Litorius (died 439) was a Roman general of the closing period of the

Western Roman Empire The Western Roman Empire comprised the western provinces of the Roman Empire at any time during which they were administered by a separate independent Imperial court; in particular, this term is used in historiography to describe the period ...

serving as Magister militum per Gallias mainly in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

under

magister militum (Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...

Flavius Aetius Aetius (also spelled Aëtius; ; 390 – 454) was a Roman general and statesman of the closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was a military commander and the most influential man in the Empire for two decades (433454). He managed pol ...

(from 435 until his death). Litorius is noted for being the last Roman commander in the ancient Roman military history to perform pagan rites and the consultation of

auspice Augury is the practice from ancient Roman religion of interpreting omens from the observed behavior of birds. When the individual, known as the augur, interpreted these signs, it is referred to as "taking the auspices". "Auspices" ( Latin ''aus ...

s before a battle. His military actions were mostly focused against

Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...

who had gradually been attempting to spread their control over

. In 436 their king

Theodoric I Theodoric I ( got, Þiudarīks; la, Theodericus; 390 or 393 – 20 or 24 June 451) was the King of the Visigoths from 418 to 451. Theodoric is famous for his part in stopping Attila (the Hun) at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains in 451, where ...

tried to conquer Narbo Martius to obtain access to the Mediterranean Sea and the roads to the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

. At the Battle of Narbonne Litorius, with the aid of the

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...

, prevented the capture of the city and drove the Visigoths back to their capital Tolosa. But in the consequent battle at Tolosa in 439 the allied forces of Romans and Huns were defeated by the Visigoths and Litorius soon died during imprisonment from injuries which he had received in this battle.Prosper, ''Epitoma chronicon'' 1335, in: MGH AA 9, p. 476; Hydatius, ''chronicle'' 116, in: MGH AA 11, p. 23;

Salvian Salvian (or Salvianus) was a Christian writer of the 5th century in Roman Gaul. Personal life Salvian's birthplace is uncertain, but some scholars have suggested Cologne or Trier some time between 400 and 405. He was educated at the school of Trie ...

, ''de gubernatione dei'' 7. 9. 39sqq.

References

Ancient Roman generals 439 deaths Year of birth unknown {{AncientRome-mil-bio-stub