Morman (also spelled Morvan, Morwan, or Moruuan) (died 818) was a Breton chieftain who was declared king (''rex'') after the death of the Bretons' Frankish overlord

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Em ...

in 814. He is the first person known by name to be described as a Breton "king". He probably ruled a warband with members drawn from throughout Brittany. He had a stronghold defended by ditches, hedges and marshes. Morman had been a faithful follower of Charlemagne, having sworn oaths to him and performed the giving of hands, probably becoming his '' vassus'', although the Bretons rose up in rebellion in 811. Morman's rebellion against Frankish lordship in 814 threatened the integrity of Charlemagne's empire, recently inherited by

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...

. While the Bretons may have viewed the elevation of Morman as king on the death of Charlemagne as legitimate, the Frankish writers Astronomus and

Ermold the Black Ermoldus Nigellus, or Niger—translated Ermold the Black, or Ermoald (), was a poet who lived at the court of Pippin of Aquitaine, son of Frankish Emperor Louis I, and accompanied him on a campaign into Brittany in 824. Ermoldus was a cultured ...

saw it as a usurpation.Smith, 65. Louis sent Abbot Witchar to negotiate with Morman. According to Ermold, the abbot asked, "Do you not remember your sworn fealty, or your right hand to the Franks / often given, and to Charles the service you showed?" After failing to bring Morman to accept Frankish rule through diplomacy, Louis prepared to invade Brittany. In the spring of 818, Louis's army, composed of forces from all the Frankish ''regna'' (literally "kingdoms", but actually subkingdoms), assembled at

Vannes Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic Era The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who liv ...

, the westernmost point of actual Frankish control, and marched to Priziac in the far west of the county of the Vannetais on the bank of the river Ellé. The Franks launched a series of attacks on various Breton fortresses. After Morman was killed in battle, resistance collapsed. According to the '' Chronicle of Moissac'', Louis returned with a "triumph of victory", although the Bretons revolted again in 822 under Wihomarc.Smith, 66.

Notes

References

*Smith, Julia M. H. ''Province and Empire: Brittany and the Carolingians''. Cambridge University Press, 1992. {{Breton monarchs 818 deaths 9th-century rulers of Brittany Year of birth unknown Military personnel killed in action Kings of Brittany