Vadomarius
Vadomarius (German: Vadomar) was an Alemannic king and Roman general.
Life
The life of Vadomarius is documented by the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus. In 354, Vadomarius and his brother Gundomadus concluded a peace treaty with the Romans after having lost a battle against emperor Constantius II.
After Gundomadus was killed by his own people in 357, the Alemanni of northern Breisgau rose up against Roman rule. They were incited to do this by Constantius II, who sought to use the Alemanni against his enemy Julian. In 359, Julian crossed the Rhine near Mainz and concluded peace treaties with the Alemannic kings Vadomarius, Macrian, Hariobaudes, Urius, Ursicinus and Vestralpus.
In 360, Vadomarius attacked areas on the Rhaetian border. For many years he played Julian and Constantius skillfully against each other. At one point a message from Vadomarius to Constantius II was intercepted by Julian, and his double game was revealed. At a feigned friendship banquet in Julian's camp, Vadomarius was arrested and banished to Hispania.
From 363 to 364 Vadomarius had a distinguished career in the Roman army under emperor Jovian, rising to the position of dux of Phoenice. Due to his untrustworthy nature, Vadomarius however again lost his position. Under emperor Valens he fought as a general against the usurper Procopius in Bithynia and against the Persians in Mesopotamia.
Sources
- Thorsten Fischer: Vadomarius. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde (RGA). 2. Auflage. Band 35, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2007, ISBN 978-3-11-018784-7, S. 322–326.
- Dieter Geuenich: Die alemannischen Breisgaukönige Gundomadus und Vadomarius. In: Sebastian Brather, Dieter Geuenich, Christoph Huth (Hrsg.): Historia archaeologica. Festschrift für Heiko Steuer zum 70. Geburtstag (= Reallexikon der germanischen Altertumskunde. Ergänzungsbände. Band 70). de Gruyter, Berlin u. a. 2009, ISBN
- Dieter Geuenich: Geschichte der Alemannen (= Kohlhammer-Urban-Taschenbücher. 575). 2., überarbeitete Auflage. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-17-018227-7.