Alaric I

The first king of the Visigoths; born. About 376 A. D. for lying in the mouth of the Danube island Pace and belonged to the family of Balts. After the death of Theodosius the Great in 395, who settled in the Roman Empire, the Visigoths chose as their king the 19-year-old Alaric, who during the life of Theodosius was their leader. After an unsuccessful attack on Constantinople, he ravaged Macedonia and Thessaly, and penetrated through the left without cover Thermopylae gorge in Greece. Athens was saved from ruin only a rich ransom, and Corinth, Argos, and Sparta fell under the blows of the fierce enemy. Finally, to protect the oppressed of the Roman Empire was the commander of the Western Roman Emperor Honorius — Stilicho (see this). He landed with his army near Corinth, and after several indecisive battles in Arcadia surrounded Alaric and his troops in Elis, so that the latter barely managed to retreat to Epirus. However, the Eastern Roman Emperor Arcady, jealous of the success of Silicone, made peace with Alaric, and appointed him Governor of Eastern Illyricum.

Alaric, whom all the tribes of his people have recognized their king and that the power was the third largest in the Roman Empire, dare (400) to produce an invasion of Italy. The siege of some cities, eg. Aquileia, apparently, robbed him of a lot of time, so Stilicho managed to pull to his legions from the outlying provinces and recruit auxiliary troops of the barbarians. The Emperor Honorius, who at the approach of the enemy to Milan wanted to escape to Gaul, was to lock himself in a small fortress of aster at Tanar, and is only an approximation of Silicone freed him from a dangerous situation. Shortly afterwards (April 6, 402) there was a battle of Pollentia (South-West of the asty). Alaric was forced to retreat after the second defeat inflicted on him at Verona, in the autumn started to go back to Illyria. A few years later after stallion who wanted to keep him away from the borders of Italy and to acquire his friendship for their plans against the Eastern Empire has signed a contract with him that Alaric was appointed Governor of the Western Empire with annual pay him 4000 pounds of gold.

Since the death of Silicone the Roman government refused to fulfill the contract concluded, in 408 Alaric again invaded Italy. In order not to slow down your movements to the siege of the residence of Honorius, Ravenna fortified, he walked along the shore, and then from Aluminum turned on Flaminius the road to Rome. Supply all kinds of supplies to this city was cut off and Rome soon was forced due to hunger and disease to begin negotiations. Nevertheless, since Ravenna yard refused to accept Alaric’s terms for peace, with 409 he again came to Rome. Occupation of the Harbor of Ostia, he quickly brought the city to the extreme position and forced him to admit the city prefect Attalus Emperor, and him, Alaric, the chief commander of the Western Roman Empire. Soon, however, he fell out with-Attalus and deprived of his Imperial dignity. When Ravenna yard, encouraged by the arrival of the auxiliary troops, again rejected the proposals of Alaric, the latter for the third time approached the walls of the capital. The Senate decided on a desperate resistance, but thanks to the betrayal of the few slaves who in the night time opened the gates Slaskie, Alaric captured the city on 24 August 410 After few days of looting Rome Alaric turned to southern Italy and prepared by the occupation of the Roman granaries of Sicily and Africa; but a storm sank many of his ships, prevented the success of this enterprise. Shortly after Alaric died. His body, according to Jordan, has been omitted along with many treasures on the bottom of the river Busento, and prisoners who were used for this work were put to death so that nobody could learn about the place of his burial. King after him was elected his son Ataulf.