Flavius Ricimer

Lived: c. 405-472 CE Where: Western Roman Empire

Descended from barbarian royalty, Ricimer was a Romanised Germanic general who rose to power under Emperor Avitus. He was promoted to a prominent military position, fighting tribes who opposed the Western

Roman Empire. After defeating the Vandals at the Battles of Agrigentum and Corsica in 456 CE, he was named commander of the empire’s field army in Italy, the secondhighest military ranking of the empire. However, Ricimer plotted against Avitus with another general, Majorian, and after convincing the Roman Senate they deposed and executed the emperor. In the aftermath, Eastern Emperor Leo I appointed Ricimer as magister militum of the Western Roman Empire – the highest military position of the Roman Empire. Powerful but lacking the legitimacy to succeed to the throne himself, Ricimer chose to rule the Western Empire through puppet emperors, beginning with his collaborator, Majorian. Unfortunately, Majorian proved to be a capable ruler in his own right and so

Ricimer convinced the Senate to turn against him, allowing him to depose and execute his former friend in 461 CE. He replaced Majorian with Libius Severus, who he ruled through until Severus died in 465 CE, after which he was forced to accept Leo’s choice of emperor, Anthemius. Although Ricimer married Anthemius’s daughter, he had his father-in-law killed in 470 CE after the emperor’s expedition against the Vandals failed. Ricimer again appointed another emperor, Olybrius, before his death just a few weeks later.