Kingdom of the Suebi

History

Origins

Little is known about the Suebi who crossed the Rhine on the night of 31 December 405 AD and entered the Roman Empire. It is speculated that these Suevi are the same group as the Quadi, who are mentioned in early writings as living north of the middle Danube, in what is now lower Austria and western Slovakia, and who played an important part in the Germanic Wars of the 2nd century, when, allied with the Marcomanni, they fought fiercely against the Romans under Marcus Aurelius. The main reason behind the identification of the Suevi and Quadi as the same group comes from a letter written by St. Jerome to Ageruchia, listing the invaders who were in Gaul in 409, in which the Quadi are listed and the Suevi are not. The argument for this theory, however, is based solely on the disappearance of the Quadi in the text and the emergence of the Suevi, which conflicts with the testimony of other contemporary authors, such as Orosius, who did indeed cite the Suevi among the peoples traversing the Rhine in 406, and side by side with Quadi, Marcomanni, Vandals and Sarmatians in another passage. Sixth century authors identified the Sueves of Gallaecia with the Alamanni, or simply with Germans, whilst the 4th century Laterculus Veronensis mentions some Suevi side by side with Alamanni, Quadi, Marcomanni and other Germanic peoples.

Additionally it has been pointed out that the lack of mention of the Suevi could mean that they were not per se an older distinct ethnic group, but the result of a recent ethnogenesis, with many smaller groups—among them part of the Quadi and Marcomanni—coming together during the migration from the Danube valley to the Iberian Peninsula. Other groups of Sueves are mentioned by Jordanes and other historians as residing by the Danube regions during the 5th and 6th centuries.

Although there is no clearly documented reason behind the migration of 405

, a widely accepted theory is that the migration of the various Germanic peoples west of the Rhine was due to the westward push of the Huns during the late 4th century, which forced the Germanic peoples westward in response to the threat. This theory has created controversy within the academic community, because of the lack of convincing evidence.

Whether displaced by the Huns or not, the Suevi along with the Vandals and Alans crossed the Rhine on the night of 31 December 405. Their entrance into the Roman Empire was at a moment when the Roman West was experiencing a series of invasions and civil wars; between 405 and 406, the Western regions of the empire saw the invasion of Italy by Goths under Radagaisus, as well as a steady stream of usurpers. This allowed the invading barbarians to enter Gaul with little resistance, consequently allowing for the barbarians to cause considerable damage to the northern provinces of Germania Inferior, Belgica Prima, and Belgica Secunda before the empire saw them as a threat. In response to the barbarian invasion of Gaul, the usurper Constantine III halted the masses of Vandals, Alans, and Sueves, confining them to northern Gaul. But in the spring of 409, Gerontius led a revolt in Hispania and set up his own emperor, Maximus. Constantine, who had recently been elevated to the title of Augustus, set off to Hispania to deal with the rebellion. Gerontius responded by stirring up the barbarians in Gaul against Constantine, convincing them to mobilize again, and, in the summer of 409, the Vandals, Alans, and Suevi began pushing south towards Hispania.

Settlement and integration

The civil war that erupted in the Iberian Peninsula between the forces of Constantine and Gerontius left the passes through the Pyrenees either purposely or inadvertently neglected, leaving southern Gaul and the Iberian Peninsula vulnerable to barbarian attack. Hydatius documents that the crossing into the Iberian Peninsula by the Vandals, Alans, and Suevi took place on either 28 September or 12 October 409. Some scholars take the two dates as the beginning and the end of the crossing of the formidable Pyrenees by scores of thousands, since this could not have been accomplished in one day. Hydatius writes that upon entering Hispania, the barbarian peoples, and even the Roman soldiers, spent 409–410 in a frenzy, plundering food and goods from the cities and countryside, which caused a famine that, according to Hydatius, forced the locals to resort to cannibalism: "[driven] by hunger human beings devoured human flesh; mothers too feasted upon the bodies of their own children whom they had killed and cooked with their own hands." In 411 the various barbarian groups brokered a peace and divided the provinces of Hispania among themselves sorte, "by lot". Many scholars believe that the reference to "lot" may be to the sortes, "allotments," which barbarian federates received from the Roman government, which suggests that the Suevi and the other invaders had signed a treaty with Maximus. There is, however, no concrete evidence of any treaties between the Romans and the barbarians: Hydatius never mentions any treaty, and states that the peace in 411 was brought about by the compassion of the Lord, while Orosius asserts that the kings of the Vandals, Alans and Sueves were actively pursuing a pact similar to that of the Visigoths at a later date. The division of the land among the four barbarian groups went as such: the Siling Vandals settled in Hispania Baetica, the Alans were allotted the provinces of Lusitania and Hispania Carthaginensis, and the Hasding Vandals and the Suevi shared the northwestern province of Gallaecia.

The division of Gallaecia between the Suevi and the Hasding Vandals placed the Suevi in the west of the province, by the Atlantic Ocean shores, most probably in lands now between the cities of Porto in Portugal, in the south, and Pontevedra in Galicia, in the north. Soon Braga would become their capital, and their domain later expanded into Astorga, and in the region of Lugo and in the valley of the Minho river, with no evidence suggesting that the Suevi inhabited any other cities in the province prior to 438. The initial relation between Gallaeci and Suevi were not as calamitous as sometimes suggested, as Hydatius mentions no conflict among the locals between 411 and 430. Furthermore, Orosius affirmed that the newcomers "turned their swords into ploughs" once they received their new lands.

The kingdom during the 5th century

In 416, the Visigoths entered the Iberian Peninsula, sent by the emperor of the West to fight off the barbarians arriving in 409. By 418, the Visigoths, led by their king, Wallia, had devastated both the Siling Vandals and Alans, leaving the Hasding Vandals and the Suevi, undisturbed by Wallia's campaign, as the two remaining forces in the Iberian Peninsula. In 419, after the departure of the Visigoths to their new lands in Aquitania, a conflict arose between the Vandals under Gunderic, and the Suevi, led by king Hermeric. Both armies met in the Battle of the Nerbasius mountains, but the intervention of Roman forces commanded by the comes Hispaniarum Asterius ended the conflict by attacking the Vandals and forcing them to move to Baetica, in modern Andalusia, leaving the Suevi in virtually sole possession of the whole province.

In 429, as the Vandals were preparing their departure to Africa, a Swabian warlord named Heremigarius moved to Lusitania to plunder it, but was confronted by the new Vandal king Gaiseric. Heremigarius drowned in the river Guadiana while retreating; this is the first instance of an armed Suebi action outside the provincial limits of Gallaecia. Then, after the Vandals left for Africa, the Swabians were the only barbarian entity left in Hispania.

King Hermeric spent the remainder of his years solidifying Suevic rule over the entire province of Gallaecia. In 430 he broke the old peace maintained with the locals, sacking central Gallaecia, although the barely romanised Gallaeci, who were reoccupying old Iron Age hill forts, managed to force a new peace, which was sealed with the interchange of prisoners. However, new hostilities broke out in 431 and 433. In 433 king Hermeric sent a local bishop, Symphosius, as ambassador, this being the first evidence for collaboration between Sueves and locals. However, it was not until 438 that an enduring peace, which would last for twenty years, was reached in the province.

In 438 Hermeric became ill. Having annexed the entirety of the former Roman province of Gallaecia, he made peace with the local population, and retired, leaving his son Rechila as king of the Sueves. Rechila saw an opportunity for expansion and began pushing to other areas of the Iberian Peninsula. In the same year he campaigned in Baetica, defeating in open battle the Romanae militiae dux Andevotus by the banks of the Genil river, capturing a large treasure. A year later, in 439, the Sueves invaded Lusitania and entered into its capital, Mérida, which briefly became the new capital of their kingdom. Rechila continued with the expansion of the kingdom, and by 440 he fruitfully besieged and forced the surrender of a Roman official, comes Censorius, in the strategic city of Mértola. Next year, in 441, the armies of Rechila conquered Seville, just months after the death of the old king Hermeric, who had ruled his people for more than thirty years. With the conquest of Seville, capital of Baetica, the Suevi managed to control Baetica and Carthaginensis. It has been said, however, that the Suevi conquest of Baetica and Carthaginensis was limited to raids, and Suevi presence, if any, was minute.

The Arian period

Little is known of the period between 470 and 550, beyond the testimony of Isidore of Seville, who in the 7th century wrote that many kings reign during this time, all of them Arians. A medieval document named Divisio Wambae mentions one king named Theodemund, otherwise unknown. Other less reliable and very posterior chronicles mention the reign of several kings under the names of Hermeneric II, Rechila II and Rechiar II.

More trustworthy is a stone inscription found in Vairão Portugal, recording the foundation of a church by a Benedictine nun, in 535, under the rule of one Veremund who is addressed as the most serene king Veremund, although this inscription has also been attributed to king Bermudo II of León. Also, thanks to a letter sent by Pope Vigilius to the bishop Profuturus of Braga circa 540, it is known that a certain number of Catholic Orthodox had converted to Arianism, and that some Catholic Orthodox churches had been demolished in the past in unspecified circumstances.

Conversion to Catholic Orthodoxy

The conversion of the Suebi to Orthodoxy is presented very differently in the primary sources. A contemporary record, the minutes of the First Council of Braga—which met on 1 May 561—state explicitly that the synod was held at the orders of a king named Ariamir. While his Orthodoxy is not in doubt, that he was the first Orthodox monarch of the Suebes since Rechiar has been contested on the grounds that he is not explicitly stated to have been. He was, however, the first to hold an Orthodox synod. On the other hand, the Historia Suevorum of Isidore of Seville states that it was Theodemar who brought about the conversion of his people from Arianism with the help of the missionary Martin of Braga. And finally, according to the Frankish historian Gregory of Tours, an otherwise unknown sovereign named Chararic, having heard of Martin of Tours, promised to accept the beliefs of the saint if only his son was cured of leprosy. Through the relics and intercession of Saint Martin the son was healed; Chararic and the entire royal household converted to the Nicene faith. As the coming of the relics of Saint Martin of Tours and the conversion of Chararic are made to coincide in the narration with the arrival of Martin of Braga, circa 550, this legend has been interpreted as an allegory of the pastoral work of Saint Martin of Braga, and of his devotion to Saint Martin of Tours.

Most scholars have attempted to meld these stories. It has been alleged that Chararic and Theodemar must have been successors of Ariamir, since Ariamir was the first Suebic monarch to lift the ban on Orthodox synods; Isidore therefore gets the chronology wrong. Reinhart suggested that Chararic was converted first through the relics of Saint Martin and that Theodemar was converted later through the preaching of Martin of Braga.

Dahn equated Chararic with Theodemar, even saying that the latter was the name he took upon baptism. It has also been suggested that Theodemar and Ariamir were the same person and the son of Chararic. In the opinion of some historians, Chararic is nothing more than an error on the part of Gregory of Tours and never existed. If, as Gregory relates, Martin of Braga died about the year 580 and had been bishop for about thirty years, then the conversion of Chararic must have occurred around 550 at the latest. Finally, Ferreiro believes the conversion of the Suevi was progressive and stepwise and that Chararic's public conversion was only followed by the lifting of a ban on Orthodox synods in the reign of his successor, which would have been Ariamir; while Theodemar would have been responsible for beginning a persecution of the Arians in his kingdom, to root out their heresy.

6th century and annexation

Sometime late in the 5th century or early in the sixth century, a group of Romano-Britons escaping the Anglo-Saxons settled in the north of the Suebi Kingdom of Gallæcia in lands which subsequently acquired the name Britonia. Most of what is known about the settlement comes from ecclesiastical sources; records from the 572 Second Council of Braga refer to a diocese called the Britonensis ecclesia ("British church") and an episcopal see called the sedes Britonarum ("See of the Britons"), while the administrative and ecclesiastical document usually known as Divisio Theodemiri or Parochiale suevorum, attribute to them their own churches and the monastery Maximi, likely the monastery of Santa Maria de Bretoña. The bishop representing this diocese at the II Council of Braga bore the Brythonic name Maeloc. The see continued to be represented at several councils through the 7th century.

On 1 May 561, king Ariamir, who was in the third year of his reign, called the First Council of Braga, being styled The most glorious king Ariamir in the acts. The first Orthodox Council held in the Kingdom, it was almost entirely devoted to the condemnation of Priscillianism, making no mention at all of Arianism, and only once reproving clerics for adorning his clothes and for wearing granos, a Germanic word implying either pigtails, long beard, moustache, or a Suebian knot, a custom declared pagan. Of the eight assistant bishops only one bore a Germanic name, bishop Ilderic.

Later, on 1 January 569, Ariamir's successor, Theodemar, held a council in Lugo, which dealt with the administrative and ecclesiastical organization of the Kingdom. At his request, the Kingdom of Gallaecia was divided in two provinces or synods, under the obedience of the metropolitans Braga and Lugo, and thirteen episcopal sees, some of them new, for which new bishops were ordered, others old: Iria Flavia, Britonia, Astorga, Ourense and Tui in the north, under the obedience of Lugo; and Dume, Porto, Viseu, Lamego, Coimbra and Idanha-a-Velha in the south, dependent of Braga. Each see was then further divided into smaller territories, named ecclesiae and pagi. The election of Lugo as metropolitan of the north was due to its central situation in relation to its dependant sees and that city.

According to John of Biclaro, in 570 Miro succeeded Theodemar as king of the Sueves. During his time, the Suevic kingdom was challenged again by the Visigoths who, under their king Liuvigild, were reconstituting their kingdom, reduced and mostly ruled by foreigners since their defeat by the Franks in the Battle of Vouillé.

Architecture and art

Among the major post-Roman barbarian kingdoms, the one of the Suebi is perhaps the most culturally and artistically obscure. Compared to the Visigoths in Hispania, the Franks in Gaul, or even the Lombards in Italy, the Suebi left behind remarkably little in the form of art or architecture.

Architecture

Today, most Suebi-era architectural sites are either destroyed or so heavily renovated to the point where they are only "Suebic" in ancient historic context. Some Suebic sites include:

The ruins of the Monastery of Dumio in Braga, an early paleo-Christian church constructed by the Suebic king Chararic.

The Church of Santa María Madre in Ourense, which used to be the site of a Suebic cathedral. Today, the façade still contains Suebi-era marble columns.

The Church of Cedofeita in Porto, a church that (according to tradition) was originally built by the Suebic king Theodemir.

The Ourense Cathedral, which was the site of a Suebic church built by king Chararic before destruction by the Moors.

The Monastery of Santa María de Mezonzo in Vilasantar, which was most likely the site of a Suebic church.

The Archaeological Station of Santa Marta das Cortiças in Braga, which includes the archeological remains of a Suebic palace.

The Monastery of San Pedro de Rocas in Esgos, a church which, according to an inscribed tombstone now housed in the Provincial Archaeological Museum of Orense, was home to 5 hermits in 573, chronologically aligning with Suebi political control over the region.

Art

From December 15, 2017 to May 6, 2018, an exhibition called In Tempore Sueborum on the art and culture of the obscure Suebi took place in Ourense. The event was organized and sponsored by the Provincial Council of Ourense.

The main contributors of the artifacts of the exhibition, among many others, were the Museum D. Diogo de Sousa in Braga, the Provincial Archaeological Museum of Orense, the Numismatics Cabinet in Porto, the Museo Casa de la Moneda in Madrid, the Museo Nacional de Arqueologia in Lisbon, and the National Archeological Museum of Spain in Madrid.

Among the most important artifacts on display were imitation coinage of Western Roman and Eastern Roman emperors, silver Siliquae of Rechiar, various pieces of jewelry, plates, fibulae, brooches, and drinking vessels.

List of Galician Suebic monarchs

Hermeric, c. 409–438

Heremigarius, 427–429, leader in Lusitania

Rechila, 438–448

Rechiar, 448–456

Aioulf, 456–457, foreigner, possibly appointee of the Visigoths

Maldras, 456–460, in opposition to Framta after 457

Framta, 457, in opposition to Maldras

Richimund, 457–464, successor of Framta

Frumar, 460–464, successor of Maldras

Remismund, 464–469, succeeded Frumar, reunited the Suebi

Period of obscurity

Hermeneric fl. c. 485

Veremund fl. 535

Theodemund fl. 6th century

Chararic, after c.550–558/559, existence sometimes doubted

Ariamir, 558/559–561/566

Theodemar, 561/566–570

Miro, 570–583

Eboric, 583–584, deposed and put in a monastery by Audeca.

Audeca, 584–585, deposed and put in a monastery by Liuvigild.

Malaric, 585, opposed Liuvigild and was defeated.

Sources and controversies

Unlike some other barbarian peoples, such as the Vandals, Visigoths, Ostrogoths and Huns, which played an important part in Rome's loss of the western provinces, the Sueves—establishing themselves in Gallaecia and northern Lusitania, which were remote and extra-Mediterranean areas—seldom posed a threat to Rome and to Rome's interests; in fact, at times where we have more detailed knowledge of their history through a diversity of sources, that is precisely when they became a challenge, as it was under the reign of Rechila. Throughout their history as an independent nation, they maintained an important diplomatic activity, most notably with Rome, the Vandals, the Visigoths, and, later, with the Franks. Again, they become important players during the reign of Miro, in the last third of the 6th century, when they allied with other Catholic powers—the Franks and the Eastern Romans—in support of Hermenegild, and against the Visigothic king Liuvigild. Because of their relative isolation and remoteness, sources about the Suevi people are limited, with the number translated into English even fewer.

The most important source for the history of the Suevi during the 5th century is the chronicle written by the native bishop Hydatius in 470, as a continuation of the Chronicle of Saint Jerome. Hydatius was born circa 400, in the city of the Limici, straddling the southern borders of modern-day Galicia and Portugal, on the valley of the Lima River. He witnessed the 409 settlement of the Suevi peoples in the Iberian Peninsula, and Galicia's transformation from Roman province into an independent barbarian kingdom. Through much of his life he was forced to stay in isolated Roman communities, constantly threatened by the Suevi and Vandals, though we also know that he travelled on several occasions outside of Hispania, for learning or as ambassador, and that he maintained correspondence with other bishops. In 460 he was captured by the Suevic warlord Frumarius, accused of treason by other local men. After being held captive for three months, as the Suevi ravaged the region of Chaves, he was then released unharmed, against the will of the men who had accused him. Hydatius' chronicle, whilst purporting to be universal, slowly turns into a local history. Following the barbarian settlements, he relates the conflict among the diverse nations; later, he also narrates the frequent conflict of the Sueves with the local, barely romanized, Galicians; the decline of the Roman powers in Hispania; the expansion of the Suevi into the south and the east; their defeat at the hands of Visigoths and other Roman foederati forces; and the posterior reconstitution of their kingdom under Remismund, together with their conversion to Arianism. While he is considered a great historian, his portraits are usually obscure, without any real reason or direction given to the decisions or movement of the Suevi, by mentioning what the Suevi did, but rarely what they said, or what they pretended. So Hydatius's image of the Suevi is from the outside, as lawless marauders. This description of the Suevi has bled into secondary sources: E.A. Thomson, an expert who has written many pieces on the subject, stated, "they just lash out blindly from year to year at any place that they suspected would supply them with food, valuables or money."

Linguistic and toponymic legacy

As the Suebi quickly adopted the local Vulgar Latin language, few traces were left of their Germanic tongue in the Galician and Portuguese languages. Distinguishing between loanwords from Gothic or Suevic is difficult, but there is a series of words, characteristic of Galicia and northern half of Portugal, which are attributed either to the Suebi or to the Goths, although no major Visigothic immigration into Gallaecia is known before the 8th century. These words are rural in nature, relative to animals, agriculture, and country life: laverca 'lark' (from Proto-Germanic *laiwazikōn 'lark'), meixengra 'titmouse' (same word as Old Norse meisingr 'titmouse', from *maisōn 'titmouse'), lobio or lóvio 'vinegrape' (to *lauban 'foliage'), britar 'to break' (from *breutanan 'to break'), escá 'bushel' (from ancient scala 'bowl', from *skēlō 'bowl'), ouva 'elf, spirit' (from *albaz 'elf'), marco 'boundary stone' (from PGmc *markan 'frontier, limit'), groba 'gully' (from *grōbō 'groove'), maga 'guts of fish' and esmagar 'to smash' (from PGmc *magōn 'stomach'), bremar 'to yearn' (from PGmc *bremmanan 'to roar'), trousa 'snowslide' (from PGmc *dreusanan 'to fall'), brétema 'mist' (from PGmc *breþmaz 'breath, vapour'), gabar 'to praise', ornear 'to bray' (from PGmc *hurnjanan 'to blow a horn'), zapa 'lid, cap' (from PGmc *tappōn 'tap'), fita 'ribbon', sá 'origin, generation' (from PGmc *salaz 'hall, dwelling'), among others.

Most notable were their contributions to local toponymy and anthroponymy, as personal names borne by the Sueves were in use among Galicians up to the Late Middle Ages, while East Germanic names in general were most common among locals during the High Middle Ages. From these names is derived also a rich toponymy, found mainly in northern Portugal and Galicia, and made up of several thousand place names derived directly from Germanic personal names, expressed as Germanic or Latin genitives: Sandiás, medieval Sindilanes, Germanic genitive form of the name Sindila; Mondariz from the Latin genitive form Munderici Munderic's; Gondomar from Gundemari and Baltar from Baltarii, both in Portugal and Galicia; Guitiriz to Witterici. Another group of toponyms which point to old Germanic settlements are the places named Sa, Saa, Sas, in Galicia, or Sá in Portugal, all derived from the Germanic word *sal- 'house, hall', and distributed mostly around Braga, Porto and in the Minho river valley in Portugal, and around Lugo in Galicia, totalling a few hundred.

In modern Galicia, four parishes and six towns and villages are still named Suevos or Suegos, from the medieval form Suevos, all of them from the Latin Sueuos 'Sueves', and referring to old Suevi settlements.