Rehila

Entry to the throne

In 438, Hermerich, who had long been ill, made his co-ruler, giving him the title of king, his son Rehil ^[1] . The appearance of the two kings is not a trace of the diarchy allegedly once existed among the barbarians, but is explained by Hermerich's practical inability to rule over the Swedes. There is no information that this act of the king caused any resistance or even simple dissatisfaction with the Suevian aristocracy and the ordinary soldiers, and this indicates the undoubted strengthening of royal power. Three years later, in 441 , Hermerich died, and Rehila became the only king of the Suevs ^{[2] [3]} .

New stage of the Svex expansion

Under Rehil, a new stage of the Svetsky expansion began, which had as its ultimate goal the conquest of the entire Iberian Peninsula . Immediately upon assuming the throne, King Rehila embarked on a predatory campaign in Betika and in early March 438 at the Syngillion River (a tributary of the Guadalquivir ) defeated a certain Anduvot and seized much gold and silver from him ^{[1] [4]} . Who is this Andevot is not exactly known. Perhaps he headed part of the vandals who remained in Bettik and who did not cross with the rest to Africa. The opinion was expressed that we are talking about a Roman commander or landowner, although judging from his name it is unlikely. In any case, he was quite rich and had his own troops, with whom he could resist the Svevsky king.

In 439, Rehila captured Merida and practically made it his residence ^[5] . In 440, the city ​​of Mertola on the Guadiana was besieged and surrendered (the only known from historical sources episode of a successful siege in the history of the Suevs) and the Censory committee was captured there, and, as Idaziy especially noted, the Svovs and the Romans were in peace at that time ^{[6 ]} . In 441, Seville was occupied. Then, according to Idatsiyu, the Swedes captured the provinces of Betik and Carthage Spain ^[7] . The seizure of Rehil Betika and Carthaginian Spain meant that practically the entire Iberian Peninsula, except for Tarracona Spain , came under the rule of the Suevs. The possessions of the Suevs now virtually coincided with the territory of that part of Spain, which in 411 was seized by the barbarians and divided among them by lot. Thus, all the previous successes of the Romans, including the departure of the Vandals from Spain, were nullified, and their possessions were again confined to the northeastern part of the peninsula - the province of Tarracona Spain. Although it is possible that the alleged seizure of the Carthage province was probably a speculation Idatsia, who did not know enough about the events in Eastern Spain, especially in its coastal part. From a few credible facts we can conclude that the Suevs, although they occupied the inner part of this vast province, could hardly have captured its Mediterranean coast. There is not even information that the city of Cartagena , the main city of this province, passed to them. Nevertheless, the barbarians, of course, seized part of the Cartagena province, probably its western and central parts, since Idaziy could not be completely mistaken. Isidore of Seville also says that Rehila captured the province of Carthage ^[8] , but clarifies that he was forced to return it to the Romans ^[9] .

It is not known how Rehile managed to enter Merida in 439 , and in Seville in 441 , because the Germans did not know how to take the city by storm. Meanwhile, these were serious victories, since both of these cities were the capitals of the provinces of Lusitania and Betik respectively. Since these cities were in the hands of the Suevs, they, no doubt, kept the Roman administration of both provinces under control. Therefore, there is no reason to doubt that the province of Betik completely belonged to the Swedes. Thus, at the beginning of the 440s, the Sueva gained full control over the southern, western and central parts of the Iberian Peninsula .

Romans push back to the east coast of Spain

It is possible that the eastern part of the Cartagena province remained free, but the only province completely free from the presence of the Suevs was Tarrakona Spain in the northeast, directly south of the Pyrenees , covered by unrest of luggage , which included the Ebro valley. Perhaps this region, as well as most of the Mediterranean coast, was still in the hands of the Romans. If they had fallen, the whole Iberian Peninsula would have been ruled by the Suevs.

Romans attempt to regain lost territory

The Roman government, of course, did not want so simply to put up with the seizure of their lands. Within five years it sent three military leaders to Spain — three army masters . Two of them, Asturias, which appeared in Spain in the turning point of 441 , the year of the fall of Seville , and Merobaud, who arrived after him, could not advance beyond the borders of the Tarracona province . The reason for this was that they fought against the baggage ^[10] . Only five years later, in the year 446 , Wit, the third of the masters sent to Spain in this decade, with a large army and with auxiliary troops moved to the Carthaginian province and Betika. The Romans clearly lacked their strength and they were forced to seek help from the Visigoths. When this army was confronted with the army of King Rehily, the Visigoths who took part in this campaign only for the purpose of robbery, covered with shameful fear, fled. Wit was completely crushed, and the Swedes returned from these provinces with great loot ^[11] . Army Vita was almost the last actual Roman army sent to Spain. After its defeat, the Romans did not send more of their forces to the Iberian Peninsula.

Also, the Roman government may have tried to use the Vandals to fight the Sueves. In any case, Idacius notes that in 445, the Vandals sailed to the Atlantic coast of Spain and plundered Turonia, one of the Galician cities ^[12] . Although, it is more likely that it was only one of the predatory raids of the Vandals. With a strong fleet, they managed to reach the shores of Galicia. They obviously did not intend to settle there, but received rather large booty, including slaves.

Rehily's Death

The power of the Suevs at Rehil reached its highest point, and even so it was not entirely clear whether it was possible to say that they had firmly seized the captured lands. Rehila died in August 448 in Merida . He was succeeded by his son Rehiar. ^[13] The Svevov clearly affirms a hereditary monarchy. ^{[14] [15]}

• Thompson, E. A. Romans and Barbarians. Fall of the Western Empire / Per. from English T. O. Ponomareva; by ed. M. Ye. Kilunovskaya. - SPb. : Yuventa Publishing House, 2003. - 288 p. - ISBN 5-8739-9140-5 .
• Cirkin Yu. B. Antique and Early Medieval Sources on the History of Spain. - SPb. : Faculty of Philology of St. Petersburg State University; Publishing house of S.-Petersburg. University, 2006. - 360 p. - 1000 copies - ISBN 5-8465-0516-3 , ISBN 5-288-04094-X .
• Tsirkin Yu. B. Spain from antiquity to the Middle Ages. - SPb. : Faculty of Philology of St. Petersburg State University ; Nestor History, 2010. - 456 p. - 700 copies - ISBN 978-5-98187-528-1 .
• Western Europe . // The rulers of the world. Chronological genealogical tables on world history in 4 vols. / Compiled by V. V. Erlikhman . - T. 2.

• Foundation for Medieval Genealogy. Rehila