396. Flavius Stilicho, Guardian of the Emperor Honorius, Commander-in-Chief of the armies of Rome, had finally cornered Alaric of the Ostrogoths in the Peloponnese. There was no room to escape, and the entire Gothic nation appeared on the brink of destruction. Alaric, hoping to rekindle memories in Stilicho’s heart of their former comradeship, asked for parlay. The two met with only two guards each and discussed their situation. They talked, sometimes heatedly, for an hour. When Stilicho returned to his army he told them that there would be no offensive against the Goths. Instead, they were joining forces to march on Constantinople.
At first this did not go down well with the soldiers, yet when Stilicho told them that he had no designs on the crown; that he sought only to restore the emperor and to remove the vile presence of the Praetorian captain Rufinus from him they consented. When they asked why the Goths were not to be destroyed Stilicho replied that Alaric had sworn on holy relics never to raid Rome again, and was to peacefully find his people a new homeland elsewhere.
The march on the capital hover was interrupted by the news of Rufinus’s death. He had been killed on the orders of the general Gainas who had replaced him as the power behind the throne. Stilicho sent word to Gainas saying that if he would not attack Stilicho, he could have the east and Stilicho would return to the west. Gainas agreed and his eastern army peaceably saw off Stilicho’s western army.
Stilicho and Alaric’s return to Italy was greeted with consternation by the Emperor Honorius. Stilicho and Alaric met him in Ravenna and both swore allegiance to him, yet Alaric maintained his demands of a homeland for the Gothic people. Stilicho, although a true Roman and loyal to the Empire, concurred and saw that it was necessary to placate the Goths, whose huge numbers and martial prowess made them dangerous enemies, especially within the empire’s borders. Honorius, however, refused, and ordered Stilicho to destroy Alaric. Stilicho refused, and Honorius mustered 30,000 men to defeat the barbarian general. The army of the west, however, by now largely barbarian in make-up, remained loyal to Stilicho and they fought Honorius at the Battle of the Po. The result was a decisive victory for Stilicho, who crushed Honorius’s legions and forced him back to Ravenna.
In 401 Honorius, safely ensconced in Ravenna, protected on three sides by water and marsh, sued for peace with Stilicho. Alaric was to be given land in Gaul and Stilicho married the Emperor’s daughter. This shameful compromise made Honorius even weaker and made Stilicho an object of envy to Romans everywhere; a barbarian was in line to succeed to the throne.
Alaric, having secured land for his people, settled them in Gaul along the Rhine frontier. There were two strings attached to the settlement: they had to pay a special tax to the Emperor and they had to defend the Rhine against barbarian incursions. In return they were given the status of a federated tribe, and Alaric was made a Senator. Alaric made his capital Colonia Claudia, which he renamed Colognia. With the permission of Stilicho, he broke up large estates and gave land to his people. The Goths turned to agriculture and grew their own crops. Some even turned to wine making. They were, however, constantly armed, and they served as potent warriors. The break-up of the large estates also saw large amounts of land be given up to smaller farmers, who bought the land off of Alaric himself. The wealthy landowners fled the area and many went to Spain, which was to become a hotbed of dissent against the barbarian king.
Comments, quearies, nit-picks, burning denunciations: all are welcome.