‘A man of deep thought and few words’ is how the chronicler Jordanes described Gaiseric (born AD c.389), King of the Vandals. ‘He holds luxury in disdain, is furious in his anger, greedy for gain, shrewd in winning over the barbarians and skilled in sowing the seeds of discord among his enemies.’
As a young man of 20, Gaiseric won a following among the aristocrats who hunted and raided alongside his royal father – but Gaiseric was illegitimate, his mother one of the king’s concubines. On the king’s death, it was announced he had wished his eldest legitimate son, Gontharis, to succeed to his power. To pass him over could split the tribe in bitter rivalry.
‘But Gontharis was still a child,’ wrote the historian Procopius, ‘and not of very energetic temper, whereas Gaiseric had been excellently trained in warfare and was the cleverest of all men.’ Many accepted this and, sometime in 428, the boy Gontharis was removed, making Gaiseric undisputed ruler of the Vandals.
