f all Germanic tribes, the Franks managed to create the strongest politica entity. Their army had one of the best infantry formations in Europe at the time. The heavy-armed cavalry, later the basis of every Western European state, had orginated and develeped in the Frankish state. Thanks to this, for a long time the Franks managed to inflict deafeats on other warlike Germanic tribes, Arabs, Avars and Slavs.
For the first time Franks were mentioned in Roman sources in the middle of the third century. It is generally assumed that the Franks at that time were a union or alliance of tribes, which included various groups of Germanic peoples. The name itself was supposed to indicate that they were a “wild, bold and untamed” people. In the 3rd century they invaded Gaul, where, taking advantage of the weakness of the Roman state, they captured Texandria (northeastern Gaul). After the fights, interrupted by negotiations with the declining empire, some Franks settled there as allies of Rome (the so-called Salic Franks). Others populated the areas along the Men River (the Ripuar Franks). In fact, the Salic Franks took complete control of the territory they occupied. Nevertheless, the Frankish occupation was recognized by the Romans in exchange for the tribe's participation in the defence of the empire's lands in the west. As far as legality is concerned, the factual administrative and military power was transferred to the Frankish rulers, who were endorsed by Rome to be imperial appointees. Such an arrangement between the two sides lasted until the end of the Roman state in the West. The foundations for the future France thus appeared. In the fifth century, the Frankish Merovingian family managed to get a prominent position among the other Frankish chieftains and established a small (initially) state around Tournai. The new state was risen to prominence by King Chlodwig (481–511), who, in concert with other Frankish warlords, abolished the Roman rule in the region (486), conquered the Alemanni, a confederation of Germanic tribes, and later ruthlessly destroyed the other Frankish states, both Salic and Ripuarian. Thus came the unification of the Franks into a single entity. The culmination of Chlodwig's successes was the conquest of Aquitaine, held then by the Visigoths (507). His successors conquered the Burgundian states (534), the Thuringians (531) and subjugated to their rule the Bavarians. King Chlodwig also accepted baptism, which had a significant impact on the future fate of the state (496). The Franks became the weapon of the Catholic Church in the fight against heretical Germanic tribes and infidel Muslims. In return, the Church's structure and authority supported the rule of the Frankish kings.
Franks service in Rome
The Franks, like many other Germanic tribes, initially served as allies of, or soldiers in, the Roman army. While other tribes increasingly attacked Rome's possessions, the Franks tried to remain faithful to their alliance with the Empire for a long time, often fighting against other Germans. As a result, the position of the Franks in the structure of the Roman state's military system was more privileged. During the existence of the Roman state, the Franks fought as infantry, using swords, axes (the deadly Frankish axe) in battle, and defending themselves with shields.
Royal power
After the fall of Rome, the first Frankish chieftains adopted the titles of kings, but tried to emulate Roman customs, which is understandable, since for a time they themselves served as Roman soldiers. The king concentrated in his hand the supreme military, civil and judicial power; he also decided on war and peace, had the sole right to appoint main officials in the field - dukes (dux) and counts (comes). These titles were taken from the late Roman military administration. Ascension to the throne was initially a purely secular act, the ruler did not wear a diadem or crown, and the symbol of his power was long hair. Cutting them off was tantamount to losing royal power. The power, though great, was not despotic. Kings sought to maintain contact with their subjects, with the custom of general military gatherings held in March, the so-called March Fields (actually convened between March and May), to which the greatest land owners were summoned to form the main part of the army. During the assembly, war decisions were made and an inspection of the army took place.
The first Frankish army
The first barbarian kings did not have a strong professional army. The collapse of the Roman state put a great strain on or, as happened in some regions, eliminated completely the fiscal system to pay professional soldiers. The military system was based on the deployment of fairly few garrisons in cities and major strongpoints. The only elite formation was the kings' bodyguard, consisting of Gallo-Romans and Franks. The reason behind this was that only the victors had the right to bear arms. The conquered tribes did not have that privilege. The main military force was made up by a common levy of free Frankish peasants. However, the situation after the fall of Rome became so dangerous that in no time everyone began to carry arms, for self-defence against greedy neighbours or robbers. Every group, even the smallest, sought to defend its interests. Thus, by the end of the sixth century, the Merovingians imposed military service on the non-Frankish local subjects, who were called up for seasonal excursions and in defence of the realm. The regional forces were headed by a dux (a military leader and later a duke). In practice, only recruits from urban settlements were enlisted in the army, as that were the only places where direct royal authority reached. The municipal militia was led by a commander, other than the commander of the city/town garrison. Those responsible for maintaining the garrison, on the other hand, were the previously mentioned comes (counts). Their task was also to maintain public order. Non-Frankish peasants were drafted into the army much less frequently. They were poorly armed, and often fought with the tools they used for their daily work like pitchforks and rakes (townspeople, unlike villagers, often possessed leftover weapons of the Roman army). Occasionally, other tribes were called up, including the Saxons and Alemanians, which was not an easy task, as each tribe sought to regain its independence. The Franks thus had to fight to maintain their dominant position among Germanic tribes (Saxons, Bavarians, Frisians, Alamanians and others), who refused to recognize (even in a symbolic form) their dependence and often invaded Frankish territories themselves. It was also quite common for individual communities, groups, villages and families to wage wars and raids against each other.
Foes
The Germanic relatives and rebellious local populations were not the only opponents of the Franks. They had to fight against a variety of external enemies, representing diverse styles of warfare - the sea-ridding Vikings, the excellent Hungary mounted archers, the Avars, and the Islamic cavalry. On the other hand, the Carlovingians, another Frankish dynasty, had to fight their distant relatives, the Longobards (settled in northern Italy) and the fiercely warlike Saxons (west). This required the adaptation of their military system to different situations and the constant combat readiness of the army.
Command
The Franks fought war campaigns almost every year. The Field of March was a place where it was decided on war, and against whom to start the war. This meant that most of the armed conflicts the Franks fought were defensive battles, as it was generally known who to start a war campaign against. These were usually rebellious tribes or vassals. For example, Charlemagne (768 - 814) undertook more than 50 expeditions, half of which he led personally. Initially, the expeditions were led by the king, but soon the practice of sending armies into battle under the command of an influential nobleman or royal relative became established, but this could not deplete the king's authority as a leader. The king's authority as a strong, warlike ruler was very important for aristocrats, who were constantly thinking of revolt.
Military system
Until the eighth century, medieval armies were mostly a collection of armed bands. The situation began to change under the last Merovingians and later, the Carlovingians. Cavalry, especially heavy-armed, began to play an increasingly important role. This is closely linked to the rise and development of the feudal system in western Europe, where the heavily-armed knight was the main armed force. The hitherto mainstay of the army, the infantry, recruited from free peasants, was significantly reduced. As a result of commandeering, peasants became dependent people, and Frankish law forbade anyone who was subordinate to anyone to serve in the army. The ranks of the free peasants were thinning badly, despite the fact that the prominent Frankish ruler Charlemagne tried to oppose this. In this situation, the monarch obliged the mighty to come on expeditions with an armed post composed of his own subjects. Royal fiefs and beneficiaries became the basis of the army. From 790, mobilisation was also accelerated, no longer based on the decision of the Field of March. The king sent orders to local authorities (counts, bishops, abbots and vassals) to prepare for battle. It was decided who was to send troops for the expedition, who was to send reinforcements and who was to send food and material support. If a second order came, the local authorities were obliged to fulfil the above obligations within 12 hours.
Size of the army
The expeditions numbered several thousand warriors (according to various scholars between 5,000 and 13,000 thousand men), of which about one third to one quarter were mounted cavalry. In Charlemagne's time, the mounted cavalry throughout the state could number around 35,000 men and the infantry 100,000 soldiers. The army was divided into several divisions, which attacked the enemy's territory separately and, in the event of a battle, joined together.
Cavalry
The main striking force was the heavy cavalry. Its armament consisted of an iron helmet, protecting not only the head but also the neck of the warrior. An important complement to the armour were shields, the production of which the state took special care of. Both infantry and cavalry used round, concave shields with a diameter of 0.8 metres. Oval shields of a similar diameter were also in use. The basic material for manufacture was wood. Sometimes the shields were covered with animal skin. Additional protective armour was the most important part of the armour. Its type depended on the wealth of the warrior. The nobles were obliged to provide themselves with the type of armour prescribed by law and to maintain it (its condition was checked during an inspection of the army on the March Field. Due to the need to feed the horses, which were the backbone of the new Frankish army, the inspections were no longer conducted in March, but in May). Most armour was of the scaled type. Offensive weapons included two types of sword, the long sword and the sax (semispatum). In addition, horsemen were armed with spears, which were quite cheap to produce. These weapons were also the basic armament of the Franks. A bow, most likely non-compositional, was commonly used.
Infantry
The infantry comprised the most numerous troops of the Frankish army. The footsoldier did not have such an impressive arsenal of weapons as the horsemen. The basic weapons were a spear, bow and oblong wooden shield. In addition, an axe to throw (known as the francisca) was used alongside the bow to weaken the enemy's forces from a distance. The sword was much less frequently used, due to its high cost. Initially, the Franks, like other Germans, usually fought in a wedge formation. Battles against Avars, Hungarians, Vikings and Arabs forced the Franks to make significant changes to their infantry arrangement. Infantry units (from the 7th century onwards) fought in a compact, square formation, many ranks deep, difficult to break up. The infantry was divided into several squads, arranged in a rectangular (or square) formation, which effectively defended against attacks from different directions. The role of the infantry diminished considerably with the development of the feudal system (from the time of Charlemagne onwards). The quality of the soldiers, as well as their numbers in relation to the cavalry, which had become the main force in Europe, declined considerably. Nevertheless, the Frankish infantry (until the Crusades) was the best infantry, in Western Europe.
Control of the conquered territories
In order to control the conquered territories, the government of fortresses and fortified cities was taken away from the defeated opponent and an area was fortified by a network of their own strongpoints, manned by Frankish garrisons. Each garrison was to control and guard the territory adjacent to its fortified military base or headquarters, in cooperation with the local nobles. New administrative centres, the borderland Marches, were also established. The weakness of this system were revolts and unrests stirred by the local feudal lords, who felt that the absence of the king in their area was an ideal opportunity to launch a successful rebellion. Practically every year, in various parts of the country, one of the magnates plotted or rose against the ruler. This explains the frequent military expeditions of Frankish troops to pacify rebellious territory. The Franks could be cruel victors. King Charlemagne ordered the killing of more than 4,500 Saxon warriors, whether out of a desire for revenge for losses suffered in battle or the need to terrorize the unruly Saxons. Some secessionist tendencies of individual Germanic principalities, were thus pacified. Through conquest, the Franks gained an important source of recruits from other, non-Frankish, Germanic tribes.
The Fall
One of the major weaknesses of the Frankish state was the unresolved issue of succession to the throne. For a time, individual heirs who ascended the throne did not have to worry, in the absence of siblings, about succession problems. This situation changed dramatically after the death of King Louis in 840. The supreme power passed to Louis' eldest son, Lothair. His two brothers, Louis (known as the German) and Charles the Bald, quickly started a fight with him over their father's inheritance. The treaty between the brothers at Verdun (843) divided the once powerful state into three parts, from which Germany and France were ultimately formed. The third part, comprising the territories of Alsace, Lorraine and northern Italy, was a creation too much ethnically, geographically and politically diverse to exist on its own. Charlemagne's descendants, however, fought among themselves for the next fifty years to unite their heritage, without much success.