to the idea of monks as spiritual Warriors engaged in a Perpetual battle against the forces of Darkness through ceaseless prayer the Monk and the Knight became the Dual arms of the Norman State and by the 11th century the Abbeys of Normandy would be the most powerful centers of Western Christianity [Music] [Applause]

Channel: Real Crusades History

Views: 883,043

Keywords: dark ages, early middle ages, dark ages documentary, vikings, vikings documentary, charlemagne, charlemagne documentary, anglo-saxon history, alfred the great, rashiduns, umayyads, umayyad conquests, viking conquests, battle of yarmouk, battle of edington, battle of ashdown, barbarians documentary, barbarians history, byzantine empire, eastern roman empire, heraclius, khalid ibn-walid, roman empire, roman empire documentary, byzantine empire documentary, battle of tours, saxons

Id: hL9hbq1Nj38

Length: 249min 13sec (14953 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 24 2022