We explain what the Visigoth kingdom was, its origin and history. Also, the characteristics of its main kings, its institutions and its end.
What was the Visigoth kingdom?
The Visigoth kingdom was a monarchical government instituted in the 6th century by the Visigoth populations that settled in the Iberian Peninsula. The Visigoths were a population of Germanic origin that migrated to the peninsula in the 5th century and, although they first established their political center in Toulouse (Toulouse) and extended their dominion through France (then called Gaul), they later concentrated their kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula (Hispania) and a southern portion of France, and had its political center in Toledo (in modern-day Spain).
The Visigoth kingdom preserved some rules of Germanic lawlike the elective monarchy of a military nature, but it also incorporated Roman practices and institutions, since the majority of the population in the peninsula was Hispano-Roman. Especially important were the reigns of Leovigild and, above all, Recaredo, who converted to Catholicism.
The last Visigoth king was Rodrigowho had to face internal conflicts and was finally defeated by Muslim troops from North Africa in the battle of Guadalete (711). The end of the Visigoth kingdom marked the beginning of Islamic domination in the Iberian Peninsula.
The “barbaric” migrations in the Iberian Peninsula
The end of the Roman Empire was due to both internal reasons and big migratory movements of peoples (mostly Germanic, coming from northern Europe), known to the Romans as “barbarians”which affected the western territories of the empire.
These migrations, often violent, included actual invasions that precipitated the end of the empire in the 5th century. During this time, Rome was sacked in 410 by the Visigothsled by Alaric, whom some historians consider the first Visigoth king. Upon his death, Ataulfo was chosen as his successor, who obtained authorization from the Roman emperor to settle in southern Gaul.
Meanwhile, the Suebi, Vandals, and Alans were the first peoples to enter the Iberian Peninsula (which was then the Roman province of Hispania) between the years 409 and 411. Although Hispania remained nominally a Roman province, The invading peoples settled in various areas of the peninsula:
- The Swabians in Gallaecia (in the northwest corner of the peninsula)
- The vandals in Baetica (in the south of the peninsula)
- The Alans scattered throughout Lusitania (southwest) and Carthaginian (in the center and southeast of the peninsula)
The rise of the Visigoth kingdom
The reaction of the Roman Empire to the migrations in Hispania demonstrated its weakness: it commissioned the Visigoths, already settled in southern Gaul, to penetrate the Iberian Peninsula and expel the invaders. This is what they did with Alans and vandals, and They received the region of Aquitaine from the Roman emperor, Honorius. (in southern France), where they established a federated kingdom of Rome in the year 418. Later, they extended their domination to parts of Hispania as well.
When the Western Roman Empire fell in 476, the Visigoth kingdom with its capital in Toulouse (modern Toulouse, in southern France) became independent. The kingdom extended across southern Gaul and much of Hispania. Finally, due to military pressure from another Germanic people, the Franks, who were conquering Gaul, the Visigoths fully established themselves in the Iberian Peninsula.
After a long migration, the Visigoths established their new capital in Toledo in the 6th century.chosen for its strategic central location on the peninsula. Thus began the Visigoth kingdom of Toledo, which He ruled most of the Iberian Peninsula until 711..
The main Visigoth kings
Among the Visigoth kings known from historical sources, the following stand out:
- Alaric I (395-410). He was a military leader allied to the Romans who in 395 became the first king of the Visigoths and led the sack of Rome in 410.
- Ataulfo (410-415). He helped the Roman emperor, Honorius, defeat a usurper and received permission to settle in southern Gaul. He then led his troops to Hispania and settled in Barcino (in present-day Barcelona), where he was assassinated in 415.
- Walia (415-418). Through a treaty with the Roman emperor, he expelled the Vandals and Alans from Hispania and received authorization to settle in Aquitaine, where he established a federated kingdom of Rome in 418. (according to a pact called foedus).
- Euricus (466-484). He declared the independence of the Visigoth kingdom after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. In addition, he conquered more territories in Gaul and Hispania and formulated a legal body, called the Code of Euric, which wrote down some Visigothic customs.
- Alaircus II (484-507). He established a code based on Roman law. Alaric II was defeated by the Franks, which determined the Visigoth retreat to Hispania and the establishment of the capital in Toledo.
- Leovigild (569-586). Considered he authentic architect of the political unity of the Visigoth kingdom. His military campaigns expanded Visigoth domination to almost the entire Iberian Peninsula (especially after defeating the Suebi and Basques), and his legal code (known as the Code of Leovigild) allowed mixed marriages between Visigoths and Hispano-Romans (which were previously prohibited). Leovigild also incorporated practices and symbols of the Roman Empire, but continued clinging to Arianism (a Christian doctrine considered heretical by the Catholic Church), which marked a distance from the Hispano-Roman population, mostly Catholic.
- Recaredo (586-601). He took a key step in the integration process between the Visigothic and Hispano-Roman populations: he rejected Arianism, He converted to Catholicism and declared this religion as his official religion. of the kingdom at the Third Council of Toledo (589). He also had to face the Byzantines, who had settled in the south of the peninsula.
- Recesvinto (653-672). Under his reign wrote the Liber Iudiciorum either Court Jurisdiction (also known as Recesvinto Code) in 654. This new code of laws put all the inhabitants of the kingdom, Visigoths and Hispano-Romans, under the same laws.
- Rodrigo (710-711), the last king of the Visigoths. He came to the throne in a context of succession conflicts, which is why he was immersed in a civil war that was taken advantage of by Muslim troops from North Africathat They invaded the Iberian Peninsula and defeated the king at the Battle of Guadalete in 711.. This episode ended the Visigoth domination of the Iberian Peninsula.
The political organization of the Visigoth kingdom
The elective monarchy
The political organization of the Visigoth kingdom was based on Germanic law. This implied that The fundamental institution of government was the assembly of freemen (made up of noble warriors), in which resided the power of the kingdom that was conferred on a king (elective monarchy). In any case, in practice many kings acceded to the throne through usurpations.
The Visigoth kings They combined the Germanic organization with practices and symbols of the Roman Empire. The legislation of the Visigothic kingdom consisted of the coexistence of two codes, the Visigothic and the Roman, until, during the reign of Recesvinto, both codes were unified and a single law was established for the entire population (that is, for the Visigoths and the Hispano-Romans).
Despite these attempts to consolidate a lasting government model in a territory inhabited by a majority Hispano-Roman population, the Visigoth kings failed to establish a stable monarchy.
Although the progressive legal, political and religious integration of Visigoths and Hispano-Romans gave rise to a unified kingdom, the political instability derived from the elective nature of the monarchy It was one of the reasons for the collapse of the Visigoth kingdom in 711.
The Officium Palatinum
Throughout the history of the Visigoth kingdom, the king's powers were extensive: he was at the same time supreme judge, head of the army, legislator, and in charge of war and peace. The monarchs had a retinue of clients who accompanied them, swore loyalty to them and received protection and sustenance in return.
In practice, The king ruled with the help of the Officium Palatinummade up of individuals close to the king. In it Officium Palatinum Two management bodies were involved: the Aula Regia or King's Council, which advised the king on legislative tasks and government matters, and the Councils of Toledo, which met from time to time to discuss political, legal and religious issues.
They were part of the Officium Palatinum high ranking characters that, with the title of you eatwere in charge of different services: you eat of the Royal Treasury, you eat administration of Crown lands, you eat tax collection, you eat of the expenses of the monarch and his house. The great territorial and military officials also participated: duces provincials (delegates of the king), civitates committees (city judges) and gardingos (military leaders).
The end of the Visigoth kingdom
Upon the death of the Visigoth king Witiza (700-710), A civil conflict broke out in the Visigoth kingdom that faced the troops loyal to Rodrigo, who proclaimed himself king, and the forces of Agila II, who established his dominion in the extreme northeast of the kingdom.
This internal fragmentation of the Visigoth kingdom favored the invasion of Muslim troops, subordinated to the Umayyad Caliphate, who were installed in North Africa. After crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, the Muslim Arab and Berber forces led by General Tariq They defeated Rodrigo at the Battle of Guadalete in 711. With Rodrigo dead and the Visigoth kingdom defeated, the Muslims undertook the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula.
References
- Arsenal, L. (2020). Goths of Hispania. Edaf.
- Britannica, Encyclopedia (2022). Visigoth. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/
- Cebrián, LA (2002). The adventure of the goths. The sphere of books. Gómez Aragonés, D. (2018). Barbarians in Hispania. The sphere of books.
