Theodoric entering Rome.
Theoderic’s empire at the height of its power in 523, with territory marked in pink ruled directly by Theoderic and stippled areas under his hegemony.
One of the greatest of the barbarian kings and the greatest
of the Gothic kings, Theodoric the Great, or the Amal as he was originally
known, reigned over the Ostrogoths from 471 to 526 and ruled an independent
Gothic kingdom in Italy from 493 to 526. He assumed power in Italy by defeating
a rival barbarian king, Odovacar, and Theodoric’s reign was generally
recognized for its effectiveness and tolerance. He skillfully managed the
relations between his people and the native Roman population and also maintained
good relations with the emperors in Constantinople. Theodoric was able to keep
the peace in Italy between Ostrogoths and Romans despite important differences
in religion—Theodoric and his people were Arian Christians and the native
Italians were Catholic Christians. He preserved the best aspects of the
administrations of Odovacar and the Romans and worked well with the Senate and
Roman nobles. He was an active builder, promoted culture, and patronized the
great scholars Boethius and Cassiodorus. His reign, however, was marred in its
later years by increasing tension between Goths and Romans, as Catholic
Christianity found important new leaders. The situation was worsened by
Theodoric’s execution of Boethius and his father-in-law, Symmachus, leading Roman
senators. Despite the difficulties of his later years, complicated further by
the lack of a male heir, Theodoric was one of the greatest kings to rule in the
years after the fall of the Western Empire.
The early life of Theodoric is important for his later
years, though modern knowledge of it is marked with confusion. One particularly
vexing problem about his early years is the date of his birth, which is
traditionally given as 456. According to the tradition, Theodoric was born on
the day that his family learned the news that his uncle Valamir had been
attacked by and had defeated a large band of Huns. But this date is unlikely
because it would make Theodoric quite young—indeed, perhaps too young—when he
was sent to Constantinople as a hostage and still quite young when he later
took control of the kingdom. More recent scholarship has suggested dates of
birth as early as 451, which would correspond to the victory of the Ostrogoths
and their Roman allies over the Huns at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains, a
date that would make Theodoric a more mature, and politically useful, boy when
he was sent to Constantinople. Whatever his exact date of birth, he was born to
the royal Amal family and was sent as a hostage in 459/460 as surety for a
treaty between the Ostrogoths and Eastern Empire. While at the imperial court,
Theodoric learned a great deal and had experiences that shaped his later life.
He became aware of rivalries among the Gothic people, and most likely came to
fear and hate rival Ostrogothic families who gained preferment at the imperial
court. He also witnessed the sophisticated governmental practices of the
empire, which he used when he became king of the Ostrogoths and then later
ruler in Italy. He also gained a solid, if unspectacular, education, most
likely learning to do arithmetic and to read and write.
Theodoric was released from his service as a hostage in the
late 460s, after which, in about 469, he returned to his homeland, received
control of a subkingdom, and began his ascent to power among the Ostrogoths.
Already in 470 he launched campaigns, sometimes in the name of the empire,
against his political rivals or to expand his territory. His success in 470
revealed his ambition; the campaign probably took place without his father’s
permission, and marked, for Theodoric, the start of his independent authority.
In the 470s he became an increasingly powerful and important figure in the
military and political life of the Eastern Empire. His main Gothic rival,
Theodoric Strabo, or the Squinter, rose in the imperial ranks in the 470s and
took a prominent part in a revolt against Emperor Zeno. Having fled from the
capital in 475, Zeno was able to return thanks to the support from Theodoric of
the Amal clan and strike against Strabo, who quickly fell from grace, though he
remained a powerful rival to both Theodoric and Zeno. Theodoric the Amal
received numerous honors from Zeno and was made commander of East Roman troops.
Theodoric’s people were made foederati (federated allies) of the empire and were
given an annual subsidy from the emperor. Despite these achievements, Theodoric
still faced a challenge from Strabo, who sometimes was supported by Zeno for
fear of an over mighty Theodoric the Amal. Strabo’s sudden death in 481 freed
his rival’s hand. Theodoric was now sole king of the Ostrogoths and a dangerous
friend of the empire.
The 470s and early 480s saw important changes in the life of
Theodoric and the Roman Empire. Theodoric had become one of the most powerful
figures in the Eastern Empire. In 482–483 Theodoric waged a terrible offensive
in the empire to force Zeno to come to terms, which the emperor did. Theodoric
was rewarded with a consulship for 484, but his term in office was cut short by
Zeno’s fears that the Ostrogoth had turned against him. Despite his own
strength, Theodoric knew that he was no match for the full power of the empire,
and events in the Western Empire offered both Theodoric and Zeno a solution to
their problematic relationship. In 476 the last of the Western Roman emperors,
Romulus Augustulus, and his general, Orestes, were defeated by the German
general Odovacar. After defeating his rivals, Odovacar executed Orestes and
deposed Romulus and sent him into internal exile. Odovacar also declared the
end of the imperial line in Italy and, although recognizing the sovereignty of
the emperor in Constantinople, ruled as an independent king in Italy. In 488,
following another revolt by Theodoric, Zeno requested that the Ostrogoth invade
Italy and restore it to imperial control.
Theodoric’s march to Italy was not unimpeded, as other
barbarian peoples struggled against him, but he reached Italy by the summer of
489. His rival Odovacar was waiting for him with his army. Theodoric won two
victories against Odovacar in August and September of 489. He also welcomed
Tufa, one of Odovacar’s leading generals, and it seemed that Theodoric would
quickly triumph over his enemy. But Odovacar was able to secure himself behind
the walls and swamps of Ravenna, and Tufa rejoined Odovacar shortly after
leaving, taking with him the Ostrogothic soldiers he commanded on the way to
Ravenna. Odovacar then took the offensive and forced Theodoric to withdraw to
the city of Pavia. Theodoric, however, managed to break the siege and defeat
Odovacar once again, on August 11, 490, with the aid of a large number of
Visigoths. Odovacar returned to Ravenna, where Theodoric besieged him. But
Ravenna could not be taken, and Theodoric was forced to negotiate with
Odovacar. Agreement was reached on February, 493, and Theodoric entered Ravenna
on March 5. Apparently he had agreed to share power with Odovacar. On March 15,
he welcomed Odovacar at a great banquet, at which Theodoric himself killed
Odovacar. The murder of Odovacar was followed by the massacre of his family and
supporters. Theodoric had eliminated his rival and then proceeded to take
control of Italy.
Theodoric’s position remained uncertain for some time, in
part because of his desire to be recognized as the ruler in Italy by the
emperor in Constantinople. He was anxious to be recognized in the capital of
the empire because he portrayed his kingdom as the legitimate successor of the
Roman Empire in Italy. He did this for a number of reasons. He certainly had
some sentimental attachment to all things Roman as a result of his time as a
hostage in Constantinople. He also recognized the importance of being “Roman.”
That identity meant civilization and defined relations with the nobility in
Italy, as well as with the church, a very powerful force. It was also a means to
secure support for his kingdom from the population of Italy, the birthplace of
the Roman Empire. He could also use it in his relations with Constantinople, as
an instrument to remind the emperor that any violation of the peace between
them was a violation of the empire and an offense against God.
Theodoric’s status was resolved gradually over the first two
decades of his rule in Italy, and in two stages, in 497/498 and in 508, the
Ostrogoth gained recognition from the emperor for his independent status as
king in Italy. His rule in Italy, from 497 until his death in 526, was a time
of peace and prosperity for the peninsula. Moreover, his kingdom became the
center of the greatest power in western Europe, as Theodoric established his
authority not only over Italy but also over other parts of the old Western
Empire. His closest rival, the Merovingian king Clovis, managed some success
against Theodoric in southwestern France, but he never really attempted to
unseat Theodoric, to whom he was related by marriage. (His sister, Audofleda,
married Theodoric and bore the daughter Amalaswintha.) Indeed, marriage
alliances constituted one of the tools Theodoric used to enhance his power in
the old Western Empire. Another instrument in the extension of his power, of course,
was his great ability as a general. His defense of the Visigothic kingdom in
Spain and subsequent acquisition of the kingdom in 511 revealed his talents as
a military leader, as did his campaigns for and against the emperor and against
Odovacar.
Although king of Visigothic Spain, Theodoric is best known
for his rule of Italy. As the independent ruler of Italy, Theodoric presided
over a cultural and economic revival in the peninsula. He worked effectively
with the Roman nobility, who enjoyed the peace brought by Theodoric and managed
to revive the productivity of their estates. Theodoric’s equitable distribution
of land, which did not overly burden the Roman population of Italy, also
stimulated an economic revival. He not only worked well with the nobles but
respected and honored the Senate, and in many ways preserved Roman imperial
governmental practices. Despite his Arianism, Theodoric remained on good terms
with the pope and Catholic church in Italy. Indeed, at one point he was invited
to resolve a disputed papal election, and his good relations with the church
were critical to his acceptance as the ruler in Italy. He also supported the
traditions of Roman law and education in his kingdom. He helped maintain the
infrastructure in Italy, restoring many roads and public buildings. He was also
a great builder in his own right, most notably of the magnificent mausoleum
that still stands in Ravenna today. Finally, Theodoric was a patron of arts and
letters. His personal secretary was the prominent Christian writer Cassiodorus,
and Theodoric also had close relations with the great intellectual and author,
Boethius.
Despite his long and prosperous reign, Theodoric’s end was
not a happy one, and his great kingdom did not long survive his death. Several
events conspired to bring Theodoric’s reign to an unfortunate end. His failure
to have a male heir made the establishment of a dynasty difficult and caused
tensions among the Ostrogoths, which worsened other internal problems. It also
undermined his foreign policy and the extension of his power over Spain.
Furthermore, his good relations with the church came to an end for two reasons.
The election of a new pope, John I (523–526), ended Theodoric’s good relations
with the papacy, in part because of John’s hostility toward Arianism. His
relations with the church also worsened because the tensions that existed
within the church, between its eastern and western halves, were eased, as the
new emperor, Justin (518–527), outlawed Arianism and supported Catholic
orthodoxy. Theodoric’s Arianism was made to appear even more at odds with the
Catholic population by the conversion of Clovis and the Merovingian dynasty to
Catholic Christianity. Finally, his good relations with the Senate and Roman
nobility were poisoned by an alleged conspiracy of senators in 522. Boethius’s
defense of his fellow senators implicated him in the plot in the eyes of
Theodoric, and as a result, Boethius fell from favor and was executed in 524.
Theodoric died in August of 526. According to the fifth-century
Byzantine historian Procopius, Theodoric died of typhoid brought on by remorse
for the deaths of Boethius and his father-in-law, Symmachus, who was also
implicated in the plot against Theodoric. Procopius notes that Theodoric was
served fish for dinner one evening and saw in it the face of Symmachus.
Theodoric fled to his room frightened by the vision, and then called for a
doctor, to whom he disclosed his great dismay over the execution of Symmachus
and Boethius.
Theodoric was succeeded by his grandson, Athalaric, whose mother, Amalaswintha, served as a regent during the first part of her son’s reign. The problems of Theodoric’s last years continued to plague his successor and Amalaswintha. Dissension among the Goths led to her death and the eventual invasion and destruction of the Gothic kingdom by Justinian. A brilliant, tolerant, and effective ruler in many ways, Theodoric could not provide for a lasting settlement in the kingdom he created.
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