The Rise of Namur: From Celtic Settlement…

The Kara-Khanids, in the final decade of the tenth century, begin a struggle against the Samanids for control of Transoxiana with a campaign led by the grandson of Satuk Bughra Khan, Hasan (or Harun) b. Sulayman (title: Bughra Khan).

Between 990-992, the Kara-Khanids have taken Isfijab, …

…Ferghana, …

…Ilaq, Samarkand, and …

…the Samanid capital Bukhara.

However, Hasan Bughra Khan dies in 992 due to an illness, and the Samanids return to Bukhara.

Mieszko is considered the first ruler of Poland’s Piast Dynasty (named for the legendary peasant founder of the family), which endured for four centuries.

Between 967 and 990, Mieszko had taken over substantial territory along the Baltic Sea and in the region known as Little Poland to the south.

By the time he officially submitted to the authority of the Holy See in Rome in 990, Mieszko had transformed his country into one of the strongest powers in Eastern Europe.

Mieszko's son and successor Boleslaw I (992–1025), known as the Brave, or the Mighty, is to build on his father's achievements and become the most successful Polish monarch of the early medieval era.

Boleslaw will continue the policy of appeasing the German Empire while taking advantage of its political situation to gain territory wherever possible.

The circumstances in which Boleslaw takes control of the country following the passing of his father anticipates what will later become a prevalent practice among the Piast dynasty: the struggle for control, usually a military one, among the offspring of nearly every deceased monarch of the Piast dynasty.

Boleslaw is no different, and shortly after the death of Mieszko I (May 25, 992), he banishes his stepmother Oda and his two half-brothers, as they are competitors to the throne.

The exact circumstances of Boleslaw's ascension to the Ducal throne are unknown, but it is known that by June, he was the unquestioned ruler of Poland—as Emperor Otto III asked for his military aid in the summer of 992.

Immediately after gaining the full control over Poland, Boleslaw also quells the opposition of powerful families by blinding two of their leaders, the magnates Odylen and Przybywoj.

As cruel a sentence as this is, it proves most effective as it results in such obedience of his subjects that from this point on there is no mention of any challenge to his position whatsoever.

Basil has lost Moesia to the Bulgarians, despite the capture of the titular emperor Roman of Bulgaria in 991.

Basil concludes a treaty with Pietro Orseolo II in 992 by which the terms of Venice's custom duties in Constantinople will be reduced from thirty nomismata to seventeen nomismata in return for the Venetians agreeing to transport imperial troops to southern Italy in times of war.

Samuel transfers his capital southwestward in 992 from Skopje to …

…the religious and cultural center at Ohrid in western Macedonia.

Aoudaghost (also known as Awadaghust, Awdughast, Awdaghusht and Awdhaghurst) is an important oasis town at the southern end of a trans-Saharan caravan route that is mentioned in a number of early Arabic manuscripts.

The archaeological ruins at Tegdaoust in southern Mauritania are thought to be the remains of the medieval town.

The earliest mention of Aoudaghost is by al-Yaqubi in his Kitab al-Buldan completed in 889-890 in which he described the town as being controlled by a tribe of the Sanhaja and situated 50 stages south of Sijilmasa across the Sahara desert.

"It is the residence of their king who has no religion or law.

He raids the land of the Sudan who have many kingdoms."

From Ibn Hawqal writing in around 977 we learn that the distance from Aoudaghost to Ghana (presumably the capital of the Empire) was ten days' journey for a lightly loaded caravan.

Ibn Hawqal wrote that the "king of Awdaghurst maintains relations with the ruler of Ghana" which suggests that at that time Aoudaghost was not part of the Ghana Empire.

He also mentions the trade in gold and writes that the king of Ghana is very rich because of his stocks of gold but that the kings of Ghana and Kugha "stand in pressing need of [the goodwill of] the king of Awdaghust because of the salt which comes to them from the lands of Islam."

The Ghana Empire captures the Berber town in 992.

The Battle of Conquereuil (June 27, 992): Fulk III of Anjou vs. Conan I of Brittany

The Battle of Conquereuil on June 27, 992, was a decisive confrontation between Fulk III of Anjou and Conan I of Brittany, part of the ongoing struggle between Anjou and Rennes for control over Brittany. The engagement, fought near Conquereuil, resulted in Conan’s death and marked a major victory for Fulk III, solidifying Angevin influence in the region.

Background: The Breton-Angevin Conflict

Fulk III, who had inherited Anjou in 987 at the age of seventeen, faced early challenges from the Counts of Rennes, who sought to expand their control over Nantes.

• Duke Conan I of Brittany, Fulk’s brother-in-law, had laid siege to Nantes, aiming to secure full control over the city.
• Learning of Fulk III’s march to relieve Nantes, Conan abandoned the siege and withdrew toward Rennes, preparing to face the Angevin forces in battle.

The Battle: A Tactical Standoff

Realizing that he could not outrun Fulk, Conan halted at Conquereuil and prepared the battlefield with strategic defenses:

• He dug concealed pits and ditches, flooding them with nearby swamp water and covering them with sod.
• He positioned his troops behind these earthworks, securing their flanks with natural swamps, creating a defensive trap for the Angevins.

When Fulk’s Angevin cavalry launched their attack, the Bretons feigned a retreat, luring them into the flooded pits. The Bretons then counterattacked, driving the Angevins back in disarray.

The Turning Point: The Death of Conan I

The battle’s outcome is disputed, with two main versions of Conan’s fate:

1. Fulk’s Counterattack and Conan’s Death

   • Although initially forced back, Fulk regrouped his forces and launched a second charge.
   • The renewed Angevin assault routed the Breton army, during which Conan I was slain, securing an Angevin victory.

2. The Fatal Pursuit

   • Another account suggests that Conan’s counterattack succeeded, pushing the Angevins into retreat.
   • During the pursuit, Conan, suffering from the heat of battle, removed his armor.
   • Angevin knights, hiding in a nearby wood, saw the unarmored duke, charged him, and killed him, turning the tide of battle.

Aftermath and Legacy

Regardless of the precise circumstances, Conan I’s death at Conquereuil marked a turning point in the Breton-Angevin struggle:

• Brittany fell into a period of political instability, as Conan’s son, Geoffrey I, succeeded him as Duke at a young age.
• Fulk III solidified Angevin dominance, expanding his influence over Brittany and cementing his reputation as a formidable ruler.

The Battle of Conquereuil remains one of the most significant engagements in the 10th-century wars of succession in France, shaping the regional balance of power for decades to come.