Kanmu's armies are meanwhile pushing back the boundaries of his empire.

This leads to an uprising, and in 789 a substantial defeat for Kanmu's troops.

Also in 789 there is a severe drought and famine—the streets of the capital are clogged with the sick, and with people avoiding conscription into the military or as forced labor.

Many disguise themselves as Buddhist priests for the same reason.

Charles organizes campaigns against the Veleti, and their fellow Slavic tribe of the Linonen, because of their constant hatred and hostility toward the Franks.

With the aid of Frisian, Obodrite, Saxon and Sorbian, reinforcements, Charles manages to cross the Elbe River, advancing toward the Havel River into Veleti territory.

Outnumbered, Dragovit, in 789, is forced to pledge loyalty to the Franks and surrender hostages.

Among others, Dragovit is also forced to pay a tribute and accept the influence of Christian missionaries among his people.

His capital is a fortification known as civitas Dragowiti (City of Dragovit).

Its location is hypothesized to be either at Brandenburg an der Havel or …

…Demmin.

Bulgaria had overcome the internal political crisis after the end of the rule of the Dulo.

The khans Telerig and Kardam have managed to consolidate the central authority and put an end of the quarrels among the nobility.

The Bulgarians finally have the opportunity to intensify their campaigns in Macedonia and annex the region and its Slavic population to their state.

In 789, they penetrate deep into the valley of the Struma river and heavily defeat the imperial forces, killing the strategos of Thrace, Filites.

The Church's declaration in 789 of Sunday as a day of rest as well as a holy day thus further separates Christianity from any contact with Judaism.

Idris, founder of the Zaydi Shi'ite Idrisid dynasty, traces his ancestry back to Ali ibn Abi Talib and his wife Fatimah, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad.

In 789, on a bank of the Jawhar rive, he founds the city of Fés.

Fés is today the second largest city of Morocco.

The Admonitio generalis, an important piece of Carolingian legislation, promulgated by Charles in 789, contains a total of eighty two clauses pertaining mainly to ecclesiastical regulation.

The Admonitio is considered to be one of the most important cultural artifacts of the Carolingian period, and has been commonly cited as one of the primary pieces of evidence for the existence of the cultural revival generally known as the Carolingian Renaissance.

The text of the Generalis itself also attests to the responsibility of Charles as Frankish ruler for the salvation of his people.

Charles founds the town of Herford in 789 in order to guard a ford crossing the narrow Werre river.

Pope Adrian allows Offa to establish a Mercian archbishopric at Lichfield in 789 opposition to the Kentish one at Canterbury.