Stilicho, Iron Hand of the Western Roman Empire

At daybreak on August 22nd AD 408, the great Ursiana Basilica of Ravenna echoed with the clank of armour as soldiers, led by an officer named Heraclianus, entered the Christian sanctuary. At the altar knelt a lone man: Stilicho, once the high general of the Western Roman Empire... now an outlaw.

When Heraclianus made to seize Stilicho, a bishop intervened. Heraclianus assured the bishop that they were not here to hurt Stilicho, only arrest him.

​Yet as soon as the soldiers marched Stilicho out of the church, Heraclianus produced a letter condemning him to death for 'crimes against the state' and drew his sword. Stilicho's friends tried to get involved, but Stilicho waved them back, then dropped to his knees and submitted his neck to the sword.

Stilicho's last moments.

With that, Stilicho, the iron hand that had shielded the ailing empire from countless rebellions and invasions for more than a decade... was gone. Gone to the swipe of a Roman sword. Has there ever been a greater case of self-injury? 

In this article, I will look at why Stilicho's valiant life came to such a disastrous end.

Stilicho, the 'Half-Vandal'

The Stilicho Diptych - colourised by Danilo Loginov.

Stilicho is often pejoratively characterised as a 'half-Vandal', owing to his parentage. His father was a Vandal cavalry office, but one who served the Roman Emperor Valens. Thus, he was most likely Romanised long before baby Stilicho was born - to his Roman bride.

Stilicho himself would have been indistinguishable amongst 'thoroughbred' Romans (if there even was such a thing). He looked Roman, served the empire and worshipped in the state-preferred Nicene Christian way.
​
His story ended in the Western Roman Empire, but it began in the Eastern half, where he served in the protectores (bodyguard) of Emperor Theodosius the Great. He was a soldier, but also a skilled negotiator. Indeed, in AD 386, challenged with the tricky partition of the long-contested Armenian territories that straddled the Roman-Persian borders, Theodosius entrusted Stilicho to travel to Sassanid Persia and take part in critical talks with the mighty Shapur II, King of Kings. His diplomatic efforts there were successful - the empire and Persian would remain at peace for the next forty years.

Perhaps it was this that convinced Theodosius to offer Stilicho the hand of his daughter, Serena. This was no small reward: marrying into the imperial line meant wealth and status for him and his children. A son, Eucherius, soon followed in AD 388, and two daughters, Maria and Thermantia, were not far behind.

His rise through the command ranks was rapid: first Commander of the Protectores, then Count of the Sacred Stables, then around 390, he became Magister Militum - one of a select handful of generals who oversaw the Eastern Empire's legions. Come 393 he rose to Magister Utriusque Militiae per Thracias (Master of Foot & Horse in the region of Thrace) - arguably the most important of the Eastern Empire's generals.

Death of an Emperor

His tactical skills would be put to the test when the two halves of the Roman Empire came to blows in a ruinous civil war. Across two days of bloody fighting in September AD 395 at the Battle of the Frigidus - a clash that settled the conflict in favour of the Eastern Empire - Stilicho distinguished himself. So much so that when - just a few months later - Emperor Theodosius lay on his death bed in Milan, riddled with dropsy, he apparently entrusted Stilicho with guardianship over his two boys. Arcadius, 17, was to sit on the Eastern throne while Honorius, 10, would rule the West. And Stilicho was to be guardian of both, and supreme commander of the armies.

"The Favourites of Emperor Honorius" by John William Waterhouse. The young emperor was rather feckless, and over interested in feeding his pet doves, at the expense of ruling his crumbling realm.

Bishop Ambrose of Milan corroborated the emperor's dying wish, but Stilicho's rivals contested it regardless. Rufinus, a loathsome, high-ranking official in the Eastern government, argued that guardianship over the boys did not mean regency, which he claimed Stilicho was angling for.

A game of political and military chess ensued, with Rufinus pulling the strings from behind Arcadius' throne in Constantinople and Stilicho from Honorius' side in Milan in the West. The empire's Visigothic allies became the pawns of this game, leading to their revolt under their king, Alaric.

Stilicho saw off Rufinus, and critics say he was behind the latter's assassination. Though none would argue that Rufinus was an innocent victim.

Days of War

Stilicho then campaigned against the Franks who had invaded in Gaul, his success in this campaign boosting the morale of the Western Army - threadbare since their defeat at the Frigidus. Next, in AD 397, he defeated Alaric and the Visigoths in Macedonia. Yet new rivals claimed he had 'let' Alaric escape with his life, and didn't have the empire's best interests at heart. 

In AD 398, he orchestrated a war against the Pictish aggression in Britannia. When Gildo of Africa revolted that same year, he quashed the rebellion. Come AD 400, he was appointed as consul - the highest civilian post, to match his supreme military status.

But criticism followed him like a cloud of flies. Some said he had never been to Britannia, and had simply sent some legions to wage war against the Picts. When the commander of the attack fleet sent to Africa drowned on the way back to Italy in suspicious circumstances, critics spread rumours that the culprit was a jealous Stilicho.

It is not hard to see why someone who has soared in both the martial and civilian arenas might draw continuing jealousy and criticism. It is also highly unlikely that someone presented with such wealth, fame and power, would not succumb to corruption of a certain degree. All we can say for sure is that, under Stilicho's guardianship, the Western Empire rode out a turbulent decade and a half.

King Alaric and his Visigoths enter Athens - one of his many conquests.

There followed the Gothic War of 401-403. First he broke the Visigothic siege of Milan, rescuing Emperor Honorius, trapped within. He followed this up by defeating Alaric again at the Battle of Pollentia, capturing the enemy leader's wife (whom he later returned, unharmed). A further victory over Alaric at Verona saw the Visigoths at last concede, and accept settlement in Pannonia.

But there was no let up in trouble. Radagaisus, King of a confederation of Goths, Sueves, Vandals and Alans broke through the imperial borders and plundered Gaul and northern Italy in a frenzy. Estimates of his force run as high as 400,000 strong (although this is highly unlikely).

Faced with a nonetheless immense host, Stilicho was forced to take desperate measures - enrolling slaves, hiring Huns and Alans of his own - to join the undermanned legions and form a defensive army. Springing Radagaisus when he was separated from his main force and on his way with a smaller detachment of warriors to raid an Italian town, Stilicho captured the enemy leader and executed him in view of his horde - who laid down their weapons. ​

​A Porous Land

​One consequence of all of Stilicho's efforts to contain the chaos inside the empire was a serious depletion of the border forces, who had necessarily been drawn into the trouble spots in the central provinces. Only the broad and dangerous waters of the River Rhine kept the baying tribes beyond out.

Until... one night in AD 406, the Rhine froze over. A huge confederation of barbarians crossed unopposed, devastating Gaul and triggering revolts there and in Britannia. The threadbare state Stilicho had held together for so long was unravelling. Worse, Alaric and the Visigoths once more rose in revolt, demanding gold in lieu of promises that had not been met. When Stilicho persuaded the Senate to give in to Alaric's demands, criticism was fierce - accusing Stilicho of toadying with the Goths to the detriment of the empire. His main rivals smelt opportunity…

An artist’s impression of Germanic barbarians crossing the Rhine in AD 406 by Zvonimir Grbasic, via Ancient History Encyclopedia.

Jealous Eyes

One sultry day in the summer of AD 408, Stilicho led his beleaguered Roman troops across the hot fields of northern Italy, answering a call from Emperor Honorius who wished to inspect the ranks.

They made camp near Ticinum (modern Pavia), buffed their armour and lined up for the emperor's assessment. When the emperor arrived, a figure stuck close to his side: Olympius, Magister Officiorum (Master of Offices). His role gave him great power and influence over the rather feckless emperor, who may or may not have been privy to what was about to happen.

At some signal from Olympius, men in Stilicho's ranks drew steel, then attacked and killed many of Stilicho's key subcommanders, including his right hand man, Chariobaudes - the one-time Duke of Mesopotamia and current Master of the Armies of Gaul.

Stilicho escaped the bloodbath and went into hiding. He must have been distraught; he had been the emperor's iron hand and guardian for more than thirteen years, ever since Honorius had been raised onto the throne aged just ten. So when he heard word that the emperor was seeking of truce and mediation, he rode to Ravenna to hold talks. No sooner had he arrived, than he realised it was another of Olympius' traps.

Ravenna's Ursiana Basilica.

Fleeing to the sanctuary of the Ursiana Basilica, he would soon find out, would not save him. So ended the life of Stilicho; protégé of Theodosius the Great; the iron hand that had shielded the Western Empire for decades against Alaric and the Visigoths; countless rebellions and tribal invasions.

What followed was a dark and violent time. A time when Attila and the mighty Huns would drive like a stake into the backs of the Germanic tribes and on into the very heart of the empire. A time in which the empire would need a new hero.

A young cadet would step into this void. His name... was Flavius Aetius.

Read all about the aftermath of Stilicho's death and Flavius' ascension, in... THE EAGLE & THE WOLF.

Gordon Doherty is the author of the AGE OF ATTILA series, set during the period about which you have just read.

Book 1 THE EAGLE & THE WOLF is available at all good bookstores!

Buy THE EAGLE & THE WOLF now!

References:

Stilicho: The Vandal who saved Rome, Ian Hughes
The Roman Empire at Bay (AD 180 - 395), David Potter
The Fall of the Roman Empire, Peter Heather
Historia Nova, Zosimus
The Panegyrics of Claudian
Codex Theodosianus