names of child, of madman, of perjured traitor, CHAP, the enemy of his blood and nation. “ Are you XXXIX, “ ignorant,” exclaimed the son of Triarius, “ that " it is the constant policy of the Romans to destroy “ the Goths by each other's swords? Are you “ insensible that the victor in this unnatural con“ test will be exposed, and justly exposed, to their

implacable revenge? Where are those war“ riors, my kinsmen and thy own, whose wi"dows now lament that their lives were sacrificed

to thy rash ambition? Where is the wealth which

thy soldiers possessed when they were first al“ lured from their native homes to enlist, under thy “ standard ? Each of them was then master of " three or four horses ; they now follow thee on “ foot like slaves, through the desarts of Thrace; " those men who were tempted by the hope of

measuring gold with a bushel, those brave men " who are as free and as noble as thyself.” A language so well suited to the temper of the Goths, excited clamour and discontent; and the son of Theodemir, apprehensive of being left alone, was compelled to embrace his brethren, and to imitate the example of Roman perfidy *.

In every state of his fortune, the prudence and He underfirmness of Theodoric were equally conspicuous; conquest of

, A. D. 489.

a

takes the

whether Italy.

* Jornandes (c. 56, 57. p. 696.) displays the services of Theodoric, confesses his rewards, but dissembles his revolt, of which such curious details have been preserved by Malchus (Excerpt. Legat. p. 78-97.). Marcellinus, a domestic of Justinian, under whos: fourth consulship (A. D. 534.) he composed his Chronicle (Scaliger, Thesaurus Temporum, P. ii. P. 34-57.), betrays his prejudice and passion ; in Græciam debacchantem... Zenonis munificentia pene pacatus... benefin ciis nunquam satiatus, &c.

CHAP. whether he threatened Constantinople at the head XXXIX. of the confederate Goths, or retreated with a faith

ful band to the mountains and sea-coast of Epirus, At length the accidental death of the son of Triarius * destroyed the balance which the Romans had been so anxious to preserve, the whole nation acknowledged the supremacy of the Amáli, and the Byzantine court subscribed an ignominious and oppressive treaty t. The senate had already declared, that it was necessary to choose a party among the Goths, since the public was unequal to the support of their united forces; a subsidy of two thousand pounds of gold, with the ample pay of thirteen thousand men, were required for the least considerable of their armies I; and the Isaurians, who-guarded not the empire but the emperor, enjoyed, besides the privilege of rapine, an annual pension of five thousand pounds. The sagacious mind of Theodoric soon perceived that he was odious to the Romans, and suspected by the Barbarians; he understood the popular murmur, that his subjects were exposed in their frozen huts to intolerable hardships, while their king was dissolved in the luxury of Greece, and he prevented the painful alternative of encountering the Goths, as the champion, or of leading them to the field as the enemy, of Zeno. Embracing an enterprise

worthy of his courage and ambition, Theodoric CHA P, addressed the emperor in the following words: “Al. xxxix.

though your servant is maintained in affluence bar

by your liberality, graciously listen to the wishes “ of my heart! Italy, the inheritance of your pre“ decessors, and Rome itself, the head and mistress “ of the world, now fluctuate under the violence " and oppression of Odoacer the mercenary. Di

rect me, with my national troops, to march a

gainst the tyrant. If I fall, you will be relieved “ from an expensive and troublesome friend : if,

with the Divine permission, I succeed, I shall

govern in your name, and to your glory, the “ Roman senate, and the part of the republic “ delivered from slavery by my victorious arms." The proposal of Theodoric was accepted, and perhaps had been suggested, by the Byzantine court. But the forms of the commission or grant appear to have been expressed with a prudent ambiguity, which might be explained by the event; and it was left doubtful, whether the conqueror of Italy should reign as the lieutenant, the vassal, or the ally of the emperor of the east *.

The reputation both of the leader and of the His march. war diffused an universal ardour; the Walamirs were multiplied by the Gothic swarms already engaged in the service, or seated in the provinces, of the empire, and each bold Barbarian, who had heard of the wealth and beauty of Italy, was im

patient

Jornandes (c. 57. p. 696, 697.) has abridged the great history of Cassiodorius. See, compare, and reconcile, Procopius (Gothic. 1. i. c. 1.) the Valesian Fragment (p. 718.), Theophanes (p. 113.), and Marcellinus (in Chron.).

CHAP. patient to seek, through the most perilous adven.
XXXIX. tures, the possession of such enchanting objects.

The march of Theodoric must be considered as
the emigration of an entire people; the wives and
children of the Goths, their aged parents, and most
precious effects, were carefully transported ; and
some idea may be formed of the heavy baggage
that now followed the camp, by the loss of two
thousand waggons, which had been sustained in a
single action in the war of Epirus. For their sub-
sistence, the Goths depended on the magazines of
corn which was ground in portable mills by the
hands of their women; on the milk and flesh of
their flocks and herds; on the casual produce of
the chace, and upon the contributions which they
might impose on all who should presume to dispute
the passage, or to refuse their friendly assistance.
Notwithstanding these precautions, they were ex-
posed to the danger, and almost to the distress of
famine, in a march of seven hundred miles, which
had been undertaken in the depth of a rigorous
winter. Since the fall of the Roman power, Da-
cia and Pannonia no longer exhibited the rich
prospect of populous cities, well cultivated fields,
and convenient highways: the reign of barbarism
and desolation was restored, and the tribes of
Bulgarians, Gepidæ, and Sarmatians, who had oc-
eupied the vacant province, were prompted by
their native fierceness, or the solicitations of Odo-
acer, to resist the progress of his enemy. In ma-
ny obscure though bloody battles, Theodoric
fought and vanquished; till at length, surmount-
ing every obstacle by skilful conduct and perse-

vering

tëting courage, he descended from the Julian c HAP. Alps, and displayed his invincible banners on the xxxIx. confines of Italy *.

Odoacer, a rival not unworthy of his arms, had The three already occupied the advantageous and well-known defeats of post of the river Sontius near the ruins of Aquileia; A. D. 489.

Aug, 28. at the head of a powerful host, whose independent Sept. 27. kings t or leaders disdained the duties of subordi. A. D. 49

August. nation and the prudence of delays. No sooner had Theodoric granted a short repose and refresh. ment to his wearied cavalry, than he boldly attacked the fortifications of the enemy; the Ostrogoths shewed more ardour to acquire, than the mercenaries to defend, the lands of Italy; and the reward of the first victory was the possession of the Venetian province as far as the walls of Verona. In the neighbourhood of that city, on the steep banks of the rapid Adige, he was opposed by a new army, reinforced in its numbers, and not impaired in its courage : the contest was more obstinate, but the event was still more decisive; Odo. acer fled to Ravenna, Theodoric advanced to Milan, and the vanquished troops saluted their conqueror with loud acclamations of respect and fide. lity. But their want either of constancy or of faith, soon exposed him to the most imminent danger; his vanguard, with several Gothic counts,