The Battle of Lüneburg Heath (also called the Battle of Ebstorf) was a conflict between the army of King

Louis the Younger Louis the Younger (830/835 – 20 January 882), sometimes called Louis the Saxon or Louis III, was the second eldest of the three sons of Louis the German and Hemma. He succeeded his father as the King of Eastern Francia on 28 August 876 and his ...

and the Norse

Great Heathen Army The Great Heathen Army, also known as the Viking Great Army,Hadley. "The Winter Camp of the Viking Great Army, AD 872–3, Torksey, Lincolnshire", ''Antiquaries Journal''. 96, pp. 23–67 was a coalition of Scandinavian warriors who invaded ...

fought on , at

Lüneburg Heath Lüneburg Heath (, ) is a large area of heath (habitat), heath, geest, and woodland in the northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover and Bremen and is ...

in today's

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

. Following defeat by

Alfred the Great Alfred the Great ( ; – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who both died when Alfr ...

at the

Battle of Edington The Battle of Edington or Battle of Ethandun was fought in May 878 between the West Saxon army of King Alfred the Great and the Great Heathen Army led by the Danish warlord Guthrum. The battle took place near Edington, Wiltshire, Edington in ...

, the Norse Great Heathen Army moved from

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

pillage Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...

the

Duchy of Saxony The Duchy of Saxony () was originally the area settled by the Saxons in the late Early Middle Ages, when they were subdued by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 772 CE and incorporated into the Carolingian Empire (Francia) by 804. Upon the 84 ...

. The army of

Louis Louis may refer to: People * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer Other uses * Louis (coin), a French coin * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also ...

met the Norsemen at

. The

Saxons The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

were routed in a

snowstorm A winter storm (also known as snow storm) is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, Rain and snow mixed, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In Continental cl ...

, with the army being destroyed or captured. Known combatants include Marquard of Hildesheim, Theodoric of Minden,

Lothar I, Count of Stade Lothar I (c. 840-880), Count of Stade, possibly a descendant of Saxon leader Widukind. Lothar was one of the twelve counts killed in the Battle of Ebstorf (also called the Battle of Lüneburg Heath) which pitted the army of Louis III of France a ...

, an unidentified

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

named "Bardonum"Gesta Francorum and

Bruno Bruno may refer to: People and fictional characters * Bruno (name), including lists of people and fictional characters with either the given name or surname * Bruno, Duke of Saxony (died 880) * Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologn ...

, Duke of

East Saxony East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that eas ...

who, according to the chronicles and the , drowned in a river during the Saxon retreat. Those killed were recognized by the Catholic Church as the

Martyrs of Ebsdorf The Martyrs of Ebsdorf were the Saxon combatants killed in the winter of at the Battle of Lüneburg Heath near Ebstorf, Lower Saxony. They were subsequently declared martyrs by the church, with their feast day being 2 February. Recognised mar ...

, whose feast day is 2 February. The Norse army was subsequently defeated at the

Battle of Thimeon The Battle of Thiméon was a Frankish victory over the Vikings near Thiméon (near modern Charleroi, Wallonia) north of the Sambre in February 880. In 879, Vikings from England settled on the river Scheldt. After celebrating Christmas at Fr ...

later that month and finally checked at the

Battle of Saucourt The Battle of Saucourt was part of the Viking invasions of West Francia and occurred between forces of Vikings and the troops of Kings of West Francia, Louis III of France and his brother Carloman II, on 3 August 881 at Saucourt-en-Vimeu. Back ...

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Luneburg Heath, Battle of Battles involving East Francia Battles involving the Vikings 880s conflicts Military history of Lower Saxony 880 9th century in East Francia