Читать книгу Western Civilization - Paul R. Waibel - Страница 49

After he deposed the last Roman emperor in the West, Romulus‐Augustulus, in 476, Odoacer ruled as King of Italy over a kingdom that included the Italian peninsula, Sicily (477), and the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea (480). Odoacer tried to preserve what was left of Roman civilization in his kingdom. He enjoyed the support of the Roman Senate, which continued in existence until c. 580. The fact that he remained at peace with the Roman Catholic Church, even though he was himself an Arian, testifies to his wisdom as a ruler. The Eastern Roman emperor, Zeno (425–491), granted Odoacer the title, “patrician.” The title was honorary. It was a means by which both the barbarian rulers and the Eastern Roman emperors could keep alive the myth of a united Roman Empire.

Encouraged by Zeno, Theodoric (454–526), King of the Ostrogoths, invaded Italy in 488. Odoacer's army was repeatedly defeated. When he took refuge in Ravenna in 489, Theodoric besieged the city. In February, 493, the bishop of Ravenna negotiated an agreement whereby Odoacer and Theodoric would rule jointly. Theodoric murdered Odoacer at a banquet to celebrate the agreement, and then proceeded to purge all of Odoacer's family and supporters.

Like Odoacer, Theodoric tried to preserve Roman civilization. Part of his plan was to establish justice for all of his subjects, which meant maintaining peace between the Roman population and the Goths (both Ostrogoths and Visigoths), and between the Trinitarian Christians (Roman Catholic) and the followers (mostly Goths) of the Arian heresy, while at the same time protecting his Jewish subjects. He reformed the laws so as to make them more equitable and repaired the old Roman aqueducts and buildings. Though he could neither read nor write, he encouraged learning.

It appears that Theodoric's aim was to civilize his own people within a Roman environment while maintaining peace among Italy's diverse population. In the end, he failed. The Italians (the native Roman population) were never reconciled to rule by the Ostrogoths, whom they saw as foreigners and worse, heretics. Between 535 and 554, the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (482–565) reconquered Italy in a vain attempt to reconstitute the Roman Empire in the West. The Goths were driven out across the Alps, while what was left of Roman civilization in Italy was destroyed. All Odoacer's and Theodoric's efforts to save Roman civilization in Italy came to naught in the end.