November 891 · River Dyle, modern Belgium Theater
November 891
After a decade of devastating raids across Francia, a Norse Great Army settled into a fortified camp on the River Dyle in what is now Belgium. Arnulf of Carinthia, King of East Francia, approached with his army and did something unexpected: he ordered his cavalry to dismount and attack the Norse camp on foot. The Frankish forces stormed the camp directly, killing enormous numbers of the Norse defenders. It was the most complete Frankish military victory over a Norse force in decades, and it effectively ended the Great Army's operations in Francia. Contemporary accounts claim the Frankish cavalry charged on horseback into the river to cross — a feat of audacity that the Norse camp had apparently considered impossible.
Commanders