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36-754: His influence probably reached as far south as the River Somme . He was therefore the first Frankish ruler to become established so deep within the Roman Empire , and distant from the border regions where the Franks had already been established for a long time. He was possibly a descendant of the Salian Franks , who Roman sources report to have settled within Texandria in the 4th century. Gregory of Tours reported that in his time people believed that

72-462: A iuvenis or 'young man' in 458, while he had left active military service before 454, suggesting a birth around 420), concluding 445–450 to be the most likely period for the battle. Dierkens & Périn (2003) noted that Majorian had defeated the Bagaudae and freed Tours just before the battle of Vicus Helena; they dated the former two events (and therefore Vicus Helena as well) to 448, and endorsed

108-620: A fort ( castrum ) named "Dispargum" within or upon the bounds of the "Thoringian" land, which is described as being west of the Rhine and north of the Romanized population living in Gaul north of the Loire. One translation of what Gregory wrote, adding some Latin key words in square brackets, is as follows: This description of locations does not match the normal medieval and modern " Thuringia ", which

144-527: A marriage party of the Franks of Chlodio was attacked and defeated at a village named Vicus Helena by Flavius Aëtius , the commander of the Roman army in Gaul. This is known because the future emperor Majorian was present, and this incident was therefore celebrated in the panegyric written by Sidonius Apollinaris for him. The passage describes "Cloio" as having overrun the land of the Atrebates ( Artois ,

180-457: A million casualties. Private A. S. Bullock in his wartime memoir recalled his first sight of it in early April 1918: "... we reached a small place called Hengest sur Somme . The train stopped and we descended. There in front of us was a muddy, sluggish and somewhat narrow stream, which has given its name to one of the most awful battles in history – the Somme." The great battles that finally stopped

216-418: A province north of the Somme, and partly between Tournai and Cambrai). As explained above, Gregory of Tours mentions that "some people said" that Merovech , the ancestor of the 'Merovingian' dynasty, was descended from Chlodio. Merovech's supposed son Childeric I is known only from records associating him with Romanized northern Gaul. Only once Childeric's son Clovis I took power in that area did he turn to

252-690: Is a river in Picardy , northern France . The river is 245 km (152 mi) in length, from its source in the high ground of the former Arrouaise Forest  [ fr ] at Fonsomme near Saint-Quentin , to the Bay of the Somme , in the English Channel . It lies in the geological syncline which also forms the Solent . This gives it a fairly constant and gentle gradient where several fluvial terraces have been identified. The Somme river

288-587: Is attested in a limited number of late Roman and early Medieval sources, having occurred around the year 448, in an unidentified location named Vicus Helena, somewhere in the Civitas Atrebatium , modern Artois . The Franks were foederati of the Romans, but regularly plundered towns and villages within the Roman Empire, and somewhere between 445 and 450, Salian Franks under Chlodio conquered

324-607: Is far inland and east of the Rhine and distant from all known Frankish areas. Dispargum has therefore been interpreted many ways, for example possibly as Duisburg on the Rhine itself, or Duisburg near Brussels , or Diest , which is also in Belgium. The latter two proposals would fit the geography well, because they are within striking distance of the Silva Carbonaria , west of the Rhine, and close to Toxandria , which

360-540: Is known to have been settled by the Salians in the time of Julian the Apostate . It suggests that " Thoringorum " ( genitive case) was actually referring to the " Civitas Tungrorum ". This matches Gregory's previous mention in the same passage of how the Franks had earlier settled on the banks of the Rhine and then moved into " Thoringia " on the left side of the Rhine. According to this account, Chlodio held power in

396-546: Is provided by Gregory of Tours in his History of the Franks (Book 2, Chapter 9). For centuries, scholars have not been able to locate Vicus Helena , nor been able to determine the precise date of the battle. In The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Volume VI (1789), Edward Gibbon stated that 'both the name and the place are discovered by modern geographers at Lens '. Writing for

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432-543: The Canal de la Somme began in 1770 and reached completion in 1843. It is 156 km (97 mi) long, beginning at St.Simon and opening into the Bay of the Somme. From St.Simon to Froissy (near Bray sur Somme, south of Albert), the canal is alongside the river. Thence to the sea, the river is partly river and partly navigation. From Abbeville , it is diverted through the silted , former estuary , to Saint-Valery-sur-Somme , where

468-690: The Silva Carbonaria , a large forested region which ran roughly from Brussels to the Sambre , and then took the Roman city of Turnacum (modern Tournai ), before moving south to Cameracum (modern Cambrai). According to Lanting & van der Plicht (2010), the Frankish conquest of Turnacum and Cameracum probably happened in the period 445–450. Syvänne Syvänne (2020) concludes that the Frankish War took place between 441 and 446. In about 445 AD or 448 AD,

504-663: The Magasin encyclopédique in 1797, Guilmot claimed to have discovered it as the village of Évin , on the road between Tournai and Arras. Alexandre-Joseph-Hidulphe Vincent published an essay in 1840, arguing that neither Lens nor Hesdin (two popular candidates in his time) was plausible, but that Allaines near the Mont Saint-Quentin and the town of Péronne was the lost Vicus Helena . Hubert le Bourdellès (1984) suggested Saint-Amand Abbey , which used to be known as Elnon(e) . Tony Jaques (2007) went with Hélesmes in

540-624: The Marais de l'Île is a nature reserve in the town of St.Quentin. The traditional market gardens of Amiens , the Hortillonages are on this sort of land but drained. Once exploited for peat cutting , the fen is now used for fishing and shooting In 2001, the Somme valley was affected by particularly high floods, which were in large part due to a rise in the water table of the surrounding land. Catchment area 5,560 km (2,150 sq mi). Daily flow rates compared with mean rates for

576-680: The Merovingian dynasty , who were still ruling, were descended somehow from Chlodio. Chlodio is a short form of Frankish names such as *Hlodowig (the same name as Clovis , Louis and Ludwig) or * Hlodhari ( Chlothar , modern Lothar), which are derived from the Germanic root * hlod - ('famous'). In later medieval chronicles, several different ancestries were given, naming Franks who were known from earlier Roman historical records. These pedigrees are considered unreliable today. The non-contemporary Liber Historiae Francorum says his father

612-569: The Frankish kingdoms that were still ruling in more traditionally Frankish areas. According to Gregory's understanding, the original Franks living west of the Rhine had different kings in each Roman district ( pagus or civitas ), but they were all part of one specific noble family, which had included Chlodio. However, according to the Gesta episcoporum Cameracensium , Clovis and his noble-blooded competitor King Ragnachar of Cambrai (the town Chlodio had put under Frankish control) were related not through

648-615: The German advance in the Spring Offensive of 1918 were fought around the valley of the Somme in places like Villers Bretonneux , which marked the beginning of the end of the war. The tributaries listed comprise: Left tributaries: Right tributaries: The river is characterized by a very gentle gradient and a steady flow. The valley is more or less steep-sided but its bottom is flat with fens and pools. These characteristics of steady flow and flooded valley bottom arise from

684-576: The Western Roman emperor in 457, reportedly suppressed a revolt of the Bagaudae in Armorica in 448, and then successfully defended Turonum ( Tours ) against a siege. 'Shortly thereafter', according to Sidonius, the Franks led by 'Cloio' (Chlodio), who were holding a wedding reception , were ambushed by the Romans near Vicus Helena . Aetius directed the operations while Majorian fought with

720-575: The campaign, which culminated in the Battle of Crécy . Crossing the river also featured prominently in the campaign which led to the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. In 1636, a Spanish army led by Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano , crossed the Somme defeating a French army during the Thirty Years War threatening Paris. Most famously, the Battle of the Somme , during World War I , lasted from July to November 1916 and resulted in more than

756-1001: The cavalry. The Romans emerged victorious. Most surviving information about the Battle of Vicus Helena comes from the Panegyric to Majorian , written in praise of Majorian's military exploits in 458 by Sidonius Apollinaris : Cum bella timentes defendit Turonos, aberas. Post tempore parvo pugnastis pariter, Francus qua Cloio patentes Atrebatum terras pervaserat. Hic coeuntes claudebant angusta vias arcuque subactum vicum Helenam flumenque simul sub tramite longo artus suppositis trabibus transmiserat agger. Illic te posito pugnabat ponte sub ipso Maiorianus eques. Fors ripae colle propinquo Barbaricus resonabat hymen, Scythicisque choreis nubebat flavo similars nove nupta marito. Hos ergo, ut perhibent, stravit; crepitabat ad ictus cassis et oppositis hastarum verbera thorax arcebat squamis, donec conversa fugatus hostis terga dedit. When [Majorian] defended

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792-518: The cities of Turnacum (modern Tournai ) and Cameracum ( Cambrai ), which became centres of Frankish power. The capture of Cameracum must have happened after 443, because Gregory mentions the Burgundians had already settled east of the river Rhône . Next, the Franks expanded towards the river Somme . Around 448, the city of Nemetocenna (modern Arras ) was probably sacked by the Franks as well. Roman general Majorian , who would become

828-526: The elder being allied with Attila and the younger with Aetius. It has been speculated that this Frankish succession dispute may involve the royal family which supposedly included Chlodio and Merovech. On the other hand, it has also been argued that the Franks in this story must be Rhineland Franks, with whom Aëtius was known to have had various interactions. River Somme The Somme ( UK : / s ɒ m / SOM , US : / s ʌ m / SUM , French: [sɔm] )

864-501: The head of the bridge. Here was heard, resounding on the next hill, the songs of a wedding celebrated by the barbarians dancing in the manner of the Scythians; two spouses with blonde hair then united. [Majorian], as is reported, defeated the barbarians. His helmet sounded under the blows, and the spears were pushed back by his thick-mesh cuirass , until at last the enemy gave way, disbanded, and fled. Some circumstantial information

900-473: The inhabitants of Tours who feared the war, you [=Aetius] were absent. Shortly thereafter, reunited, you fought the Frank Cloio, who had occupied the plains of the Atrebates . Here, various roads came together narrowed by a defile ; next, Vicus Helena could be seen forming an arc, then one could find a river crossed by a bridge made of wooden planks . You [=Aetius] were there; Majorian the knight fought at

936-436: The male line, but through Clovis's mother, Basina, a "Thuringian" princess whom his father met when exiled from Gaul. Gregory reports that Clovis asked Ragnachar: "Why have you humiliated our family in permitting yourself to be bound? It would have been better for you to die." He then killed him with an axe and told Radnachar's brother Ricchar, "If you had aided your brother, he would not have been bound", before killing Ricchar in

972-705: The maritime canal, once called the canal du Duc d'Angoulême enters the English Channel. The St Quentin Canal , famous for the 1918 battle , links the Somme to northern France and Belgium and southward to the Oise . The Canal du Nord also links the Somme to the Oise, at Noyon, thence to Paris. Vicus Helena The Battle of Vicus Helena was a clash between the Salian Franks , led by Chlodio , and Roman soldiers , commanded by general Flavius Aetius . The battle

1008-611: The northernmost part of still-Romanized Northern Gaul , together with an area further northeast apparently already Frankish. Two works written after Gregory of Tours, added details which are generally considered unreliable, but which may contain some facts derived from other sources. These are the Liber Historiae Francorum and the Chronicle of Fredegar . It is the first of these which specifies that Chlodio first pushed west through Roman-inhabited territories of

1044-461: The region. The modern department of Somme was named after this river. The Somme has featured prominently in several military campaigns. In 1066, the invasion fleet of William the Conqueror assembled in the Bay of the Somme, at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme . The river also featured in the 1346 withdrawal of Edward III of England 's army, which forded the river at the Battle of Blanchetaque during

1080-560: The river's being fed by the ground water in the chalk basin in which it lies. At earlier, colder times, from the Günz to the Würm (Beestonian or Nebraskan to Devensian or Wisconsinian) the river has cut down into the Cretaceous geology to a level below the modern water table . The valley bottom has now therefore, filled with water which, in turn, has filled with fen . This picture , of

1116-502: The same way. A contemporary Roman historian, Priscus writes of having witnessed in Rome , a "lad without down on his cheeks as yet and with fair hair so long that it poured down his shoulders, Aetius had made him his adopted son". Priscus writes that the excuse Attila used for waging war on the Franks was the death of their king and the disagreement of his children over the succession,

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1152-400: The source of the Somme in 1986, shows it when the water table had fallen below the surface of the chalk in which the aquifer lies. Here, the flow of water had been sufficient to keep fen from forming. This satellite photograph shows the fenny valley crossing the chalk to the sea on the left. The sinuous length at the centre of the picture lies downstream from Péronne . One of the fens,

1188-409: The time of year at Hangest-sur-Somme (m³/s). Catchment area 4,835 km (1,867 sq mi). 1993 . 1995 . 1997 . 1998 . 1999 . 2001 . 2003 . 2005 . Mean flow rates monthly and daily at Péronne (m³/s). Catchment area 1,294 km (500 sq mi). 1987 . 1989 . 1991 . 1992 . 1993 . 1995 . 1996 . 1997 . 1999 . 2000 . 2001 . 2002 . 2003 . 2004 . 2005 . The construction of

1224-551: The year 431. De Boone (1954) connected Sidonius' reference to a frozen Loire river to the exceptionally harsh winter of 442–3 mentioned by the Annals of Marcellinus Comes , but Lanting & van der Plicht (2010) rejected this, as Marcellinus doesn't mention any harsh winter in Gaul, and focused mostly on the Eastern Roman Empire; instead, the latter two focused on the military career of Majorian (Sidonius called him

1260-533: Was Pharamond , a Frankish King only known from medieval records. Pharamond in turn was said to be the son of a real Frankish king, known to have fought the Romans, named Marcomer . The Chronicle of Fredegar , on the other hand, makes Chlodio a son of Theudemeres , another real Frankish king who Gregory of Tours reported to have been executed with his mother by the Romans. Gregory of Tours (II,9) reported that "Chlogio" (as he spells his name in Latin) attacked from

1296-585: Was known in ancient times as Samara . It presumably means 'the summery river', that is to say the 'quiet river', stemming from an adjective * sam-aro - ('summery') itself derived from the Celtic root * samo - ('summer'). The city of Amiens was also known as Samarobriva (Gaulish: 'bridge on the Samara'). It is attested by the early 1st century BC as the chief town of the Ambiani , an ancient Gallic tribe of

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