The invasions of the 9th and 10th centuries were caused by the disintegration of Charlemagne's Empire. In the 9th century, after the failure of Charlemagne's work, Europe without armies became very vulnerable , because its borders were left without effective armies. For this reason, it was left open to the penetration of new invading peoples:the Vikings and Saracens , who arrived by sea, and the Hungarians who came by land.
The attacks of these towns had already begun in the time of Charlemagne, but after Louis the Pious the Carolingian Empire was unable to resist them.
The reasons for this failure were due to several reasons. On the one hand, the constant divisions of the Carolingian territory, which facilitated the invasions. On the other hand, to the refusal of the population to participate in the defense of the territories far from their provinces. In addition, the army was based on heavy cavalry, difficult to gather and mobilize, there was no fleet to guard the seas, and there were many walled cities and monasteries.
Added to these reasons was the panic that the invaders strove to create through horrible slaughter and terrifying clothing. Thus, during the 9th and 10th centuries, Western Europe was at the mercy of invading bands.
Invasions and pillage
In contrast to the invasions of the 5th century, which were migrations of peoples in search of new lands, the invasions of the 9th and 10th centuries were primarily plundering expeditions . What launched these new peoples into adventure was the desire for loot. With this objective, the invaders were carried out on three fronts :
– To the east the Hungarians arrived , intrepid riders of the eastern steppes.
– To the south The Saracen pirates arrived , from Spain and North Africa.
– To the north the vikings arrived , who came from Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
TheHungarians
The Hungarians or Magyars were of Mongolian origin , like the Huns and the Turks; it is thought that they came from the north of Russia . They were indomitable and ferocious warriors who apparently enjoyed looting and extermination.
In the year 875 the bands of Hungarians crossed the Carpathians, a chain of mountains located in the center of Europe, and settled in a region called Pannonia, near the Danube river. From there they expelled the peasants and the Christian missionaries.
Beginning in 898, the Saracens launched annual raids on the fields, cities, and monasteries of Germany (from Bavaria to the North Sea), Gaul (as far as the outskirts of Paris), and Italy (as far as the North Sea). Po).
Finally, in the year 955, the king of Germany Otho I the Great stopped them at the battle of Lech . After this defeat, the Hungarians settled in the area of the middle course of the Danube, which has since been called Hungary.
The Magyar horsemen
For many years, the entire kingdom of Germania was devastated by swift horsemen with a new custom that made them unstoppable:that of shoeing horses and using stirrups. These horsemen were the Hungarians or Magyars, whose cruelties were so appalling that they are obsessively recorded in the chronicles, stories and songs of the time. But the Magyar horsemen were not invincible. The King of Germany, Otto I, defeated them in the field of Lechsfeld, near the city of Augsburg, in present-day Germany, and thus put an end to these raids. Shortly thereafter, this town converted to Christianity.
AChristiankingdom:Hungary
Until the end of the 10th century, the Magyars did not constitute a nation:they were just tribes led by different chiefs. The conversion to Christianity of one of the most important Magyar chiefs, Geysa (975), was the first step towards union. Then, his son Valk, baptized as Esteban, took the final step, gradually submitting the various Magyar tribes under his authority. Thus, at the beginning of 1001 he was crowned King of Hungary. Stephen became the symbol of Hungarian unity, to the point that at the end of the 11th century, the Pope sanctified him.
The Saracens
The Saracens were Muslim pirates who came from Spain and North Africa. Unlike the Muslims of the seventh century, who formed an organized movement of conquest, the Saracens carried out only predatory expeditions.
Aboard their ships, they plundered the islands of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the shores of the western Mediterranean in search of treasure and slaves as well. In addition, as they were expert mountaineers, they soon penetrated to the inland valleys:in this way, for example, they traversed the Alpine valleys to reach Lake Constance, which today belongs to Switzerland.
Although their main objective was always loot, they settled on the island of Sicily and in the port of Taranto, in southern Italy, around the year 830, and in the year 846 they sacked Rome. Saracen raids lasted until the 12th century.
The Vikings
The most important invasion, the one that had the greatest consequences, was that of the Vikings, also called northern men or Normans . The Normans were of German origin and lived in the region of Scandinavia :Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
The reasons that led the Normans to expand are still unknown. Some historians think that they left Scandinavia in search of new lands because the population had grown so much. Others, on the other hand, think that it was only due to the adventurous spirit and the desire for loot.
In any case, the truth is that the Normans ravaged Europe with their light boats for two hundred years . The tactic of the Normans consisted of establishing themselves in some places on the coast, from where they traced the course of the rivers to advance inland. Then, they left their boats to extend their raids converted into horsemen.
The Norwegian They sailed across the Atlantic to reach the British Isles, Iceland, and Greenland.
The Danes They toured the North Sea and also went to the British Isles, and also to Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain and the western Mediterranean coast.
The Swedes instead, they ravaged the shores of the Baltic Sea. Then, taking advantage of the long network of rivers, they penetrated Russia with their ships until they reached the Black Sea. In this region they came into contact with the Byzantine Empire and the Caliphate of Baghdad.
In this way the Vikings sacked various cities such as Hamburg (845), Paris on several occasions (845, 857, 885-886), Cádiz and Seville (859), and around the year 860, the city of Pisa.
Finally, a few established stable trade relations with the plundered territories and some settled in them:the Danes settled in England and in the northeastern region of France, which from then on was called Normandy.
Viking ships
The key to the success of the Vikings was in their ships. The Northmen they never stopped perfecting their boats, adapting them to the most varied uses:for war or transportation; for navigation near the coasts; to go up rivers and for eventual transportation on land, from one water to another. The langskip they were warships:they were about 30 meters long by 5 wide, had a draft of just over a meter, a mast and a large deployable sail. These boats were very manoeuvrable, fast and resistant. In the chronicles of the time, mention was always made of the fear instilled by its prows, adorned with monstrous dragon heads.
The Norwegians in America
Among the Vikings, the spirit of adventure knew no bounds. In the year 874 they settled in distant Iceland.
One of the legends tells that the Norwegian Erik the Red was banished from this island, who around the year 981 arrived at a new land, which he baptized as Greenland or Green Land. Four years later, another Norwegian sailor, swept away by a storm, sighted the Labrador Peninsula in Canada, North America. Around the year 1000, Leif Eriksson methodically explored this new land. Despite repeated attempts, the Norwegians were never able to establish themselves there.
Invasion consequences
The new invasions created a climate of insecurity. Faced with these constant and surprising attacks, the kings were unable to gather their knights in time to defend the assaulted regions. The recognized weakness of the kings and the increase in insecurity contributed to the discredit of the monarchy.
The local lords, then, organized themselves to defend their regions . To do this, they built castles, and welcomed all those people who requested protection:those who wanted to receive their help rushed to promise them loyalty and personal fidelity.
Over time, the authority of these lords became more important than that of the king himself. This is how a new political, economic and social system was born:feudalism .