This week in history: The Vandals began their sack of Rome
The Roman Empire wasn't built in day, and neither was it destroyed in one. But many historians peg its terminal decline and eventual fall to a sacking of the city, the second of three, that began on 2 June 455 AD.
The Roman Empire wasn't built in day, and neither was it destroyed in one. But many historians peg its terminal decline and eventual fall to a sacking of the city, the second of three, that began on 2 June 455 AD.
The Germanic Vandal King Genseric and the Roman Emperor Valentinian III had signed a peace treaty some three years earlier. To underline their alliance, they had betrothed their two children Huneric and Eudocia in marriage, but since the latter, Valentinian's daughter, was only five years old at the time, the marriage was put on hold until she was of age. In the interim period, however, Valentinian was murdered and Petronius Maximus assumed the imperial throne. He duly married Valentinian's widow and also had his son, Palladius, marry Eudocia, who at the time was only eight years old.
Considering the peace treaty and void, Genseric headed to Rome with violence on his mind. While supposedly assuring Pope Leo that he would not slaughter the city's inhabitants or destroy its ancient buildings, he proceeded to give the place a pretty good dusting down over the next two weeks anyway.
This is the Victorian historian Edward Gibbon's account of the sacking from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire:
'On the third day after the tumult, Genseric boldly advanced from the port of Ostia to the gates of the defenceless city. Instead of a sally of the Roman youth, there issued from the gates an unarmed and venerable procession of the bishop at the head of his clergy. The fearless spirit of Leo, his authority and eloquence, again mitigated the fierceness of a barbarian conqueror: the king of the Vandals promised to spare the unresisting multitude, to protect the buildings from fire, and to exempt the captives from torture; and although such orders were neither seriously given, nor strictly obeyed, the mediation of Leo was glorious to himself and in some degree beneficial to his country. But Rome and its inhabitants were delivered to the licentiousness of the Vandals and Moors, whose blind passions revenged the injuries of Carthage. The pillage lasted fourteen days and nights; and all that yet remained of public or private wealth, of sacred or profane treasure, was diligently transported to the vessels of Genseric.'
The Fall of the Roman Empire
by Peter Heather
The epic story of the inevitable fall of Rome's glory
In The Fall of the Roman Empire, Peter Heather skillfully weaves a captivating tale of an ancient and long-lasting superpower that crumbled within the short space of a century. Its downfall was not instigated by massive rebellions or towering foes but by a small group of German-speaking asylum-seekers who audaciously defeated a vast Roman army and killed an Emperor, slowly eroding the bedrock of an empire that stood tall for over four hundred years.
Heather's engaging narrative exposes the intricate dynamics that culminated in the empire's fateful decline. This extraordinary story pierces the glamour of the gilded imperial court, and delves into Rome’s interactions with Europe's barbarians, who, after centuries of contact, gradually weakened and eventually dismantled the empire.
Hailed as 'triumphant' and 'fascinating', The Fall of the Roman Empire offers a masterful blend of meticulous analysis and vivid storytelling, providing fresh insights into an enigmatic chapter of history that continues to captivate the minds of historians and enthusiasts alike.