Treaty of 382: Visigoths Settle as Foederati
The Battle of Adrianople in August 378 CE had killed Emperor Valens and destroyed the Eastern field army. Theodosius spent those years rebuilding his forces and negotiating. The Treaty of 382 CE was a settlement without precedent: the Visigoths were settled as a block in Moesia and Thrace, allowed to live under their own chiefs, governed by their own customs, and required only to supply troops under their own Gothic commanders. Contemporary Romans recognized the novelty. The orator Themistius praised the settlement as humane and practical; the general Synesius complained bitterly that barbarians now sat in the senate. The foederati system set a template that would accelerate Rome's transformation. The Visigothic settlement in the Balkans would persist until Alaric led them into Italy in 401 CE and ultimately sacked Rome in 410 CE.
- Year: 382 CE
- Category: Political
