Henry II, King of Germany from 1003,…

Warfare between Boleslaw I and Henry II has continued despite the peace of Poznan.

In 1007, Boleslaw I had again taken control of Lusatia with the fortress of Bautzen.

A campaign led by Henry II in 1010 had been unsuccessful.

During this campaign, which started in Belgern, Henry II had been struck by an illness at Jarina castle and returned with some of his bishops, while the remaining armies devastated the surrounding area.

A Saxon campaign in 1012 was also unsuccessful.

Henry II had mobilized the Saxon nobility to mount campaigns in his name, since he needed a peace agreement before 1013, when his coronation in Rome was scheduled.

Thus, in 1013, Boleslaw and Henry agree on a peace in Merseburg, under the terms of which Henry II again gives the Lusatian march and Upper Lusatia to Boleslaw as a fief, Boleslaw again pledges allegiance to Henry, Boleslaw promises to support Henry's campaign to Rome, and Henry promises to support Boleslaw I's campaign against Kiev with five hundred knights.

The treaty is confirmed by the marriage of Richeza, a niece of Otto III, to Mieszko II, a son of Boleslaw.

During the ceremony, Boleslaw carries the sword for Henry.

The civil war in al-Andalus between the Arab and Berber armies continues.

It is known that Hisham, who had regained the caliphate in 1010, openly kept a male harem.

Sulayman ibn al-Hakam, a candidate of the Hammudid dynasty, had withdrawn to Algeciras, and manages in 1013, to reconquer Cordoba with Berber help, accompanied by much plundering and destruction, and depose Hisham II.

Hisham’s ultimate fate is uncertain—supposedly he was killed on April 19, 1013 by the Berbers.

In any case, Sulayman becomes Caliph.

He expels the Jews from the caliphate of Córdoba.

The Hammudid dynasty is named after the ancestor Hammud, a descendant of Idris ibn Abdallah, whose descendants had established themselves among the Berber tribes of northern Morocco.

When Sulayman ibn al-Hakam carves out Andalusian land for his Berber allies, two members of the Hammudid family are given the governership of …

…Algeciras, Ceuta and Tangier.

The Hammudids thus gain control of the traffic across the Straits of Gibraltar, suddenly becoming a powerful force.

Arduin seizes Vercelli (west of Milan) and …

…lays siege to Novara and …

…Como, but Henry’s troops overwhelm Arduin’s Lombard forces.

Arduin surrenders the Italian crown and retires to the Fruttuaria monastery near Turin, where he will die the following year.

The Evolution of Beauvais: From Caesaromagus to an Episcopal Countship (1013)

The city of Beauvais, known in Gallo-Roman times as Caesaromagus ("Field of Caesar"), held strategic and historical significance in northern Gaul. By the ninth century, it had become a countship, and in 1013, control passed to the bishops of Beauvais, marking a turning point in the city's governance and its future role in medieval France.

Origins and Roman Influence

• Caesaromagus was an important Gallo-Roman settlement, its name incorporating magos, the Common Celtic term for "field" or "marketplace".
• Later Latin sources, particularly in the post-Renaissance era, refer to it as Bellovacum, derived from the Belgic tribe of the Bellovaci, for whom it was the tribal capital before Roman conquest.

Beauvais as a Medieval Countship

• By the ninth century, Beauvais had become a hereditary countship, integrating it into the broader feudal structure of West Francia.
• In 1013, the countship passed into the hands of the bishops of Beauvais, making the city part of the growing trend of episcopal lordships, where bishops wielded both spiritual and temporal authority.

The Rise of the Bishops of Beauvais as Peers of France

• Over time, the bishops of Beauvais consolidated not just ecclesiastical power but also political and military influence.
• By the twelfth century, the bishop of Beauvais became one of the twelve peers of France, an elite group of feudal magnates with prestige and privileges within the Capetian realm.
• This status meant that the bishop held a seat in the French royal court, advising the king and participating in major affairs of the kingdom.

Legacy

The transition of Beauvais from a Roman settlement to a feudal countship under episcopal rule reflected the broader transformation of medieval governance, where religious institutions often held as much power as secular lords. The city would continue to be a significant religious and political center in medieval France, particularly as a seat of Capetian royal influence.

The Danes, personally led by their king Sweyn Forkbeard, completely overrun a demoralized England in the spring of 1013.

Representatives of the Northumbrians and the Five Boroughs meet Forkbeard at Gainsborough, and declare him king.