Page 6 - GC-May-June-2026

Meet the barbarians: The Visigoths

By Martin Ederer and ravage Thrace in 377. Valens sius passed over Alaric, however,
s with most of the Germanic expected to crush them easily at naming Stilicho (part Vandal) in-
Abarbarian tribes, Gothic origins Adrianople in 378. Instead the stead.
are shrouded in mystery. Best Goths slaughtered two-thirds of his Alaric was not about to press the
guesses put their origins in Scandi- army and Valens died in the fight- issue with Theodosius, but after the
navia and a southeastern migration ing. Valens’ death paralyzed the Ro- emperor died, there were no talented
pattern. There is also serious dis- man government. One remaining successors. In the ensuing political
agreement over what exactly emperor was young and inexperi- chaos, resentful Alaric seized the
“Visigoth” and “Ostrogoth” meant. enced, and the other was a young opportunity and started devastating
Visigoths ended up in Spain, the boy. Rome also had to face the chill- areas outside Constantinople.
Ostrogoths in Italy. The Romans ing realization that Gothic heavy Meanwhile, petty rivalries between
generally took few pains to be con- cavalry was capable of easily de- eastern and western courts made
sistent about any designation be- feating well-trained Roman armies. Rome unable to confront Alaric ef-
yond “Goth”. The Visigoths seem to The Romans meanwhile quickly re- fectively. Alaric then trashed
have first migrated to what is pres- solved the power vacuum problem. Greece. Stilicho’s Roman armies
ent-day Poland, but then migrated Enter Theodosius. held Alaric off twice, but Alaric An electron micrograph showing three Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)
particles at top. Image: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Dis-
south toward the Black Sea, where While Theodosius looms large always managed to escape – usually
they then started encountering at- as a powerful figure, his response to while Stilicho was squabbling with eases (NIAID)
tacks from the Huns. the Visigothic threat was almost an the eastern court. Alaric set up an
The Huns were barbaric even by admission of defeat after he too independent kingdom in the Bal- Paper on Epstein-Barr virus
Gothic standards. As a result the failed to defeat them. He offered kans to stick it to Rome.
terrified Visigoths advanced up the instead a revised deal in a 382 trea- Meanwhile Stilicho had made antibodies has ties to Vienna,
Danube Valley around AD 376 ty: Visigoths were free to settle in powerful enemies in the West. The
seeking to resettle legally into Ro- Roman territory if they contributed weak western emperor Honorius Germany and Univ. at Buffalo
man territory. They contacted the 20,000 men to the Roman army as had him assassinated in 408. The
eastern emperor Valens, offering federates. For the short term, the weak eastern emperor also died that
he connection between multiple Patients in the study were
200,000 men to the Roman army in Visigoths and the Romans had a year. In the vacuum Alaric decided Tsclerosis and Epstein-Barr virus
exchange for resettlement assis- solid alliance. Meanwhile court in- to teach the Roman Empire a lesson from Germany, Austria and
(EBV) is strengthening, according
tance. Rome quickly welched on the trigues and usurpation attempts kept it would never forget. Remember to a paper published this week in the U.S., including some
deal. Rome first thought it was deal- Theodosius busy. One of the usurp- that Rome had assembled an im- of Weinstock-Guttman’s
JAMA Neurology by a team of inter-
ing with a powerful nation, but dis- ers even got Theodosius’ Magister pressive list of lies and broken national researchers, including one patients from Western
covered instead that the Visigoths Militum (Master of the Army) Arbo- promises against the Visigoths since
from the University at Buffalo. New York.
were sick, hungry refugees. There- gast (a Frankish barbarian) on his 376. (Does this all sound like the Bianca Weinstock-Guttman,
fore, Rome unilaterally revised the side. Theodosius had Arbogast exe- Indian Wars in the American West?)
MD, SUNY Distinguished Profes- other neuroinflammatory diseases
deal. The Romans offered to pro- cuted. Now it was payback time.
sor in the Department of Neurology that may have similar clinical and
vide food (dogs!) for the Visigoths By the 390s the Visigoths had a In 410 Alaric’s army sacked the
at the Jacobs School of Medicine radiographic features,” explains
if they turned over their children as dynamic young leader who had city of Rome. Rome had no longer
and Biomedical Sciences at UB, a Weinstock-Guttman, who directs
slaves. The official exchange was served Theodosius loyally in his had any secular administrative role,
leading international expert on MS UB’s Jacobs Multiple Sclerosis
one dog per child. The other factor operations: Alaric. Alaric expected the working capitals having been
and the director of the New York Center for Treatment and Research,
shaping Rome’s cynical turnabout that he would be named Magister relocated elsewhere, but it remained
State MS Consortium, is one of the and UB’s Jacobs Pediatric MS Cen-
was a serious famine that made Militum for his loyal service after an important symbol. The sack cre-
co-authors of the paper titled “Ep- ter.
Rome disinclined to share food with Arbogast got bumped off. After all, ated anguish that occasioned St. Au- stein-Barr virus antibodies to differ- Previous research led by Vietzen
bedraggled and “useless” newcom- if Arbogast the barbarian got the top gustine’s massive work, The City of
entiate multiple sclerosis from other has demonstrated that these antibod-
ers. job, why shouldn’t the barbarian God, which tried to explain proper neuroinflammatory diseases.” ies are specific for MS and absent in
Sick of their shabby treatment, Alaric receive the same? Theodo- priorities to Christians and pagans
The researchers found that in healthy controls.
the Goths rallied enough to rebel alike now that the Roman Empire this multicenter, international case- “The presence of specific EBV
was an officially (Catholic) Chris-
control study of 2,091 patients with antibodies in MS but not in other
tian state.
neuroinflammatory diseases, high neuroinflammatory diseases further
Alaric died shortly after his sack
titers of EBV-specific nuclear anti- supports a unique underlying bio-
of Rome. His brother-in-law and
gen peptide antibodies were more logical mechanism in MS and its
successor Ataulf took Honorius’ sis-
common and consistently higher in link to EBV infection compared to
ter Galla Placidia hostage, forced
MS than in other neuroinflammato- other neuroinflammatory condi-
her to marry him and then set up an
ry diseases, such as myelin oligo- tions,” she says.
independent Visigothic kingdom in dendrocyte glycoprotein-associated Weinstock-Guttman adds that
Spain. Meanwhile Galla Placidia
diseases (MOGAD) and neuromy- future research will focus on better
had fallen deeply in love with
elitis optica spectrum disorders understanding the connection be-
Ataulf. They had a happy (if short)
(NMOSD). The study involved tween EBV infection and the risk of
marriage. The Visigoths also now 1,976 healthy controls. developing MS. She notes that stud-
loyally helped to defend Rome
Patients in the study were from ies are also underway examining
against other invaders. Ataulf died
Germany, Austria and the U.S., in- pediatric MS cases that test negative
in 415; Galla Placidia returned to
cluding some of Weinstock-Gutt- for EBV antibodies. Researchers are
Rome.
man’s patients from Western New also investigating ways to prevent
Once the Visigoths had created
York. EBV infection through vaccination
their kingdom in Spain, they real-
First author on the paper is or other antiviral agents, as well as
ized that everything would be easier
Hannes Vietzen, principal investi- the role EBV may play in disease
if they abandoned their Arian Chris-
gator at the Center for Virology, progression.
tianity and converted to the (Nicene)
Medical University of Vienna. A clinician with UBMD Neurol-
Catholic Christianity of the locals.
“This study indicates that serial ogy, Weinstock-Guttman is affiliat-
That conversion was a process:
testing for EBV-specific antibodies ed with Buffalo General Medical
King Leovigild executed his own
could serve as an additional bio- Center.
son Hermenegild in 585 for becom-
marker to help distinguish MS from
ing a Catholic Christian before
eventually repenting and converting
the entire Visigothic kingdom to
Catholicism in 589. The result was
a powerful, unified kingdom with a
brilliant culture.
By the 700s, nasty politics had
weakened Visigothic Spain. Tariq’s
Islamic forces in North Africa
seized that opportunity to cross the
Strait of Gibraltar and expand Islam.
Incidentally, Gibraltar (or Jabal
Tariq) means “Tariq’s Mountain.”
By 718 Muslim forces had occupied
almost all of Spain: the Visigothic
kingdom had collapsed. Still, the
Visigoth Pelayo got Christian nobil-
ity to swear a solemn oath to never
stop fighting the Muslim conquerors
until they were expelled. Thus be-
gan the Reconquista (reconquest) of
Spain, which lasted for some 700
years – until 1492. We know what
that date means for our part of the
world.
6 • THE GERMAN CITIZEN • May - June 2026