Miro (Mir, Mirio, ) was the

Suebi file:1st century Germani.png, 300px, The approximate positions of some Germanic peoples reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 1st century. Suebian peoples in red, and other Irminones in purple. The Suebi (also spelled Suavi, Suevi or Suebians ...

King of Galicia Galicia (Spain), Galicia is an autonomous community and historical nationality in modern-day northwestern Spain on the Iberian Peninsula, which was a major part of the Roman province known as Gallaecia prior to 409. It consists of the province ...

from 570 until his death in 583. His reign was marked by attempts to forge alliances with other Chalcedonian Christian nations with the goal of checking the power of the

Arian Arianism (, ) is a Christological doctrine which rejects the traditional notion of the Trinity and considers Jesus to be a creation of God, and therefore distinct from God. It is named after its major proponent, Arius (). It is considered he ...

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 ...

under

Leovigild Liuvigild, Leuvigild, Leovigild, or ''Leovigildo'' ( Spanish and Portuguese), ( 519 – 586) was a Visigothic king of Hispania and Septimania from 569 to 586. Known for his Codex Revisus or Code of Leovigild, a law allowing equal rights between t ...

. During his reign relations were established with both

Francia The Kingdom of the Franks (), also known as the Frankish Kingdom, or just Francia, was the largest History of the Roman Empire, post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks, Frankish Merovingian dynasty, Merovingi ...

and the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

and the kingdom reached its zenith, but it collapsed within three years of his death."Miro."
/ref> Miro enjoyed good relations with the Church during his reign. In 572 he called the

Second Council of Braga The Second Council of Braga, held in 572, presided over by Martin of Braga, was held to increase the number of bishops in Galaecia. Twelve bishops assisted at this council, and ten decrees were promulgated: (1) that the bishops should in their vis ...

, a supplementary council to the First Council of Braga of 561. It has even been suggested, based on the lack of a signatory for the diocese of Dumio in the concilar acts, that Miro himself may have represented that see. Miro also maintained "intimate and friendly" relations with Martin of Dumio, the

Archbishop of Braga The Archdiocese of Braga () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It is known for its use of the Rite of Braga, a use of the liturgy distinct from the Roman Rite and other Latin liturgical ...

and

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

Gallaecia Gallaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province in the north-west of Hispania, approximately present-day Galicia, northern Portugal, Asturias and Leon and the later Kingdom of Gallaecia. The Roman cities inclu ...

. Martin's principal work, ''Formula Vitae Honestae'', is dedicated to him, and the ''Exhortatio Humilitatis'', printed among Martin's works, is also probably addressed to him. Indeed, Martin advised Miro's counsellors to read his ''Formula'' so as to be able better to counsel the king.Arias, 28. In the same year as the council of Braga, Miro conducted an expedition against the Ruccones (''Runcones'') of Cantabria, possibly a

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

tribe, with the intention of expanding his kingdom.Arias, 30. This attack on a people within the Gothic kingdom was perhaps an excuse for Gothic reprisals against the Sueves. In 573 Leovigild subdued the region of "Sabaria" (probably between Zamora and

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

) with the likely intention of preempting Miro. In 574 he "restored the province f Cantabriato his dominion." In response, Miro sent envoys to

Guntram Saint Gontrand ( 532 in Soissons – 28 March 592 in Chalon-sur-Saône), also called Gontran, Gontram, Guntram, Gunthram, Gunthchramn, and Guntramnus, was the king of the Kingdom of Orléans from AD 561 to AD 592. He was the third-eldest and seco ...

, the

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

King of Burgundy The following is a list of the kings of the two kingdoms of Burgundy, and a number of related political entities devolving from Carolingian machinations over family relations. Kings of the Burgundians * Gebicca (late 4th century – c. 40 ...

and a consistent thorn in Leovigild's side, but they were intercepted and detained on the way by Leovigild's ally,

Chilperic I Chilperic I ( 539 – September 584) was the king of Neustria (or Soissons) from 561 to his death. He was one of the sons of the Franks, Frankish king Clotaire I and Queen Aregund. Life Immediately after the death of his father in 561, he ...

, the Frankish king of

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks during the Early Middle Ages, in contrast to the eastern Frankish kingdom, Austrasia. It initially included land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, in the north of present-day ...

.Arias, 31. In 575 Leovigild invaded the "Aregensian Mountains" near

Ourense Ourense (; ) is a city and the capital of the province of province of Ourense, Ourense, located in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, northwestern Spain. It is on the Camino Sanabrés path o ...

and captured "the lord of the region, along with his wife, children, and riches, bringing the region under his power." Aspidius, the "lord of the region", may have been a Hispano-Roman landowner who had sided with the Suevi. In 576 Leovigild again marched to the southern frontier of Galicia (the

Douro The Douro (, , , ; ; ) is the largest river of the Iberian Peninsula by discharge. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in the Spanish Soria Province, province of Soria, meanders briefly south, then flows generally west through the northern par ...

) and menaced the small kingdom, even founding the city of Villa Gothorum (modern

Toro Toro may refer to: Places *Toro, Molise, a ''comune'' in the Province of Campobasso, Italy *Toro, Nigeria, a Local Government Area of Bauchi State, Nigeria *Toro, Shizuoka, an archaeological site in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan *Toro, Zamora, a ''m ...

). Miro sued for peace, and obtained it for a short time. In 580 Miro endeavoured to support Leovigild's Catholic son

Hermenegild Saint Hermenegild or Ermengild (died 13 April 585; ; , from Gothic ''𐌹𐍂𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌰𐌲𐌹𐌻𐌳𐍃 *Airmana-gild'', "immense tribute"), was the son of King Liuvigild of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula and southern ...

in rebellion. For the events surrounding Miro's death, the contemporary and near-contemporary accounts conflict. According to

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (born ; 30 November – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours during the Merovingian period and is known as the "father of French history". He was a prelate in the Merovingian kingdom, encom ...

, in 583 Miro led an army to raise the siege of

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

by Leovigild, but the two kings held a conference before Miro had reached Seville and he returned to Galicia, where he died shortly after, supposedly from the effects of the bad air and water of

Baetica Hispania Baetica, often abbreviated Baetica, was one of three Roman provinces created in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula) in 27 BC. Baetica was bordered to the west by Lusitania, and to the northeast by Tarraconensis. Baetica remained one of ...

. On the other hand, two Iberian chroniclers,

John of Biclar John of Biclaro, Biclar, or Biclarum (''c.'' 540 – after 621), also ''Iohannes Biclarensis'', was a Visigoth chronicler. He was born in Lusitania, in the city of ''Scallabis'' (modern Santarém in Portugal). He was also bishop of Girona. Ear ...

and

Isidore of Seville Isidore of Seville (; 4 April 636) was a Spania, Hispano-Roman scholar, theologian and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seville, archbishop of Seville. He is widely regarded, in the words of the 19th-century historian Charles Forbes René de Montal ...

, concur that he died before Seville while assisting Leovigild with the siege of the town. Modern scholarship favours Gregory's interpretation, taking into account Miro's alliances with Francia and Byzantium, Suevic animosity to the Goths, and the shared Catholic faith of Sueves and rebels.Arias, 32. He was succeeded ''in provincia Gallacciæ'' by his adolescent son

Eboric Eboric or Euric was the last legitimate Suevic King of Galicia. He was the adolescent son of Miro and Sisegutia (or Siseguntia) and he succeeded his father in 583, ruling for a year before being deposed by his mother's second husband, Audeca, who ...

. He also left a widow, Sisegu(n)tia, who married Andeca, who deposed Eboric and took to ruling ''in Gallaccia Suevorum regnum''.

Notes

Sources

*Arias, Jorge C
"Identity and Interaction: The Suevi and the Hispano-Romans."
Ph.D. dissertation. University of Virginia: Spring 2007.

In Henry Wace and William C. Piercy, edd. ''A Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature''. London: John Murray, 1911. Reprinted as ''Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century A.D., with an Account of the Principal Sects and Heresies''. United States: Hendrickson Publishers, 1999. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Miro 583 deaths 6th-century Suebian kings Year of birth unknown