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Fraxinetum

Coordinates:43°19′17″N06°27′50″E/ 43.32139°N 6.46389°E/43.32139; 6.46389
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FraxinetumorFraxinet(Arabic:فرخشنيط,romanized:FarakhshanītorفرخشةFarakhsha,fromLatinfraxinus:"ash tree",fraxinetum:"ash forest" ) was the site of aMuslimstronghold at the centre of a frontier state inProvencebetween about 887 and 972. It is identified with modernLa Garde-Freinet,nearSaint-Tropez.The fortress was established by Muslims fromal-Andalus.From this base, the Muslims raided up theRhône Valley,intoPiedmontand as far as theAbbey of Saint Gall.Their main business was slave-raiding of Europeans for export toIslamic markets.For a time, they controlled the passes through the westernAlps.They withstood several attempts to oust them, but were finally defeated by the combined forces of the Provençal and Piedmontese nobility at thebattle of Tourtourin 972.

Primary sources

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Liutprand mentioning Fraxinetum (underlined)

Christian sources inLatinare more numerous than Muslim ones inArabicfor reconstructing the history of Fraxinetum. The most important contemporary narrative of the Muslims of Fraxinetum is theAntapodosisofLiudprand,bishop of Cremona(d. 972). The bishop also mentions Fraxinetum in hisLiber de rebus gestis Ottonis,an account of the reign of KingOtto I of Germany.[1]Other contemporary narrative sources in Latin are theAnnalesofFlodoard,which cover the years 919–966, and theCasus sancti GalliofEkkehard(d. 973). Documentary sources are few, but the firstcartularyof theAbbey of Saint-Victorat Marseille, covering the years 838–1000, contains some references in its charters to Fraxinetum.[2]

Several biographies and saints' lives also contain information relative to Fraxinetum. TheVita Iohannis Gorziensis,a biography ofJohn of Gorzewritten around 960, contains an account of the diplomacy undertaken by Otto I in response to raids in his territory. The twoVitae sancti Maioli,biographies ofMaiolus of Clunywritten byOdilo of Clunyand Syrus, are important sources for the capture of their subject, which event brought about the downfall of Fraxinetum.[2]The anonymousVita sancti Bobonis,written in the first half of the eleventh century about a saint who died in 986, describes the downfall of Fraxinetum. Its account appears to be based on that of the destruction of acastrum Fraxenedellumin theChronicon Novalicense.[3]

Among contemporary Muslim sources that mention Fraxinetum are the ArabicṢurāt al-ArḍofIbn Ḥawqal(977), which is a revised version of the geographical treatiseKitāb al-Masālik waʿl-mamālikbyal-Iṣṭakhrī(951), and an anonymousPersiangeography,Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam(late 10th century). TheMuqtabisofIbn Ḥayyān(d. 1076) also mentions Fraxinetum.[4]

Location

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Fraxinetum in its Mediterranean context, with the Muslim world in green and the Byzantine empire in purple.

The fort of Fraxinetum atop the hill Mont des Maures[5]overlooking what is today the village of La Garde-Freinet had existed since theRoman era.Its name is derived from the Latinfraxinus(ash tree) and probably refers to the thick forest of ash that covers the hill. The Muslim geographers al-Iṣṭakhrī and Ibn Ḥawqal call FraxinetumJabal al-Qilāl( "mount of timber" ). They describe the Muslim enclave as vast, covered with streams and fertile soil and taking two days to cross.[6]Ibn Ḥawqal erroneously considered it an island at the mouth of theRhône.[7]

Identity

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According to Ibn Ḥawqal, the settlement was dependent on theUmayyad caliphate of Córdoba.[7]The Muslims of Fraxinetum are described by Liudprand asSaracens(saraceni) from Spain and by theVita sancti Bobonissimply as Spaniards (hispanicolae).[6]Other sources refer to them asfusci(blacks),pagani(heathen) orHagarenes.[8]

According to historian Mohammad Ballan, Fraxinetum was not just a settlement, but a frontier state that was regionally important economically and militarily.[9]

History

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Background

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For the 8th-century Muslim incursions in the area, seeUmayyad invasion of Gaul.

In 838, theAnnales Bertinianirecord that Muslims raidedMarseille,plundered its religious houses and took captive both men and women, clerical and lay, as slaves. In 842, theAnnalesreport a raid in the vicinity ofArles.In 869, raiders returned to Arles and captured the archbishop,Roland.They accepted a ransom in return for the archbishop, but when they handed him over he was already dead.[10]The construction of a castle in theCamarguefollowing these raids up the Rhône may have induced raiders to try points further east, culminating in the establishment of a permanent base of operations at Fraxinetum.[11]

Foundation and expansion

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A 12th-century copy ofa schematic contemporary Arabic mapby al-Iṣṭakhrī depictsJabal al-Qilālas a triangular island (top centre) at the western end of the Mediterranean. The map is oriented west up.

The Muslim occupation of Fraxinetum began around 887, according to Liudprand, when a small ship carrying about twenty Andalusī sailors landed nearSaint-Tropez.The Andalusīs seized the settlement that had grown up at the foot of the hill and then took control of the fort itself. This was accessible only by a narrow path through the forest, according to both Liudprand and Ibn Ḥawqal.[6]

According to Liudprand, the settlers sent messages back to Spain and theBalearicsinviting reinforcements. About 100 warriors answered the call, motivated both by religious zeal and a desire for plunder. In the first two decades of their rule, the Muslims of Fraxinetum subdued Provence and began raiding across theAlpsinto Italy. Liudprand blamed their quick success on the divisions and squabbles of the Provençals following the collapses ofCarolingianauthority.[7]By 906, they controlled the pass ofMont Cenisbetween Provence and Italy. In that year, they attacked or occupiedAcqui,OulxandSusain Italy.[12]According to the 11th-centuryChronicon Novalicense,they threatened theAbbey of Novalesaon this occasion.[7]By 911, they were in control of all the western Alpine passes, from which they could collect tolls on traders and pilgrims.[13]Between 915 and 918, they raidedEmbrun,MaurienneandVienne.In 920, there were more attacks in Italy and on Marseille andAix-en-Provencein western Provence.[12]

Fraxinetum became a part of theal-Andalus slave trade.The population fled in fear of the slave raids, which made it difficult for the Frankish to secure their Southern coast,[14]and the Saracens of Fraxinetum exported the Frankisk prisoners they captured as slaves to theslave market of the Muslim Middle East.[15]

Between 929 and 933, the Muslims of Fraxinetum extended their control to the more easterly Alpine passes and raided theUpper Rhône Valley.[16]In 939, crossing the Alps again, they attacked theAbbey of Saint Galland razed theAbbey of Saint-Maurice d'Agaune.Like the contemporaryVikings,the Muslim raiders targeted monasteries because of their wealth and lack of defences.[7]

High point

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Men from Fraxinetum may have participated in theFatimid raid on Genoain 935. They certainly destroyed the port ofFréjusin 940, prompting a response from KingHugh of Italy.In 941 or 942, he sought an alliance with theByzantine Empireand received a favourable response from the EmperorRomanos Lekapenos.While he attacked Fraxinetum by land, a fleet of Byzantinechelandiadestroyed the Muslim ships withGreek fire.[17]At the moment when Fraxinetum on the cusp of surrender, Hugh received news that a rival for the Italian throne, MargraveBerengar of Ivrea,was preparing to invade Italy with an army ofSaxonsfrom his exile in Germany. Hugh called off the siege and made an arrangement with the Muslims. They were allowed to keep the Alpine passes, presumably in exchange for defending the Italian frontier. It is possible that Hugh's abrupt change of policy was also related to the commercial relations he opened up with the Umayyad caliphate around the same time.[18]

Hugh's decision was condemned by contemporary Christian writers. Liudprand blamed him for the death of hundreds or even thousands of Christians. In the decade of the 940s, Fraxinetum was at the apex of its power and gave shelter to a number of Christian rebels.[18]After his downfall in 962, KingAdalbert of Italytook refuge in Fraxinetum.[19]In hisAnnals,under the year 951,Flodoard of Reimsrecords that "the Saracens occupying the Alpine passes extract tribute from travellers to Rome, only thus allowing them to pass."[18]

Around 954, Fraxinetumcame into conflictwithHungarian invaders.KingConrad of Burgundytook advantage of the conflict to slaughter both sides. The major defeat dealt to the Hungarians by KingOtto I of Germanyat theBattle of Lechfeldthe following year allowed the German king to focus on the threat from Fraxinetum.[20]At one point a military expedition may have been planned, but it never took place. This did not stopWidukind of Corveyfrom listing the Saracens among Otto's defeated enemies.[21]

Decline and defeat

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Fraxinetum in its political surroundings, the kingdom of Provence

In 956, a raid into theUpper Rhine Valleyprompted Otto I to send an embassy to the Umayyad court, which he clearly believed had the power to control Fraxinetum.[22]Ballan calls their raid deep into Otto's territory "their first major miscalculation". Several embassies were exchanged between the two most powerful courts in western Europe. After this, material aid from Spain to Fraxinetum declined substantially.[19]

In 972, the Muslims captured AbbotMaiolus of Clunywhile he was crossing the Alps and held him for ransom. After his release, Maiolus organized a military response.[20]Led by CountWilliam I of Provenceand CountArduin of Turin,a Christian force drawn from Provence, Piedmont andSeptimaniadefeated the Muslims in thebattle of Tourtourin the summer of 972. Fraxinetum fell by the end of the year after a short siege.[23]

With the fall of Fraxinetum, those Muslims who did not go into exile were either killed or sold into slavery. Many converted to Christianity and remained in Provence as serfs, while the formerly Muslim lands were parcelled out among the victorious Provençal nobles.[24]

Governance

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The Muslims of Fraxinetum established forts throughout the areas they conquered in Provence and Piedmont, but Latin sources do not distinguish them, calling all of them Fraxinetum or a variant thereof, such as Frassineto, Frascendello or Fraxinth.[25]A string of forts was constructed across the Alps to control the mountain passes and serve as bases for raiding.[19]

The form of Islamic rule imposed by Fraxinetum was indirect. Christians retained their religion and towns their self-government through agreeing to thedhimma(the pact of submission) and paying thejizya(a head tax).[25]The main business of the conquerors was "the capture of Europeans for the slave markets of the Islamic world."[26]

Archaeological evidence in the form of 10th-century Muslim shipwrecks off the coast of Provence suggests that Fraxinetum maintained commercial links with the rest of the Muslim world.[27]

Timeline

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Aerial view of theGulf of Saint-Tropez,where Fraxinetum was located

References

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  1. ^Ballan 2010,pp. 30 & 33.
  2. ^abBallan 2010,p. 34.
  3. ^Carozzi 2002,p. 482.
  4. ^Ballan 2010,p. 35.
  5. ^Wenner 1980,p. 59.
  6. ^abcBallan 2010,p. 26.
  7. ^abcdeBallan 2010,p. 27.
  8. ^Versteegh 1990,p. 359.
  9. ^Ballan 2010,p. 76: "contrary to traditionalist perspective of Fraxinetum as a pirate base, it is more appropriate to conceptualize it as an Islamic frontier state which Andalusī Muslims inhabited and developed into an important economic and military center in Provence"
  10. ^Bruce 2016,pp. 22–23.
  11. ^Lewis 1965,p. 102.
  12. ^abWenner 1980,p. 74.
  13. ^Wenner 1980,p. 74;Ballan 2010,p. 29.
  14. ^The Cambridge Illustrated History of the Middle Ages. (1986). Storbritannien: Cambridge University Press. p. 408
  15. ^Phillips, W. D. (1985). Slavery from Roman Times to the Early Transatlantic Trade. Storbritannien: Manchester University Press.
  16. ^Wenner 1980,p. 74;Ballan 2010,p. 29, implies that they held all the passes since 921.
  17. ^Pryor & Jeffreys 2006,p. 72 (942);Ballan 2010,p. 28 (941); butWenner 1980,p. 74, dates this attack to 931, while Pryor & Jeffreys, p. 69, distinguish between the attacks of 931 and 942.
  18. ^abcBallan 2010,p. 29.
  19. ^abcBallan 2010,p. 30.
  20. ^abBallan 2010,p. 31.
  21. ^Leyser 1968,p. 2, n1.
  22. ^Ballan 2010,p. 30;Wenner 1980,p. 75.
  23. ^Pryor & Jeffreys 2006,p. 69;Ballan 2010,p. 32, notes that a number of sources place Fraxinetum's fall in 990.
  24. ^Ballan 2010,p. 32.
  25. ^abBallan 2010,p. 28.
  26. ^Bruce 2016,p. 20.
  27. ^Pryor & Jeffreys 2006,p. 69.

Bibliography

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Primary sources

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  • Flodoard(2014).Bernard S. Bachrach;Steven Fanning; Philippe Lauer (eds.).The Annals of Flodoard of Reims, 919–966.Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
  • Liudprand(2007). Paolo Squatriti (ed.).The Complete Works of Liudprand of Cremona.Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press.

Secondary sources

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43°19′17″N06°27′50″E/ 43.32139°N 6.46389°E/43.32139; 6.46389

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