Battle of Roncevaux Pass (824)
| 2nd Battle of Roncevaux Pass | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Louis the Pious' attempt to control the Vasconia | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
|
Basques (Gascons) | Basques (Navarrese, Aragonese), Qasawi Muslims | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
|
Count Aznar Sánchez |
Unknown (speculated: Musa II Al-Qasawi ) | ||||
| Strength | |||||
| Unknown | Unknown (guerrilla party) | ||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||
| Carolingian expedition crushed, commanders captured | Unknown | ||||
During the Battle of Roncevaux Pass a combined
The battle resulted in the defeat of the Carolingian military expedition and the capture of its commanders Aeblus and
Background
After
The Basque lords on both sides of the Pyrenees rebelled, but were soon subdued in
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. 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
References
 | This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (November 2016) ) |
- Lewis, Archibald R. (1965). The Development of Southern French and Catalan Society, 718–1050. Austin: University of Texas Press. Retrieved June 15, 2012.
- Collins, Roger (1990). The Basques. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Basil Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-17565-2.