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| Frisian-Frankish War | |||||||||
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 Map of the Frankish Empire from 481 to 814 | |||||||||
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TheFrisian–Frankish wars were a series of conflicts between theFrankish Empire and theFrisian Kingdom in the 7th and 8th centuries.
The wars were mainly about control of the Rhine delta. After the death of the Frisian kingRadbod, the Franks gained the upper hand. In 734 at theBattle of the Boarn the Frisians were defeated and the Franks annexed the Frisian lands between theVlie and theLauwers. Only the Frisians east of theLauwers remained independent. In 772 they lost their independence as well. The wars ended with the last revolt of the Frisians in 793 and the pacification of the Frisians byCharlemagne.
The displacements of peoples during theMigration Period resulted in theFrisian settlements in the north and the west of theLow Countries,[1]: 792 theSaxons in the east, theWarnen at the mouth of theRhine and theFranks further south around theScheldt. There, under the leadership of theirMerovingian kings, they had an important role in the politics in northernGaul.
The Frisians consisted of loosely bonded tribes centered on war bands but without great power. In the second half of the 7th century the Frisian kingdom reached its maximum geographic development.[2] The Frisian kings became interested in former Frankish lands; under the leadership of the predecessors ofAldgisl they expanded their power to the heart of the Low Countries. The presence of the Warnen at the mouth of the Rhine remains unclear, but it appears they were likely crushed between the Frisians and Franks.[3]
TheMerovingian king ofNeustriaChilperic I (561–584) is mentioned in Frankish sources as the "terror of the Frisians and theSuebi".[citation needed] A few coins commemorating an otherwise obscure figure namedAudulf survive from the late 6th or early 7th century.[4] Their reverse inscriptionvictvria avdvlfo (possibly intending "Victory by Audulf") is sometimes conjectured to celebrate a victory by Audulf over the Franks, although this remains uncertain.[5]
By 630 the situation had changed. The Merovingian kingDagobert I brought the Frankish Empire under one banner again and conquered the lands south of theOude Rijn. This time they broughtChristianity to the Frisian lands and built a church inUtrecht. After Dagobert died the Franks could not hold their position there, and around 650 the central river area, includingDorestad became Frisian again. The manufacturing of Frankish coins stopped and the city ofUtrecht became the residence of the Frisian kings.[citation needed]
Under the rule of KingAldgisl the Frisians came into conflict with the Neustrianmayor of the palaceEbroin (675-681). This time the conflict was about the old Roman border fortifications. Aldgisl kept the Franks at a bay with his army maneuvers. In 678 he welcomed the EnglishbishopWilfrid, who like him was not a friend of Ebroin.[1]: 792
Under the successor of Aldgisl,Radbod, the tide turned in favour of the Franks; by 689 Neustria,Austrasia andBurgundy were united undermayor of the palacePepin of Herstal.[6] In 690 Pepin was victorious in thebattle of Dorestad. Though not all the consequences of this battle are clear,Dorestad became Frankish again, as did the castles ofUtrecht andFechten. It is thought that the influence of the Franks now extended from south of the Oude Rijn to the coast, but this is not entirely clear because the Frisians did not entirely lose control over the central river area. In any case there was an Archbishopric orbishopric of the Frisians founded for missionaryWillibrord[7] and a marriage was held betweenGrimoald the Younger the oldest son of Pepin, andThiadsvind, the daughter of Radbod in 711.[1]: 794
After Pepin died in 714, Radbod took part in the battle for succession in Frankish lands. He concluded a treaty with the new Neustrian mayor of the palaceRagenfrid and in 716 their armies entered Austrasian territory as far asCologne, where they were victorious in theBattle of Cologne.[8] In this way all lands south of the Rhine became Frisian again.[1]: 794 The army returned to the north with much war loot. Radbod made plans to invade the Frankish empire for the second time and mobilised a large army. But before he could do this he fell ill and died in the autumn of 719.[9]: 90
After thebattle of Soissons, Frankish territories of Neustria and Austrasia were reunited under Mayor of the PalaceCharles Martel and nominal king Chilperic II. It is not certain who the successor of the Frisian king Radbod was. It is believed that there were troubles with the succession, because the Frankish opponent Charles Martel easily invaded Frisia and subjugated the territory. The resistance was so weak that Charles Martel not only annexedFrisia Citerior ("nearer" Frisia south of the Rhine), but he also crossed the Rhine and annexed "farther" Frisia, to the banks of the riverVlie.[1]: 795 Now protected by the Franks, missionaryWillibrord returned to Frisia in 719.[10][9]: 90
There was a rebellion against Frankish rule in the region ofWestergo in 733, which Charles put down. The inhabitants gave hostages, converted to Christianity and recognised Frankish overlordship, but after Charles left they were punished by their fellow Frisians. In 734, the Frisians rebelled again, this time under the leadership of DukeBubo, who did not recognise Frankish supremacy with his territory probably only encompassing the north of the former king Radbod's Frisia.[11] Charles gathered a large fleet and army and prepared a naval invasion.[12] The Frisians were defeated inBattle of the Boarn[1]: 795 that followed, and Bubo was killed.[8] The victors plundered and burned non-Christian sanctuaries. Charles Martel returned with much loot, and broke the power of the Frisian rulers for good. The Franks annexed the Frisian lands between theVlie and theLauwers.[12]
The Frankish kingCharlemagne brought an end to the independence of the Frisians east of theLauwers as well, expanding the Frankish Empire further to the east. The war began with a campaign against the East Frisians and was then continued against theSaxons, where theSaxon Wars would last thirty-two years.
In 772, Charles attacked the Frisians east of the Lauwers and the Saxons with a large army. He defeated them in several battles and so the last independent Frisian lands and the lands of the Saxons came into Frankish hands.[13]: 205
After the fall of their realm, the Frisians rebelled against the Franks several times.
The first Frisian bishopBoniface[14] set out for Frisia in 754 with a small retinue. He baptized a great number and summoned a general meeting forconfirmation at a place not far fromDokkum, betweenFraneker andGroningen. Instead of the converts he expected, a group of armed inhabitants appeared. They slewed the aged archbishop because, according to Boniface's hagiographer, they believed the chests he carried with him contained gold and other riches. They were dismayed when they discovered that the chest only contained the bishop's books.[15]
Under the leadership ofWidukind the Saxons continued to resist the Franks. In 782 the Frisians east of theLauwers also began a revolt against the Franks. The revolt expanded to Frisian lands in the west that had been pacified earlier. This led to an en masse return topaganism by the population. Marauders burned churches and the priests, includingLudger, had to flee south.
In responseCharlemagne organized a new campaign in 783 to restore control, first over the Saxons and later over the Frisians. The Frisians aided Widukind against the Franks in 784 by sending him an army. It did not help much and he had to surrender in 785 and the Frisian revolt was severely repressed by the Franks.[16]
In 793 the Frisians rebelled for the last time againstCharlemagne. The reason for this was the forceful recruiting of Frisians and Saxons for the war against theAvars in the east. Under the leadership ofdukesUnno andEilrad, a revolt arose east of theLauwers and spread to other Frisian lands. This led to a temporary return to paganism, and again priests had to flee.This revolt was also suppressed by the Franks.[9]: 310