Though coming from one of the most prominent ecclesiastical centres of ninth-century Francia the monk Abbo is unusually obscure for an individual responsible for a source such as the "De bellis". The little that we do know is gleaned from this work, with very little corroboratory evidence from elsewhere. Though we know he was a Neustrian we do not know his political agenda or affiliations, as he contradicts his own "views" throughout the work. As a result, historians have often speculated that the "De bellis" was "refined" at a later date by a separate editor.