Marcomer (died after 392), also spelled Marcomeres, Marchomer, Marchomir, was a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...

leader (''dux'') in the late 4th century who invaded the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

in the year 388, when the usurper and leader of the whole of Roman

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

Magnus Maximus Magnus Maximus (; cy, Macsen Wledig ; died 8 August 388) was Roman emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 383 to 388. He usurped the throne from emperor Gratian in 383 through negotiation with emperor Theodosius I. He was made emperor in B ...

was surrounded in

Aquileia Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river ...

Theodosius I Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...

. The invasion is documented by

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Floren ...

who cited the now lost work of

Sulpicius Alexander Sulpicius Alexander (fl. late fourth century) was a Roman historian of Germanic tribes. His work is lost, but his ''Historia'' in at least four books is quoted by Gregory of Tours. It was perhaps a continuation of the ''Res gestae'' by Ammianus Ma ...

. According to this account Marcomer,

Sunno Sunno was a leader (dux) of the Franks in the late 4th century who invaded the Roman Empire in the year 388 when the usurper and leader of the whole of Roman Gaul, Magnus Maximus was surrounded in Aquileia by Theodosius I. The invasion is docume ...

and Genobaud invaded the Roman provinces

Germania Inferior Germania Inferior ("Lower Germania") was a Roman province from AD 85 until the province was renamed Germania Secunda in the fourth century, on the west bank of the Rhine bordering the North Sea. The capital of the province was Colonia Agripp ...

and

Gallia Belgica Gallia Belgica ("Belgic Gaul") was a province of the Roman Empire located in the north-eastern part of Roman Gaul, in what is today primarily northern France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, along with parts of the Netherlands and Germany. In 50 BC, a ...

in Gaul. They broke through the

limes Limes may refer to: * the plural form of lime (disambiguation) Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a ...

, killed many people, destroyed the most fruitful lands and made the city of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

panic. After this raid, the main body of the Franks moved back over the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

with their booty. Some of the Franks remained in the Belgian wood called "Silva Carbonaria". When the Roman generals

, Nanninus and Quintinus heard the news in

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

, they attacked those remaining Frankish forces near the Silva Carbonaria and killed many of them. After this engagement, Quintinus crossed the Rhine to punish the Franks in their own country, however his army was surrounded and beaten. Some Roman soldiers drowned in the marshes, others were killed by Franks; few made it back to the Empire. Nanninus and Quintinus were replaced by Charietto and Syrus, who were again confronted by an attack of unidentified Franks. Later, after the 388 fall of Magnus Maximus, Marcomer and Sunno held a short meeting about the recent attacks with the Frank Arbogastes, who was a general (''magister militum'') in the Roman army. The Franks delivered hostages as usual, and Arbogastes returned to his winter quarters in Trier. A couple of years later when Arbogastes had seized power and the West Roman army was dominated by Frankish officers, he crossed the Rhine with a Roman army into Germania. Marcomer was seen as leader with

Chatti The Chatti (also Chatthi or Catti) were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser (''Visurgis''). They lived in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of that river and in the val ...

and

Ampsivarii The Ampsivarii, sometimes referenced by modern writers as Ampsivari (a simplification not warranted by the sources), were a Germanic tribe mentioned by ancient authors. Their homeland was originally around the middle of the river Ems, which fl ...

but the two did not engage. Later we hear from the poet

Claudian Claudius Claudianus, known in English as Claudian (; c. 370 – c. 404 AD), was a Latin poet associated with the court of the Roman emperor Honorius at Mediolanum (Milan), and particularly with the general Stilicho. His work, written almost e ...

that Marcomer was captured by Romans and exiled to a villa in Tuscany. His brother

crossed the Rhine and tried to become leader of the band of Marcomer, but was killed by his own people. According to the later ''

Liber Historiae Francorum ''Liber Historiae Francorum'' ( en, link=no, "The Book of the History of the Franks") is a chronicle written anonymously during the 8th century. The first sections served as a secondary source for early Franks in the time of Marcomer, giving a ...

'', Marcomer was a descendant of the Trojans and a son of a king called

Priam In Greek mythology, Priam (; grc-gre, Πρίαμος, ) was the legendary and last king of Troy during the Trojan War. He was the son of Laomedon. His many children included notable characters such as Hector, Paris, and Cassandra. Etymology ...

. The Liber also relates that Marcomer tried to unite the Franks after the death of Sunno. He proposed that the Franks should live under one king and proposed his own son

Pharamond Pharamond, also spelled Faramund, is a legendary early king of the Franks, first referred to in the anonymous 8th-century ''Liber Historiae Francorum'', which depicts him as the first king of the Franks. Historical sources and scholarship Pharam ...

(whose earliest mention is in this work, and who is considered legendary by scholars) for the kingship. This source does not relate whether Marcomer succeeded, but from other later sources that recall the account of ''Liber Historiae Francorum'', the impression may be gained that Pharamond was regarded as the first king of the Franks. However, modern scholars, such as Edward James, do not accept this account in the ''Liber Historiae Francorum'' as historical.

Sources

, ''Historia Francorum,'' Book II, paragraph 9. *

, Loeb Classical Library, ''On

Stilicho Flavius Stilicho (; c. 359 – 22 August 408) was a military commander in the Roman army who, for a time, became the most powerful man in the Western Roman Empire. He was of Vandal origins and married to Serena, the niece of emperor Theodosiu ...

's Consulship'' (translation Platnauer) *Edward James, ''The Franks''

Sources

See also