Viking raids on France and Iberia in 844 and 845
The mid-ninth century marked an important phase in Viking expansion across Western Europe. Large fleets penetrated deep inland via river systems, striking at both Christian and Islamic nations. The raids of 844 in the Iberian Peninsula and 845 in Francia are well attested in contemporary sources, and they reveal both the audacity of Viking maritime strategy and the differing responses of the kingdoms they attacked.
A decade after the first recorded Viking attack on English soil in 789, the Vikings began a series of attacks on Francia, initially on the west coast and then in 1820 along the north coast, focussing on Aquitaine. In the 830s, internal conflicts weakened defences and the Vikings were quick to exploit the civil war. By 840 they had succeeded in penetrating the Rhine four times in order to sack the Frankish Empire's richest port at Dorestad.
The Annales Bertiniani describe a raid on Gascony in 840 and later in the 840s a major raiding campaign began with several attacks in France, followed by rounding the west coast of Iberia, and sacking Seville in 844.
Here, I illustrate the two years of raids in 844 and 845 in France and Iberia with two contemporaneous deniers and a dirham.
Toulouse 844
In the summer of 844, a Viking fleet travelled up the Garonne River, sacking both Bordeaux and Toulouse. This was thought to be one of the first ascents of a river by a Viking raiding fleet (Annales Bertiniani). A contemporaneous silver denier of Charles the Bald minted at Toulouse is shown below.
The Viking fleet is said to have first attempted a landing at Gijón in Asturias and later Galicia, but was repelled by Ramiro I of Asturias. A more significant objective for the expedition, however, was the prosperous Emirate of Córdoba to the south and the fleet proceeded southward along the western coast to attack Lisbon on the 20th August 844. According to Ibn-Adhari, "In the year 229 [i.e. September 30, 843 to September 17, 844] a letter arrived in the capital [Córdoba] from W'ahballahibn-Hazm, governor at Lisbon. He wrote therein that Madjus [Vikings] had been seen on the coast of his province, in 54 ships, and in the same number of smaller vessels. Abdurrhaman gave to him, as to other governors in provinces adjoining the sea, authority to take all needful measures."
Ibn-Adhari gave the following vivid description: "Madjus [Vikings] arrived in about 80 ships. One might say they had, as it were, filled the ocean with dark red birds [from the colour of the sails of the Viking ships], in the same way as they had filled the hearts of men with fear and trembling."
Seville 844
The Norsemen set up a camp near Išbīliya (Seville), and then launched an attack in early October. Seville was the most important city of al-Andalus after Córdoba, given its connection along the Guadalquivir to the Atlantic coast. It had briefly became the capital of al-Andalus in the early years of the muslim conquest, but had never been walled, limiting the ability to defend the city before reinforcements could arrive.
The Vikings arrived in Seville ahead of the army from Córdoba and the governor of Seville evacuated as many people as he could to the fortified city of Carmona. For seven days (according to the author of Dorar al-Kalayid), the Vikings burned buildings, looted and pillaged, and captured people with impunity. However, they were unable to capture the citadel or burn the recently constructed Mosque of Seville. The raiders withdrew to their camp with loot and slaves, returning to Seville a few days later where they found the city completely emptied.
The Andalusian armies were led by Musa ibn Musa of the Banu Qasi, the hajib (prime minister) of Córdoba, Muhammad ibn Rustam of Algeria, and the eunuch Nasr. For a period of about a month there were several inconclusive skirmishes, but in November 11, 844, at the Battle of Tablada, the Córdoban army decisively defeated the Viking force. The sources indicate that about 1500 Vikings were killed, 400 were captured and 30 ships were destroyed using Greek fire. Most of the surviving Vikings returned to their remaining ships and sailed back to Gascony. They agreed to return part of the booty and captured slaves in exchange for a peaceful return home, food and clothes. "They (Madjus) [the Vikings] were defeated at Talyata [Tablada] on the 25 Safar of this year [November 11th 844). Many were killed, others hanged at Seville, others hanged in the palm trees at Talyata, and thirty of their ships were burnt. Those who escaped from the bloodshed embarked. They went to Niebla,' and then to Lisbon, and were no more heard of. They arrived at Seville on the 14 Moharram, 230 [October 1st, 844], and forty-two days had passed from the day when they entered Seville until those of them who were not put to the sword departed. Their general was killed."
With both Seville and Lisbon left in ruins, the Emirate rebuilt the cities and towns attacked by the Vikings and Abd al-Rahman II strengthened the military and navy, surrounded Seville with walls and established a network of watchtowers along the Atlantic coastline. The swift response to the attack on the Emirate of Córdoba emphasised the strength of the Umayyads and acted as a strong deterrence to future raids.
Paris 845
Comparisons
The Iberian and Frankish raids highlight distinct trajectories of Viking engagement. In Iberia, initial Viking success was decisively overturned, leading to institutional reform in the Emirate of Córdoba and stronger naval defenses. In Francia, the Viking strategy of intimidation and negotiation proved highly effective, exposing political vulnerabilities and fostering a cycle of tribute payments.
Both cases demonstrate the Vikings’ ability to exploit Europe’s riverine networks for inland penetration, while also illustrating the adaptability of local rulers in crafting divergent responses to a shared maritime threat.
Conclusion
The raids of 844 and 845 reveal the scope of Viking ambition in Western Europe and the varied strategies of those who confronted them. The contrasting responses of the Umayyads and the Carolingians—one emphasizing decisive military suppression, the other reliance on negotiated tribute—had long-term consequences for each polity’s experience of Viking activity in the ninth century.
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