Sigeric (? – 22 August 415) was a

Visigoth 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 kn ...

king for seven days in 415 AD.

Biography

His predecessor,

Ataulf Athaulf (also ''Athavulf'', ''Atawulf'', or ''Ataulf'' and ''Adolf'', Latinized as ''Ataulphus'') ( 37015 August 415) was king of the Visigoths from 411 to 415. During his reign, he transformed the Visigothic state from a tribal kingdom to a maj ...

, had been mortally wounded in his stables at the palace of

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

by an assassin. The assassin was probably a loyal servant of Sarus, a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

noble and personal enemy whom Ataulf had earlier slain. At Ataulf's death, Sarus' faction, the

Amali The Amali – also called Amals, Amalings or Amalungs – were a leading dynasty of the Goths, a Germanic people who confronted the Roman Empire during the decline of the Western Roman Empire. They eventually became the royal house of the Ostrogo ...

, violated the Gothic tradition of succession by immediately making Sigeric, the brother of Sarus, king. After becoming the king, Sigeric murdered Ataulf's children by his first wife. He also forced

Galla Placidia Galla Placidia (388–89/392–93 – 27 November 450), daughter of the Roman emperor Theodosius I, was a mother, tutor, and advisor to emperor Valentinian III, and a major force in Roman politics for most of her life. She was queen consort ...

, widow to Ataulf and daughter of Roman Emperor

Theodosius I Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...

and sister to Emperor Honorius to walk more than twelve miles on foot among the crowd of captives driven ahead of the mounted Sigeric. On the seventh day after his accession, Sigeric was assassinated and replaced him with Ataulf's relative,

Wallia Wallia or Walha ( Spanish: ''Walia'', Portuguese ''Vália''), ( 385 – 418) was king of the Visigoths from 415 to 418, earning a reputation as a great warrior and prudent ruler. He was elected to the throne after Athaulf and then Sigeric were ...

.Olympiodorus Fragment 26 Because Sigeric was an Amali, a member of a rival clan-based subgroup among the Visigoths to the Balti (of which Ataulf and Wallia were part), Sigeric is the only one who does not belong in the succession of kings usually labeled the Balti dynasty, if the kingship is defined by Balti dynastic connections. Due to this, as well as to the fact that his reign was a usurpation, and brief, Sigeric does not appear on some Visigothic king lists.

References and external links

* Henry Bradley, ''The Goths: from the Earliest Times to the End of the Gothic Dominion in Spain.'' Second edition, 1883, New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, chapter 11.
Edward Gibbon, ''History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,'' chapter 31
Specific {{Authority control Amali dynasty Assassinated Gothic people 415 deaths 5th-century Visigothic monarchs Year of birth unknown 5th-century murdered monarchs