The Visigoths, following their sack of Rome in 410, eventually coexist peacefully with the Romans, farming and trading agricultural products and enslaved people for luxury goods.

They adopt many elements of Roman culture, some becoming literate in Latin.

The Western Roman Empire wields negligible military, political, or financial power by the time that the barbarian general Odoacer deposes the Emperor Romulus in 476, and has no effective control over the scattered Western domains that still describe themselves as Roman.

The Western Empire's legitimacy will last for centuries and its cultural influence remains today, but it will never have the strength to rise again.

Alaric has endeavored strictly to maintain the treaty which his father had concluded with the Franks.

The Frankish king Clovis I, however, desirous of obtaining the Gothic province in Gaul, finds a pretext for war in Alaric’s Arianism.

The intervention of Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths and father-in-law of Alaric, proves unavailing.

As a consequence of their defeat at Vouillé, the Visigoths lose all their possessions in Gaul to the Franks, except Septimania (i.e.

the western region of Gallia Narbonensis, which includes the contemporary Arles and the Provence).

The Franks capture Toulouse.

Alaric is succeeded by his eldest son, the illegitimate Gesalec, because his legitimate son Amalaric is still a child.

Gesalec establishes his residence at Narbonne and is supported by an alliance with the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great.

Clovis’s defeat of the Visigoths at Vouillé in 507 extends Frankish rule to the whole southern region of Aquitaine, including Poitou and Saintonge, to the Pyrenees.

He now controls all of Gaul except Burgundy, Provence, and Septimania.

Gundobad and the Frankish-Visigothic Conflict at Vouillé (507 CE)

As tensions between Clovis I of the Franks and Alaric II of the Visigoths escalate, efforts are made to prevent war. King Theoderic the Great, ruler of the Ostrogoths, sends letters to several monarchs, including Gundobad, king of the Burgundians, urging peace and offering to mediate between Clovis and Alaric.

Despite these diplomatic efforts, war proves inevitable, culminating in the Battle of Vouillé (507 CE).

Gundobad's Alleged Support for Clovis

• According to Isidore of Seville, Gundobad supports Clovis at Vouillé, though it is unclear whether this support is military or diplomatic.
• The Burgundians and the Franks had been traditional rivals, but Clovis may have secured an alliance with Gundobad, either through mutual interest or the threat of Visigothic expansion.
• If Gundobad assisted Clovis, it suggests that Burgundy preferred Frankish rule over Visigothic control of Gaul.

Armorican Support for Clovis

• Clovis appears to have secured the backing of the Armoricans, a coalition of:
  • Gallo-Romans
  • Alans (Iranian steppe warriors settled by Rome)
  • Bretons (Romano-British refugees in Armorica)
• These groups, already resisting Visigothic dominance, help Clovis defeat the Visigoths and expand Frankish power.

The Battle of Vouillé and Its Aftermath

• In 507 CE, Clovis and Alaric II meet in battle at Vouillé, near Poitiers.
• Clovis achieves a decisive victory, and Alaric II is slain, allegedly by Clovis himself.
• The Visigoths retreat into Hispania, effectively losing control over Gaul, except for a small foothold in Septimania.
• Most of Aquitaine is annexed into the Frankish kingdom, making Clovis the dominant ruler in Gaul.

Consequences of the Battle

• The Visigoths are permanently confined to Spain, where they establish a new capital in Toledo.
• Clovis’ new territory nearly doubles his kingdom, extending Frankish control south to the Pyrenees.
• This victory cements Clovis’ status as the most powerful ruler in post-Roman Western Europe.

By aligning with Gundobad and securing the support of the Armoricans, Clovis strengthens his realm, setting the stage for the Frankish Kingdom to become the dominant power in medieval Europe.