The Emergence of Europe (286-843) Part VII-The Emperor is Dead, Long Live Odovacar, King of Italy, First and...Last of His Name

A series of civil wars and repeated invasions by Germanic tribes caused the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. Following the end of imperial authority, several Germanic tribes struggled against each other for control of territory. The Franks became the dominant power in Gaul, but Greater Frankia repeatedly broke apart during wars between rival claimants for the throne. Finally, Charlemagne united the Franks, and greatly expanded the size of the kingdom. However, his grandsons proved unwilling to share the empire, and divided it in 843, laying the foundations for France and Germany. Episode Seven explains that Ricimer regained control of the western Roman empire, but the empire had shrunk, since the Goths had expanded their territory in Gaul and Hispania. After Ricimer died, there were three separate emperors between 472 and 475 until a general named Orestes seized power and made his teenaged son Romulus emperor. A year later, another general named Odovacar defeated Orestes, but Odovacar seemed to accept that the western Roman empire no longer existed, since he announced that he was the king of Italy, making Romulus the last Roman emperor.

 

Cast of Characters:

Procopius Anthemius-emperor of the Western Roman Empire (467-472), son-in-law of former eastern emperor Marcian

Ricimer-generalisimo of the Western Roman Empire (456-472)

Gundobad-king of the Burgundians (473-516), generalissimo of the Western Roman Empire (472-473), nephew of Ricimer

Anicus Olybrius-emperor of the Western Roman Empire (July-November 472), former Roman senator

Placida-Olybrius' wife, youngest daughter of Valentinian

Glycerius-emperor of the Western Roman Empire (473-474)

Julius Nepos-emperor of the Western Roman Empire (474-475), former governor of Dalmatia

Romulus Augustus-emperor of the Western Roman Empire (475-476), son of Orestes

Orestes-generalissimo of the Western Roman Empire (475-476)

Odovacar-king of Italy (476-493)

Leo-emperor of the eastern Roman Empire (457-474)

Gaiseric-king of the Vandals and the Alans (428-477)

Huneric-son of Gaiseric

Eudocia-Huneric's wife, eldest daughter of Valentinian

Euric-king of the Visigoths, brother of Theodoric II (466-484)

Childeric-Frankish chieftain

 

Sources:

Christendom: The Triumph of a Religion-Peter Heather

Barbarian Migrations and the Roman West 376-568-Guy Halsall

The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians-Peter Heather

The Inheritance of Rome-A History of Europe from 400 to 1000-Chris Wickham

Empires of Faith: The Fall of Rome to the Rise of Islam, 500-700-Peter Sarris

Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages-Dan Jones

The Franks-Edward James

Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire that Rescued Western Civilization-Lars Brownsworth

Byzantium: The Early Centuries-John Julius Norwich

Visigothic Spain 409-711-Roger Collins

History of the Goths-Herwig Wolfram, translated by Thomas J. Dunlap

 

Image Credit

By Unknown author - [1] 'Grandes Chroniques de France, Mandragore, BNF, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=723625