[gothic-l] Re: Did the Gothic fleet operate on the Rhine?

[dirk at SMRA.CO.UK]

--- In gothic-l at y..., andreas.schwarcz at u... wrote:
> On 16 Jul 2001, at 10:05, dirk at s... wrote:
> 
> > Hello all!
> > 
> > Wolfram said in 'The Goths' (p.190) that before 475 the Salian 
Franks
> > had attacked the kingdoms of the Heruls, Varni and Thuringians on 
the
> > Rhine, but were beaten back by a Gothic fleet. This is mentioned 
in
> > the context of Visigothic policies to strengthen small kingdoms 
like
> > the Heruls, Varni and Thuringians in the rear of the Franks to 
weaken
> > the threat that they posed. Wolfram explained that the Atlantic 
fleet
> > of the Visigoths stood under experienced Roman comanders and had
> > operated with success at long distances also against the Saxons, 
but
> > is that really  to mean that they should have sailed down the 
Rhine to
> > fight of the Salian Franks in order to support the Heruls, Varni 
and
> > Thuringian allies on the lower Rhine?
> > 
> > cheers,
> > Dirk
> > 
> Dear Dirk,
> I think Wolfram overinterprets here two letters of Apollinaris 
> Sidonius (VIII 3,3 and VIII 9, 5, not 8.5, as Wolfram has it). There 
> was a Roman fleet led by Roman officers under the command of 
> Euric, and it fought successfully against Saxon pirates on the 
> Atlantic coast  south of the Loire, but all that Sidonius tells us 
> about the Franks and Heruls is that they came as supplicants to 
> Euric´s court. He does not give us  any naval enterprise of a Gothic 
> fleet entering the Channel to fight a Frankish fleet there. Here one 
> takes better the more restricted interpretation of Emilienne 
> Demougeot, Formation de l'Europe vol.2/2, pp.641 f.
> 
> Kind regards
>                       Andreas
> Ao.Univ.Prof.Dr.Andreas Schwarcz
> Institut für österreichische Geschichtsforschung
> Universität Wien
> Dr.Karl Lueger-Ring 1
> A-1010 Wien
> Österreich
> Tel.0043/1/42-77/272-16
> Fax 0043/142-77/92-72


Dear Andreas,

without intimate knowledge of the sources, I find the more cautious 
interpretation that you suggested more plausible. I also found it hard 
to imagine that a Gothic fleet from Spain could have sailed 100rds of 
miles and than along the Rhine-mouth in order to repell a Frankish 
attack on the Heruls and Varni. I suppose that Euric was interested in 
 strengthening the small 'kingdoms' of the Heruls and Varni on the 
Rhine to divert some of the Frankish military power away from the 
Frankish/Gothic borders, but this could hardly have amounted to direct 
military support I suppose.   

cheers,
Dirk


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