confront the Barbarians but to allow them to take footholds in the Empire.
Radagasius 33 was defeated by Rome and over 12,000 of his men were drafted into the Roman auxiliary army but later re-joined the Goths sharing their knowledge of their army. Political difficulties and decisions are often cited as a cause for the EmpireÊs collapse. The tetrarchy, introduced by Diocletian, divided the Roman Empire into West and East and deprived the West of much of its population and wealth and left it more exposed to an attack from the Barbarians. Political infighting deflected focus from the Barbarian threat, exaggerating the problem but can be discounted as a major factor as it was a constant theme throughout RomeÊs history as argued by Heather 34 . A more important factor in my eyes is the quality of leadership. At the Battle of Adrianople 35 (AD378), the decision by the Emperor Valens not to wait for reinforcements led to a massacre of the Romans at the hands of the Goths. If Valens had waited for reinforcements the Romans might have forced the Barbarians back across the Danube and Rhine. Our main source, Jordanes relates a fierce and close battle which reasserts how poor a decision Valens made. This point is supported also by Stilicho 36 , a competent Roman commander, who had the chance to defeat Alaric in the valley of Peneius during the late 4th century AD but instead, was ordered back from the battle allowing Alaric to survive 37 . In contrast in the second century AD Marcus Aurelius, a great commander, overcame the Barbarian threat and brought peace to the Roman European borders. All this illustrates to my mind that it was the type of leader 33 Leader of Goths before Alaric. 34 Heather Peter [2005] Empires and Barbarians ; Heather Peter [2005] The Fall of the Roman Empire.. 35 The Battle of Adrianople was a battle between the main Roman Army and the Goths. However, despite the huge loss for the Romans, they still managed to field armies and have success in decisive military encounters 36 Stilicho himself was of Barbarian decent being half Vandal, which shows how the Germanic peoples were already integrating into Roman society. 37 Stilicho also is a prime example of poor decisions within the Empire as he was an extremely competent commander but was dismissed due to political differences.
The effect of the Huns must not be underplayed as it has by some historians. 30 Without them the Barbarians might never have become the force that was required to finish off the Empire which had started to decay. Their role was a vital cause of the eventual collapse of Rome as Ward-Perkins suggests. They not only forced the Barbarians to move into the Western Empire which produced a clash of Germans and Roman but also forced them to unite into a more coherent single group. Originally the Barbarians had existed more as tribal people, warring amongst each other. (For example, there were nine different kings vying for power in the Goth tribe alone.) However, with the threat from the Huns, pacts were formed between the Visigoths, Suaves and Alans. 31 When these Barbarians did cross into the Empire, Rome could not adequately defend itself. As well as the economic problems discussed above, the Barbarians had some advantages. In Germanic society being a warrior was expected of all men, Jordanes reports a very ÂmilitaristicÊ Gothic society. This permitted a larger Barbarian army than that of Rome. This was compounded by the fact that by AD400 casualties were causing Rome difficulties and Rome had started hiring German mercenaries. When these mercenaries were faced with Barbarians, they often chose the Barbarians who offered them a better deal: the Romans saw their worth at Âa single gold coinÊ 32 while the Barbarians offered them land in the Empire. The Romans were not only left short on men but also faced an army that knew how the Romans fought. This is demonstrated when 31 The main damage caused by these Barbarians was destruction to wealth rather than to the destruction of Roman armies which still had the advantage as shown by the defeat of Radagasius where he lost 12,000 men to Roman servitude. 32 Orosius [c. 400] History Against the Pagans . Ward- Perkins [2005] The Fall of Rome. 30 E.g. Edward Gibbon [1788] The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
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