Fritigern

Fritigern (also known as Fritigernus in Latish) (???-380) was a Therving Gothish heretough and hildwiser well-known for leading the Goths during the Hild of Adrianople, which ended in a crushing netherlay for the Eastern Romers whose overlord Valens was slain during the fighting. The outcome of said hild would lead to a tide of Gothish overwinning for the following years.

The fight for leadership

We first hear of Fritigern fighting for the bridling of the Therving Goths against the heathen king Athanaric. Athanaric ended up overcoming Fritigern, who had no choice but to ask kaiser Valens for help. Together they fought Athanaric and his men, winning the hild. After that Fritigern and some of his followers became Arian Christers, following Valens' own Arian teachings. Nevertheless Athanaric still seemed to hold the leadership of most Thervings, Fritigern and Athanaric would clash at other meals. Not much seems to have come of it and Athanaric and his men had to retreat to the Gothish lands of Caucaland after they were beaten by the Huns. After that the wyrd of Athanaric and his men is not known.

Crossing the Danube

The Hun's unbroken onslaught and their overwinning of the Gethrungs, another Gothish thede, made Fritigern cross the Danube with many of his Therving kinsmen, their wives and children. Kaiser Valens thaved the Goths to stride over into his lands, making an oath to the Gothish folk, swearing that if the Therving men fought for him in his wars he would give them shelter and the same rights as the Romers. This however soon turned to be emtpy words as the Thervings were not given enough food nor goods.The highthanes of the lands on which the Goths settled, Lupicinus and Maximus showed nothing but scorn to them. These highthanes would only give them food and other goods for a very high outlay. Many starving Goths had no choice but to sell their children as thralls to wealthy Romers who showed no evensorrow for the Thervings and their worldswink. Valens showed no care on this inting, for he was too busy setting up his hildrush agains the Sassanids. The Goths could no longer sit still, for after a misleading inlath for a high feast, the wicked hightanes killed and took many Gothish leaders, Fritigern however was not caught.

In 377 hearing the wishes of his folk after the last beskimp the Romers brought upon them he had no choice but to gather his men and free the Thervings from their shackles. soon the Goths rose against the Romers, killing those thanes for their wicked deeds again his thede. in the early months of 377 Fritigern overcame Lupicinus in the hildfield, freeing those who were taken by him. Hearing of the great netherlay which Fritigern brought upon the Romers, many Thervings and Gethrungs who stayed behind and even some Alans flocked to Fritigern and his men. After wipping out Lupicinus and his men the Goths and their friends were free to raid the folkshires of Thracia and Moesia, which were left wide open.

Happenings leading up to Adrianople

Fritigern's once loathsome band of Thervings had become a fearsome sithreaden whose might would not be easily brushed aside. His men laid waste to the land and plundered it thoroughly. Only those who dwelled within walled towns were safe from Fritigern's might. Kaiser Valens and his brother the Western Romish Kaiser Gratian hastly tried to end the war with the Sassanids. The hildwisers Traian and Profuturus were sent by Valens to try to halt the Goths until he could send more men into the field. His brother Gratian sent the Frank Richomeres and Frigeridus to weir the frith of the western barrows so that the Goths would not spread further. These sithreadens joined together under the leadership of Richomeres to fight Fritigern's men. The Gothish sithreaden withdrew to the north of the Haemus barrows, the Romers followed and both bands met at Ad Salices(The Willows) to fight. Neither foe could overcome the other, and so both sides withdew having suffered greatly. Profuturus was slain during the fighting.

Fritigern spent 7 days in his wagons together with his lede resting after the great orrest. Meanwhile the Romers retreated to Marcianople to gather their strenght once again. Richomeres went back to Gaul to get more fighting men for his great Sithreaden. Hertows Saturninus and Traian started bulding strongholds in the Haemus's barrows, hoping to stop Fritigern and starve his band. After many clashes Fritigern, with the help of Alan and Hunish horsemen, broke through their weirs forof the ill-howed behest of retreat from Sarturninus. another scathful netherlay was dealt to Rome, as now Fritigern is free to raid new lands, as far as the Rhodope barrows.

The Gothish band and their once witherlings the Huns went south in search of plunder, arriving near the town of Deultum. They overcame a Romish Sithreaden and raised the town to the ground, taking whatever they could with them. Fritigern's men then went in search of Frigiderus, but he got wind of this and choose to withdraw, leaving the town of Augusta Trajana and it's dwellers to their own wyrd, the Goths raised it as well once they got there.

At last Valens arrived in his Headstead Constantinople in may 378. The folk of the great stead were angry, for in their eyes the Kaiser had left them alone to deal with the raiding Goths while doing nothing in the eastern marches. Tired of this they told their Kaiser to fight their foe at once. Valens, fearing that his own folk might murder him if he does not, leaves the stead after only 12 days to fight Fritigern and his men.

Fritigern's Goths however were getting too bold and a few of his raiding bands ended up being slaughtered by Sebastianus, Valens' new right-hand man and hildwisser. After these netherlays at the hands of Sebastianus Fritigern called back his raiding bands and they joined his great sithreaden once again. The Eastern Kaiser and Sebastianus met again in Adrianople to gather their men and goods. Valens' brother Gratian was also meant to be there, but he had other intings to deal with so he stayed behind in his lands.

The bloodbath at Adrianople

The Romers ended up finding out that Fritigern was wading towards Adrianople with his band, however they mistakenly thought that Fritigern only had around 10,000 men with him. The Kaiser bold as ever called a moot with his hildwisers, there Valens trusting the wisdom of his underlings as well as his sithreaden's might settled on rushing against the Goths as soon as they could. In the night of 8 August Fritigern sent a few tidings to the Romish overlord, telling him that he only wanted land in Thrace, and that if they were given said land the Goths would come to help him in the hilds to come. Valens, thinking that Fritigern was not being earnest, choose to waymind the earful.

Tired of waiting and true to his word to rush and slaughter Fritigern and his men, Valens marched his Sithreaden to met the Goths early in the morning of 9 August 378. After many stounds of marching under the summer heat his men came within the sight of a great stronghold made out of wagons. Fritigern was biding his time by sending some of his men to talk to Valens, trying to chaffer a stop to the fighting between them, for Fritigern was waiting for the arrival of the Gethrung horsemen lead by the heretoughs Alatheus and Saphrax which was unknown to the Romers.

The Eastern Romers tired and withered under the hot summer sun were quite bothered by the fires the Goths made to blow smoke and ash into them. Valens, seeing the way the wind was blowing, had an afterthought and sent the Frank Richomeres to talk with Fritigern. However the tired Romers could not wait any longer and rushed to meet the the Goths in the hildfield, starting the hild of Adrianople.

As the hild started the tired Romers were met with overwhelming strenght and eagerness from the Goths. The unmatched boldness and fearlessness of the Gothish men during orrest was spoken of by many following the hild. It was said that a Goth would get his arm slashed off, and even so he would still keep fighting for the lives of his kinmen and children until he bleed out. The withered Romers could not win any ground, and soon they started wavering. However the Gethrung horsemen had arrived at last, and they smashed against the Romers breaking them.

Aftermatch of Adrianople and death

Following the horsemen's rush agains the Eastern Romer flanks,the bewildering was great among the retreating Romers, and in turn they were easily slaughtered by the Goths. Even the now whilom kaiser Valens, whose body lies slain in the dust of the hildfield never to be found. This great netherlay brought about by Fritigern shook Rome its very groundlayings. The Goth's wanhope turned into wulder and merriments. For Rome however, this would be a wound that they would never quite heal from. Fritigern would fight agains the much weakened Romers until his death in 380. King Alaric of the Westgoths would later on lead both Athanaric's and Fritigern's lede during his rise to might.