Wacho (also Waccho; probably from ''Waldchis'') was king of the
Lombards
The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774.
The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the '' History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...
before they entered
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
from an unknown date (perhaps c. 510) until his death in
539. His father was
Unichis. Wacho usurped the throne by assassinating (or having assassinated) his uncle, King
Tato (again, probably around 510). Tato's son Ildchis fought with him and fled to the Gepids where he died.
['' Origo Gentis Langobardorum''] Wacho had good relations with the
Franks.
Wacho married three times. His first marriage was to
Raicunda, daughter of
Bisinus, King of the Thuringi. His second marriage was to
Austrigusa, a
Gepid possibly named after her maternal descent from
Ostrogothic
The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...
rulers. Austrigusa was the mother of two daughters:
Wisigarda (who married
Theudebert I of Austrasia) and
Waldrada (who married firstly
Theudebald of Austrasia, secondly
Chlothar I
Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" (French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I.
Chlothar's father, Clovis I, divided the kingd ...
,
King of the Franks
The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who c ...
, and thirdly
Garibald I of Bavaria). Wacho's third marriage was to
Silinga, a
Heruli
The Heruli (or Herules) were an early Germanic people. Possibly originating in Scandinavia, the Heruli are first mentioned by Roman authors as one of several " Scythian" groups raiding Roman provinces in the Balkans and the Aegean Sea, attacking ...
, mother of
Waltari. According to some historians (Josef PoulÃk), he was buried on
Žuráň hill, however, modern historians are not certain about it.
See also
*
Family tree of the Lombard kings, Wacho was a descendent of many later Lombard dynasties
Notes
References
*''
Origo Gentis Langobardorum''
539 deaths
6th-century Lombard monarchs
Lombard warriors
Lethings
Year of birth unknown
{{Italy-noble-stub