On the last day of 406, according to the chronicler Prosper of Aquitaine, a vast coalition of Vandals, Alans and Suebi crossed the frozen Rhine at Mainz and poured into Gaul, with the frontier garrisons reduced because Stilicho had withdrawn troops to defend Italy against the Goths. The invaders plundered Gaul for three years and then moved into Spain in 409; the Vandals crossed to North Africa in 429 and founded a kingdom there. The crossing marks the effective end of Roman control over the north-western provinces, and the start of the barbarian kingdoms.
Before and after
- 5th centuryOrigins of Monastery of Stoudios
- 5th centuryConstruction of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore
- 5th centuryConstruction of San Pietro in Vincoli
- July 403 CESynod of the Oak
- 31 December 406 CEThe Vandals, Alans and Suebi cross the Rhine
- from 408 CE to 670 CEHephthalites
- 24 August 410 CEAlaric and the Visigoths sack Rome
- from 420 CE to 589 CENorthern and Southern dynasties
- 25 March 421 CEFounding of Venice
More in Wars, politics & history
- from 149 BCE to 146 BCEThird Punic War
- from 58 BCE to 51 BCEGallic War
- 49 BCECaesar defeats Pompey at Pharsalus
- from 66 CE to 74 CEFirst Jewish-Roman War
- from June 68 CE to December 69 CEYear of the Four Emperors
- 476 CEFall of the western Roman Empire
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 5th century.