- Wallia
Wallia or Valia (in Spanish "Walia", in Portuguese "Vália") was king of the
Visigoths from 415 to 419, earning a reputation as a great warrior and prudent ruler. He was elected to the throne afterAthaulf and thenSigeric were assassinated in 415.Early on, Wallia made peace with Emperor Honorius and accepted a treaty with the
Roman Empire . He also returned Honorius' sisterGalla Placidia to him. As gains from these arrangements, Wallia was grantedAquitaine in 417 as a region where the Visigoths would be based as official allies or "foederati ". He established his court inToulouse , which became the Visigothic capital for the rest of the fifth century.In 418 he honored the alliance by invading
Hispania , where his army destroyed the SilingVandals and so reduced the numbers ofAlans living there that the survivors placed themselves under the rule ofGunderic , king of the Asding Vandals.Some historical sources say that he was related to Alaric only by marriage. He was succeeded by Alaric's illegitimate son Theodoric. Wallia's daughter was the mother of
Ricimer .External links
* [http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/g/g43d/chapter31.html Edward Gibbon, "History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," chapter 31]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.