Flavius Sigisvultus (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

427–448) was a general of the late

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. ...

. He was sent in 427 to command the war in Africa against a rebellious general,

Bonifacius Bonifatius (or Bonifacius; also known as Count Boniface or Comes Bonifacius; died 432) was a Roman general and governor of the diocese of Africa. He campaigned against the Visigoths in Gaul and the Vandals in North Africa. An ally of Galla Plac ...

. Previous generals had been defeated by the latter. Sigisvultus may have been appointed ''

comes ''Comes'' (plural ''comites''), translated as count, was a Roman title, generally linked to a comitatus or comital office. The word ''comes'' originally meant "companion" or "follower", deriving from "''com-''" ("with") and "''ire''" ("go"). Th ...

Africae'', succeeding Bonifacius. He seized

Hippo The hippopotamus (''Hippopotamus amphibius;'' ; : hippopotamuses), often shortened to hippo (: hippos), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus and river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic Mammal, mammal native to su ...

and

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 ...

, and as an

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 ...

himself, sent an Arian bishop, Maximinus, to dispute with

Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

in 427 or 428. He presumably returned to Italy after relations between the Emperor and Bonifacius were restored in 429 or 430. He served as

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

in 437 with

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 ...

. From either the same year or from 440 until 448, he was ''

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

'' (though despite the title he remained under the command of Aetius), and organized defences against 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 ...

. By 448 he had become a patrician. The name ''Sigisvultus'' is of German origin, and is also written ''Sigisvult'', ''Segisvultus'', or ''Sigisvuldus''. He is also sometimes called ''Sigisvult the Goth''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigisvultus Magistri militum Romans of Gothic descent 5th-century Arian Christians 5th-century Roman consuls Gothic warriors Patricii Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown