Bonifatius (or Bonifacius; also known as Count Boniface or Comes Bonifacius; died 432) was a Roman general and governor of the

diocese of Africa The Diocese of Africa () was a diocese of the later Roman Empire, incorporating the provinces of North Africa, except Mauretania Tingitana. Its seat was at Carthage, and it was subordinate to the Praetorian prefecture of Italy. The diocese in ...

. He campaigned against the

Visigoths The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian military group unite ...

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

and the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vand ...

in North Africa. An ally of

Galla Placidia Galla Placidia (392/3 – 27 November 450), daughter of the Roman emperor Theodosius I, was the mother and a tutor and advisor to emperor Valentinian III. She was queen consort to Ataulf, King of the Visigoths from 414 until his death in 415, ...

, mother and advisor of

Valentinian III Valentinian III (; 2 July 41916 March 455) was Roman emperor in the Western Roman Empire, West from 425 to 455. Starting in childhood, his reign over the Roman Empire was one of the longest, but was dominated by civil wars among powerful general ...

, Bonifacius engaged in Roman civil wars on her behalf against the generals Felix in 427-429 and Aetius in 432. Although he defeated the latter at the Battle of Rimini, Bonifacius suffered a fatal wound and was succeeded by his son-in-law Sebastianus as '' patricius'' of the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

Biography

Early career

Bonifatius first appears as a general of

Constantius III Constantius III (died 2 September 421) was briefly Western Roman emperor in 421, having earned the throne through his capability as a general under Honorius. By 411 he had achieved the rank of ''magister militum'', and in the same year he su ...

in 413, where he defeated the

of Athaulf at Massilia; he allegedly threw a weapon and wounded the Gothic king himself. Later that decade, Bonifatius was known to be a ''tribunus'' commanding a Gothic regiment of ''

foederati ''Foederati'' ( ; singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the '' socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign ...

'' in North Africa campaigning against the

Mauri Mauri (from which derives the English term "Moors") was the Latin designation for the Berber population of Mauretania, located in the west side of North Africa on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, Mauretania Tingitana and Mauretania Caesarien ...

, and had a friendship with St. Augustine of Hippo with whom he discussed theological matters. In 422 he was likely recalled to the Western court in Ravenna, where he probably married his Gothic wife Pelagia, daughter of Beremudus, and inherited her father's '' bucellarii''. Bonifatius and

Castinus Flavius Castinus was an influential Roman general and politician at the court of Emperor's' Honorius and Valentinian III, and most likely for some time before. He played a role in several military campaigns in Gaul and Hispania. He held the posit ...

then prepared to launch a campaign against the Vandals and

Alans The Alans () were an ancient and medieval Iranian peoples, Iranic Eurasian nomads, nomadic pastoral people who migrated to what is today North Caucasus – while some continued on to Europe and later North Africa. They are generally regarded ...

in Spain, but Bonifatius' forces never arrived as the two commanders had quarreled constantly since its inception.

sought to prevent Castinus from gaining the position of Stilicho before him, and as a result Castinus attempted to remove Bonifatius from power. Bonifatius retreated to North Africa where he acquired the command of comes africae under dubious circumstances and continued his campaigns against the Mauri tribes. After the death of Emperor

Honorius Honorius (; 9 September 384 – 15 August 423) was Roman emperor from 393 to 423. He was the younger son of emperor Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla. After the death of Theodosius in 395, Honorius, under the regency of Stilicho ...

the '' primicerius notariorum''

Joannes Joannes or John (; died 425) was Western Roman emperor from 423 to 425. On the death of the Western emperor Honorius, Theodosius II, the last remaining ruler of the Theodosian dynasty, did not immediately announce a successor. In the ''inter ...

was elevated to the throne by Castinus in 424, and Bonifatius responded by cutting off the Grain supply from North Africa, showing his support for the Theodosians (Placidia and

Theodosius II Theodosius II ( ; 10 April 401 – 28 July 450), called "the Calligraphy, Calligrapher", was Roman emperor from 402 to 450. He was proclaimed ''Augustus (title), Augustus'' as an infant and ruled as the Eastern Empire's sole emperor after the ...

). Prosper states that Joannes' forces were weakened because they were campaigning against Bonifatius in North Africa, but were unable to depose him like in the campaigns against

Gildo Gildo (died 398) was a Roman Berber general in the province of Mauretania Caesariensis. He revolted against Honorius and the Western Roman Empire ( Gildonic war), but was defeated and possibly killed himself or was assassinated. Etymology The ...

and other North African usurpers. After a revolt in

and a military campaign under the eastern generals Ardabur and Aspar sent by Theodosius II, Joannes was overthrown, and

, half-nephew of Honorius, was made Western emperor by the ''

magister officiorum The (Latin; ; ) was one of the most senior administrative officials in the Later Roman Empire and the early centuries of the Byzantine Empire. In Byzantium, the office was eventually transformed into a senior honorary rank, simply called ''magist ...

'' Helion. Bonifatius supported him, and resumed the grain shipments to Rome, being rewarded the position of

comes domesticorum The origins of the word ''domesticus'' can be traced to the late 3rd century of the Late Roman army. They often held high ranks in various fields, whether it was the servants of a noble house on the civilian side, or a high-ranking military pos ...

in return.

Civil War with Felix

In 427, Bonifatius was recalled to

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

by Placidia, but refused the summons. Bonifatius was accused of attempting to form his own empire in

Roman Africa Roman Africa or Roman North Africa is the culture of Roman Africans that developed from 146 BC, when the Roman Republic defeated Carthage and the Punic Wars ended, with subsequent institution of Roman Empire, Roman Imperial government, through th ...

at the allegation of Flavius Constantius Felix, who had also been a staunch supporter of Placidia and had been installed as the ''magister utriusque militiae'' of the west by Theodosius II. Placidia ordered Felix to send an army to restore the vital province in response. Felix's generals for the expedition included Mavortius, Gallio, and Sanoeces. Mavortius and Gallio led Roman forces proper, while Sanoeces commanded the Hun

Foederati ''Foederati'' ( ; singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the '' socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign ...

troops. Together the three generals laid siege to Bonifatius at

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

. The three besiegers, however, turned on each other, and Sanoeces and his Huns killed the Romans before he was killed himself, which lifted the siege. When news reached Ravenna, Felix sent the Comes Sigisvultus against Bonifacius, who campaigned with his Goths in Africa for two years. Sigisvultus captured Carthage, but Bonifatius and his Gothic bucellarii continued to campaign in

Numidia Numidia was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunisia and Libya. The polity was originally divided between ...

, where they were allowed to loot the province. Bonifatius also had his daughter baptized by an Arian priest, which caused a falling out between him and St. Augustine. However, Placidia sent an envoy to Bonifatius in 429, from which she learned that a letter had been forged ordering him not to return to Ravenna if summoned. A man named Darius was sent to negotiate a truce between Bonifatius and Sigisvultus, and as a result Bonifatius was restored to Placidia's favor and the civil war ended in time to face the

Vandal The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vandal ...

threat.

Campaigns against the Vandals

Some sources report that Bonifatius invited the Vandals to Africa, though doubt has been cast on this in recent years. The Vandals crossed near Roman Tingis, and an inscription at Altava dated to 429 mentions the deceased was wounded by a "barbarian" during the Vandal advance across Africa. Their campaign was briefly halted by Darius, who negotiated a brief truce, but Gaiseric quickly resumed. Bonifatius, the African army, and a contingent of supporting Gothic ''foederati'' confronted and were defeated by Gaiseric near the city of Calama in 430, after which Bonifatius retreated to the city of

Hippo Regius Hippo Regius (also known as Hippo or Hippone) is the ancient name of the modern city of Annaba, Algeria. It served as an important city for the Phoenicians, Berbers, Romans, and Vandals. Hippo was the capital city of the Vandal Kingdom from AD ...

. In May or June of 430, Gaiseric laid siege to the city, and St. Augustine died during the siege, which was finally lifted in July or August of 431. Leaving it at the mercy of Gaiseric, Bonifatius retreated out of the city to join his forces with the Eastern Roman general Aspar, who had been sent to reinforce Africa by Theodosius II. In early 432, Bonifatius and Aspar engaged Gaiseric in battle, but were again defeated. Allegedly, the future emperor

Marcian Marcian (; ; ; 392 – 27 January 457) was Roman emperor of the Byzantine Empire, East from 450 to 457. Very little is known of his life before becoming emperor, other than that he was a (personal assistant) who served under the commanders ...

was captured in this engagement, but released after Gaiseric had a vision of him becoming Emperor.

Civil war with Aetius and death

In 432, after Flavius Felix, his wife Padusia, and a deacon had been hanged by the Roman army, allegedly at the instigation of

Flavius Aetius Flavius Aetius (also spelled Aëtius; ; 390 – 21 September 454) was a Roman Empire, Roman general and statesman of the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was a military commander and the most inf ...

whose power she sought to resist, Placidia appointed Bonifatius ''magister utriusque militiae'' and ''patricius'' of the west, despite his unsuccessful record in Africa. Bonifacius led his forces against Aetius and the Gallic army at the Battle of Rimini in 432. Bonifacius and his son-in-law Sebastianus were victorious, and Aetius was allowed to retire to his private estates, although Bonifatius was mortally wounded by a lance during the conflict. He died sometime between a few days and three months after the battle. Sebastianus, appointed to fill his place, attempted to have Aetius assassinated, only for Aetius to flee to the court of the Huns and return with their support. Allegedly Sebastianus was preparing to fight Aetius by summoning the Visigoths to his aid, but he was evidently unpopular among the troops and allowed them to engage in piracy, and had lost support in the court as well. Sebastianus was exiled, and as a result Aetius became the dominant power in the Western Roman Empire, and married Bonifacius' widow Pelagia allegedly at his request.

Biography

Early career

Civil War with Felix

Campaigns against the Vandals

Civil war with Aetius and death

References

Further reading