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{{Short description|Unifier of Slavic tribes (c. 600–c. 658)}}
'''King Samo''' (? – [[658]]) was a merchant born in the Senonian country (Senonago) (probably today's [[Sens]] in [[France]]). He was the first ruler of the [[Slavs]] whose name is known, and the founder of the so-called '''(King) Samo's Empire''' or '''Samos's Realm''' ([[623]] - [[658]]), the first known organized community of the [[Slavs]] - actually a kind of supra-tribal union, not a true [[state]]. As for Samo‘s nationality (see the end of this article), the Fredegar‘s Chronicle - the only contemporaneous source on Samo- says explicitely “Samo, a Frank by birth [or nation] from the Senon[ag]ian province”. It is recorded, that Frankish ruler Samo had twelve Wendish wives, the women were possibly refugees and the men or their husbands dead. It would also make the many children Frankish.
{{About|the Slavic king|other uses}}
{{Expand German|Samo|date=November 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox royalty
|name = Samo
|title = [[Rex Sclavorum]] ("King of the Slavs")
|image = King Samo.jpg
|caption = Alleged mural of Samo in a [[Znojmo Rotunda|Moravian rotunda]]
|succession =
|reign = 623–658
|coronation =
|predecessor = Title established
|successor = Title dismantled
|spouse = At least twelve [[Wends|Wendish]] noblewomen
|birth_date = {{circa}} 600
|birth_place = ''“Senonian country"'' (''Senonago''), probably modern [[Soignies]] or [[Sens]]
|death_date = {{circa}} 658
|death_place =
|date of burial =
|place of burial =
|}}


'''Samo''' ({{circa|600}}–{{circa|658}}) founded the first recorded political union of [[Slavs|Slavic tribes]], known as [[Samo's Empire]] ("realm", "kingdom", or "tribal union"), ruling from 623 until his death in 658. According to [[Fredegarius]], the only contemporary source, Samo was a [[Franks|Frankish]] merchant<ref>''Lexikon des Mittelalters''. Verlag J.B. Metzler, Vol. 7, cols 1342-1343</ref> who unified several Slavic tribes against robber raids and violence by nearby settled [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]], showing such bravery and command skills in battle that he was elected "King of the Slavs" ({{lang-la|[[rex Sclavorum]]}}). In 631, Samo successfully defended his realm against the [[Frankish Kingdom]] in the three-day [[Battle of Wogastisburg]].
The [[Avar]]s arrived in the [[Carpathian Basin]] in the [[560s]] from the steppes of [[Asia]] and subdued the Slavs living on the conquered territory. The Avar border run approximately along the line [[Byzantine Empire]] in present-day [[Serbia]] - [[Lake Balaton]] - eastern [[Bratislava]] - southern [[Slovakia]] - [[Ruthenia]]. After the Avars had been defeated at [[Constantinople]] in the early [[7th century]], the Slavs living north of the [[Danube]] started to revolt against them. One of merchants delivering arms to the Slavs (mainly) for these revolts was Samo. During a Slav anti-Avar revolt in [[623]] (probably at today's [[Bratislava]]-Devín), Samo joined the Slavs, the Avars were defeated under his leadership, and the Slavs made him their ruler, so that what is known as the King Samo's Empire arose.


==Reign==
Archaeological findings indicate that the &#8220;empire&#8221; was situated in present-day [[Moravia]], [[Slovakia]], [[Lower Austria]] and [[Carinthia]]. The settlements of the later Moravian and Nitrian principalities (see [[Great Moravia]]) are often identical with those from the time of Samo's Empire. Present-day [[Bohemia]] probably, [[Sorbia]] at the [[Elbe]] surely, and state of [[Carinthia|Karantania]] temporarily, became parts of the empire later (in the [[630s]]), as well. The Slavs led by King Samo managed to defeat all Avar attacks, but after the Slavs had killed some Frankish merchants and had stolen some of their commodities, they had to fight against the [[Franks]]: In [[631]], the Frankish king [[Dagobert I]] [[ Merovingian Dynasty|Merovingian]] ([[603]]-[[639]], reigned [[629]]-[[639]]) sent three armies against King Samo. One of the armies - the biggest one from [[Austrasia]] (Avstrazia) - was defeated by the Slavs led by King Samo at the (today unknown) castle Wogastisburg (Vosgate Castle) when trying to attack the center of Samo's Empire. As a result, Samo even invaded Frankish [[Thuringia]] several times and undertook looting raids there. The [[Sorbs|Sorbian]] prince [[Dervan]] joined Samo after this success. The location of the Wogastisburg is still strongly disputed (castles in [[Bohemia]], castles at the [[Danube]], the Frankish [[Forchheim]], [[Bratislava]], [[Carnuntum]] etc.).
[[File:Sámova říše.png|thumb|260px|Borders of Slav territories under Samo, 631]]


The dates for Samo's rule are based on Fredegar, who says that he went to the Slavs in the fortieth year of [[Chlothar II]] (i.e., 623&ndash;24) and reigned for thirty five years.<ref name="Curta109">Curta, 109.</ref> The interpretation that places the start of Samo's reign in the year of Fredegar's arrival has been questioned on the basis that the [[Wends]] would have most likely rebelled after the defeat of the [[Pannonian Avars|Avar]] [[khagan]] at the [[First Siege of Constantinople]] in 626.<ref name="Curta109"/> The Avars first arrived in the [[Pannonian Basin]] and subdued the local Slavs in the 560s. Samo may have been one of the merchants who supplied arms to the Slavs for their frequent revolts. Whether he became king during a revolt of 623&ndash;24 or during one that inevitably followed the Avar defeat in 626, he definitely took advantage of the latter to solidify his position.<ref name="Curta109"/> A string of victories over the Avars proved his ''utilitas'' (usefulness) to his subjects and secured his election as ''rex'' (king).<ref>Curta, 330.</ref> Samo went on to secure his throne by marriage into the major Wendish families, wedding at least twelve women and fathering twenty-two sons and fifteen daughters.<ref name="Curta331">Curta, 331.</ref>
The history of the empire after Samo's death in 658 (some sources: 659) are largely unclear. It is generally assumed that it disappeared with Samo's death. Archaeological findings show that the Avars returned to their previous territories (at least to southernmost Slovakia) and entered into a symbiosis with the Slavs, whereas territories to the north of the Avar empire were purely Slav territories. The first particular thing that is known about the fate of these Slavs and Avars, is the existence of the Moravian and Nitrian principalities in the late [[8th century]] (see [[Great Moravia]]) which were attacking the Avars, and the defeat of the Avars by the Franks under [[Charlemagne]] in [[799]] or [[802]]/[[803]], after which the [[Avars]] quickly ceased to exist.


{{quote|Each year, the Huns [Avars] came to the Slavs, to spend the winter with them; then they took the wives and daughters of the Slavs and slept with them, and among the other mistreatments [already mentioned] the Slavs were also forced to pay levies to the Huns. But the sons of the Huns, who were [then] raised with the wives and daughters of these Wends [Slavs] could not finally endure this oppression anymore and refused obedience to the Huns and began, as already mentioned, a rebellion. When now the Wendish army went against the Huns, the [aforementioned] merchant Samo accompanied the same. And so the Samo’s bravery proved itself in wonderful ways and a huge mass of Huns fell to the sword of the Wends.|''[[Chronicle of Fredegar]]'', Book IV, Section 48, written circa 642}}
The main source of written information on Samo and his &#8222;empire&#8220; is the Frankish ''[[Fredegarii Chronicon]]'' (''Fredegar's Chronicle''). It has been written by one author (maybe called Fredegar) around [[660]] or by three authors in the first half of the 7th century. Its second part describes the history of the Franks between [[584]] and [[642]]/[[643]] and is one of the main source on the Frankish history. It is the ''only'' contemporaneous source on Samo. All other sources are derived from this chronicle and are much younger. Examples of such sources are the ''Gesta Dagoberti I. regnis Francorum'' from the first third of the [[9th century]], and the ''Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum'' (Conversion of the [[Bavarians]] and [[Karantanians]]) epitomized from an older records in [[Salzburg]] (the center of Bavarian clergy) ([[871]]-[[872]]), the latter being a very tendentious one as its name suggests (which however does not mean necessarily that it is wrong). According mainly to the Conversio, Samo was a Karantanian merchant.


The most well-documented event of Samo's career was his victory over the Frankish royal army under [[Dagobert I]] in 631 or 632. Provoked to action by a "violent quarrel in the Pannonian kingdom of the Avars or Huns" during his ninth year (631&ndash;32), Dagobert led three armies against the Wends, the largest being his own [[Austrasia]]n army.<ref>Curta, 109 n102.</ref> The Franks were routed near [[Battle of Wogastisburg|Wogastisburg]] ([[Latin language|Latin]] ''castrum Vogastisburg''), an unidentified location meaning "fortress/castle of Vogast." The majority of the besieging armies were slaughtered, while the rest of the troops fled, leaving weapons and other equipment lying on the ground. In the aftermath of the Wendish victory, Samo invaded Frankish [[Thuringia]] several times and undertook looting raids there.<ref>[https://www.e-stredovek.cz/post/kronika-tzv-fredegara-scholastika/ Kronika tzv. Fredegara scholastika]</ref> The [[Sorbs|Sorbian]] prince [[Dervan]] abandoned the Franks and "placed himself and his people under Samo's realm".<ref name="Curta331n39">Curta, 331 n39.</ref>
⚫
== See also ==


In 641, the rebellious [[duke of Thuringia]], [[Radulf, King of Thuringia|Radulf]], sought an alliance with Samo against his sovereign, [[Sigebert III]].<ref name="Curta109"/> Samo also maintained long-distance trade relationships.<ref name="Curta331"/> On his death, however, his title was not inherited by his sons.<ref name="Curta331n39"/> Ultimately, Samo can be credited with forging a [[Wends|Wendish]] identity by speaking on behalf of the community that recognised his authority.<ref>Curta, 343.</ref>
* [[History of the Czech Republic]], [[History of Slovakia]], [[History of Slovenia]], [[Timeline of Slovene history]].


==Main sources==
[[de:Samo]]
The main source of written information on Samo and his empire is the ''[[Fredegarii Chronicon]]'', a Frankish chronicle written in the mid-7th century (c. 660). Though theories of multiple authorship once abounded, the notion of a single Fredegar is now common scholarly fare.<ref name="Curta59">Curta, 59.</ref> The last or only Fredegar was the author of a brief account of the [[Wends]] including the best, and only contemporary, information on Samo. According to Fredegar, "Samo [was] a Frank by birth [or nation] from the ''pago Senonago''", which could be present-day [[Soignies]] in [[Belgium]] or present-day [[Sens]] in [[France]]. Although he was of Frankish origin, Samo demanded that an ambassador (Sicharius) of [[Dagobert I]] ([[King of the Franks]]) put on Slavic clothes before entering his castle.
[[nl:Samo]]

[[File:Avar settlement area.jpg|thumb|The Avar settlement area in the Carpathian Basin from the 7th to the 9th century, according to Éva Garam]]

All other sources for Samo are derived from Fredegar and are much more recent. The ''[[Gesta Dagoberti I regis Francorum]]'' ("Deeds of King Dagobert I of the Franks") was written in the first third of the 9th century. The ''[[Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum]]'' ("Conversion of the Bavarians and Karantanians") from [[Salzburg]] (the Bavarian ecclesiastic centre), written in 871&ndash;72, is a very tendentious source, as its name suggests. According mainly to the ''Conversio'', Samo was a Karantanian merchant.

The sources Fredegar used to compile his Wendish account are unknown. A few scholars have attacked the entire account as fictitious, but Fredegar displays a critical attitude and a knowledge of detail that suggest otherwise.<ref name="Curta60">Curta, 60.</ref> It is possible that he had an eyewitness in the person of Sicharius, the ambassador of [[Dagobert I]] to the Slavs.<ref name="Curta59"/> According to Fredegar, the "Wends" had long been subjects and ''befulci'' of the [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]]. ''Befulci'' is a term, cognate with the word ''fulcfree'' found in the [[Edict of Rothari]], signifying "entrusted [to guard]", from the [[Old German]] root ''felhan, falh, fulgum'' and [[Middle High German|Middle German]] ''bevelhen''.<ref name="Curta60"/> Fredegar appears to have envisaged the Wends as a military unit of the Avar host. He probably based his account on "native" Wendish accounts.<ref name="Curta60"/> Fredegar records the story of the ''origo gentis'' (origin of the people) of the Wends. The Wends were Slavs, but Samo was the only king of the [[Wends]], at least according to Fredegar.<ref name="Curta60"/>

It has also been suggested that Fredegar's sources may have been the reports of Christian missionaries, especially disciples of [[Columbanus]] and the [[Abbey of Luxeuil]].<ref name="Curta60"/> If this is correct, it may explain why he is remarkably free of typical stereotypes of heathen Slavs, and why he was familiar with the Wends as a specifically pagan nation.<ref name="Curta60"/>

==Popular literature==
Few written works have their storyline taking place during Samo's Empire. One of them is the 2018 book ''[[Fire Worshipers]]'', by Vladimír Olej.<ref>Olej, Vladimír: Fire Worshipers, 2018, {{ISBN|9788097235512}}</ref>

⚫
==See also==
* [[Early Slavs]]
* [[Sorbs|History of Sorbs]]
* [[History of Slovenia]]
* [[History of the Czech lands]]
* [[History of Slovakia]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book|last=Curta|first=Florin|author-link=Florin Curta|title=The Making of the Slavs: History and Archaeology of the Lower Danube Region, c. 500–700|year=2001|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781139428880|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rcFGhCVs0sYC}}
* {{cite book |title= Ethnogenesis of Slovaks, Human Affairs, 7, 1997, 1|last= Marsina|first=Richard |year=1997 |publisher=Faculty of Humanities, [[University of Trnava]] |location= [[Trnava, Slovakia]]}}
{{refend}}

{{Authority control}}
[[Category:658 deaths]]
[[Category:7th-century Frankish people]]
[[Category:7th-century monarchs in Europe]]
[[Category:7th-century Slavs]]
[[Category:Frankish warriors]]
[[Category:Medieval Czech history|Samo]]
[[Category:Medieval Slovakia]]
[[Category:Medieval Slovenia]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:Pannonian Avars]]
[[Category:Founding monarchs]]
[[Category:7th-century merchants]]

[[bg:Държава на Само]]

Latest revision as of 15:13, 5 April 2024

This article is about the Slavic king. For other uses, see Samo (disambiguation).

Samo
Rex Sclavorum ("King of the Slavs")
Alleged mural of Samo in a Moravian rotunda
Reign623–658
PredecessorTitle established
SuccessorTitle dismantled
Bornc. 600
“Senonian country" (Senonago), probably modern Soignies or Sens
Diedc. 658
SpouseAt least twelve Wendish noblewomen

Samo (c. 600–c. 658) founded the first recorded political union of Slavic tribes, known as Samo's Empire ("realm", "kingdom", or "tribal union"), ruling from 623 until his death in 658. According to Fredegarius, the only contemporary source, Samo was a Frankish merchant[1] who unified several Slavic tribes against robber raids and violence by nearby settled Avars, showing such bravery and command skills in battle that he was elected "King of the Slavs" (Latin: rex Sclavorum). In 631, Samo successfully defended his realm against the Frankish Kingdom in the three-day Battle of Wogastisburg.

Reign[edit]

Borders of Slav territories under Samo, 631

The dates for Samo's rule are based on Fredegar, who says that he went to the Slavs in the fortieth year of Chlothar II (i.e., 623–24) and reigned for thirty five years.[2] The interpretation that places the start of Samo's reign in the year of Fredegar's arrival has been questioned on the basis that the Wends would have most likely rebelled after the defeat of the Avar khagan at the First Siege of Constantinople in 626.[2] The Avars first arrived in the Pannonian Basin and subdued the local Slavs in the 560s. Samo may have been one of the merchants who supplied arms to the Slavs for their frequent revolts. Whether he became king during a revolt of 623–24 or during one that inevitably followed the Avar defeat in 626, he definitely took advantage of the latter to solidify his position.[2] A string of victories over the Avars proved his utilitas (usefulness) to his subjects and secured his election as rex (king).[3] Samo went on to secure his throne by marriage into the major Wendish families, wedding at least twelve women and fathering twenty-two sons and fifteen daughters.[4]

Each year, the Huns [Avars] came to the Slavs, to spend the winter with them; then they took the wives and daughters of the Slavs and slept with them, and among the other mistreatments [already mentioned] the Slavs were also forced to pay levies to the Huns. But the sons of the Huns, who were [then] raised with the wives and daughters of these Wends [Slavs] could not finally endure this oppression anymore and refused obedience to the Huns and began, as already mentioned, a rebellion. When now the Wendish army went against the Huns, the [aforementioned] merchant Samo accompanied the same. And so the Samo’s bravery proved itself in wonderful ways and a huge mass of Huns fell to the sword of the Wends.

— Chronicle of Fredegar, Book IV, Section 48, written circa 642

The most well-documented event of Samo's career was his victory over the Frankish royal army under Dagobert I in 631 or 632. Provoked to action by a "violent quarrel in the Pannonian kingdom of the Avars or Huns" during his ninth year (631–32), Dagobert led three armies against the Wends, the largest being his own Austrasian army.[5] The Franks were routed near Wogastisburg (Latin castrum Vogastisburg), an unidentified location meaning "fortress/castle of Vogast." The majority of the besieging armies were slaughtered, while the rest of the troops fled, leaving weapons and other equipment lying on the ground. In the aftermath of the Wendish victory, Samo invaded Frankish Thuringia several times and undertook looting raids there.[6] The Sorbian prince Dervan abandoned the Franks and "placed himself and his people under Samo's realm".[7]

In 641, the rebellious duke of Thuringia, Radulf, sought an alliance with Samo against his sovereign, Sigebert III.[2] Samo also maintained long-distance trade relationships.[4] On his death, however, his title was not inherited by his sons.[7] Ultimately, Samo can be credited with forging a Wendish identity by speaking on behalf of the community that recognised his authority.[8]

Main sources[edit]

The main source of written information on Samo and his empire is the Fredegarii Chronicon, a Frankish chronicle written in the mid-7th century (c. 660). Though theories of multiple authorship once abounded, the notion of a single Fredegar is now common scholarly fare.[9] The last or only Fredegar was the author of a brief account of the Wends including the best, and only contemporary, information on Samo. According to Fredegar, "Samo [was] a Frank by birth [or nation] from the pago Senonago", which could be present-day Soignies in Belgium or present-day Sens in France. Although he was of Frankish origin, Samo demanded that an ambassador (Sicharius) of Dagobert I (King of the Franks) put on Slavic clothes before entering his castle.

The Avar settlement area in the Carpathian Basin from the 7th to the 9th century, according to Éva Garam

All other sources for Samo are derived from Fredegar and are much more recent. The Gesta Dagoberti I regis Francorum ("Deeds of King Dagobert I of the Franks") was written in the first third of the 9th century. The Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum ("Conversion of the Bavarians and Karantanians") from Salzburg (the Bavarian ecclesiastic centre), written in 871–72, is a very tendentious source, as its name suggests. According mainly to the Conversio, Samo was a Karantanian merchant.

The sources Fredegar used to compile his Wendish account are unknown. A few scholars have attacked the entire account as fictitious, but Fredegar displays a critical attitude and a knowledge of detail that suggest otherwise.[10] It is possible that he had an eyewitness in the person of Sicharius, the ambassador of Dagobert I to the Slavs.[9] According to Fredegar, the "Wends" had long been subjects and befulci of the Avars. Befulci is a term, cognate with the word fulcfree found in the Edict of Rothari, signifying "entrusted [to guard]", from the Old German root felhan, falh, fulgum and Middle German bevelhen.[10] Fredegar appears to have envisaged the Wends as a military unit of the Avar host. He probably based his account on "native" Wendish accounts.[10] Fredegar records the story of the origo gentis (origin of the people) of the Wends. The Wends were Slavs, but Samo was the only king of the Wends, at least according to Fredegar.[10]

It has also been suggested that Fredegar's sources may have been the reports of Christian missionaries, especially disciples of Columbanus and the Abbey of Luxeuil.[10] If this is correct, it may explain why he is remarkably free of typical stereotypes of heathen Slavs, and why he was familiar with the Wends as a specifically pagan nation.[10]

Popular literature[edit]

Few written works have their storyline taking place during Samo's Empire. One of them is the 2018 book Fire Worshipers, by Vladimír Olej.[11]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Lexikon des Mittelalters. Verlag J.B. Metzler, Vol. 7, cols 1342-1343
  2. ^ a b c d Curta, 109.
  3. ^ Curta, 330.
  4. ^ a b Curta, 331.
  5. ^ Curta, 109 n102.
  6. ^ Kronika tzv. Fredegara scholastika
  7. ^ a b Curta, 331 n39.
  8. ^ Curta, 343.
  9. ^ a b Curta, 59.
  10. ^ a b c d e f Curta, 60.
  11. ^ Olej, Vladimír: Fire Worshipers, 2018, ISBN 9788097235512

References[edit]

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