Boris I, ruler (khan) of the
Bulgarian Empire, abdicates the
throne after a 37-year reign, and retires to a
monastery. He is succeeded by his eldest son
Vladimir, as monarch of
Bulgaria. Vladimir falls under the influence of the old
boyars; many remain anti-Christian and anti-Byzantine. He attempts to restore the former Frankish
alliance, and to reestablish
paganism.[2]
A ship carrying about twenty Arab
freebooters, from
Pechina in
Al-Andalus (modern
Spain), sets anchor in the Gulf of
Saint-Tropez in Provence. They establish a fortified base at
Fraxinet (modern-day
La Garde-Freinet). After raiding the surrounding area, the Muslim colony is bolstered by contingents of
Saracen adventurers.
In Italy,
Forlì becomes a
republic for the first time. The city is allied with the Ghibelline faction, in the medieval struggles between the
Guelphs and Ghibellines.
^Picard, Christophe (2000). Le Portugal musulman (VIIIe-XIIIe siècle0. L'Occident d'al-Andalus sous domination islamique. Paris: Maisonneuve & Larose. p. 109.
ISBN2-7068-1398-9.