The siege of Hippo Regius was a siege from June 430 to August 431, carried out by 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 ...

under their king

Gaiseric Gaiseric ( – 25 January 477), also known as Geiseric or Genseric (; reconstructed Vandalic: ) was king of the Vandals and Alans from 428 to 477. He ruled over a kingdom and played a key role in the decline of the Western Roman Empire during ...

against

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

defenders under Boniface, Count of Africa.

Background

Boniface, freshly reconciled with imperial power in Rome, sought to oppose the advance of the Vandals in North Africa. After peace talks broke down, he confronted them militarily in the spring of 430, but was defeated. He then retreated with his federated Gothic troops to Hippo Regius, a fortified city occupying a strategic position. The city had by then already welcomed several thousand refugees from the surrounding provinces, including one of the main sources on this event, Bishop

Possidius Possidius (5th century) was a friend of Augustine of Hippo who wrote a reliable biography and an ''indiculus'' or list of his works. He was bishop of Calama in the Roman province of Numidia. Biography The dates of his birth and death are unk ...

of Calama.

Siege

The siege begins in May or June 430. While the bulk of the Vandal army imposed a land and sea blockade, detachments plundered the surrounding province. After 14 months, however, Gaiseric was the one short on supplies. The Vandals lifted the siege, making the ordeal a technical Roman victory. However, Boniface quickly abandoned the city by sea to meet with reinforcements from the

eastern 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 the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

; the Vandals were able to occupy the town and subsequently defeated the combined Roman forces in a set battle. Among those who died during the siege was St. Augustine.Thomas Benfield Harbottle, ''DICTIONARY OF BATTLES'' - ''From the earliest date to the present time'', p. 13.

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References

430 430s conflicts

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 ...

History of Annaba 430s in the Roman Empire Vandal Kingdom Fall of the Western Roman Empire Military history of Algeria 5th century in Roman Africa {{Algeria-hist-stub