Thrasamund

Thrasamund († 523 ) was King of the Vandals Empire in North Africa by 496 to 523

Life

Thrasamund was the third son Gentos, the fourth son of Genseric, the founder of the Vandal kingdom in North Africa. His mother is unknown. He should have received a classical education at Carthage in youth, the few available sources portray him in any case as educated ruler who was also interested in theological questions. When his brother Gunthamund died, he ascended the throne 496.

Internal and foreign policy to Thrasamund faced with some problems. Opposite Ostrom sought Thrasamund to compensate, while also trying to move closer to Ostrogoth Theodoric in Italy; Theodoric in turn was interested in integrating the Vandals in its alliance policy. Part of this approach was the marriage Thrasamunds with Theodoric's sister Amalafrida in the year 500, Theodoric entered the Vandals from the north-west of Sicily, but the alliance brought the Goths not to hope for success, as the Vandals did not intervene, attacking as Eastern Roman ships 508 southern Italy. Vast areas of present-day North of Algeria were lost during the reign Gunthamunds and Thrasamunds to the Berbers who pose a constant threat to the Vandals. The Vandal sphere of influence, although the Vandal presence in the western part of the former Roman territories of North Africa was only weak anyway, shrank resistant. At the end of his reign Vandal forces suffered a crushing defeat against camel nomads of the king Cabaon. Apparently not enough Vandal military presence to secure the border areas effectively. This was made ​​more difficult but also by internal disputes Vandal kingdom, the local Catholics these often faced more hostile because of disputes with the Arian Vandal kings.

Thrasamund seems to arts and culture in his kingdom not explicitly encouraged, but have nevertheless favored. The culture in the Vandal kingdom flourished at this time on, anyway. Several eulogies are written in Thrasamund and the Latin poet Blossius Aemilius Dracontius worked in his reign. Although Thrasamund ended the long-standing persecution of Catholics in Vandal kingdom, but tensions between the Roman Catholic majority and the Arian Vandals were apparently made ​​. Catholic priests was the activity in certain areas continued to be denied, as there were numerous deportations. Thrasamund itself showed interest in theological questions, wrote in this regard theses and let religion talks about in Carthage, where also Fulgentius of Ruspe participated (who was exiled shortly afterwards a second time ), but took no decision.