The Frankish-period (785 A.D.- 925 A.D.)

űleboerd (decoration on barntops)

Charlemagne ruled his Frankish Empire in a strong centralized manner. Frisians had to serve in his armies. They served under the Franks in the war against the Wilts (789 A.D.) and against the Avars (791 A.D.). When in 800 A.D. the first Scandinavian Viking attacks upon Friesland under Carolinian rule start, the Frisians are discharged from military service abroad. Instead they are left to organize their defenses against the Heathen Vikings.
After Charlemagne defeated the Saxons in 785 A.D., the Frankish Empire bordered in the north to the Danish Empire.

The Danes were very well aware of the terrible atrocities Charlemagne, in name of the Church, had inflicted on their Heathen kinfolk the Frisians and the Saxons. The Danish/Viking raids on Charlemagne's empire and on the wealthy churches and monasteries in it, can be seen as a heathen reprisal.

Next to the Franco/Christian invaders, another enemy of the Frisians reared its ugly head. In the Christmas of 838 A.D. an enormous stormflood flooded nearly all of Friesland, drowning lots of people and livestock.

Friesland county of Frankish Empire (749 - 840 A.D.)

After Charlemagne victory in 785 A.D. the entire Frisian Empire became a county of the Frankish Empire. As seen before the grandson of the legendary Redbad, Abba, became the first Frisian count under Frankish rule (749 - 775 A.D.) over Friesland west of the Lauwers. The two main duties of a count were: to maintain the rule of law, and to organize the conscripts for the Frankish armies. From 734 until 1100 A.D. Frankish Emperors (and after them German Kings) have been represented by counts. These counts were feudal tenants. Very little is known about these counts. East-, West- and Middle Friesland have probably each had their own count.

The counts of Friesland we know by name:

• 754 count Abba (Boppa) is leader of the building of the Bonifatius Church in Dokkum
  
• 791 count Diderik (Durk) leads the Frisians in the Frankish struggle against the Avars
  
• 839 count Gerlof sides with the rebellious son of the Frank Louis the Pious
  
• 873 count Albdag defeats Vikings (Rudolf) in Westergo
  
• 885 count Gerlof and count Gerdolf are present at the murder of Godfried the Norwegian
  

Count Gerlof is the father of Diderik I, the count of Holland, and of count Waltger in Teisterbant. The sons of count Waltger are named "Redbad" and "Poppo".
These names highlight the fact that the counts in Friesland are Redbadings (kindred of Redbad).

The counts of Middle Friesland:

• 966 count Egbert of the Brunoanen dynasty; which by marriage and inheritance get Middle Friesland
  
• 1038 count Liudolf of the Brunswik dynasty dies
  
• 1038-1057 Bruno count of Middle Friesland
  
• 1057-1068 Egbert I count of Middle Friesland
  
• 1068-1088 Egbert II count of Middle Friesland
  
• The counts of West Friesland:
  
• 885 count Gerlof
  
• 922 count Diderik I (Durk I); for the first time this dynasty is called "House of Holland" count Diderik II (Durk II)
  
• 993 count Arnulf dies in battle with West Frisians, count Durk III beats the army of emperor Hendrik II
  
• 1049 count Durk IV is killed
  
• 1049-1061 count Floris I is killed
  
• 1076 count Durk V; County Holland is born (also trough Flemish influences), and Count Durk V and his County Holland become the antagonists of West- and Middle Friesland.
  

  In East Friesland there is nearly no trace of counts.
  
  

  
  Frankish Christianity (688 - 734/785 A.D.)
  

  The convertian of Heathens to Christianity could only be realized in areas that were under Frankish rule.
  West Lauwers Friesland became a Frankish county in 734 A.D. The entire Frisian Empire came under Frankish rule in 785 A.D.
  

  The Christianization of Friesland started in 688 A.D. when Wigbert preached in Friesland and was completed in 800 A.D. when Friesland was firmly in the grip of Frankish ruler Charlemange.
  In 800 A.D. the Friesians "seem" to be converted. But only the ruling elite (the counts and other Frankish vassals) has become Catholic. Large portions of the population are still heathen, and will remain for a long time.
  But the voices of the Frisian Heathen priests and Frisian skalds of the epic poems (in the likes of Beowulf) are silenced. Thereby the chain of the oral tradition that connects the Frisians with their heathen past is broken, and Christianity -in the end- wins.
  

  Some (tragic) dates:
  

• 688 A.D. Wigbert preaches in Friesland
  
• 690 - 754 Willibrord and Bonifatius preach
  
• 770-789 Willehad preaches
  
• 775 Liudger (a Frisian) preaches
  
• 800 A.D. Friesland has Christian social structures (diocese in Urecht) but ……, the larger part of the population remains heathen.
  

Highlights in Heathen terms are:

• in 714-719 A.D. when Willibrord flees Utrecht after Redbad conquers the city;
  
• in when 754 A.D. Bonifatius is killed in Dokkum;
  
• in 782 A.D. when Liudger flees for Saxo-Frisian uprising under Widukind.
  

In 793 A.D. Liudger meets the only Frisian skald known by name "Bernlef". Bernlef sang epic songs of the Frisian Heroic Age (like Beowulf).

Viking raids and Danish rule (800 - 1014 A.D.)

In 807 A.D. a war starts between Charlemagne and the Danish king Godfried. Godfried raids Friesland with a fleet of 200 ships, mocking the Frankish defenses. Shortly after Godfried dies (810 A.D.). After Godfrieds death, the Danish raids concentrate mostly on the British Isles and less upon Friesland.

After the death of the Frankish emperor Lewis the Pious in 840 A.D., the Carolinian defense of Friesland had collapsed. Since there was no Frisian King to organize a defensive force, the Danish raids on this Carolinian outpost intensified. And in the rest of the 9th century the Frisians frequently lived under Danish rule and had to pay taxes to the Danish feudal-tenants.
The Danes forced the weakened Carolinian Kings to give them Friesland as a feudal estate.
Feudal tenants in Friesland were:

• Harald (840 - 844 A.D.)
  
• Rorik and Godfried (844 - 857 A.D.)
  
• Rorik (a Christian) (862 -872 A.D.)
  
• Godfried (881 - 885 A.D.)
  

In 885 the last Scandinavian ruler of Friesland, Godfried the Norwegian, is murdered and the ruling Danes are evicted from Friesland by the Frisians. The great tidal waves of Heathenistic Viking raids (sometimes accompanied with occupation) in Friesland, had come to an end. Smaller raids still took place until 1014 A.D. when the Christian Knut the Great became king of Denmark, Norway and England.

The German-period (925 A.D. - 1498 A.D.)

In 843 A.D. Lotharius II became ruler of Friesland. In 925 A.D. most of the Lotharingian rulers accepted Henry I of Germany as king. Friesland became part of the "Heilige römische Reich deutscher Nation". The executive power was, until 1217 A.D., in hands of feudal tenants (counts).

After 1217 A.D. Middle-Friesland did not have a count, no feudal tenant, almost no knights, no slaves and a few cities. They were a people of farmers, fishermen and bargemen.
Since there was no overruling authority, everywhere indigenous administrative organs developed. It was a booming period; agriculture and trade flourished and raised it prosperity. Frisian cities joined the "Hanze" (West-European trade alliance). But already dark clouds were drifting over, which would eventually (1498 A.D.) end the Frisian Freedom.

Dyke Building (starts ± 1000 A.D.)

After the terpbuilding, which was in fact a defensive measure against the sealevel rising, the Frisians went on the offensive and started taking land out of the reach of the sea by dikebuilding. Around 1000 A.D. larger parts of land were surrounded by dykes. This happened in Friesland on both sides of the Lauwers.

Between 1000 and 1100 A.D. large parts of Friesland were protected by dykes, and there were extensive regulations concerning maintenance of dykes and wateringsluices.
These first dykes had a height of 1,50 meters above fieldlevel. Behind the dyke there were roads with a width of approximately 4 meters, so that in case of an emergency two wagons could pass one-and-other. In terms of total earth movement necessary for the dyke building one can speak of a worldwonder.
These large dykebuilding projects were first organized by so called 'skeltas'. In the 13th century the dykes became the responsibility of 'grietmannen' and 'asegas'.

Despite the dyke building there were frequently stormfloods that broke the dykes and flooded Frisianlands with all the tragic consequences.

Opstalboom (± 1000 - 1327 A.D.)

To the southwest of Aurich in East-Friesland, on a burialmound dating from the Bronze Age, lies a place called the Opstalboom (Opstalsboom; Upstallboom; Upstalesbame (Old Frisian)). In the 11th, 12th and 13th an alliance called the "Opstalboom" gathered on the burialmound. The alliance consisted of representatives of the 7 Frisian "Zeelanden" (lands by the sea). These representatives gathered once a year (on the Tuesday after Whit Sunday) and they drew up rules of law and. The alliance also joined forces if one of the individual of the 7 members was attacked.

Struggle against the Dutch counts (993 - 26 September 1345 A.D. ("Slag bij Warns"))

The end of the West-Frisian freedom .

After the period of the Scandinavian/Viking rule, the counts of the "House of Holland" become the ruling elite in the lands along the North Sea south of West-Friesland. These counts of the house of Holland were of Frisian origin. But after the birth of the province Holland in 1075 A.D. the Frankish influences dominated the Frisian. At this time a deep rift developed between the Frisians in West-Friesland and the counts of Holland. Several attempts were made by these counts to forcefully submit the West-Frisians.
Count Arnulf: undertakes a military expedition; he gets killed in 993 A.D.
Count Willem II:attacks West-Friesland in the winter of 1256 A.D., he falls through the ice while on horseback and is beaten to death by Frisians.

Floris V, son of Willem II, is bent on revenging his father's death and attacks and defeats West-Friesland. Around 1200 Frisians die in battle. The de-Friezing of West-Friesland starts.
After the death of Floris V the West-Frisians arise again against Jan I. His successor, Jan II, defeated the West-Frisian uprising, killing 3000 Frisians. Middle-Friesland set troops to abide the West-Frisians, but they came to late. West-Friesians lost their freedom, and in the coming centuries also the Frisian language (their mother tongue)

Battle of Warns

After the defeat of West-Friesland, the counts of Holland set their eye on Middle-Friesland.
In 1345 A.D. count Willem IV sets out on a military expedition to conquer Middle-Friesland. With a large fleet and with the help of French and Flemish knights he sailed over the "Zuiderzee". The approach of the aggressor united the Frisian fractions (the Upstallboom played a role in this unification). On 26 September 1345 A.D. Friesland had its finest hour. Willem IV and the cream of the Hollandish, Flemish and French knights were in the forefront of their army, and near Warns they were surrounded by Frisian landfolk and beaten to death. In disarray the rest of the army fled, leaving the body of Willem IV behind.
The 26 of September became an annual festive day in Middle-Friesland.

Schieringers en Vetkopers (1217 - 1489 A.D.)

In 1392 we first hear of the "Schieringers" and the "Vetkopers". These two infamous names indicate the end of the Frisian freedom. It came from the Frisian heart itself. The Schieringers and the Vetkopers were two rivaling parties of Frisian origin. They led Friesland into a civil war. Village fought against village, stins against stins and son against father.

It was Friesland darkest hour, and it started in 1217 A.D.. At this time the rule of Charlemagnian counts in Middle Friesland ends. This results in the lack of one overruling authority eventually resulting in a severe weakening of law and order. The power of the civil service no longer came from above, but out of the community itself. The result of this was that the Grietman (judge) did not have anybody of authority to support him in his actions against disobedient people. In the 14th century this resulted in the partisanship of the Schieringers and Vetkopers.
The Frisians remained in this stalemate because of a character trait; there strong individuality. Their personal freedom was more valuable than the freedom of the people as a whole.

In 1489 A.D. the aid of a foreign authority, Albrecht of Saxony, was accepted to end the catastrophic partisanship. Thus ending the Frisian freedom!

End of the Frisian freedom (1498 A.D.)

Albrecht of Saxony, on request of the Schieringers, created a centralist authority and installing Saxon civil servants. Law and order returned to Middle-Friesland, but culturally Middle-Friesland impoverishes. The language of civil service is German, which results in the de-Friesing of most cities. The de-Friesing was also hastened because after reformation in the 16th century the Bible and the preaching in churches was in Low German language only.

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