Barbaric Tribes

The Huns were a nomadic tribe that first popped up in China but move to Europe and establish the Hunnic Empire. One of their most famous rulers, Attilla the Hun, ruled from 434 to 453. He was also one of the most feared enemies of the Roman Empire. The Ostragoths are one of two branches of the “Goths” (the other would be the Visigoths). They established a kingdom under Theodoric, the Great. The Visigoths as I mentioned earlier, are the other branch of the “Goths.” They invaded and defeated the Roman Empire in 378 at the Battle of Adrianople. They fell away from Rome then established their own kingdom. The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that dwelt in Africa. There, they established their own kingdom, which included the Roman Africa province. On top of that, they were also successful in conquering the city of Rome itself.  You may have heard of the Franks, because they made themselves a home in Gaul (present day France). In fact, France is actually derived from “Franks.” The Franks are sort of like us Americans because they did what they wanted, some looted Roman territory, while others joined Rome in Gaul. The Angles and Saxons, or “Anglo-Saxons” as they are more commonly called, inhabited Britain. These barbarians settled down to form the English nation. They spoke what we now call “Old English.”