[gothic-l] Re: Accepting Elias Wessens Conclusion

[george knysh]

--- faltin2001 <dirk at smra.co.uk> wrote:
> --- In gothic-l at y..., "Bertil Haggman"

> > RLK theories are based on the fact that in the 4th
> century AD
> > the Regnum Ostrogotorum stretched from the Baltic
> Sea
> > to the Black Sea.
>
>
>(D) I think it is important to fill this high-flying
> term 'regnum
> Ostrogotorum' with some flesh. It likely meant that
> a 'bunch of
> Gothic (not Ostrogothic) thugs' appeared in these
> areas from time to
> time to extort tributes.

******GK: I confess to being extremely sceptical about
"Hermanaric's Empire". The account in Jordanes
(derived presumably from Cassiodorus and Ablabius) is
full of inconsistencies and improbabilities, and reads
like the sort of thing that might have been concocted
in Ostrogothic Italy for the edification of
Theodoric's court. Hermanaric was presented as the
successor of Geberic, and if we focus on 345-375 AD as
the outside dates of his reign (usually ca. 350-370 is
preferred), supposedly did his empire-building between
the ages of 80 and 110. Pompously described as "The
Golden Scythian" by the "maiores" (C+A) Jordanes drew
upon, he allegedly began by conquering "many warlike
northern peoples". The list seems to be of populations
from Karelia to the Middle Volga, and likely
represents trading interests of early Scandinavian
merchants, nothing more. This part is about as real as
the contention at the end of Jordanes' account that
Hermanaric dominated "all the nations of Scythia and
Germania". It's as if these adulators used Attila as a
model for H., though they preferred the classical
analog ("Alexander the Great"). The only specific item
(apart from the story of the Rosomoni)which seems
plausible is the contention that Hermanaric defeated
the Heruli, though their localization at the mouth of
the Don is probably an anachronism (archaeologists
have proved that a "Chernyakhiv" group existed here
only in the period 425-450, probably moved there by
the Huns.) The Aestii are almost certainly a tack on,
but it is probable that Hermanaric dominated some
Slavs (at least those which were contributors to the
Chernyakhiv culture). All in all, what Ammianus
Marcellinus writes about this is infinitely preferable
to Jordanes. Hermanaric was a powerful Gothic King,
ruler of an important complex of peoples, but he was
certainly no Attila, and no Alexander. The
geographical boundaries of his "uberes pagos" are to
be sought roughly: east of the Dnister, south of the
Pripet marshes, north of the Crimean mountains and
east of the Donetz river. *******

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