Balti dynasty
Encyclopedia
The Balti dynasty, Baltungs, Balthings, or Balth(e)s, existed among the Visigoths, a Germanic tribe who confronted the Western Roman Empire
in its declining years. The Balti took their name from the Gothic
word balþa (baltha; bald or bold). It thus meant "the Bold ones" or "Bold men".
. But it was Alaric
the Visigoth, a Balth, who led his people to the sacking of Rome
in 410 CE and founded a dynasty that would come to rule much of Roman
Gaul
for a century and all of Roman Hispania
for longer, establishing a kingdom in the latter that would last until early in the eighth century.
The Balti dynasty of Visigothic kings reigned from 395 to 531.
Edward Gibbon
in footnote 4, Chapter 30, of the History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, adds:
Western Roman Empire
The Western Roman Empire was the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian in 285; the other half of the Roman Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly referred to today as the Byzantine Empire....
in its declining years. The Balti took their name from the Gothic
Gothic language
Gothic is an extinct Germanic language that was spoken by the Goths. It is known primarily from the Codex Argenteus, a 6th-century copy of a 4th-century Bible translation, and is the only East Germanic language with a sizable Text corpus...
word balþa (baltha; bald or bold). It thus meant "the Bold ones" or "Bold men".
History
The Balti were considered next in worth among Gothic fighters, and next in royal dignity, to the AmaliAmali
The Amali, also called Amals or Amalings, were the leading dynasty of the Goths, a Germanic people who confronted the Roman Empire in its declining years in the west...
. But it was Alaric
Alaric I
Alaric I was the King of the Visigoths from 395–410. Alaric is most famous for his sack of Rome in 410, which marked a decisive event in the decline of the Roman Empire....
the Visigoth, a Balth, who led his people to the sacking of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in 410 CE and founded a dynasty that would come to rule much of Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
for a century and all of Roman 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....
for longer, establishing a kingdom in the latter that would last until early in the eighth century.
The Balti dynasty of Visigothic kings reigned from 395 to 531.
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
in footnote 4, Chapter 30, of the History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, adds:
-
-
- "This illustrious race long continued to flourish in France, in the Gothic province of Septimania, or Languedoc; under the corrupted appellation of Boax; and a branch of that family afterwards settled in the kingdom of Naples (Grotius in Prolegom. ad Hist. Gothic. p. 53). The lords of BauxLords of BauxThis is a list of the Lords, Barons and Marquisses of Baux.-Lords of Baux of the House of Baux:*Pons , father of*Hugh 1 , father of*William I Hugh , father of*Raymond I , father of*Hugh II...
, near Arles, and of seventy-nine subordinate places, were independent of the counts of Provence, (Longuerue, Description de la France, tom. i. p. 357)".
- "This illustrious race long continued to flourish in France, in the Gothic province of Septimania, or Languedoc; under the corrupted appellation of Boax; and a branch of that family afterwards settled in the kingdom of Naples (Grotius in Prolegom. ad Hist. Gothic. p. 53). The lords of Baux
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See also
- Alaric IAlaric IAlaric I was the King of the Visigoths from 395–410. Alaric is most famous for his sack of Rome in 410, which marked a decisive event in the decline of the Roman Empire....
- AtaulfAtaulfAtaulf was king of the Visigoths from 410 to 415...
- WalliaWalliaWallia was king of the Visigoths from 415 to 419, earning a reputation as a great warrior and prudent ruler. He was elected to the throne after Athaulf and then Sigeric were assassinated in 415....
- Theodoric ITheodoric ITheodoric I sometimes called Theodorid and in Spanish, Portuguese and Italian Teodorico, was the King of the Visigoths from 418 to 451. An illegitimate son of Alaric, Theodoric is famous for defeating Attila at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains in 451, where he was mortally wounded.-Early...
- ThorismundThorismundThorismund became king of the Visigoths after his father Theodoric was killed in the Battle of Châlons in 451 CE...
- Theodoric IITheodoric IITheodoric II was King of Visigoths from 453 to 466.Theoderic II, son of Theodoric I, obtained the throne by killing his elder brother Thorismund...
- EuricEuricEuric, also known as Evaric, Erwig, or Eurico in Spanish and Portuguese , Son of Theodoric I and the younger brother of Theodoric II and ruled as king of the Visigoths, with his capital at Toulouse, from 466 until his death in 484.He inherited a large portion of the Visigothic possessions in the...
- Alaric IIAlaric IIAlaric II, also known as Alarik, Alarich, and Alarico in Spanish and Portuguese or Alaricus in Latin succeeded his father Euric on December 28, 484, in Toulouse. He established his capital at Aire-sur-l'Adour in Aquitaine...
- GesalecGesalecGesalic was a king of the Visigoths from 507 to 511, and died in 513. Although the illegitimate son of Alaric II. He had been elected king by the Visigoths after Alaric had been killed in battle by the Franks...
- AmalaricAmalaricAmalaric, or in Spanish and Portuguese, Amalarico, was king of the Visigoths from 526 until his assassination in 531. He was a son of king Alaric II and his first wife Theodegotho, daughter of Theodoric the Great....