One Of The Most Famous Warriors- Svatopluk I Of Moravia

Svatopluk I of Moravia Student`s Name Subject Teacher Name Date Svatopluk I is one of the most famous warriors and is often remembered as the King of the Great Moravia. He was the nephew of Rastislav, who governed the principality of Nitra in Moravia. Some historians do not agree to the principality of Nitra where Svatopluk was a governor. This location is a debatable matter amongst historians. His uncle, who betrayed the Franks, became part of a rebellious movement. Svatopluk who was imprisoned by the Franks was later released. The reason and circumstances of his release have long remained unknown. Moravians, who did not like the Franks due to their occupations, had decided to rebel against them. When Svatopluk was discharged from the jail and sent back with Frankish to support Great Moravia, he aligned himself with Slavomír who rebelled against the Franks from the House of Mojmír. Just like Svatopluk, he was the victim of Frankish occupations done by Louis the German. Svatopluk became the sovereign leader of Great Moravia in the 8th century after defeating Frankish armies. Next year, Louis the German sent his army to destroy Great Moravia, yet they were crushed. Carloman again attacked Moravia, but Svatopluk also defeated him. Two years later, Svatopluk and Louis the German reached to an agreement for a peace treaty in which it was mentioned that Svatopluk would annually tribute to the King. He expanded his territories by conquering many neighboring lands, such as Silesia, Balaton, Tisza basin, Bohemia, Lusatian Serbia, and Vistulans. In ancient times, Vistulans was the southern part of Poland. Expansion in His Reign In the 870s, Great Moravia expanded to a reasonable extent under the power of Svatopluk. He conquered the territory of Nitra after capturing a pagan prince who was settled in the surroundings of Poland. Before this invasion in Nitra, pagans used to live in this area. The expansion of Moravian territories is much of debate amongst historians and archeologists who do not agree to the authenticity of older literature available to them. For instance, Moravian expansion to the borderline of Poland and Silesia is not based on much evidence despite the indication of earlier historical works towards this. The book, Life of Methodius, praises Svatopluk’s military achievements and his policy. It also goes on to mention his great expansion in this era. There is no literature or historical work that points out the savage or unreasonable behavior of Svatopluk with his subject and during his period of expansion. He never tried to take advantage of the disadvantaged by his culture, background or religious beliefs. During the reign of Svatopluk, Methodius remained the head of the church, even though the Bishop was a German. Wilhelminer War The year 881 proved to be tough for Svatopluk, as the sons of Engelschalk and William came with full force to remove Arbo who was the margrave of Loius the German. Engelschalk and William were executed by Svatopluk almost ten years ago, and their sons wanted to take revenge on Svatopluk, causing issues down the road for Svatopluk. The sons of these people teamed up with those who were against Svatopluk in Bavaria and started gaining strength. Arbo, who was familiar with the situation developing around him, felt greatly threatened and asked for help from the head of East Francia. He knew very well that the leader of East Francia alone would not be able to fight and defeat the armies planning to have him removed. In this scenario, he offered his child as a prisoner to Svatopluk in the return of his help to save him. Albeit, Svatopluk had not recovered yet fully from the losses caused to Great Moravia in a fight against Engelschalk and William. He also decided to attack his sons. In this fight, he captured the other son of Engelschalk and asked his armies to kill him. After assessing the situation, the son of William and others decided to claim their loyalty to Charles the Fat and to the son of Louis the German, Arnulf (who was ruling Pannonia at that time). This battle for Svatopluk was far from over. When he asked Arnulf to hand him the sons of William, he was turned down. Upon this, Svatopluk planned an attack on Pannonia and invaded the country finally. At a later stage during this battle, Hungry and Bulgaria got also involved. This entire conflict was named Wilhelminer War that ended in 884 when Svatopluk and Charles the Fat agreed on a peace treaty. The main points agreed on this peace treaty that Svatopluk would never invade Charles’ territory, and in return, Charles would recognize Svatopluk’s reign on Great Moravia. Three years after, the Wilhelminer War ended (in 887), and Svatopluk and Arnulf came together to invade Italy. The Wilhelmina war, for the most part, is observed as Svatopluk having enormous power. The war is also seen as Moravian King’s strong bond with its country. Another point to take from this war is Charles’ reduced control over his vassals which further became the obstacle in the way of Arnulf (Charles’s nephew) to succeed his uncle. Like many points and instances in the history of Svatopluk and Slavs, historians cannot find one point to agree on. The available evidence is embraced by some and rejected others. The question remains that makes the Wilhelminer War indicate the power or the shortcomings of the emperor. Another question is that was Arnulf worthy of becoming heir after his uncle, Charles. Post War Moravia and Svatopluk’s Death Methodius who died in 885 left my issues and questions behind. Before his death, he had declared Gozard to be his successor based on his abilities. Gozard who was from Moravia could not submit to Holy See immediately; the reason is unknown. Knowing the kind of conflict that has come upon Moravia Bishop Witching of Nitra took full advantage of the situation and wrote a letter to Svatopluk in which he urged the King of Moravia to stop the Byzantine practices. Svatopluk summoned many of Methodius’ disciples in which Gozard also appeared. They refused to submit papal directions in the court on which Svatopluk ordered Bishop Witching to punish them all. Some of Methodius’ disciples were put in jails, and others were expelled from the country. It is also written in historical works that some disciples were sold as slaves. This era marked the end of Slavonic liturgy in Central Europe although the disciples who were exiled from Moravia were able to carry on their work after seeking refuge in Bulgaria. Historical works indicate that sometime in the year 891 Arnulf sent his men to meet Svatopluk so they can renew the peace treaty with the King of Moravia. They all returned with friendship and peace, but at a later stage, Svatopluk could not keep his world for peace. After facing this situation, Arnulf decided to invade Moravia in the same year. Arnulf went frenzy to bring down Moravia after this, and he recruited Hungarian troops and also joined the armies of Bavaria and Braslav. This war between Arnulf and Svatopluk continued for two years (892-894). It was unfortunate for Arnulf that he could not defeat Moravia despite his wrath and preparation. In 894, Svatopluk died during the war. There are no scriptures or any other forms of proof that describe or even hint towards the cause of his death. Svatopluk’s death is deemed as a mishap occurred on the b...