Suebi: Encyclopedia II - Suebi - Sueve kingdom of Gallaecia

Suebi - Sueve kingdom of Gallaecia

The Sueve kingdom in Gallaecia was established at 410 and lasted until 584 after a century of slow decline. Unlike the Ostrogoth kingdom of Italy or the Visigoth kingdom in Spain, it never reached major political relevance. Braulio of Zaragoza depicted it as the extremity of the west in an illiterate country where naught is heard but the sound of gales. Therefore very little remains from it and there are no traces left of their Germanic tongue as the Suebi quickly adopted the local Hispano-Roman language.

As in most german invasions, the number of the Suebic invaders is estimated to be small, -no more than 30,000 people- settling mainly in the areas of Braga (Bracara Augusta), Porto, Lugo (Lucus Augusta) and Astorga (Asturica Augusta). Bracara Augusta, the modern city of Braga and former capital of Roman Gallaecia, became the Capital of the Suebi.

In 438 Hermeric ratified the peace with the Hispano-Roman local population and, weary of fighting, abdicated in favour of his son Rechila.

The irruption of Visigoths in the Iberian Peninsula from 416 sent from Aquitania by the Emperor of the West to fight the Vandals and the Alans resulted into an ephemeral expansion of the Suebi Kingdom: At its heyday Suebic Gallaecia extended as far as Merida or Seville.

In 448 Rechila died, leaving the crown to his son Rechiarius who had converted to Roman Catholicism circa 447. Catholicism became official to the pagan Suebi and mostly Priscillianist population base, just to convert to Arianism few years later, under the rule of Remismund and to revert back to Catholicism again by the middle of the next century.

In 456 Rechiarius died after being defeated by the Visigoth king Theodoric II, and the Sueve glory began to fade. The Sueve kingdom got cornered to the hostile northwest and political division arose across the river Minius (Miño) with two different kings ruling in both sides of the river. Despite the Visigoths pressure, the Suebi maintained their nominal independence on the northwest until 584, when the Visigoth king Leovigild, dethroned Andeca, last king of the Suebi, in 585.

The Sueve Kingdom of Gallaecia should not be mistaken with the medieval kingdom of Galicia, which existed from 910 to 1070.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Sueve kingdom of Gallaecia", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki