Samo

Samo
rex (king)
Mural of Samo in a Moravian rotunda
Reign	623–658
Predecessor	N/A
Successor	Title dismantled
Born	c. 600 “Senonian country" (Senonago), probably modern Soignies or Sens
Died	c. 658
Spouse	At least twelve Wendish noblewomen

Samo founded the first recorded political union of Slavic tribes, known as Samo's Empire (realm, kingdom, or tribal union), stretching from Silesia to present-day Slovenia, ruling from 623 until his death in 658. According to Fredegarius, the only contemporary source, Samo was a Frankish merchant who unified several Slavic tribes against robber raids and violence by nearby settled Avars, showing such bravery and command skills in battle that he was elected as the "Slavic king" (Latin: Rex Sclavorum). In 631, Samo successfully defended his realm against the Frankish Kingdom in the three-day Battle of Wogastisburg.

The dates for Samo's rule are based on Fredegar, who says that he went to the Slavs in the fortieth year of Chlothar II (i.e., 623–24) and reigned for thirty five years. The interpretation that places the start of Samo's reign in the year of Fredegar's arrival has been questioned on the basis that the Wends would have most likely rebelled after the defeat of the Avar khagan at the First Siege of Constantinople in 626. The Avars first arrived in the Pannonian Basin and subdued the local Slavs in the 560s. Samo may have been one of the merchants who supplied arms to the Slavs for their regular revolts. Whether he became king during a revolt of 623–24 or during one that inevitably followed the Avar defeat in 626, he definitely took advantage of the latter to solidify his position. A string of victories over the Avars proved his utilitas (usefulness) to his subjects and secured his election as rex (king). Samo went on to secure his throne by marriage into the major Wendish families, wedding at least twelve women and fathering twenty-two sons and fifteen daughters.