Theodosius [402]left two sons, [403]Arcadius and [404]Honorius; to the [405]former he [406]gave the [407]East, to the [408]latter the [409]West. Arcadius, [410]immediately after his father’s death, [411]married Eudoxia, which [412]match was [413]brought about by Eutropius, [414]for fear of his [415]taking to wife Ruffinus’s daughter. This Ruffinus in the East, and Stilicho in the West, were at that time two men of the greatest [416]eminence and [417]power in the empire. Stilicho, after the death of Theodosius, [418]laying claim to the [419]management of both the Eastern and Western empires, and [420]marching [421]Eastward, Ruffinus [422]endeavoured [423]to hinder him, by [424]posting his [425]troops in all the [426]passages into [427]Greece, and [428]sent for Alaricus, king of the Goths, who [429]over-ran Greece, but was [430]defeated by Stilicho. At last, Ruffinus was [431]slain by the [432]soldiers, the same year in which Theodosius died. After his death, Eutropius [433]became very intimate with Arcadius, but was at last [434]disgraced and slain, in the very year in which he was [435]consul. In 403, died Arcadius, a prince of a [436]peaceable, but [437]indolent [438]temper, and too much [439]governed by his [440]wife. He left the [441]guardianship of his son, by [442]will, to Jezdegirdes, king of the [443]Persians, who [444]faithfully [445]executed that [446]trust, and [447]committed the [448]care of his [449]ward to Antiochus, a very [450]learned man, who [451]threatened to make war upon any that should [452]offer to [453]disturb him.
In the West, the [454]frequent [455]invasions of the barbarians were almost [456]fatal to the Roman [457]state. Radagisus, king of the Goths, with four, or as [458]others [459]say, two hundred thousand men, [460]invaded Italy, who were very [461]happily [462]cut off by Stilicho, the general himself being [463]taken and [464]slain. After Alaricus, a king of the [465]Goths, having [466]laid [467]Greece waste, and [468]continued a long time in [469]Epirus, at the [470]instigation of Stilicho, who was [471]desirous to [472]take [473]Illyricum from Arcadius, in order to [474]annex it to the [475]dominions of Honorius, afterwards [476]penetrated into Italy. To [477]get rid of him, Honorius [478]gave him [479]Spain and Gaul to [480]live in, himself not being in a condition to [481]keep those [482]provinces. As Alaricus was [483]marching thither, Saul, a [484]pagan general, whom Stilicho had [485]placed at the [486]head of an army, [487]falling upon the Barbarians, was [488]defeated by them. This [489]success so [490]elevated Alaricus, that [491]quitting his [492]former [493]design, he [494]over-ran Italy, and [495]took Rome: but before this, Stilicho was [496]put to death by the [497]order of Honorius. For, after the death of Theodosius, [498]designing to get the empire to himself and to make his son [499]Eucherius, who was a [500]pagan, and an enemy to the [501]Christians, emperor; the better to [502]accomplish his [503]design, he [504]resolved to [505]throw all into [506]confusion. [507]Wherefore he sent for the Barbarians to [508]ravage the empire, and [509]let the Alans, the Vandals, the Suevi, and the Burgundians, loose upon France and Spain. His [510]relation to the emperor [511]encouraged him in it; for he had Serena, the daughter of Theodosius’s brother, in [512]marriage, and had [513]disposed of the two daughters he had by her, first, [514]Mary, and after her death, [515]Termantia, in marriage to Honorius. But these [516]intrigues being [517]discovered by [518]Olympius, in the year of Christ 408, he was slain by the [519]hands of [520]Heraclius. The year following, Eucherius was [521]put to death, with his mother Serena. After Stilicho was [522]taken off, Alaricus was [523]desirous to [524]come to an [525]accommodation with Honorius, but was [526]foolishly [527]rejected. Wherefore, with a [528]body of [529]Goths, and [530]Huns, in [531]conjunction with his wife’s brother [532]Athaulfus, he [533]laid siege to Rome, and [534]carried it in the year 410. The [535]plunder of it he [536]gave to his soldiers, but with orders that all such as [537]fled to the [538]churches, [539]especially those of [540]Peter and [541]Paul, should have [542]quarter given them. He then [543]went to [544]Rhegium, in order to [545]pass over into Sicily and Africa, but there [546]died. He was [547]succeeded by Athaulfus, who [548]plundered Rome again, [549]carried off Placidia the emperor’s sister, and [550]married her.
During this [551]storm in Italy, the same [552]calamity [553]fell upon Gaul and Spain. The Alans, Vandals, Suevans, [554]laid waste Gaul, passed the [555]Pyrenæan mountains, and [556]made themselves [557]masters of Spain in the year 409. The Vandals and Suevans [558]seized upon Galæcia; the Alans, Lusitania and the [559]province of [560]Carthage; the [561]Silingans, which was another [562]branch of the Vandals, Bœtica.
After the [563]breaking in of the Goths in 410, [564]divers [565]pretenders to the empire [566]started up in [567]several [568]places. First Attalus was [569]made emperor, by the [570]senate, at the [571]command of Alaricus. He [572]proudly [573]rejected Honorius, who [574]offered by his [575]ambassadors to [576]receive him as his [577]partner in the empire, but was [578]obliged by Alaricus to [579]return to a [580]private [581]condition, and was afterwards [582]put up and [583]down again several times. At length, [584]renewing his [585]pretensions in Gaul, but not being [586]supported by the [587]Goths, he was [588]taken [589]prisoner, and [590]put into the [591]hands of Honorius, who [592]spared his [593]life, but [594]cut off one of his hands.
[595]Martius Gratianus, and Constantine in [596]Britain, [597]usurped the [598]supreme [599]power, and were [600]taken off. [601]Jovin and [602]Sebastian, two brothers, then [603]pretended to the empire; but were [604]taken and [605]slain by [606]Athaulfus, king of the Goths. [607]Heraclianus was set up in Africa, and [608]venturing over into Italy against Honorius, was [609]routed by Marinus at [610]Utriculum; and [611]returning into Africa, was slain at [612]Carthage.
In the year 415, Athaulfus was slain by a Goth, and [613]succeeded by Sigericus, who was destroyed seven days after; and succeeded by Vuallia, who [614]made peace with the Romans, and [615]restored Placidia to Honorius; after which he made war against the Alans, Vandals, Suevi, and other [616]nations, who had [617]settled in Spain. Honorius [618]married Placidia against her [619]will to [620]Constantius Comes, who [621]confirmed the peace with Vuallia, [622]sent for him back into Gaul, and [623]gave him that part of [624]Aquitain which [625]lies betwixt Thoulouse and the [626]sea, to [627]live in. Upon this, Thoulouse [628]became the [629]capital of the [630]Gothic, or [631]Visigothic [632]kingdom in Gaul. This [633]happened in the year 419. In the year following, Honorius, against his [634]will, made Constantius his [635]companion in the empire, who died seven months after, as did Honorius himself in the year 428.
He was [636]succeeded by Valentinian his sister’s son. In his reign the Vandals, whom Boniface had hitherto [637]repulsed from the [638]shores of Africa, [639]entered it from Spain, under the [640]command of Geisericus. For Boniface being [641]impeached by [642]Ætius of [643]high-treason, and [644]Sigisvulphus being [645]sent against him, [646]finding himself not a [647]match for the Romans, [648]fled to the Vandals for [649]assistance, with whom he had [650]contracted an [651]alliance before. Wherefore in the year 427, Geisericus, with 80,000 Vandals and Alans, [652]passed over into Africa, and [653]made himself master of it. In the mean time, Boniface being [654]reconciled to Placidia, and not [655]being able to [656]persuade the Barbarians, to [657]return home, [658]endeavoured to [659]oblige them, by [660]force of arms, and was [661]routed. He then [662]went to Rome, and died there soon after.
Ætius in Gaul [663]sustained his part very well for the Romans, against the Franks, Goths, Burgundians, Huns, and other Barbarians. Ætius had [664]sent for the Huns to his assistance against the Goths. In the year 434, Honoria, the sister of Valentinian, being [665]banished the [666]court for [667]improper conduct with her [668]steward, and sent to Theodosius, emperor of the [669]East, [670]engaged Attila, king of the Huns, to make war upon the [671]West. [672]Litorius, a Roman general, having the [673]command of them, whilst he [674]endeavoured to [675]eclipse the [676]glory of Ætius, was so [677]foolish as to [678]regard the [679]answers of [680]soothsayers and [681]fortune-tellers, and [682]rashly [683]engaged [684]Theodoricus, king of the Goths, who by the most [685]abject [686]submission [687]declined the war, and after a great [688]overthrow was [689]taken and [690]slain in the year 439, in which [691]Carthage was [692]surprised by the Vandals. At last, in the year 442, Valentinian [693]renewed the peace with Geisericus, and Africa was [694]divided between them.
In the year 450, Attila [695]marched into Gaul, which at that time the [696]Visigoths, Franks, Burgundians, Alans, and other Barbarians, were in [697]possession of. Part of the Romans [698]reluctantly [699]remained under the [700]command of Ætius, who alone at that time [701]kept the [702]western [703]empire from [704]falling [705]to utter [706]ruin. Attila [707]laid siege to Aurelia, but Ætius [708]coming upon him, [709]obliged him to [710]raise the [711]siege, and [712]pursued him into Gallia, and Belgium then [713]overthrew him, in a great [714]battle [715]fought on the [716]plains of Catalonia. There were [717]slain on both [718]sides at least 170,000, and amongst them Theodoricus king of the Goths. It is [719]certain the Huns might have been [720]utterly [721]destroyed, if Ætius had not [722]been afraid, that in the event of the Huns being [723]entirely [724]cut off, the Goths would be [725]insupportable in Gaul.
Attila having [726]unexpectedly [727]escaped, [728]poured his [729]troops into Italy, where he laid siege to Aquileia, and [730]levelled it with the ground. He afterwards [731]laid waste [732]Milan, [733]Ticinum, and other [734]towns; and [735]marching for Rome, was so [736]wrought upon by an [737]embassy from [738]Leo, who [739]met him at the [740]river Mincius, that he [741]went into his own [742]country; afterwards [743]returning into Gaul against the Alans, who had [744]posted themselves beyond the Loire, he was again [745]defeated by [746]Thorismundus, as he had been in the [747]plains of Catalonia; and in the year 454, after an [748]excess of [749]wine, died of [750]vomiting [751]blood.