Bermudo II

All the major Spanish-Christian historians wrote about the rule of Bermudo II, which came at one of the most difficult moments in the history of the kingdom of Leon . The most valuable is the information contained in the chronicles of Sampiro and Pelayo from Oviedo . If Pelayo, who lived in the 12th century , is extremely critical of King Bermudo (he accuses him of all the troubles of the kingdom, describes in detail the King’s persecution of Bishop Oviedo Godeteo and Bishop Adaulfo, the first to give Bermudo the nickname Gout ), then Sampiro, a contemporary of Bermudo II, received from He received several gifts and served as a notary at the royal court, speaks of the king much more positively.

A number of unique information about the events on the Iberian Peninsula at the end of the 10th century is contained in the 13th-century chronicle of Rodrigo de Rada , but their reliability is questioned (for example, modern historians have denied Rodrigo’s report about the participation of Bermudo II in the Battle of Calatagnasore ). The rule of Bermudo is also described in other chronicles and annals.

Of the Spanish-Muslim historians, Ibn Haiyan and Ibn Hildun pay the greatest attention to the relationship between the Cordoban caliphate and the Christian states of the north of the Iberian Peninsula.

Childhood and Youth

Bermudo II was the illegitimate son of King Ordogno III from his connection with the Galician Aragonta Pelayes. After the death of his father, Bermudo was taken to the western regions of the kingdom of Leon (Galicia and the county of Portugal ), where he was brought up with his relatives. Local counts, opposed to the power of the kings of Leon, repeatedly rebelled and after Bermudo reached adulthood, they began to consider him as a contender for the Leon throne.

Rebellion against King Ramiro III

After ascending the throne of Ramiro III, the Portuguese and Galician counts did not recognize him as king, and during the entire period of his reign Ramiro never managed to reconcile with them. The confrontation between the nobility and the king culminated in 981 , when Ramiro was defeated by Hajib al-Mansour at the battles of San Esteban de Gormas and Rueda . At the end of the year, a rebellion began in Portugal. The candidate for the throne was nominated by Bermudo. The first charter in which he applies the royal title is dated December 22 . By the summer of 982, the whole of Galicia was in rebellion.

Wanting to enlist the military support of the Moors, Ramiro III and Bermudo turned for help to al-Mansur, but he preferred not to intervene in the internecine war, weakening his Christian enemies. Control of Galicia allowed Bermudo to be crowned in Santiago de Compostela in the fall (mentioned dates of October 15 or November 11 ^[1] ). His power was recognized by the entire western part of the kingdom.

In the winter of 982–983 , Ramiro III went to Galicia to suppress the rebellion. At Portilla de Arenas (near Monterroso ), a battle took place between his army and the army of Bermudo. After the battle, in which neither side was able to win, Ramiro III returned to Leon , and Bermudo strengthened in Galicia. This situation continued until 984 , when Bermudo, with the help of its supporters and mercenary Moors, managed to enter the capital of the kingdom, the city of Leon. Ramiro III fled to Astorga , where he died on June 26, 985 .

Early years of rule

Having entered the throne of the kingdom of Leon , Bermudo II was faced with unrest in the eastern part of his kingdom, organized by supporters of the former king Ramiro III . The new king took measures against the rebels: in November 985, he accused Count Saldania Gomez Diaz, the organizer of the unrest, of appropriating church property, condemned him and forced him to abandon the county in favor of his son, Garcia Gomez . However, Bermudo II was not able to restore vassal dependence on the kingdom of Leon Count of Castile. Garcia Fernandez , a former ally of King Ramiro III in the fight against the Moors , refused to take a vassal oath of Bermudo and since then the county of Castile has become an independent possession.

Not having at the beginning of his reign sufficient authority over the entire territory of the kingdom, Bermudo II entered into a peace treaty with Hajib al-Mansour , recognizing himself a tributary of the Cordoba caliphate in exchange for the return of several cities captured earlier by the Moors (including Zamora ) and the right to receive from Muslims military assistance against their enemies. Such help was soon needed by the king when, already in 985, his former allies, counts of Galicia, rebelled against him. With the help of the Moors, Bermudo was able to suppress the rebellion and strengthen its power over other areas of the kingdom, however, at the request of al-Mansur, the king had to agree to the deployment of Muslim warriors in various cities of his kingdom. The Moors who were in the lands of Christians did not behave as allies, but as conquerors, in every way oppressing local residents. After asserting power over the kingdom, Bermudo II repeatedly asked the Hadjib to withdraw his soldiers, since now nothing threatened his authority, but al-Mansur refused every time. In 986 ^[2], King Bermudo, seeing that the presence of the Moors in his possessions displeased his subjects against him, decided to expel the Moors in the kingdom of Leon: in one day all Muslim soldiers were captured, many were killed, remaining in living sent to the border lands of the caliphate.

Upon learning of the expulsion of Muslim garrisons from the kingdom of Leon, al-Mansour declared Bermudo II his enemy and provided financial assistance to the Galicians, as well as Count Saldania Garcia Gomez, who at the same time raised a new rebellion against the king. Bermudo, having made an army in Galicia, defeated the rebel army and destroyed all the castles of the rebel counts, but could not force them to recognize his power. Taking advantage of the absence of the king, at the same time the Count of Saldania, accompanied by the troops of the Moors given to him by al-Mansour, took and plundered the capital of the kingdom, the city of Leon .

Al Mansour Campaigns

Invasions of 987–989

Al-Mansour delivered his next blow to the county of Portugal : on June 29, 987, the Moors took Coimbra and devastated it so that the city remained uninhabited for 7 years. Al-Mansur devastated all the lands to the Duero River, without touching only the possessions of the opponents of Bermudo II.

King Bermudo began to prepare for war with the Cordoban caliphate , but the troops he had collected were not enough for a decisive battle. Therefore, the king took urgent measures to strengthen some cities. Among the measures taken in the event of the invasion of the Moors was the transfer of the remains of all the kings of Leon, starting with Alfonso III the Great and their families from the tombs in Leon and Astorga to the tomb of the kings of Asturias , located in Oviedo .

At the beginning of 988, the Hajib made a new trip to the kingdom of Leon . Forcing the Leon army to retreat to the mountains, and Bermudo to take refuge in Zamora, al-Mansur approached the city of Leon, whose defense the king entrusted to Count Gonzalo Gonzalez. Despite the desperate resistance of the besieged, after a 4-day assault, the Moors broke into the city. By order of the Hajib, the city was burned, almost all of its inhabitants were killed (Count Gonzalo Gonzalez died during the siege). From Leon al-Mansur moved to Zamora, from which Bermudo secretly fled to Lugo . Knowing the fate of the capital of the kingdom, the inhabitants of Zamora surrendered the city without a fight, however, by the order of the Hajib, this city was completely destroyed, and the inhabitants were killed. The army of al-Mansur ravaged the entire plains of the kingdom of Leon, including destroying the rich monasteries of Sahagun and San Pedro de Eslonza. Under the rule of King Bermudo II, only the northwestern part of the kingdom remained; the temporary capital of his possessions was Astorga . The defeats inflicted on the king caused a new rebellion of several Leon counts against Bermudo.

In 989 , during a new campaign in Leon, al-Mansour destroyed the most ancient city of the kingdom, Grahal de Campos . Opponents of King Bermudo II, the counts of Leon, led by Count of Saldania Garcia Gomez and Count of Gonzalo Bermudez, who recognized themselves as vassals of the Cordoba Caliphate, came to him here. Having entrusted the Earl of Garcia to control that part of the kingdom of Leon, which was captured by the Moors, and leaving part of his army to support him, al-Mansur moved to Castile .

Events 990–996

For the next 5 years, the Hadjib’s attention was focused on the war with Castile, as well as on solving the caliphate’s internal problems, so there were no major incursions into the kingdom of Leon during this period. The kingdom, ravaged by the previous campaigns of the Moors, was divided into two parts: the northwest controlled Bermudo II, the central and eastern - the Count of Saldania Garcia Gomez, who is called the ruler of Leon in modern events of the charters .

At the beginning of 990, a man close to the Count of Saldania, by the name of Conancio, spread a rumor throughout the kingdom about the death of King Bermudo. Since he was at that time in remote areas of Galicia , they believed the rumor: the documents disappeared from the years of Bermudo’s rule, and in some charters, Garcia Gomez was called the ruler of Leon with the title of king. Fearing of losing control of the rest of his kingdom, Bermudo returned to Astorga in the spring. Thanks to the generous gifts, he managed to lure most of the rebellious counts to his side.

Donations to the churches of the city of Leon, which was still under the control of Garcia Gomez, and Santiago de Compostela also strengthened the king’s influence, and the alliance with the Count of Castile Garcia Fernandez , whose independence he recognized, allowed Bermudo II to receive sufficient military force so that at the end of 991 re-enter the capital, the city of Leon, and restore its power over almost the entire (except Portugal and part of Galicia) territory of the kingdom.

The alliance with Castile was sealed by the marriage of King Bermudo with Elvira , daughter of Count Garcia Fernandez. This marriage caused a new uprising of the Leon counts, dissatisfied with the recognition of the independence of Castile, but it was quickly crushed by the king with the help of the Castilian troops. Bermudo II did not pursue the rebellious counts, although some of them earlier this year, together with a detachment of Moors attacking the castle of the Moon, plundered the royal treasury stored here. Such a soft attitude towards the rebels allowed him to soon come to terms with almost all of them, including Count Garcia Gomez.

In 994, al-Mansur resumed his campaigns in the kingdom of Leon: this year the Moors ravaged Avila , destroyed the fortresses of Arbolio, Luna, Gordon, Alba and plundered the surroundings of Leon. The following year, 995 , the Moors ravaged Saldania, sacked Astorga and again devastated the surroundings of the capital. King Bermudo II was forced to make peace with al-Mansour on the condition of recognizing himself as a vassal of the Cordoba caliphate and paying annual tribute. By this year, some historians attribute the message about the transfer of Bermudo to the harem of al-Mansur to his daughter Teresa, although others believe that this happened after the death of the king, and some historians generally refute the conclusion of such a marriage.

Destruction of Santiago de Compostela

At the beginning of 997 , upon learning of a conspiracy against al-Mansour and the rebellion of the governor of the caliph in North Africa, King Bermudo II refused to pay tribute to the Cordoba caliphate. In response, after the restoration of calm in the country, al-Mansur, at the head of a large army, set out on a campaign in the northwestern regions of the kingdom of Leon, not yet affected by the invasions of the Moors. Combining his forces in Oporto , accompanied by several Portuguese counts - the enemies of Bermudo, he moved to Galicia. On the way, having ravaged Viseu , Braga , El Bierzo , Vigo and Iria, on August 10 or 11 the Moors entered the Santiago de Compostela left by the inhabitants. The city was devoted to complete destruction. By order of al-Mansur, only the tomb of St. James was left untouched, where only one priest remained for service. The bells from the cathedral of the city on the shoulders of captured Christians were transferred to Mesquita , the main mosque of Cordoba , where lamps were made of them. From Santiago de Compostela, units of the Moors raided throughout the kingdom of Leon, during which they looted La Coruna and took the lease from the city of Leon, which had not shown any resistance. On the way back, an epidemic broke out in the army of the Moors, which claimed the lives of many soldiers. This was perceived by Christians as the revenge of St. James for the sack of the city dedicated to him. King Bermudo II, who was at that time in remote areas of Galicia, did not take any measures to prevent al-Mansour from destroying one of the shrines of Christian Spain, and then ruining his kingdom. The inaction of the king caused great discontent among the nobility, which led to the rapid loss of Bermudo authority among his subjects.

Recent years

King Bermudo II devoted the last years of his life to the restoration of Galicia devastated by al-Mansour and the restoration of Santiago de Compostela . At this time, he spends almost all his time in these lands, makes numerous gifts, solves litigations between dioceses and vassals.

At the end of the summer of 999, he went from Galicia to his capital, Leon , but on the road he became seriously ill with gout , so that he could no longer ride on horseback, but moved on a stretcher carried by the noblemen of the kingdom. Bermudo from Leon, despite his illness, went on a trip to his kingdom, but in September he unexpectedly died while crossing the Bierzo River, in the town of Villanueva del Bierzo.

Historians call the various causes of his death: Sampiro writes that the king died of the disease, and Pelayo from Oviedo , that he was killed. The body of Bermudo was first buried in the monastery of Carrasedo (in Carrasedelo ), and subsequently reburied in the cathedral of the city of Leon.

The successor to Bermudo II on the throne of the kingdom of Leon was his 3-year-old son Alfonso V , who, in his youth, was governed by the mother of the new king, Elvira García , and the Count of Portugal Menendo II González as regents.

Family

King Bermudo II was married twice. and also had several more concubines, from whom several illegitimate children were born from the king. The illegibility of the king in matrimonial relations was sharply condemned by Spanish-Christian historians.

The first wife of Bermudo II was Velasquita (died after 1030 ), the daughter of Ramiro Mendes, a nobleman from the county of Portugal. She was first mentioned as the wife of the king in 985 . Some historians consider Velasquita Ramirez and Velasquita of Mares, referred to in the chronicles as a royal concubine, the same person. Bermudo II divorced Velasquita about 989 , after which she was expelled to Oviedo. King Bermudo and Velasquita had a daughter - Christina (she died earlier 1051 ) - the wife of Ordogno, son of King Ramiro III .

The second marriage (from November 26 or 30, 991 ) Bermudo II was married to Elvira (died in December 1017 ), daughter of Count of Castile Garcia Fernandez . Children from this marriage were:

• Teresa (circa 992 - April 25, 1039 ). According to legend, she was married to the “King of the Ismailis” (it is assumed that al-Mansur is so named in the chronicles), but since Teresa was very pious, her Muslim husband suffered God's punishment - immediately after the wedding night he became seriously ill and died , having commanded before death to send Theresa with rich gifts back home. Upon returning to the kingdom of Leon, Teresa became a nun of the monastery of San Pelayo de Oviedo. At present, historians, relying on the inconsistency of the tradition of the chronology of the events of the late X century , question the very possibility of such a marriage
• Alfonso V Noble ( 996 - August 7, 1028 ) - King of Leon (999-1028), independently since 1007
• Pelayo (died after 1006 )
• Sancha is a nun in the convent of San Pelayo de Oviedo.

Bermudo II also had children from several concubines:

• Ordogno (died after September 18, 1042 ) - in a document of 1024 is referred to as mayor of King Alfonso V
• Bermudo (mentioned in 1058 )
• Pelayo (died after 1006)
• Elvira (died after 1068 )
• Sancha (mentioned in 1038 ).

Board Summary

The entire reign of King Bermudo II took place in unsuccessful wars with the Cordoban caliphate . The campaigns of al-Mansur , the ruin of most of the kingdom of Leon , and the seizure by him, sometimes repeatedly, of the largest cities in the possessions of Bermudo, led to the decline of the kingdom and put it on the brink of destruction. By the end of Bermudo II’s reign, almost all of the kingdom’s lands south of the Duero were lost. Local counts, Portuguese and most Galician rulers recognized themselves as vassals of the caliph, not the king. The need for allies in the fight against the Moors forced Bermudo to recognize the independence of the county of Castile . Bermudo II transferred power to his son only over the central and northwestern regions of the country, which were subjected to constant attacks by Muslims.

• Bermuda II // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Altamira i Crevea R. History of Medieval Spain. - SPb. : “Eurasia”, 2003. - ISBN 58071-0128-6 .
• Muller A. History of Islam: From Muslim Persia to the Fall of Muslim Spain. - M .: Astrel Publishing House LLC: AST Publishing House LLC, 2004. - ISBN 5-17-022031-6 .

• Pelayo from Oviedo. Chronicle of the Kings of Leon (neopr.) . Eastern literature . Date of treatment February 28, 2009. Archived March 16, 2012.
• The first Toledo annals (neopr.) . Eastern literature. Date of treatment February 28, 2009. Archived March 16, 2012.

• Reconquista. Leon (neopr.) . Date of treatment January 5, 2008. Archived on February 26, 2012.
• Timeline Reconquista. X century (neopr.) . Date of treatment January 5, 2008. Archived March 15, 2012.
• Historia de León 3.5 (Spanish) . Date of treatment January 5, 2008. Archived March 23, 2012.
• Foundation for Medieval Genealogy . Date of treatment January 5, 2008. Archived on February 26, 2012.
• Bermudo II. der Gichtige (German) . Genealogie Mittelalter. Date of treatment January 5, 2008. Archived March 23, 2012.
• Anonymous authors . Spanish Medieval Chronicles: The Chronicle of Cardeny I. The Chronicle of Cardeny II. Annals of Toledo I. Annals of Toledo II. Annals of Toledo III. (unspecified) . www.bloknot.info (A. Skromnitsky) (August 24, 2011). Date of treatment September 28, 2011. Archived February 2, 2012.