Asterius ( 419–422) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

general who obtained the title of ''comes Hispaniarum'' in which capacity he participated in an important military expedition against the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The Vandals migrated to the area betw ...

who had established themselves in the north of

Gallaecia Gallaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province in the north-west of Hispania, approximately present-day Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Norte, Portugal, northern Portugal, Asturias and León (province), Leon and the lat ...

. He was also able to defeat the usurper,

Maximus of Hispania Maximus was a Roman usurper (409 – 411) in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, modern Spain and Portugal). He had been elected by general Gerontius, who might have been his father. Relations between the usurper Constantine III and his general Gero ...

who had taken refuge with the barbarian tribes there. Due to his military prowess and his considerable amount of battlefield victories, he was given the title of

Patrician Patrician may refer to: * Patrician (ancient Rome), the original aristocratic families of ancient Rome, and a synonym for "aristocratic" in modern English usage * Patrician (post-Roman Europe), the governing elites of cities in parts of medieval ...

in 422.

Campaign in Hispania

After the victories of

Wallia Wallia or Walha ( Spanish: ''Walia'', Portuguese ''Vália''), ( 385 – 418) was king of the Visigoths from 415 to 418, earning a reputation as a great warrior and prudent ruler. He was elected to the throne after Athaulf and then Sigeric were ...

in the campaigns of 416 and 418, the defeated

Alans The Alans (Latin: ''Alani'') were an ancient and medieval Iranian nomadic pastoral people of the North Caucasus – generally regarded as part of the Sarmatians, and possibly related to the Massagetae. Modern historians have connected the A ...

and

Silingi The Silings or Silingi ( la, Silingae; grc, Σιλίγγαι – ) were a Germanic tribe, part of the larger Vandal group. The Silingi at one point lived in Silesia, and the names ''Silesia'' and ''Silingi'' may be related.Jerzy Strzelczyk, "Wan ...

took refuge with the

Hasdingi The Hasdingi were one of the Vandal peoples of the Roman era. The Vandals were Germanic peoples, who are believed to have spoken an East Germanic language, and were first reported during the first centuries of the Roman empire in the area which is ...

who were established in the coastal areas of

, north of the

Minho River The Minho ( , ) or Miño ( , , ; cel-x-proto, Miniu) is the longest river in Galicia, sharing the border with Portugal, with a length of . By discharge, it is the fourth river of the Iberian peninsula, after the Douro, Ebro, and Tagus. The Min ...

. The Vandals, needing new territories to place their newly acquired populations, expanded to the south and blocked their neighbors, the Suebi at the

Battle of the Nervasos Mountains The Battle of the Nervasos Mountains (Spanish: Batalla de los Montes Nervasos) occurred in the year 419 and was fought between a coalition of Suebi, led by King Hermeric together with allied Roman Imperial forces stationed in the Province of H ...

of 419. In 419, Asterius was sent as ''comes Hispaniarum'' with a powerful Roman army to finish retaking the territories occupied by the barbarian invaders in

Hispania Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hisp ...

and to put down the second uprising of

. In 419, a Frontón priest accused several important families, including that of Asterius of

Priscillianism Priscillianism was a Christian sect developed in the Iberian Peninsula under the Roman Empire in the 4th century by Priscillian. It is derived from the Gnostic doctrines taught by Marcus, an Egyptian from Memphis. Priscillianism was later cons ...

, which forced him to travel to

Tarraco Tarraco is the ancient name of the current city of Tarragona (Catalonia, Spain). It was the oldest Roman settlement on the Iberian Peninsula. It became the capital of the Roman province of Hispania Citerior during the period of the Roman Republi ...

to defend his family against the allegations. Later in the same year, Asterius was in Tarraco, where he established his

Praetorium The Latin term (also and ) originally identified the tent of a general within a Roman castrum (encampment), and derived from the title praetor, which identified a Roman magistrate.Smith, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, 2 ed., ...

and gathered an army to commence a military campaign in

. He came to the aid of a Suebi army which was surrounded by the Vandals, defeating them at the

. He was unable to prevent a large body of the enemy from retreating to

Hispania Baetica Hispania Baetica, often abbreviated Baetica, was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula). Baetica was bordered to the west by Lusitania, and to the northeast by Hispania Tarraconensis. Baetica remained one of the basic di ...

, a move which ultimately came out in Asturias' favor. A year later in 420, Asterius' campaign forced the Vandals to retreat south where they were intercepted at Bracara Augusta by the ''

vicarius ''Vicarius'' is a Latin word, meaning ''substitute'' or ''deputy''. It is the root of the English word "vicar". History Originally, in ancient Rome, this office was equivalent to the later English " vice-" (as in "deputy"), used as part of th ...

'', Maurocelus. The two Roman armies attacked the Vandals from both sides, decisively defeating them. In 421, Asterius was called to

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the ca ...

after the elevation of Constantius III as emperor. He was named a

. One source suggests he held the office of ''magister militum''; other sources dispute this, but acknowledge that another Hispano-Roman magister militum is recorded as having fought the Bacaudae of Tarraconensis in 441. It is conceivable that one Asterius had been taken for the other. Other sources also speculate that the two may have been related as the number of Imperial officials from Hispania recorded in contemporary chronicles drops off considerably during this time.

References

Bibliography

* {{DISPLAYTITLE:Asterius (''comes Hispaniarum'') 4th-century Romans 5th-century Romans Comites rei militaris Patricii Western Roman generals