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The Vandal War (461–468) was a long-term conflict between the two halves of the Roman Empire on the one hand and the Vandals in North Africa on the other. This war revolved around hegemony in the Mediterranean and the empire of the west. The Vandals as a rising power posed an enormous threat to the stability of the Roman Empire. [1]
In the 460s, the Romans launched two unsuccessful military expeditions by sea in an attempt to overthrow the Vandals and reclaim North Africa. The conquest of North Africa by the Vandals was a blow to the beleaguered Western Roman Empire, as North Africa was a major source of revenue and a supplier of grain (mostly wheat) to the city of Rome.
The Vandal conquest of Roman Africa, also known as the Vandal conquest of North Africa, was the conquest of Mauretania Tingitana, Mauretania Caesariensis, and Africa Proconsolaris by the migrating Vandals and Alans. The conflict lasted 13 years with a period of four years of peace, and led to the establishment of the Vandal Kingdom in 435. [1]
The Vandals occupied Roman North Africa in the early 5th century and established an independent kingdom there. Under their king, Geiseric , the Vandal navy carried out pirate attacks across the Mediterranean, sacked Rome in 455, and defeated a Roman invasion in 468.
In the eastern part of the Roman Empire, considerable preparations were made to go to war against the Vandals. Because of this threat, Geyseric returned his fleet to Africa in 440. Prosper attributes his return to Africa to an attack on Carthage by Sebastianus (the son-in-law of Boniface), who attacked Africa from Spain. This Sebastianus may ...
The Roman expedition was now too scattered to land its troops, leading to its complete failure. [1] The battle is considered to have ended the Western Roman Empire's chances of survival. Without access to the resources of the former Roman province of Africa, the west could not sustain an army powerful enough to defeat its numerous enemies. [2]
The Vandals decided to strike before the Roman navy became unbeatable. On May 13, a fleet of Vandal ships under the command of King Gaiseric [1] [5] [7] surprised the Roman fleet. Many of the Roman captains had been bribed to switch sides. The Roman navy was totally destroyed, ending any hope of reconquering North Africa.
The Western Roman Empire lost most parts of Africa to the Vandals in the 5th century. They were reincorporated into the Roman realm by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century. Later, the empire finally lost all control of Africa as the region fell to the Umayyad conquest of North Africa by the close of the 7th century.