Battle of the Nervasos Mountains

Last updated
Battle of the Nervasos Mountains
Part of the Germanic Wars
Reino suevo.svg
The Suebi Kingdom under its maximum extension, 6th century.
Date419
Location
Result Roman/Suebi Victory
Belligerents
Labarum.svg Western Roman Empire
Kingdom of the Suebi
Vandals
Alans
Commanders and leaders
Labarum.svg Hermeric
Labarum.svg Asterius
Gunderic

The Battle of the Nervasos Mountains (Spanish: Batalla de los Montes Nervasos) occurred in the year 419 and was fought between a coalition of Suebi, led by King Hermeric together with allied Roman Imperial forces stationed in the Province of Hispania, against the combined forces of the Vandals and Alans who were led by their King Gunderic. This battle occurred in the context of a contemporary Germanic invasion of the Iberian Peninsula. The battle took place in what is today the Province of León, Spain, and resulted in a Roman/Suebian Victory.

Contents

Context

Between the years 409 and 411, the Germanic peoples of the Vandals and the Suebi, similarly like the Iranian Alans, [1] migrated into the Iberian Peninsula via the Pyrenees Mountains after having already conquered the Gallo-Roman province of Gaul and subjected it to a three-year system of plunder and pillage. [2] Seeing that the forces of the Western Roman Empire were unable to effectively respond to new threats due to local uprisings led by Maximus of Hispania and Gerontius, the Germanic tribes saw an opportunity to invade the peninsula and carve out territory for themselves, starting the period of the Germanic Invasion of Iberia. [3]

The invaders divided amongst themselves, the territories of Hispania, taking the whole of Hispania Tarraconensis from the Romans without encountering any significant opposition. [2] The Silingi Vandals gained control over the Roman province of Hispania Baetica, the Alans took over administration of Lusitania and Hispania Carthaginensis, whilst the Suebi and the Hasdingi Vandals took over Gallaecia. The Suebi continued on with the original Roman Conventus iuridicus Lucense, maintaining a capital in Lucus Augusti (Lugo), and with the Bracarense with its capital at Bracara Augusta (Braga). The Hasdingi Vandals likewise maintained the Roman structure dating back from the Augustan and Claudian emperors. Their Roman Conventus Asturicensus maintained its capital at Asturica Augusta, (Astorga). [3]

Hispania in the year 418 Hispania 418 AD.PNG
Hispania in the year 418

In 416, Wallia, King of the Visigothic Kingdom of Toulouse, entered the Iberian Peninsula as a Roman general to fight the invading barbarian tribes. The Germanic tribes were unable to unite against their common enemy and by 418, the Silingi Vandals had been almost completely annihilated and the Alans were dispersed after the fighting death of their king, Attaces. The survivors of these groups sheltered themselves with the Hasdingi Vandals (From that moment on, the Vandal kings were known in title as King of the Vandals and the Alans). [1] [2]

The King of the Suebi, Hermeric, for his part, was able to sign a treaty with the Emperor Honorius, gaining his tribe the legal status of Foederati (a status also held by the Visigoths), for which the Hispano-Romans were obliged to cede them land. They established a garrison at Braga which began to emerge as a center of power. The disgrace felt by the Hispano-Romans at having to cede their lands to the Suebi would be felt painfully in the future during the conflicts between the natives and the colonizers. The following periods would be marked with failed peace treaties and even the sending of a native embassy to solicit the help of the Gallo-Roman general Flavius Aetius by Bishop Hydatius that would also end in failure. [3]

In his alliance with the Romans, Hermeric was swayed by the expansionist desires of his kingdom and would enter into conflict with his neighboring Vandals, the closest other German tribe occupying Hispania. [4]

The battle

The details of the confrontation between the two tribes are not clear, but it is possible to deduce that it was the Suebi who took the initiative in commencing hostilities seeing as the Nervasos Mountains (named for either the ancient Narbasi people or for the Roman General Erbasius), [5] due to their imprecise location, could have been situated in the region of El Bierzo in today's Province of Leon, then the conventus iuridicus asturum, which under the pact of 409-411, belonged to the Hasdingi Vandals under Gunderic.

During the invasion of the Vandal lands, Hermeric and his army are surrounded in the Nervasos Mountains by the forces of Gunderic, only being saved from a disastrous defeat by timely Roman intervention. [1] [2] The Roman comes Hispaniarum, Asterius, at the head of a powerful Roman army, lifted the Suebi siege and obliged the Vandals to retreat. The Roman campaign continued and Asterius obliged the Vandals to retreat south to Bracara Augusta, where he had pre-arranged a pincer movement together with his vicarius , Maurocellus, who commanded another sizable Roman force. They intercepted the Hasdingi Vandals and routed them. [1] [2]

Consequences

Having been defeated, king Gunderic guided his tribe in search of new settlement in Hispania Baetica. Between 421 and 422, they routed the imperial army of General Castinus who was sent to reconquer former Roman lands in that area. [1] The Vandals built a grand fleet which they used to gain naval dominance in the region and were able to conquer a large portion of southeastern Spain, sacking the cities of Carthago Nova and Hispalis amongst others.

In 428, Gunderic died. He is succeeded to the throne by his half brother Gaiseric, who decided that best place for his people to settle would be North Africa, which was being ravaged by internal disputes which would nullify the Roman resistance. [3] Gaiseric began preparations to cross the Straits of Gibraltar with over 80,000 people, 15,000 of whom were warriors, however he was attacked from the rear by a large force of Suebi under the command of Heremigarius who had managed to take Lusitania. [2] This Suebi army was defeated near Mérida and its leader Heremigarius drowned in the Guadiana River while trying to flee. [2] The following year, the Vandals disembarked in Ceuta, from which in a few years they would control all of Roman North Africa before being conquered by Belisarius, a general of Justinian I.

The Suebi would remain in Gallaecia until their conquest by the Visigoths under Liuvigild in the year 585.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Hasdingi were one of the Vandal peoples of the Roman era. The Vandals were Germanic peoples, who are believed to have spoken an East Germanic language, and were first reported during the first centuries of the Roman empire in the area which is now Poland, eastern Germany, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suebi</span> Historical ethnic grouping of Germanic tribes

The Suebi or Suebians were a large group of Germanic peoples originally from the Elbe river region in what is now Germany and the Czech Republic. In the early Roman era they included many peoples with their own names such as the Marcomanni, Quadi, Hermunduri, Semnones, and Lombards. New groupings formed later, such as the Alamanni and Bavarians, and two kingdoms in the Migration Period were simply referred to as Suebian.

Gunderic, King of Hasding Vandals (407-418), then King of Vandals and Alans (418–428), led the Hasding Vandals, a Germanic tribe originally residing near the Oder River, to take part in the barbarian invasions of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandals</span> East Germanic tribe

The Vandals were a Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century.

Godigisel (359–406) was King of the Hasdingi Vandals until his death in 406. It is unclear when or how he became king; however, in 405 he formed and led a coalition of Germanic peoples, including the Hasdingi Vandals, Silingi Vandals, Suebi, and others from Pannonia with the intention of invading Roman Gaul. Before crossing the Rhine River into Gaul, he was killed in the Vandal–Frankish war, possibly in late 406. Shortly after his death, this group of Vandals and their allies crossed the Rhine River into the territory of the Roman Empire, possibly while it was frozen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hispania Tarraconensis</span> Roman province on the Iberian Peninsula (27 BC-459 AD)

Hispania Tarraconensis was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania. It encompassed much of the northern, eastern and central territories of modern Spain along with modern northern Portugal. Southern Spain, the region now called Andalusia, was the province of Hispania Baetica. On the Atlantic west lay the province of Lusitania, partially coincident with modern-day Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gallaecia</span> Roman province in the northwest Iberian Peninsula

Gallaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province in the north-west of Hispania, approximately present-day Galicia, northern Portugal, Asturias and Leon and the later Kingdom of Gallaecia. The Roman cities included the port Cale (Porto), the governing centers Bracara Augusta (Braga), Lucus Augusti (Lugo) and Asturica Augusta (Astorga) and their administrative areas Conventus bracarensis, Conventus lucensis and Conventus asturicensis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silingi</span> Germanic tribe in Silesia

The Silings or Silingi were a Germanic tribe, part of the larger Vandal group. The Silingi at one point lived in Silesia, and the names Silesia and Silingi may be related.

This is a historical timeline of the Iberian Peninsula during the period of the post-Imperial kingdoms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermeric</span> Early 5th-century King of the Suebi

Hermeric was the king of the Suevi from at least 419 and possibly as early as 406 until his abdication in 438.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of the Suebi</span> 409–585 Germanic kingdom in northwestern Iberia

The Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Galicia or Suebi Kingdom of Galicia, was a Germanic post-Roman kingdom that was one of the first to separate from the Roman Empire. Based in the former Roman provinces of Gallaecia and northern Lusitania, the de facto kingdom was established by the Suebi about 409, and during the 6th century it became a formally declared kingdom identifying with Gallaecia. It maintained its independence until 585, when it was annexed by the Visigoths, and was turned into the sixth province of the Visigothic Kingdom in Hispania.

Heremigarius was a Suevic military leader operating in Lusitania in the early fifth century. He may have been a joint monarch with Hermeric or his successor, but no primary source directly attests it. Writing in the mid-seventh century, Fredegar calls Heremigarius rex Suaevorum, king of the Suevi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hispania</span> Roman province (218 BC – 472 AD)

Hispania was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior. During the Principate, Hispania Ulterior was divided into two new provinces, Baetica and Lusitania, while Hispania Citerior was renamed Hispania Tarraconensis. Subsequently, the western part of Tarraconensis was split off, initially as Hispania Nova, which was later renamed "Callaecia". From Diocletian's Tetrarchy onwards, the south of the remainder of Tarraconensis was again split off as Carthaginensis, and all of the mainland Hispanic provinces, along with the Balearic Islands and the North African province of Mauretania Tingitana, were later grouped into a civil diocese headed by a vicarius. The name Hispania was also used in the period of Visigothic rule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conventus Bracarensis</span> Administrative region of the Roman province of Gallaecia

The Conventus Bracarensis, was a Roman administrative unit located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, in Gallaecia. Its name derives from its capital Bracara Augusta, a citadel established by the Romans, which became the convent's administrative center. Its southern limit was the river Douro, it marked the streak with the Roman province of Lusitania. In the north, its limits were the river Verdugo, and the river Sil, both marked the border with the Conventus lucensis. Its eastern borders were marked by the river Navea, a tributary of the Sil, that limited with the Conventus asturicensis.

Asterius (<i>comes Hispaniarum</i>) West Roman army officer

Asterius was a Roman general who obtained the title of comes Hispaniarum in which capacity he participated in an important military expedition against the Vandals who had established themselves in the north of Gallaecia. He was also able to defeat the usurper, Maximus of Hispania who had taken refuge with the barbarian tribes there. Due to his military prowess and his considerable amount of battlefield victories, he was given the title of Patrician in 422.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ancient Portugal</span>

This article covers the history of ancient Portugal, the period between Prehistoric Iberia and County of Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandal conquest of Roman Africa</span>

The Vandal conquest of Roman Africa, also known as the Vandal conquest of North Africa, was the conquest of Mauretania Tingitana, Mauretania Caesariensis, and Africa Proconsolaris by the migrating Vandals and Alans. The conflict lasted 13 years with a period of four years of peace, and led to the establishment of the Vandal Kingdom in 435.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gothic War in Spain (416–418)</span>

The Gothic War in Spain was a military operation of the Visigoths commissioned by the West Roman Empire. This operation consisted of multiple campaigns that took place between 416 and 418 and were directed against the Vandals and the Alans to restore Roman power in the Spanish provinces of Betica, Lusitania and Cartaginense. As far as is known, the Roman field army was not involved in the battles, only foederati units fought on the side of the Romans. According to Thompson played the Hasdingi in Gallaecia a dubious role in this war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gothic War in Spain (456)</span>

The Gothic War in Spain of 456 was a military operation of the Visigoths commissioned by the West Roman emperor Avitus. This operation consisted of an extensive campaign aimed at reclaiming the Spanish provinces of Lusitania and Betica that were in the hands of the Suebi and threatened Roman power in the provinces of Cartaginensis and Tarraconensis. The main players in this war were Theoderic II who led the army of the Visigoths and Rechiar the king of the Suebi. The Visigothic army was supported by Franks and Burgundian auxiliary troops.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Invasión de los bárbaros y dominación de los visigodos". Nubeluz.es. Archived from the original on 3 January 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cossue (28 November 2005). "Breve historia del reino suevo de Gallaecia (1)". Celtiberia.net. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Los años 408 a 433" (pdf). InterClassica. 3 March 2007. Retrieved 11 August 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. Arce, pág. 111
  5. "Ayuntamiento de Villamanín: Arbas del Puerto". Ayuntamiento de Villamanín. Archived from the original on 9 September 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010. Arbas derives from, according to the most informed authors, from the enclave in the 'Montes Erbasos', which, at one point in time, were taken by a Roman General of some acclaim named Erbasio

Bibliography