Vithimiris
Encyclopedia
Vithimiris was a king of the Ostrogoths (or Greuthungi
), ruling for some unspecified time in the area of today south Ukraine. He succeeded to Ermanaric
, meaning that he probably reigned in 376
. Ammianus Marcellinus
, the only known source on him, states that after Ermanaric´s death he tried to resist the Alani, who were allied with the Huns
, with the help of other Huns hired as mercenaries. He did so "for some time" (aliquantisper), but eventually, "after many defeats" (post multas clades), he died in battle. It is then assumed that he most probably ruled in 376, possibly also in 375.
According to Herwig Wolfram, Vithimiris was "certainly not" the son of Ermanaric.
His son Viderichus was too young at that time to rule, so the actual reign was in the hands of Alatheus
and Saphrax
, his subordinate commanders, as Michael Kulikowski labels them.
There is also a parallel story of these events, told by Jordanes
, the only other author to mention Ermanaric. However, Jordanes does not know Vithimiris; he narrates that after Ermanaric´s death, a relative of his, Vinitharius by name, accepted the reign. He ruled barely for a year (vix anni spatio) and then he had to face the Huns in battle. The Hunnic king Balamber
waged a long war on Vinitharius (diuque certati) and only in the third battle, he managed to kill him. However, there are doubts about the very existence of Balamber or any other Hunnic king at that time.
Greuthungi
The Greuthungs, Greuthungi, or Greutungi were a Gothic people of the Black Sea steppes in the third and fourth centuries. They had close contacts with the Thervingi, another Gothic people from west of the river Dnestr. They may be the same people as the later Ostrogoths.-Etymology:"Greuthungi" may...
), ruling for some unspecified time in the area of today south Ukraine. He succeeded to Ermanaric
Ermanaric
Ermanaric was a Greuthungian Gothic King who before the Hunnic invasion evidently ruled an enormous area north of the Black Sea. Contemporary historian Ammianus Marcellinus recounts him as a "most warlike man" who "ruled over extensively wide and fertile regions"...
, meaning that he probably reigned in 376
376
Year 376 was a leap year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valens and Augustus...
. Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus was a fourth-century Roman historian. He wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from Antiquity...
, the only known source on him, states that after Ermanaric´s death he tried to resist the Alani, who were allied with the Huns
Huns
The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga River, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and established the vast Hunnic Empire there. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,...
, with the help of other Huns hired as mercenaries. He did so "for some time" (aliquantisper), but eventually, "after many defeats" (post multas clades), he died in battle. It is then assumed that he most probably ruled in 376, possibly also in 375.
According to Herwig Wolfram, Vithimiris was "certainly not" the son of Ermanaric.
His son Viderichus was too young at that time to rule, so the actual reign was in the hands of Alatheus
Alatheus
Alatheus was a Greuthung chieftain and general. He fought during the Hunnish invasion of 376, engaged in war with Rome from 376 to 383, and incursions into the Balkans in 387...
and Saphrax
Saphrax
Saphrax was an Ostrogothic duke and war leader. He led after the death of King Vithimiris in 376. After the war with the Huns, he led his town for the Roman Empire. Just as Alatheus, he fought in the Battle of Adrianople in 378.-Sources:...
, his subordinate commanders, as Michael Kulikowski labels them.
There is also a parallel story of these events, told by Jordanes
Jordanes
Jordanes, also written Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th century Roman bureaucrat, who turned his hand to history later in life....
, the only other author to mention Ermanaric. However, Jordanes does not know Vithimiris; he narrates that after Ermanaric´s death, a relative of his, Vinitharius by name, accepted the reign. He ruled barely for a year (vix anni spatio) and then he had to face the Huns in battle. The Hunnic king Balamber
Balamber
Balamber is only mentioned by Jordanes, who simply called him "king of the Huns" and who tells us the story of Balamber crushing the kingdom of Ostrogoths in around 375. Balamber may have been a member of a royal house, but more probably he was - if he ever existed - just a warrior chieftain,...
waged a long war on Vinitharius (diuque certati) and only in the third battle, he managed to kill him. However, there are doubts about the very existence of Balamber or any other Hunnic king at that time.
External links
- The book 31 of Ammianus Marcellinus (in Latin)
- The book 31 of Ammianus Marcellinus (in English)
- The relevant passages in the Getica of Jordanes (in Latin)
- The relevant passages in the Getica of Jordanes (in English)