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Historical Overview Section

This list covers Asturian Christian armies in NW Spain from 718, through the conversion of the region to the Kingdom of Leon and then up until 1037. The Kingdom of Asturias was the first Christian political entity to be established in the Iberian peninsula after the collapse of the Later Visigothic Kingdom. This followed the defeat of King Roderic at the Battle of Guadalete and the subsequent Islamic Ummayad Arab conquest of Hispania. The kingdom was established by a nobleman, Pelayo (Latin: Pelagius), who had returned to his country after the Battle of Guadalete where he was elected leader of the Astures and founded the Kingdom of Asturias. However, Pelayo's kingdom initially was little more than a banner for the existing guerilla forces (but still qualifies for an army in FoG - must be because they want to sell the lists in Spanish eh?). Pelayo expanded the kingdom's boundaries until all of northwest Iberia was included by roughly 775. The reign of Alfonso II from 791-842 saw further expansion of the kingdom to the south, almost as far as Lisbon. It was not until King Alfonso II of Asturias (791-842) that the kingdom was firmly established with Alfonso's recognition as king of Asturias by Charlemagne and the Pope. He conquered Galicia and the Basques.

León;Background.
León was created as a separate kingdom when the Asturian king, Alfonso the Great, divided his realm among his three sons. León was inherited by García I (911–914). His successor was Ordoño II of León (914–924), who moved the capital of the kingdom of Astures to León.

Ordoño II of León was also a military leader who brought military expeditions from León south to Seville, Córdoba, and Guadalajara, in the heart of the Muslim territory.

After a few years of civil wars during the reign of Fruela II, Alfonso Froilaz and Alfonso IV, Ramiro II (931–951) assumed the throne and brought stability to the kingdom. A brave military chief who defeated the Muslim armies in their own territory, Ramiro's expeditions turned the Valley of the Douro into a no-man's land that separated the Christian kingdoms of the north from the Muslim territories of Iberia. Ramiro II, nicknamed "The Devil" by the Andalusian Muslims because of his military skill, led Leonese troops in the conquest of Madrid, and the province of Toledo, in the middle of the Caliphate of Córdoba.

Spanish Christian kingdoms c.925 AD – 929 AD; Note that Castile at that time was still a Leonese county rather than an independent kingdom, and Galicia and Portugal were dependent kingdoms.Parallel to the advance of the Leonese troops there took place the process called repoblación, which consisted of repopulating the Meseta, with people coming from Galicia and especially from Asturias and León. This migration of Leonese peoples greatly influenced the Leonese language. During the repoblación period, there arose a distinct form of art known as Mozarabic art. Mozarabic art is a mixing of Visigoth, Celtic, Muslim, and Byzantine elements. Notable examples of the Mozarabic style are the Leonese churches of San Miguel of Escalada and Santiago de Peñalba.

During the early 10th century, León expanded to the south and east, securing territory that would be known as the County of Burgos. Fortified with numerous castles, Burgos remained within Leon until the 930s, at which time Count Ferdinand II of Castile began a campaign to expand Burgos and make it independent and hereditary. He took for himself the title Earl of Castile, in reference to the many castles of the territory (around Burgos), and continued expanding his area at the expense of León by allying with the Andalusian Caliphate of Córdoba, until 966 AD, when he was defeated by Sancho I of León.

Using the army in FoG

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UK Tournament Results with this army

User-contributed links about this army:


Allies

Put information on allied contingents here - including recommendations on which to use, and why.

Painting and Collecting the Army

  • The army covers a period of history from Later Visigothic influenced soldiery to the emergence of early Frankish-style knights.

15mm Manufacturers supplying figures for this army

You can see some of the figures in the Ancients Photo Gallery also on this site. For mercenary Berbers look at the Fanatic Berber page

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Army Lists

Sample army lists for this army

Astur & Leone

Elements Pts Each Total

  • 4 Troop Commander Command 35 140
  • 16 Nobles, Cavalry, Armoured , Superior, Undrilled, Lancer / Sword 16 256
  • 24 Spearmen,Heavy Foot, protected, Average,Undrilled,Defensive Spearmen 6 144
  • 12 Bowmen, Light Foot, Unprotected, Average, Undrilled, Bow 5 60
  • 8 Javelinmen,Light Foot, Unprotected, Average Undrilled,Javelin, light spear 4 32
  • 8 Crossbows,Medium Infantry,Protected,Average,Undrilled,Crossbow 6 48
  • 12 Slingers, Light Foot,Unprotected, Average, Undrilled, Sling, 4 48
  • 6 Basques,Light Horse,Unprotected, Average, Undrilled,Javelins, Light Spear, 7 42
  • 6 Bowmen,Light Foot,Unprotected, Average, Undrilled, bow 5 30


Total 800

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