Feletey

The main historical source that illuminates the life of Feletheus is “The Life of St. Severin ”, written by Evippi at the beginning of the VI century. Information about his rule is also contained in other early medieval sources. Among them: the chronicles of Cassiodorus and John of Antioch , the continuation of the chronicles of Prosper of Aquitaine and the “ History of the Lombards ” by Paul Deacon ^[1] .

Feletheus was the eldest son of the king of rugs Flaccifeus . Feva - the name that is mentioned by some medieval authors - was a diminutive version of his full name. Even during the life of his father, about 470 years old, he married the remnant of Guizot, probably the cousin of Theodoric the Great ^{[2] [3]} . After the death of King Flaccipheus, Feletaeus inherited the throne of rugs. The exact date of this event is unknown: it is believed that this could have happened about 475 years ^{[2] [4]} , in any case, no later than 482 years ^{[1] [5]} .

During the reign of Feletus, his possessions occupied the territory north of the Danube, from Favianis to Boyodurum (modern Passau ). It is known that at that time the kingdom of rugs extended its sphere of influence to part of the former Roman province of Coastal Norik , and also controlled the land between the Vienna Forest and Enns ^[1] . The royal residence was located on the site of the modern city of Krems an der Donau ^[6] . Feletei gave Favianis to his brother Ferderuh ^{[7] [8]} . This was the first time in history when a German king gave someone a Roman city ^[9] .

Most of the reign of Feletaeus, as well as his father, maintained allied relations with Odoacer . Historical sources mention that in 476 squads of rugs participated in the overthrow of the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus . This fact was reflected in the information of modern events of sources that called Odoacra not only the leader of the Heruls and Skirs , but also the king of the rugs ^[10] . It is assumed that the Danube Rugs at that time were dependent on the ruler of Italy ^[11] , possibly comparable with the status of the Roman federations ^[12] .

Although Feletheus was an Arian , even before receiving the throne, he had established good relations with the abbot - the Nicene Severin Noriksky ^[1] . Feletheus, his wife Guizot and brother Ferderuch repeatedly visited this saint. Despite the fact that, until his death, Severin Feletey showed great respect for him, his wife, a convinced Arian, Guizot, was very hostile to the activities of the saint. At least one unsuccessful attempt by Guizot to cross-over the Nicene settlers into Arianism is known. In The Life of St. Severin, it is reported that the cruelty of the queen caused a revolt among the court slaves: the captive jewelers, having seized the royal son of Frederick , threatened to kill him if they were not granted freedom. Guizot had to agree to this, and then personally express her respect to Severin, thanks to the prayers of which her son was saved from death ^{[13] [14]} .

Taking advantage of the complete disorganization of the authorities in Norik , Feletei tried to expand his possessions on the southern bank of the Danube. Under the pretext of a threat to Lavriac (present-day Linz ) by the Thuringians and Alemanni, the ruler of the rugs intended to capture this large city, where there were numerous refugees. Feletheus wanted to take the citizens into his domain and settle them there as royal tributaries. Although Severin managed to persuade the king to refuse to relocate and to give local residents under his protection ^[15] , this did not save the citizens from the obligation to pay tributes ^{[4] [16]} .

Dying in 482, Severin Noriksky summoned Feletheus and Guizot to him and gave them the last instructions. However, after the death of the saint, the brother of the king of rugov Ferderuh looted the monastery in which he labored, having stolen from him all the jewelry and church utensils ^{[4] [8] [17]} .

When Odoacer attempted to support the enemy Flavius ​​Zenon Ill in 486 or 487, the Byzantine emperor managed to persuade Feletheus to break off his alliance with the ruler of Italy and begin preparations for the invasion of the rugs on the Apennine Peninsula ^[18] . The first victim of the conflict was a peace supporter with Odoacer Ferderuch: under the pretext of revenge for the sack of the monastery of St. Severin, he was killed by his nephew Frederich ^{[8] [12] [19]} . In response, in the fall of 487, Odoacer made a trip to Norik and defeated the Rug army near the Vienna Woods ^[20] . Feletheus and Guizot were captured near the Danube, brought to Italy and executed there ^{[1] [11] [12] [21] [22]} . After another campaign, undertaken in 488 by the brother of Odoacr Gunulf , the Danube state of rugs was finally destroyed. The remnants of the rugs led by Frederick joined the Ostrogoths, recognizing the power of Theodorich the Great ^{[4] [12]} . Later, when in 493 the king of the Ostrogoths killed Odoacre, he justified his act in revenge for the execution of his relatives Feletheus and Guizot ^{[23] [24]} .

• Tsukernik Ya. I. "Life of St. Severin." Historical restoration. - Fund "WORD", 1997. - 214 p.
• Wolfram H. Gotha. - SPb. : Juventa , 2003 .-- 656 p. - ISBN 5-87399-142-1 .
• Thompson E.A. Romans and Barbarians. The fall of the Western Empire . - SPb. : Juventa Publishing House, 2003. - 288 p. - ISBN 5-8739-9140-5 .
• Feletey // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.