- Battle of Brissarthe
The Battle of Brissarthe was fought on
15 September 866 between theFranks and a joint Breton-Viking army nearBrissarthe ,Neustria . It was marked by the death ofRobert the Strong , the Neustrianmargrave , and Ranulf I, theduke of Aquitaine .In 866,
Salomon, Duke of Brittany , allied withHastein (Hasting), a Danish chieftain, for an expedition intoAnjou ,Maine , andTouraine . In the course of the campaign,Le Mans was sacked. Robert, commander of the afflicted regions, assembled a large army to expel them. He was joined by Ranulf of the region ofPoitou and Gauzfrid andHervé of Maine .The Frankish army succeeded in intercepting the Danes before they reached their boats on the
Loire River . The Danes attempted to take refuge in a church, but the Franks besieged them. During the night, the Danes attempted to escape. During the ensuing battle, Robert was killed, Ranulf mortally wounded by an arrow, and Hervé injured. With the loss of their leaders, the Franks had to retreat.In 867,
Charles the Bald entered negotiations with Salomon and recognised him as King of Brittany. He conceded theCotentin and possible theAvranchin to the Breton. Hastein continued to ravage theLoire Valley for many more years. He hitBourges in 867,Orléans in868 , andAngers in872 . Charles appealed for assistance to Salomon.Primary sources
*
Regino of Prüm
*"Annales Bertiniani "
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