Castinus' campaign against the Franks
Roman campaign against Ripuarian Franks in 420–421.
Last updated
Commanded by Flavius Castinus, the campaign took place in 420–421. It is notable as a late Roman effort to restore border security after the Rhine Crossing.
Course
By 419, Frankish tribes had crossed the Rhine border and plundered villages and lands, eventually besieging Augusta Treverorum (Trier). The imperial rulers in Ravenna prepared an army and entrusted its command to Castinus, a previously unknown soldier holding the rank of comes domesticorum. In 420 he crossed the Alps and led the army to northern Gaul.
Castinus relieved Trier and campaigned against the Franks through 421. His promotion to magister militum in 421 indicates the campaign was successfully completed. Castinus then returned to Ravenna when a political crisis arose between the western and eastern Roman Empire over the elevation of Constantius III to co-emperor, and a Vandal revolt in Spain required his attention.
Did You Know?
- The only surviving source for the campaign is Gregory of Tours, who used the lost works of Renatus Profuturus Frigeridus.
- A few years after the campaign, in 428, Trier was again attacked by Franks and put to ransom.
- The Franks later invaded Belgica Secunda and occupied territory to the Somme during a Roman civil war between 427 and 429.
More in Military Campaigns Involving the Roman Empire
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Castinus' campaign against the Franks (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced