Odo the Great (also called ''Eudes'' or ''Eudo'') (died 735–740), was the

Duke of Aquitaine The duke of Aquitaine (, , ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom ( ...

by 700. His territory included Vasconia in the south-west of

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

and the Duchy of

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

(at that point located north-east of the river

Garonne The Garonne ( , ; Catalan language, Catalan, Basque language, Basque and , ; or ) is a river that flows in southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux � ...

), a realm extending from the

Loire The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône. It rises in the so ...

to the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

, with the capital in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. He fought the

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

Franks file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...

and made alliances with the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

to combat them. He retained this domain until 735. He is remembered for defeating the Umayyads in 721 in the Battle of Toulouse. He was the first to defeat them decisively in Western Europe. The feat earned him the

epithet An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...

"the Great". He also played a crucial role in the

Battle of Tours The Battle of Tours, also called the Battle of Poitiers and the Battle of the Highway of the Martyrs (), was fought on 10 October 732, and was an important battle during the Umayyad invasion of Gaul. It resulted in victory for the Frankish an ...

, working closely with

Charles Martel Charles Martel (; – 22 October 741), ''Martel'' being a sobriquet in Old French for "The Hammer", was a Franks, Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of ...

, whose alliance he sought after the Umayyad invasion of what is now southern France in 732.

Early life

His earlier life is obscure, as are his ancestry and ethnicity. One theory suggests that he was of Roman origin as contemporary Frankish chroniclers refer to his father as an enemy Roman. Several

Dukes of Aquitaine The duke of Aquitaine (, , ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom (4 ...

have been suggested as Odo's father: Boggis or Bertrand, or Duke Lupus I. According to the spurious

Charte d'Alaon The Charte d'Alaon is a spurious and fraudulent charter purporting to provide a genealogy of the house of Odo the Great, Duke of Aquitaine (715 – 735). The 19th-century French historian Joseph-François Rabanis proved it to be a hoax fabrica ...

, Hubertus was one of Odo's brothers. Odo succeeded to the ducal throne maybe as early as 679 (probable date of the death of Lupus) or 688. Other dates are possible, including 692, but he was certainly in power by 700.

Early leadership

The historian Jean de Jaurgain cites him as fighting in 711 against the

Visigoth The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

Roderic Roderic (also spelled Ruderic, Roderik, Roderich, or Roderick; Spanish language, Spanish and , ; died 711) was the Visigoths, Visigothic king in Hispania between 710 and 711. He is well known as "the last king of the Goths". He is actually an ex ...

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

. In 715 he declared himself independent during the civil war raging in Gaul. It is not likely that he ever took the title of king. In 718, he appears raising an army of

Basques The Basques ( or ; ; ; ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a Basque culture, common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Basques are indigenous peoples, ...

(''"hoste Vasconum commota"'') as an ally of

Chilperic II Chilperic II ( 672 – 13 February 721) was King of the Franks from 715 until his death. He was a son of Childeric II and his half-cousin wife, Bilichild, both of whom were assassinated, along with their eldest son Dagobert, in 675. Still a ...

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks during the Early Middle Ages, in contrast to the eastern Frankish kingdom, Austrasia. It initially included land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, in the north of present-day ...

and the

Mayor of the Palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...

Ragenfrid Ragenfrid (also Ragenfred, Raganfrid, or Ragamfred) (died 731) was the mayor of the palace of Neustria and Burgundy from 715, when he filled the vacuum in Neustria caused by the death of Pepin of Heristal, until 718, when Charles Martel finally ...

, who may have offered recognition of his kingship over Aquitaine. They were fighting against the

Austrasia Austrasia was the northeastern kingdom within the core of the Francia, Frankish Empire during the Early Middle Ages, centring on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers. It included the original Frankish-ruled territories within what had ...

mayor of the palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...

, but after the defeat of Chilperic at

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital ...

that year, he made peace with Charles by surrendering to him the Neustrian king and his treasures.

Between Umayyads and Franks

Odo was also obliged to fight both the Umayyads and the

who invaded his kingdom. On 9 June 721 he inflicted a major defeat upon

Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani Al-Samh ibn Malik al- Khawlani () was the Arab governor general of Al-Andalus from between 719 and 721. In 720, under his governorate he minted the first purely Arab coins in Al-Andalus as part of his fiscal reforms. Conquest of remaining Visig ...

at the Battle of Toulouse, the first major battle lost by the Muslim Umayyad forces in their military campaign northwards, claiming the lives of thousands of Umayyad soldiers. The victory was celebrated with gifts from

Pope Gregory II Pope Gregory II (; 669 – 11 February 731) was the Pope, bishop of Rome from 19 May 715 to his death on 11 February 731.Lampegia to the Muslim

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

rebel lord Uthman ibn Naissa, called " Munuza" by the Franks, the deputy governor of what would later become

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Battles of Garonne, Tours and death

In 731, the Frankish leader Charles Martel, after defeating the Saxons, turned his attention to the rival southern realm of Aquitaine, denounced Odo's alliance with Uthman ibn Naissa, and crossed the Loire, so breaking the peace treaty held with Odo. Charles Martel ransacked Aquitaine twice, seizing

Bourges Bourges ( ; ; ''Borges'' in Berrichon) is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre (Cher), Yèvre. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Cher (department), Cher, and also was the capital city of the former provin ...

, too, and Odo engaged the Frankish troops but was defeated. Charles went back to Francia. Meanwhile, the Umayyads were gathering forces to attack Odo's ally in the Pyrenean region of

Cerdanya Cerdanya (; , ; , ) or often La Cerdanya is a natural region, natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it was one of the Catalan counties, counties of Catalonia. Cerdanya has a ...

(maybe Catalonia) Uthman ibn Naissa. In 731, the Berber lord was subject to the attack of an expedition led by Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, overcoming and killing the rebel leader, and capturing Odo's daughter, who was sent as prisoner to a harem in Damascus. Busy as Odo was trying to fend off Charles's thrust, he didn't make it to help his ally. In 732, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi's troops raided Vasconia, advanced towards

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

and ransacked the city. Odo engaged them but was defeated by the Umayyads near Bordeaux. Following the defeat, Odo re-organised his scattered forces, and ran north to warn

, Mayor of the palaces of

and

, of the impending threat and to appeal for assistance in fighting the Arab–Berber advance, which he received in exchange for accepting formal Frankish overlordship. The duke, aged almost 80, joined Charles Martel's troops and was to form the Frankish army's left flank, while the Umayyads and the multinational army commanded by Charles built up their forces somewhere between Vienne and the river

Clain The Clain (; ) is a long river in western France, a left tributary of the river Vienne. Its source is near Hiesse, Charente. The Clain flows generally north, through the following departments and towns: *Charente * Vienne: Pressac, Vivon ...

to the north of

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

in preparation for the

(732, or possibly 733). Odo led his forces to play a major role in defeating the Umayyad army when they broke into the main Cordovan camp and set fire to it, sparking confusion and wreaking havoc with the enemy's

rearguard A rearguard or rear security is a part of a military force that protects it from attack from the rear, either during an advance or Withdrawal (military), withdrawal. The term can also be used to describe forces protecting lines, such as Line of c ...

. The alliance defeated the Umayyads at the

in 732, and expelled them from Aquitaine. After the battle, Charles headed back north to his domains in Francia—Neustria and Austrasia—and duke Odo was left as ruler in Aquitaine and Vasconia. Duke Odo abdicated or died in 735 and was succeeded by his son Hunald. However, he may have died in a monastery where he retreated, perhaps as late as 740. Odo the Great's popularity in Aquitaine is attested by the '' Vita Pardulfi''. The name of the character of king Yon de Gascogne in the 12th-century tale '' The Four Sons of Aymon'' is probably a corruption of Odo.Julien Bellarbre
e–XII^e siècles)"">"La « nation » aquitaine dans l’historiographie monastique du sud de la Loire (VIII^e–XII^e siècles)"
''Revue de l'IFHA'', 6 (2014), retrieved 21 May 2018.

Notes

References

Sources

* Oman, Charles. ''The Dark Ages, 476–918''. London: Rivingtons, 1914. * {{Authority control 730s deaths Frankish warriors Counts of Toulouse Dukes of Aquitaine 8th-century Frankish nobility Merovingian dynasty Year of birth unknown