The siege of Narbonne was fought in 737 between the forces of

Yusuf ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri ( ar, يوسف بن عبد الرحمن الفهري) was an Umayyad governor of Narbonne in Septimania and the governor of al-Andalus from 747 to 756, ruling independently following the collapse of the Umayyad ...

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...

governor of

Narbonne Narbonne (, also , ; oc, Narbona ; la, Narbo ; Late Latin:) is a commune in France, commune in Southern France in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region. It lies from Paris in the Aude Departments of Franc ...

, and a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...

army led by

Charles Martel Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesma ...

. The city of

was captured by

Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani ( ar, السمح بن مالك الخولاني) was the Arab governor general of Al-Andalus from between 719 and 721. In 720, under his governorate he minted the first purely Arab coins in Al-Andalus as part of hi ...

, governor of

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...

, in 719 or 720. The city was renamed Arbūnah and turned into a military base for future operations. Following his success at the Siege of Avignon in 737

besieged Narbonne, but his forces were unable to take the city. However, when the Arabs sent reinforcements from Spain the Franks intercepted them at the mouth of the River Berre, in what is now the département of

Aude Aude (; ) is a Departments of France, department in Southern France, located in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region and named after the river Aude (river), Aude. The departmental council also calls it "Ca ...

, and achieved a significant victory, after which they marched on Nîmes.

Retreat

Charles may have been able to take Narbonne had he been willing to commit his army and full resources for an indefinite siege, but he was not willing or able to do so. Probably he found that the duke of Aquitaine Hunald was threatening his line of communication with the north. Furthermore, Maurontius, patrician of Provence, from his unconquered city of Marseille, raised a revolt against him from the rear. The Frankish leader may have considered accomplished his primary goals by destroying the Arab armies, and leaving the remaining Arabs confined to Narbonne. On his way back out of the region of Septimania, his army destroyed a string of cities and strongholds (Avignon, etc.) that failed to support him against the Muslims. A second Frankish expedition was led later in 739 to expel the inconvenient count Maurontius, who couldn't expect this time Andalusian relief, from Marseille and regain control of Provence. According to Paul the Deacon's ''Historia gentis Langobardorum'' the Arabs retreated when they learned that Martel had formed an alliance with the Lombards, leaving the Umayyad forces stationed in the area and Maurontius himself too weak to meet in open battle.

References

{{coord, 43.184277, 3.003078, display=title 737 Narbonne 737 Narbonne 737 Islam in France

History of Narbonne 8th century in Francia 730s in the Umayyad Caliphate