Flavius Sigisvultus (
fl. 427–448) was a general of the late
Western Roman Empire
The Western Roman Empire comprised the western provinces of the Roman Empire at any time during which they were administered by a separate independent Imperial court; in particular, this term is used in historiography to describe the period ...
.
He was sent in 427 to command the war in Africa against a rebellious general,
Bonifacius. Previous generals had been defeated by the latter. Sigisvultus may have been appointed ''
comes
''Comes'' ( ), plural ''comites'' ( ), was a Roman title or office, and the origin Latin form of the medieval and modern title "count".
Before becoming a word for various types of title or office, the word originally meant "companion", either i ...
Africae'', succeeding Bonifacius.
He seized
Hippo
The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant ...
and
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...
,
and as an
Arian himself, sent an Arian bishop, Maximinus, to dispute with
Augustine of Hippo in 427 or 428.
He presumably returned to Italy after relations between the Emperor and Bonifacius were restored in 429 or 430.
He served as
consul
Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...
in 437 with
Flavius Aetius
Aetius (also spelled Aëtius; ; 390 – 454) was a Roman general and statesman of the closing period of the Western Roman Empire. He was a military commander and the most influential man in the Empire for two decades (433454). He managed pol ...
. From either the same year or from 440 until 448, he was ''
magister utriusque militiae
(Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...
'' (though despite the title he remained under the command of Aetius), and organized defences 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 ...
. By 448 he had become a
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 ...
.
The name ''Sigisvultus'' is of German origin, and is also written ''Sigisvult'', ''Segisvultus'', or ''Sigisvuldus''.
He is also sometimes called ''Sigisvult the
Goth
A Goth is a member of the Goths, a group of East Germanic tribes. Two major political entities of the Goths were:
*Visigoths, prominent in Spanish history
*Ostrogoths, prominent in Italian history
Goth or Goths may also refer to:
* Goth (surname) ...
''.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigisvultus
Magistri militum
Imperial Roman consuls
5th-century Romans of Gothic descent
5th-century Arian Christians
5th-century Roman consuls
Gothic warriors
Patricii
Year of birth unknown
Year of death unknown