The Founding of Deventer and the Beginning…
January 772 CE
The Founding of Deventer and the Beginning of the Saxon Wars (768–772)
The town of Deventer, located on the east bank of the River IJssel, was likely founded around 768 by the Anglo-Saxon missionary Lebuinus, who built a wooden church there as part of his efforts to Christianize the Saxons. This mission, supported by the Franks, was part of a broader effort to integrate the pagan Saxons into the Frankish kingdom and Christian Europe.
The Saxon Attack and Charlemagne’s Response (772)
In January 772, a Saxon expedition crosses into Frankish-held lands and sacks and burns the church at Deventer, in a deliberate act of resistance against both Frankish expansion and Christian conversion. This event sparks Charlemagne’s first punitive war against the Saxons, marking the beginning of what will become a brutal and prolonged conflict spanning more than three decades.
The Saxon Lands and Their Four Subgroups
The Saxons, the last independent and heathen Germanic tribe, are not a centralized kingdom but are instead divided into four major regional groups:
- Westphalia – The closest to Austrasia, bordering Frankish territory, making it the first target of Charlemagne’s campaigns.
- Engria (Engern) – Situated between Westphalia and Eastphalia, home to the Angrivarii, an ancient Germanic tribe.
- Eastphalia – The furthest from Austrasia, more isolated from Frankish influence.
- Nordalbingia – The northernmost region, located at the base of the Jutland Peninsula, bordering the Danish realms.
The Beginning of the Saxon Wars
The burning of Deventer’s church provides Charlemagne with both a justification and opportunity to launch a campaign into Saxony, which had long resisted Christianization and Frankish rule. This first punitive expedition in 772 will mark the start of the Saxon Wars, a relentless conflict that will last until 804, as Charlemagne seeks to subjugate the Saxons and integrate them fully into the Carolingian Empire.