Light the beacons! - Early medieval Frisian coastal defence

“The tenth statute is that the Frisians are not obligated to assist the king in a military expedition which would lead them beyond the river Weser to the east or beyond the Vlie to the west, nor in one which would lead them so far south that they could not get back to the Frisian shores by nightfall, because they have to defend their land against the water and against the heathen armies.”

This passage from the Seventeen Laws, an Old Frisian legal text from the late twelfth century, describes one of the privileges that the Frisians had been granted, according to tradition from Charlemagne, for their tribute to the Franks. Although the Seventeen Laws were drawn up to justify and explain the Frisian Freedom – the unique position of the Frisians outside the feudal system during the High and Late middle ages –, the text does refer to an actual exceptional position that the early medieval Frisians had within the Carolingian Empire: the exemption from the usual military obligation to protect the Frisian shores. This article focuses on the organisation of early medieval Frisian coastal defence.

Northmen

The emergence of early medieval Frisian coastal defences cannot be viewed separately from the arrival of the Northmen in Frisia. At the beginning of the ninth century, tensions arose between the Danes and the Franks: the Carolingian Empire had expanded to the Danish border with the conquest of Frisia and neighbouring Saxony. Under pressure from Charlemagne's expansion, the Danish king Godfrey attacked the trading centre of Dorestad in 810 AD: the first Viking attack in Frisia! The next contact with the Danes took place in 814: the Danish nobleman Harald Klakk sought refuge in the Carolingian Empire after a failed attempt to take the Danish throne. Louis the Pious, Charlemagne's son, granted Harald the county of Rüstringen in East-Frisia in exchange for his loyalty, conversion and the promise that he would ward off other Danes. This alliance between the Danes and the Carolingians was the first of many: in Frisia, the isle of Walcheren was granted as a fief to Harald Junior in 841, and West-Frisia was (officially) granted as a fief to Rorik and Godfrey the Dane in 855. Outside Frisia, Normandy was granted as a fief to Rollo in 911. Many Vikings were employed as mercenaries against the backdrop of a series of civil wars that raged in the Carolingian Empire between Louis and his son Lothair – and then between his three sons over the succession to the throne – in 833 and 843. Frisia often emerged as the battleground in the power struggle between the Danes and the Franks – and between the Franks themselves. For this reason, Louis the Pious adjusted military service for the early medieval Frisians, so that they only had to defend their own coasts, while at the same time secured access to the Frankish hinterlands. 

Coast guard

The first line of coastal defence consisted of the coastguard. This force was tasked with guarding against Vikings and defending the coast if they attempted to come ashore. The coast guard guarded estuaries of large, navigable rivers and the areas around emporia (trading sites), such as Dorestad and Walachria (see also our previous post: 'Frisian trade' - the role of the Frisians in early medieval trade). The guards usually watched over the coasts from land. On the other hand, it is also known from the Annales Regni Francorum that Charlemagne in 800 and Louis the Pious in 837 ordered the construction of a fleet in Flanders and Frisia respectively to counter Viking attacks. Although there are references to the construction of both fleets, there is no mention whatsoever of the deployment of a fleet against a Scandinavian naval attack. This leads historian and numismatist S. Coupland to suspect that until 835 or 837 – the years in which Louis the Pious reorganised the coastguard – the early medieval Frisian coastguard consisted solely of a land force. When a threat arose, the coast guard most likely used beacons, flags, bells or other means to sound the alarm. Maintaining coastal defences was the responsibility of the local nobility – usually a count or bishop.

Lantweri

If a naval force broke through or appeared to break through the coast guard's defences, the "lantweri” served as a second line of defence. If the coast guard was defeated, every able-bodied man – whether noble, free or unfree (serfs) – was expected to arm himself to ward off danger. Even penitents, who were not normally allowed to bear arms, were permitted to fight. The lantweri was thus an urgent mobilisation of the entire local population of a shire against invaders from sea. In the event of an invasion, the local missus (representative of the king) was responsible for assembling an army to fight the invaders. The local bishop, abbot or abbess was instructed to send a fully equipped force led by a standard-bearer, while the local count or vassal led the army. In areas where royal authority was not always firmly established – such as in Frisia – it also happened that local resistance was organised independently. According to Coupland, most references to battles against the Northmen in Frisia in the ninth century are almost certainly examples of the lantweri, even though the term is not actually used in the references. The references show that the success of coastal defence varied. The Annales Fuldenses describe a victory in West-Frisia:

The Frisians, who were called Westerners, fought against the Northmen and won the victory, and they took all the spoils that the Northmen had gathered while plundering various places, and they divided them among themselves. (Annales Fuldenses; 876.).

Meanwhile, the Egil's Saga describes a defeat in what is probably the same area:

But when the Vikings had advanced deep into their settlements, the Frisians gathered in the woods, and when they had assembled three hundred men, they marched against the Vikings to do battle with them. A fierce battle ensued, but in the end the Frisians fled and the Vikings pursued them. The farmers who escaped scattered in all directions, as did their pursuers. (Kafli 70. Arinbjörn og Egill fara í víking til Frisland).

Equipment

The equipment worn by the coast guard or lantweri depended on the warrior's class. The small minority of the coastal defence force were from noble blood. Nobles, such as the local count or vassal, were equipped with chain mail, a helmet and a shield. The most prestigious weapon in the early medieval armoury was reserved for them: the double-edged sword or spatha. Grave goods reflect that they also fought with lances and langseaxes – a type of single-edged sword (Knol 1993). The nobility may also have fought on horseback.
However, the vast majority of servicemen were farmers from the free and unfree classes. The most common weapon with which they – and, besides them, the nobility – fought was the spear. This weapon came in various shapes and sizes, and depending on the type of spear, it could be used either one-handed or two-handed on foot or, in the case of the nobility, on horseback. The use of the spear often went hand in hand with the use of the shield. The seax – a type of long knife – was used as a secondary weapon, and probably the axe as well (Halsall 2003). The seax also came in various shapes and sizes: it could range from a knife for everyday use (Schmalsax) to a type of broad machete (Breitsax) to a single-edged sword (langseax) – as was the case with the nobility. The bow and possibly the sling and sling staff (fustibalus) were used as ranged weapons. The vast majority of the free and unfree classes probably fought without armour. In Carolingian manuscripts such as the Stuttgart Psalter and the Utrecht Psalter, the Bayeux Tapestry and carvings such as the Frank's Casket, warriors without chain mail often wear helmets. It is possible that the wealthier farmers or craftsmen from the free class could afford a simple bandhelm in addition to a shield.

Conclusion

From the post above it became clear that the early medieval Frisian coastal defences were set up to fight off invading Northmen. The coast guard was the first line of defence. Their goal was to watch for Vikings and defend the coast if they tried to come ashore. If the Northmen defeated the coast guard, they would face the lantweri. The lantweri was a civilian army consisting of every able-bodied man who was called upon in times of need to ward off danger. The vast majority of the coast guard and lantweri fought the Northmen mainly with spears, shields and saxes. The bow, and possibly the sling and sling staff (fustibalus), were used as ranged weapons. It is possible that wealthier members of the free class were armoured with a simple bandhelm.

Reconstruction

Based on the post above, we decided to reconstruct what we believe a warrior in the coast guard or lantweri might have looked like. The reconstruction is equipped with a spear, shield and seax. In addition, the reconstruction is equipped with a simple Narona-type bandhelm.