Introduction: The Goths

The Goths were a Germanic people who played a significant role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the rise of medieval Europe. They were first mentioned by Greco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, and at that time lived north of the Danube, in what is now Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania. These areas can be associated with the Chernyakhov culture, an archaeological culture that flourished in the 3rd and 4th century AD. From this region, they attacked Roman territories. Many also served in the Roman army.

According to the historian Jordanes, who wrote in the 6th century, the Goths were originally from Scandinavia. Under the leadership of King Berig, they are said to have migrated to the area around the mouth of the Vistula, which was called Gothiscandza.

Archaeological evidence, such as the Wielbark culture (1st century AD) in present-day Poland, supports the idea of a Scandinavian origin of the Goths. This culture, characterized by specific burial rituals and stone circles, was closely connected to Scandinavia. Recent DNA research suggests that the culture arose through migrations from southern Scandinavia. The majority of the genetic samples have a clear Scandinavian profile and contain Y-DNA haplogroups that are typical for Scandinavia. The most common Y-DNA haplogroup among the Wielbark individuals is I1-M253. This haplogroup was characteristic of the Nordic Bronze Age in southern Scandinavia, where this haplogroup was prevalent and first spread.

In his Geography (150 AD), Ptolemy describes the Gythones (Goths) as a people living east of the Vistula River in Sarmatia, between the Veneti and the Fenni. He also mentions a people called the Gutae in southern Scandinavia. These Gutae are probably later referred to by Procopius as the Gauti. 

According to modern historians, such as Herwig Wolfram, the Gythones and the Gutae may have been closely related and possibly had a common origin.

From the middle of the 2nd century, the Wielbark culture shifted southeast towards the Black Sea. During this migration, the Goths partly displaced and absorbed the Przeworsk culture. This movement was part of a broader southward migration of East Germanic tribes, likely driven by population growth. This put pressure on other tribes, contributing to the Marcomannic Wars and potentially leading to the recruitment of the Wielbark Goths into the Roman army around 200 AD. The preservation of the Gothic language during the migration suggests that a significant number of people were involved in this movement. 

According to Jordanes, the Goths, led by King Filimer, moved to Oium, a part of Scythia, where they defeated the Spali. This event is partly supported by archaeological evidence. 

Around the middle of the 3rd century AD, the Wielbark culture led to the formation of the Chernyakhov culture, a uniform society that stretched from the Danube to the Don. This culture was dominated by the Goths but also contained Iranian, Dacian, Roman, and probably Proto-Slavic elements.

In the 3rd century, the Goths, along with other tribes such as the Heruli, began large-scale raids. The sources are unclear about the precise dating of these events. The Goths raided cities like Byzantium and Athens and invaded the Balkans.

The troops of Emperor Gallienus defeated the Goths at sea and in Thrace. Gallienus was murdered in 268 and succeeded by Claudius II. He defeated the Alamanni in Italy and then focused on Gothic invasions in the Balkans. During a battle in 269 near Naissus, thousands of Goths were killed or captured. This ensured the survival of the Roman Empire for another two centuries.

In the late 3rd century, two Gothic kingdoms emerged, the Tervingi in the west and the Greuthingi in the east. The border of both Gothic kingdoms was formed by the Dniester and Prut rivers.

The Greuthingi conquered large territories under their king Ermanaric, who according to some historians ruled an empire that extended from the Baltic Sea to the Urals. This area was inhabited not only by Germanic peoples but also by Balts, Slavs, Alans, and Sarmatians. Archaeological evidence suggests that the influence of the Chernyakhov culture extended beyond the core area.

In 332, the Tervingi were recognized as foederati: allies of the Roman Empire who fought in exchange for land and other benefits.

In the 4th century, tensions arose among the Tervingi, possibly leading to a civil war. The leader Athanaric persecuted Christians around 370, while Fritigern converted to Christianity and gained support from the Roman Emperor Valens. It appears that Fritigern won this conflict.

From 376, the territories of the Goths in Ukraine were overrun by the westward migration of the Alans and the Huns. The kingdom of the Greuthungi was conquered. Many Goths sought refuge at the Roman border near the Lower Danube. Fritigern asked Emperor Valens for permission to settle on the south side of the Danube, bringing the Goths into the empire as foederati. 

However, in 378, the Goths revolted against the poor treatment by the Romans and defeated them at the Battle of Adrianople. The heavy losses forced the Roman army to become even more dependent on foederati units. 

Around 394, the Franks invaded the Roman Empire. Under the leadership of the Gothic Alaric the Romans defeated the Franks , but the Gothic foederati suffered heavy losses. When Emperor Theodosius did not give him the recognition he expected, Alaric rebelled, with a large Tervingian army behind him. Theodosius died in 395 and the empire was divided into the Eastern Roman and the Western Roman Empire. A long period of unrest and conflicts followed between the Romans and the Huns, including the sack of Rome in 410.

Alaric, or Alaric I, is considered the first king of the Visigoths. His successors settled in the south of Gaul and founded the Visigothic Kingdom in large parts of the Iberian Peninsula and southern France in 418. The Visigoths, like their predecessors, were alternately allies and enemies of the Roman Empire. In 451, an alliance of Romans, Visigoths, Franks, Alans, and Saxons defeated the army of the Huns. Two years later, the leader of the Huns, Attila, died.

A part of the Goths, including the Greuthungi, had been part of the Hunnic Empire for almost 75 years, but after Attila's death, they regained their freedom. These became the Ostrogoths.

In 476, the emperor of the Western Roman Empire was deposed by the foederati leader Odoacer. This is seen as the definitive fall of the Western Roman Empire. The Eastern Roman Emperor Zeno persuaded the leader of the Ostrogoths, Theoderic, to invade the Italian Peninsula and depose Odoacer. This was successful, and Theoderic established the Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy, with Ravenna as its capital. He gained control over the Visigothic Kingdom in 511, uniting both Gothic kingdoms, which is why he is also called Theoderic the Great.

After Theoderic's death, the Gothic kingdoms were divided again. The Eastern Roman Empire invaded Italy in 535 during the Gothic War. This war severely devastated and depopulated the Italian Peninsula. Although the Ostrogoths experienced a brief revival under King Totila, their kingdom ended definitively with the death of King Teia at the Battle of Mons Lactarius in 553. The remaining Goths were eventually absorbed into the kingdom of the Lombards, who invaded Italy in 567 and established their kingdom there.

The Visigothic kingdom in Spain was largely conquered by the early 8th century by the Umayyad Caliphate. A remnant in Asturias would later begin the Reconquista under the leadership of Pelagius.

The Goths continued to play an important role in the history of Europe. In Spain, the Visigoths developed their own culture, which was strongly influenced by the local population. Although they never fully Romanized, they left lasting traces in names, traditions, and art. The Visigothic kings considered themselves the heirs of the Goths, and their descendants contributed to the reconquest of Spain from the Moors, which ended with the fall of Granada in 1492.

The Gothic tribes that remained around the Black Sea, especially in Crimea, became known as the Crimean Goths. In the 5th and 6th centuries, they defended themselves against retreating Huns. Theodoric the Great attempted to recruit them for his campaigns in Italy, but with little success.

They were closely connected to the Byzantine Empire and the Eastern Orthodox Church through the diocese of Gothia. In the Middle Ages, the Crimean Goths were often in conflict with the Khazars. In the late 8th century, John of Gothia, the bishop of Doros, briefly expelled the Khazars and was later canonized.

In the 10th century, an alliance with Sviatoslav I of Kiev destroyed the Khazar Empire. The Gothic language was still spoken in Crimea until the 16th century.

DNA research indicates that the Goths intermingled with the peoples they encountered during their migrations eastward in Late Antiquity.

DNA samples from Roman settlements along the Lîknife, such as Viminacium in Serbia, show from the 3rd century a mix of genetic influences from Central and Northern Europe, the Pontic-Caspian steppe, and local Balkan ancestors (42%–55%). Of the nine male individuals in these samples, seven carried DNA with such influence.

The genetic mixing between Central/Northern Europeans and Pontic-Caspian steppe populations seems to have occurred outside the Roman boundary, prior to their migration into the Roman Empire. This supports the idea that diverse populations united under Gothic leadership in confederations.

The Goths originally practiced their own polytheistic religion. They gradually converted to Arianism, a branch of Christianity, in the 4th century. The Visigothic bishop Wulfila was their main missionary.

Wulfila developed a Gothic alphabet and translated the Bible around 369. Due to his efforts, Gothic is the earliest documented Germanic language. Due to military defeats and geographical isolation, Gothic fell into decline.

Around 589, the Visigoths converted to Catholicism. With this, the Gothic language disappeared as a church language. In some places, Gothic was spoken until the 8th century.

Gothic soldiers used wooden shields, spears, and swords. Higher classes often wore mail shirts or lamellar armor, popular among cavalry. Shields were round or oval and decorated with tribal or clan symbols. Helmets were spangen helmets with cheek and neck protection. The swords of the Goths were similar to the Roman spatha.

The Visigoths built various churches in Spain, including San Pedro de la Nave and Santa María de Melque. The crypt of San Antolín in the cathedral of Palencia is a well-preserved example from the 7th century. Another remarkable site is Reccopolis, founded by King Leovigild as one of the few new cities in Western Europe between the 5th and 8th centuries. Notable Ostrogothic structures include the mausoleum of Theoderic and the palace of Theoderic.