Heruli

The Heruli (Latin Eruli or etymologically incorrect Heruli ) were a ( ost) Germanic tribe that AD historically occurred in the 60 years of the 3rd century in the Black Sea for the first time in appearance and in to the 6th century is the sources assigned.

History

Origin: legends and historical reality

The older research was based on an origin of the Heruli from Scandinavia. However, this assumption was based on an erroneous reading probably a passage in the ( to 551/52 published ) Getica of Romanized Goths by Jordanes, who tells a story of the origin Heruli ( Origo gentis ). Accordingly, these have been driven by the Danes from their regular seats, but the narrative is not historically credible. The ethnogenesis of the Heruli was rather very likely on the continent instead, possibly even only in the region where the Romans they perceived for the first time, on the northern coast of the Black Sea.

In addition to the legend about the origin of the Heruli also circulated on their end. The late antique historian Procopius reported in the 6th book of his Histories (ca. 550 published) believe that the finally came into Byzantine services Heruli (see below) would have split again before they crossed and the Danube itself a contingent to the north turned to in Thule, to seek the fabled end of the world as it is called Prokop refuge. What is the essence of this message is not clear. It is possible that a literary allusion Prokop doing here on how the Goths ( the East Romans waged against the at that time in Italy nor war ) had to deal after their defeat, and he converted for this purpose Gothic tales in his spirit. Similarity of the findings of the Sösdalagruppe in southern Sweden, where broken saddle and bridle was found flat near burial places under the earth, buried, with corresponding findings in Untersiebenbrunn and Pannonhalma was seen by some researchers as evidence of Procopius report, but this is controversial.

The also for other Germanic gentes often availed coming from Scandinavia must be regarded as a topos; the same applies to the just mentioned assumption of a return to the " homeland ".

From the kingdom of crisis until the end of the 6th century Herulerreichs

From the Black Sea region took Heruli in the second half of the 3rd century, during the so-called imperial crisis of the 3rd century, to the Seezügen of the Goths part and came as far as Greece. The contemporary historian Dexippos reported in its (very fragmentary ) Skythika of the raids of these Germanic invaders, which he described with reference to the " classical " oriented Greek authors and in resorting to the traditional ethnography as Skythai.

Dexippos describes how Skythai invaded in the year 267/68 from the Black Sea to the Aegean and attacked several islands. The invaders landed in the Peloponnese and then penetrated further inland before. They attacked, among other Dexippos ' hometown of Athens, and plundered them, but shortly afterwards suffered a defeat. These successful defensive fighting an Athenian " militia" Dexippos was perhaps even involved, which highlighted the achievements of the citizens of Athens, which had taken place without the support of imperial troops against the attacker. Traditionally, these attackers are identified with the Heruli, and Jordanes continued later mentioned by Dexippos Erouloi with the Heruli of the 6th century the same. The retreating attackers were defeated in the spring of 268 by Emperor Gallienus on the river Nestos in Thrace; their leader Naulobatus received after completed deditio the trappings of a Roman consul, possibly Heruli were incorporated into the Roman army. The incursions of the Skythai from the Black Sea region, which benefited from the then weakness of the Empire, but still continued until 275/76.

Well around the middle of the 4th century, the settled on the Azov Sea Heruli were conquered by the Goths. Over the following years, the sources say hardly anything. When the empire of greutungisch - Gothic King Ermanarich was conquered by 375 AD by the Huns, who pursued into this time to the west and thus triggered the " Great Migration ", were also the " Gothic " Heruli to Hunnic vassals. Only after the fall of the Hunnic Empire around the year 454 succeeded Heruli to build their own realm in the southern area of ​​present-day Slovakia and the eastern wine district. In scattered source statements is also addressed in the aftermath of the Heruli, who attacked the region, among others, by 480 to Batavia ( Passau). Heruli in the service of the ( dissolving ) the Western Roman Empire took part in the survey 476 Odoacer in Italy and apparently served him until his defeat at the hands ( with East Roman approval ) 489 sunken in Italy Gothic king Theodoric.

To the 508 by King Rudolf ( Rodulf ) was ruled kingdom of the Heruli, which maintained good relations with Theodoric, destroyed by the Lombards. The remaining Heruli were divided into several groups, one of which was followed by a the Lombards and burst into them, another took refuge with the Ostrogoths in Italy, and a third after a long hike initially fled to the Gepids, but then finally, in the year 512 uptake in Eastern Roman Empire found. At today's Belgrade they were allowed to build a small Föderatenreich. This Heruli played no small role in the restauratio imperii of the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I, as they often served in Roman armies, but enjoyed a bad reputation. They should be converted to Christianity, but this may only have been true for some of the Heruli. Soon after the middle of the 6th century they disappear Heruli from the sources.

The "Western Heruli "

In addition to the just discussed, on the northern coast of the Black Sea and later settled in Pannonia Heruli, other Heruli are mentioned in the sources that are in the research often referred to as " West Heruli " and viewed as an independent group, although the sources no such separation is made. One should therefore not necessarily think of this as a group Heruli, who was somewhere in the northwestern Barbaricum ( as some say). Heruli in any case mentioned in Western sources in connection with incursions into Gaul in the year 286, where they were intercepted by Emperor Maximian, and then probably have served as a Roman auxiliary troops. Herulische auxiliaries are also mentioned in the following period, as well as herulische Seeüberfälle in the west on the coast of Spain in the early 5th century. Heruli were possibly also involved in the crossing of the Rhine by 406.