The Battle of Fraxinet or Fraxinetum was fought around 20 May 942, between a Hungarian raiding army and the

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

frontier state of Fraxinet, and ended with a Hungarian victory.

Background

Ibn Ḥayyān Abū Marwān Ḥayyān ibn Khalaf ibn Ḥusayn ibn Ḥayyān al-Andalusī al-Qurṭubī () (987–1075), usually known as Ibn Hayyan, was an Arab Muslim historian from Al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Pen ...

preserved in his work ''Kitāb al-Muqtabis fī tarīkh al-Andalus'', the Hungarians (or Magyars), in 942, passed through the

Kingdom of the Lombards The Kingdom of the Lombards, also known as the Lombard Kingdom and later as the Kingdom of all Italy (), was an Early Middle Ages, early medieval state established by the Lombards, a Germanic people, on the Italian Peninsula in the latter part ...

(northern Italy) and then through southern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, skirmishing along the way. They then invaded ''Thaghr al-Aqṣā'' ("Furthest March"), the northwestern frontier province of the

Caliphate of Córdoba A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

. Through the land of

Aquileia Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river Natiso (modern Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times. Today, the city is small ( ...

, the Hungarians with

Kabar The Kabars (), also known as Qavars (Qabars) or Khavars, were Khazar rebels who joined Magyar tribes and the Rus' Khaganate confederations in the 9th century CE. Sources The Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII is the principal source of the Kaba ...

auxiliary troops arrived to Italy by the spring of 942. There Hugh of Italy paid the previously agreed annual amount of tax (ten bushels of gold) then sent them to

Hispania Hispania was the Ancient Rome, Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two Roman province, provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior. During the Principate, Hispania Ulterior was divide ...

, according to the account of Liutprand of Cremona. As historian Ferenc Makk claims Hugh hired the Hungarians to a west oriented military campaign because of the Muslims of Fraxinet's continuous raids against his kingdom, including

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

. In addition, Hugh summoned a fleet from the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

in order to destroy the coastal forts in Fraxinet.

Battle

In early May 942, the Hungarian forces left

Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...

for southern France. Just before 20 May, they arrived at Fraxinet, where the battle took place against the Muslims. As friar Ekkehard wrote in his chronicle '' Casus Sancti Galli'' (first half of 11th century) among the events from 926 to 937, the skirmish ended when

Conrad I of Burgundy Conrad I, called the Peaceful (; ; ; – 19 October 993), was King of Burgundy (ruling a political unit also called the Kingdom of Arles) from 937 until his death in 993. Life A member of the Elder House of Welf, Conrad was the son of King ...

(r. 937–993) sent envoys to both armies warning them of the other. The envoys offered Burgundian aid to each invader against the other and then informed them of the other's whereabouts. When the Magyars and Saracens met, the Burgundians held back and only attacked when the opposing forces were spent. In this way, both invading armies were destroyed and the captives sold into slavery in

Arles Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and Communes of France, commune in the South of France, a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Reg ...

. Italian historian Gina Fasoli considered that Ekkehard mistakenly confused Hugh with Conrad. Other scholars dated the event to 924, 926, 937, 943, 951 or 954. Makk argues the battle bound to happen during the rule of Conrad, excluding the years 924 and 926. He adds, the minor Conrad resided in the court of Otto I of Germany until early 943, which excludes his role in 937 or 942. The Hungarians led a campaign against the Byzantines in 943, omitting the western military raids. Makk also emphasizes, Conrad did not participate in any major struggles against the Muslims of Fraxinet, including the decisive Battle of Tourtour in 973. However Hugh's victorious naval campaign of 942 against the "Saracens" is well known in historiography, and during that time, he was in a political-military alliance with the Magyars. In Hungarian history, this was the first documented skirmish against a Muslim enemy. The Magyars defeated the "Saracens" and they continued on their way to Hispania. Their victory laid the foundation of a successful Italian–Byzantine campaign against the Muslims in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Fraxinet Fraxinet Fraxinet Fraxinet Fraxinet 942 Fraxinet, Battle Fraxinet, Battle Fraxinet, Battle