Late Roman Empire, Non-dynastic (455-476) (W) and the Leonid Dynasty (457-518) (E): 86 Libius Severus

86 LIBIUS SEVERUS (c.45; r.461-465) (W)

On Majorian’s death two of his lieutenants, Aegidius and Marcellinus (fl.454-468), refused to recognise Ricimer’s new figurehead. Marcellinus established himself in Dalmatia until he was killed in Sicily, while Aegidius took control of northern Gaul where he created a Roman rump state later known as the Soissons Kingdom (461-486). To the west Britons fleeing from the Saxons had established themselves in Armorica; to the east was Childeric-I (41/42; r.457-481/482) and his Salian Franks; and to the south was Theodoric II and the Visigoths.

Gaiseric’s fleets controlled the Mediterranean and every spring he raided the coastal towns of Italy, Sicily, Spain, the Peloponnese and the Greek islands until 462 when he concluded a treaty with Leo and thereafter confined his activities to the western Mediterranean. 

Thus, although Ricimer was effectively the ruler of the Western Empire his authority scarcely extended beyond the Italian borders. In 463 he defeated a band of Alani who invaded Italy, killing their king Beorgor in a battle near Bergomum (=Bergamo), but he could do nothing to counter the raids of the Vandals. Ricimer sought help from Constantinople to replace the ships lost at Lucentum but Leo, apparently angered by the killing of Majorian, had refused to recognize Severus and now said that his treaty with Gaiseric prevented him from helping to restore the Western fleet.

In 462 Agrippinus (fl.451-451), who had replaced Aegidius as magister militum per Gallias, gave the city of Narbonne to the Theodoric and he probably took most of Gallia Narbonensis (I) Prima as well. After campaigning with some success in Spain he attempted to overthrow Aegidius who, possibly with the help of his ally Childeric, defeated Theodoric’s army and killed his brother Frederic near Orleans. 

In early 464 Gaiseric sent troops to annex Corsica and Sardinia. In May he received an embassy from Aegidius, presumably to present a proposal for a joint attack on Italy. Later in the year, however, Aegidius was killed, leaving his kingdom to his son Syagrius (56/57; r.464-486). In the same year Theodoric recognized Remismund (r.464-469) as the king in Galicia by sending him gifts, including weapons, and a Gothic princess for a wife. Two years later Theodoric was assassinated and succeeded by his brother Euric (c.44; r.466-484).

In August 465 Libius Severus died, apparently of natural causes. After his death the Western throne remained vacant for some twenty months. Ricimer, conscious of how much he needed the support of Constantinople, was perhaps wary of promoting another nonentity and upsetting Leo. Gaiseric was supporting the claim of the future emperor Anicius Olybrius (41; fl.455-472), husband of Valentinian III’s other daughter, Galla Placidia Valentiniana (41/5; fl.454/5-c.484). Probably in an effort to intimidate Leo into supporting the promotion of Olybrius, in 466 Gaiseric renewed his attacks on Greece.

Ricimer, hard pressed as he was by the Vandals, was willing to make concessions to Leo in return for naval and military support. He eventually accepted Leo’s choice as emperor, the distinguished general ⁷¹Flavius Procopius Anthemius (c.52; fl.453-472) whose father Procopius had been the magister militum per Orientem (422-424).

Anthemius marched west with a substantial army and was proclaimed augustus at Rome in April 467. At around the same time a joint military force of the Western and Eastern empires sailed westwards under the command of the future emperor ⁷²Flavius Basiliscus (fl.463-476), the brother of Leo’s empress Aelia Verina (fl.457-484).