Bagaudae
Encyclopedia
In the time of the later Roman Empire
bagaudae (also spelled bacaudae) were groups of peasant insurgents who emerged during the "Crisis of the Third Century
", and persisted particularly in the less-Romanised areas of Gallia
and Hispania
, where they were "exposed to the depredations of the late Roman state, and the great landowners and clerics who were its servants". The name probably means "fighters". C.E.V. Nixon assesses the bagaudae, from the official Imperial viewpoint, as "bands of brigands who roamed the countryside looting and pillaging". J.C.S. Léon interprets the most completely assembled documentation and identifies the bagaudae as impoverished local free peasants, reinforced by brigands, runaway slaves and deserters from the legions, who were resisting the abuses of proto-feudal
manorial privilege and punitive taxation in the marginal areas of the Empire. The invasions, military anarchy and disorders of the third century crisis
, are seen not as causative, but providing a chaotic and ongoing degradation of the regional power structure within a declining Empire into which the bagaudae achieved some temporary and scattered successes, under the leadership of members of the underclass as well as former members of local ruling elites.
and his subordinate Carausius
, under the aegis of the Augustus Diocletian
. Their leaders are mentioned as Amandus and Aelianus, although E.M. Wightman, in her Gallia Belgica proposes that the two belonged to the local Gallo-Roman landowning class who then became "tyrants" and most likely rebelled against the crushing taxation and garnishing of their lands, harvests and manpower by the predatory late Roman state.
The Panegyric
of Maximian, dating to 289 and attributed to Claudius Mamertinus
, relates that during the bagaudae uprisings of 284–285 in the districts around Lugdunum (Lyon)
, "simple farmers sought military garb; the plowman imitated the infantryman, the shepherd the cavalryman, the rustic harvester of his own crops the barbarian enemy". In fact they shared several similar characteristics with the Germanic Heruli
people. Mamertinus also called them "two-shaped monsters" (monstrorum biformium), emphasising that while they were technically Imperial farmers and citizens, they were also marauding rogues who had become foes of the Empire.
, in conjunction with an invasion of the Alemanni. Although Imperial control was re-established by the Frankish general Silvanus
, his subsequent betrayal by court rivals forced him into rebellion and his work was undone. About 360 the historian Aurelius Victor
is the sole writer to note the attacks of bagaudae in the peripheries of towns and cities.
In the fifth century Bagaudae are noted in the lower Loire valley
as far as the Atlantic shore, circa 409-17, fighting to a standstill armies sent against them by the last effective Roman general, Flavius Aëtius
. With the collapse of the Western Roman Empire
shortly thereafter, and the rise of the successor Germanic kingdoms, the bagaudae slowly disappear from recorded history.
The name bagaudae reappears once again in the mid fifth century, when they are mentioned in control of parts of Gaul and the Ebro valley
. In Hispania
, the king of the Suevi, Rechiar
(died 456) took up as allies the local bagaudae in ravaging the remaining Roman municipia, a unique alliance between Germanic ruler and rebel peasant .
That the depredations of the ruling classes were mostly responsible for the uprising of the bagaudae was not lost on the fifth-century writer of historicised polemic, Salvian
; setting himself in the treatise De gubernatione Dei the task of proving God's constant guidance, he declares in book iii that the misery of the Roman world is all due to the neglect of God's commandments and the terrible sins of every class of society. It is not merely that slaves and servants are thieves and runaways, wine-bibbers and gluttons— the rich are much worse (iv. 3); it is their harshness and greed that drive the poor to join the bagaudae and flee for shelter to the barbarian invaders (v. 5 and 6).
revolt, but the sparsity of information in the texts gives this little substance, although there may well have been many Christians among them. In general they seem equal parts brigands and lumpenproletariat
— less a coherent "movement" than the expression of the frustrations of ordinary people with an ever more oppressive, bankrupt and distant Empire.
In the second half of the nineteenth century, interest in the bagaudae revived, resonating with contemporary social unrest. E. A. Thompson
's assessment in Past and Present (1952) approached the phenomenon of these rural malcontents in terms of Marxist class warfare
.
Decline of the Roman Empire
The decline of the Roman Empire refers to the gradual societal collapse of the Western Roman Empire. Many theories of causality prevail, but most concern the disintegration of political, economic, military, and other social institutions, in tandem with foreign invasions and usurpers from within the...
bagaudae (also spelled bacaudae) were groups of peasant insurgents who emerged during the "Crisis of the Third Century
Crisis of the Third Century
The Crisis of the Third Century was a period in which the Roman Empire nearly collapsed under the combined pressures of invasion, civil war, plague, and economic depression...
", and persisted particularly in the less-Romanised areas of Gallia
Gallia
Gallia may refer to:*Gaul , the region of Western Europe occupied by present-day France, Belgium and other neighbouring countries...
and Hispania
Hispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
, where they were "exposed to the depredations of the late Roman state, and the great landowners and clerics who were its servants". The name probably means "fighters". C.E.V. Nixon assesses the bagaudae, from the official Imperial viewpoint, as "bands of brigands who roamed the countryside looting and pillaging". J.C.S. Léon interprets the most completely assembled documentation and identifies the bagaudae as impoverished local free peasants, reinforced by brigands, runaway slaves and deserters from the legions, who were resisting the abuses of proto-feudal
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
manorial privilege and punitive taxation in the marginal areas of the Empire. The invasions, military anarchy and disorders of the third century crisis
Crisis of the Third Century
The Crisis of the Third Century was a period in which the Roman Empire nearly collapsed under the combined pressures of invasion, civil war, plague, and economic depression...
, are seen not as causative, but providing a chaotic and ongoing degradation of the regional power structure within a declining Empire into which the bagaudae achieved some temporary and scattered successes, under the leadership of members of the underclass as well as former members of local ruling elites.
Suppressing the bagaudae
After the bagaudae came to the full attention of the central authorities about 284, re-establishment of the settled social order was swift and brutal: the peasant insurgents were crushed in 286 by the Caesar MaximianMaximian
Maximian was Roman Emperor from 286 to 305. He was Caesar from 285 to 286, then Augustus from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his co-emperor and superior, Diocletian, whose political brain complemented Maximian's military brawn. Maximian established his residence at Trier but spent...
and his subordinate Carausius
Carausius
Marcus Aurelius Mausaeus Valerius Carausius was a military commander of the Roman Empire in the 3rd century. He was a Menapian from Belgic Gaul, who usurped power in 286, declaring himself emperor in Britain and northern Gaul. He did this only 13 years after the Gallic Empire of the Batavian...
, under the aegis of the Augustus Diocletian
Diocletian
Diocletian |latinized]] upon his accession to Diocletian . c. 22 December 244 – 3 December 311), was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305....
. Their leaders are mentioned as Amandus and Aelianus, although E.M. Wightman, in her Gallia Belgica proposes that the two belonged to the local Gallo-Roman landowning class who then became "tyrants" and most likely rebelled against the crushing taxation and garnishing of their lands, harvests and manpower by the predatory late Roman state.
The Panegyric
Panegyrici Latini
The Panegyrici Latini or Latin Panegyrics is a collection of twelve ancient Roman panegyric orations. The authors of most of the speeches in the collection are anonymous, but appear to have been Gallic in origin. Aside from the first panegyric, composed by Pliny the Younger in 100 CE, the other...
of Maximian, dating to 289 and attributed to Claudius Mamertinus
Claudius Mamertinus
Claudius Mamertinus was an official in the Roman Empire. In late 361 he took part in the Chalcedon tribunal to condemn the ministers of Constantius II, and in 362, he was made consul as a reward by the new Emperor Julian; on January 1 of that year he delivered a panegyric in Constantinople by way...
, relates that during the bagaudae uprisings of 284–285 in the districts around Lugdunum (Lyon)
Lugdunum
Colonia Copia Claudia Augusta Lugdunum was an important Roman city in Gaul. The city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus. It served as the capital of the Roman province Gallia Lugdunensis. To 300 years after its foundation Lugdunum was the most important city to the west part of Roman...
, "simple farmers sought military garb; the plowman imitated the infantryman, the shepherd the cavalryman, the rustic harvester of his own crops the barbarian enemy". In fact they shared several similar characteristics with the Germanic Heruli
Heruli
The Heruli were an East Germanic tribe who are famous for their naval exploits. Migrating from Northern Europe to the Black Sea in the third century They were part of the...
people. Mamertinus also called them "two-shaped monsters" (monstrorum biformium), emphasising that while they were technically Imperial farmers and citizens, they were also marauding rogues who had become foes of the Empire.
Recurrences
The phenomenon recurred in the mid-fourth century in the reign of ConstantiusConstantius II
Constantius II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 361. The second son of Constantine I and Fausta, he ascended to the throne with his brothers Constantine II and Constans upon their father's death....
, in conjunction with an invasion of the Alemanni. Although Imperial control was re-established by the Frankish general Silvanus
Silvanus
- People :*Marcus Plautius Silvanus , Roman consul in 2 BC*Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus, a Roman patrician serving twice as consul *Marcus Caeionius Silvanus - People :*Marcus Plautius Silvanus (1st-century BC–1st-century AD), Roman consul in 2 BC*Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus, a Roman...
, his subsequent betrayal by court rivals forced him into rebellion and his work was undone. About 360 the historian Aurelius Victor
Aurelius Victor
Sextus Aurelius Victor was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire.Aurelius Victor was the author of a History of Rome from Augustus to Julian , published ca. 361. Julian honoured him and appointed him prefect of Pannonia Secunda...
is the sole writer to note the attacks of bagaudae in the peripheries of towns and cities.
In the fifth century Bagaudae are noted in the lower Loire valley
Loire Valley
The Loire Valley , spanning , is located in the middle stretch of the Loire River in central France. Its area comprises approximately . It is referred to as the Cradle of the French Language, and the Garden of France due to the abundance of vineyards, fruit orchards, and artichoke, asparagus, and...
as far as the Atlantic shore, circa 409-17, fighting to a standstill armies sent against them by the last effective Roman general, Flavius Aëtius
Flavius Aëtius
Flavius Aëtius , dux et patricius, was a Roman general of the closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was an able military commander and the most influential man in the Western Roman Empire for two decades . He managed policy in regard to the attacks of barbarian peoples pressing on the Empire...
. With the collapse of the Western Roman Empire
Decline of the Roman Empire
The decline of the Roman Empire refers to the gradual societal collapse of the Western Roman Empire. Many theories of causality prevail, but most concern the disintegration of political, economic, military, and other social institutions, in tandem with foreign invasions and usurpers from within the...
shortly thereafter, and the rise of the successor Germanic kingdoms, the bagaudae slowly disappear from recorded history.
The name bagaudae reappears once again in the mid fifth century, when they are mentioned in control of parts of Gaul and the Ebro valley
Ebro
The Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
. In Hispania
Hispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
, the king of the Suevi, Rechiar
Rechiar
Rechiar or Rechiarius was the Suevic King of Galicia from 448 until his death. He was the first Catholic Germanic king in Europe and one of the most innovative and belligerent of the Suevi monarchs...
(died 456) took up as allies the local bagaudae in ravaging the remaining Roman municipia, a unique alliance between Germanic ruler and rebel peasant .
That the depredations of the ruling classes were mostly responsible for the uprising of the bagaudae was not lost on the fifth-century writer of historicised polemic, Salvian
Salvian
Salvian, was a Christian writer of the fifth century, born probably at Cologne, some time between 400 and 405.-Personal life:Salvian was educated at the school of Treves and seems to have been brought up as a Christian...
; setting himself in the treatise De gubernatione Dei the task of proving God's constant guidance, he declares in book iii that the misery of the Roman world is all due to the neglect of God's commandments and the terrible sins of every class of society. It is not merely that slaves and servants are thieves and runaways, wine-bibbers and gluttons— the rich are much worse (iv. 3); it is their harshness and greed that drive the poor to join the bagaudae and flee for shelter to the barbarian invaders (v. 5 and 6).
Reputation of "bagaudae"
The reputation of the bagaudae has varied with the uses made of them in historicised narratives of the Late Empire and the Middle Ages. There has been some speculation that theirs was a ChristianChristianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
revolt, but the sparsity of information in the texts gives this little substance, although there may well have been many Christians among them. In general they seem equal parts brigands and lumpenproletariat
Lumpenproletariat
Lumpenproletariat, a collective term from Lumpenproletarier , was first defined by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in The German Ideology and later elaborated on in other works by Marx...
— less a coherent "movement" than the expression of the frustrations of ordinary people with an ever more oppressive, bankrupt and distant Empire.
In the second half of the nineteenth century, interest in the bagaudae revived, resonating with contemporary social unrest. E. A. Thompson
Edward Arthur Thompson
Edward Arthur Thompson was a British classicist, medievalist and professor at the University of Nottingham from 1948 to 1979. He wrote from a Marxist perspective, and argued that the Visigoths were settled in Aquitaine to counter the internal threat of the peasant bagaudae...
's assessment in Past and Present (1952) approached the phenomenon of these rural malcontents in terms of Marxist class warfare
Class conflict
Class conflict is the tension or antagonism which exists in society due to competing socioeconomic interests between people of different classes....
.
Further reading
- Léon, J.C.S. Les sources de l'histoire des Bagaudes (Paris) 1996.
- Léon, J.C.S., Los bagaudas: rebeldes, demonios, mártires. Revueltas campesinas en Galia e Hispania durante el Bajo Imperio (University of Jaén) 1996.