The Battle of Roncevaux Pass was a battle in which a combined

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

- Qasawi Muslim army defeated a Carolingian military expedition in 824. The battle took place only 46 years after the first Battle of Roncevaux Pass (778) in a confrontation showing similar features: a Basque force engaging from the mountains, a northbound expedition led by the

Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...

, and the same geographical setting (the

Roncevaux Pass Roncesvalles Pass, Ronceval Pass or Roncevaux Pass (; ; ; elevation 1057 m) is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees near the border between France and Spain. The pass itself is entirely in Spain. Location The pass is located between the towns of ...

or a spot nearby). The battle resulted in the defeat of the Carolingian military expedition and the capture of its commanders Aeblus and

Aznar Sánchez Aznar is a Spanish and Gascon surname of Basque origin and an obsolete given name. It probably stems from old Basque "azenar(i)" ('fox', modern "azeri"). Notable people with this name include the following: Surname * Juan Bautista Aznar-Cabañ ...

in 824. The clash was to have further reaching consequences than those of the 778 engagement: the immediate establishment of the independent

Kingdom of Pamplona The Kingdom of Navarre (; , , , ), originally the Kingdom of Pamplona (), was a Basque kingdom that occupied lands on both sides of the western Pyrenees, alongside the Atlantic Ocean between present-day Spain and France. The medieval state took ...

Background

After

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 ...

' half-hearted expedition to Pamplona circa 814,

tribal chieftain Enneko Aritza, who held strong family ties with the Banu Qasi led by his half-brother

Musa Musa may refer to: Places * Mūša, a river in Lithuania and Latvia * Musa, Azerbaijan, a village in Yardymli Rayon * Musa, Iran, a village in Ilam Province * Musa, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Iran *Musa, Kerman, Iran * Musa, Bukan, West Azerbaija ...

, prevailed in the fortress circa 816 (or earlier) after news of Charlemagne's death (814) spread and a Frankish vassal, Belasko of Pamplona— ''Velasco'', cited as ''Balashk al-Yalashki'' in Muslim sources—was defeated in the Battle of Pancorbo. In 816, the revolt in Pamplona extended north across the Pyrenees, and in 816 Louis the Pious deposed Seguin (Sihimin) Duke of Vasconia and count of Bordeaux, who had been created duke of Vasconia in 812, for failing to suppress or sympathising with the rebellion, triggering a widespread revolt. The Basque lords on both sides of the Pyrenees rebelled, but were soon subdued in Dax by Louis (817). Lupus Centullo was then appointed duke (818), but was immediately deposed after he rebelled. Meanwhile, in Aragon (Jaca) the pro-Frankish count Aznar Galindez was overthrown by Enneko's allied count Garcia Malo (Garcia, 'the young' in old Basque) in 820. All Vasconia remained at this point in a shaky state of rebellion and the Frankish tenure on the

Hispanic Marches The Hispanic March or Spanish March ( es, Marca Hispánica, ca, Marca Hispànica, Aragonese and oc, Marca Hispanica, eu, Hispaniako Marka, french: Marche d'Espagne), was a military buffer zone beyond the former province of Septimania, estab ...

was shifting out of control.

The battle

In 824 an expedition was mustered by the Carolingian king in the Vasconia remaining under Frankish overlordship (north of the Pyrenees). The military force was headed by the Duke of Vasconia Aznar Sanchez, who led Basque troops hailing from current Gascony, and count Aeblus ("''Aeblus et Asinarius comites cum copiis Wasconum ad Pampilonam missi''"), commanding a Frankish army. The military force headed south with a view to quashing the Basque rebellion centred in

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

. The expedition arrived in the Basque stronghold, but encountered no resistance, and with the expedition having accomplished their goals, made their way back north with goods looted from the town. According to Umayyad chroniclers, a joint force of Navarrese (Enneko Aritza), Aragonese and Banu Qasi warriors, hidden in the forests, awaited the Carolingian army on the sinuous narrow passes of the region of Cize. The Basques engaged the two columns in their terrain. The Carolingian forces were routed, and the two commanders of the expedition were captured.

Aftermath

While the Frankish count Aeblus was sent prisoner to Córdoba,

was released thanks to his kinship with the captors ("''Asinarius vero misericordia eorum, qui eum ceperant, quasi qui consanguineus eorum esset''") a fact that evidenced the good relations entertained at that moment by the joint Banu Qasi - Arista tandem with the Cordovan Umayyad, maybe after the accession to the throne of Abd ar-Rahman II in 822. Enneko Aritza emerged victorious after the battle and became the undisputed ruler of Pamplona. The new independent Basque kingdom brought about the definite detachment of the territories south of the Pyrenées from the Duchy of Vasconia suzerain to the Franks, as well as the loss of control over the Hispanic Marches for them and the start of an on-off alliance between the kings of Pamplona and the muwallad Banu Qasi.

References

* * {{cite book , author = Collins, Roger, year = 1990 , title = The Basques , publisher = Basil Blackwell , location= Cambridge, Massachusetts, isbn = 0-631-17565-2 Roncevaux

Basque history 824 9th century in France 9th century in Spain Roncevaux 824 Roncevaux Pass 824