Gepid kingdom in Europe following the end of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD
Common languages
East Germanic (possibly Gothic) among elite.
Religion
Germanic paganism, Arianism (among elite)
Government
Monarchy
King
• c. 454
Ardaric
• c. 560-567
Cunimund
History
• Ardaric established an independent Gepid kingdom following the Hunnic defeat at the Battle of Nedao
454
• The kingdom is destroyed by the Lombards and Avars
567
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Hunnic Empire
Ostrogothic Kingdom
Pannonian Avars
Kingdom of the Lombards
Today part of
Romania, Hungary, Serbia
Coin of the Gepids c. 491–518. Sirmium mint. In the name of Byzantine Emperor Anastasius ICoin of the Gepids. Sirmium mint. Struck in the name of Justin I, c. 518–526 CE. Obv: D N IVSTINVS P LV (first N retrograde), pearl-diademed and cuirassed bust right. Rev: VINVICTL ROMLNI, large “Theodericus” monogram across fields, cross above[1]
The Gepids (Latin: Gepidae, Gipedae, Ancient Greek: Γήπαιδες) were an East Germanic tribe who lived in the area of modern Romania, Hungary and Serbia, roughly between the Tisza, Sava and Carpathian Mountains. They were said to share the religion and language of the Goths and Vandals.
They are first mentioned by Roman sources in the third century. In the fourth century, they were among the peoples incorporated into the Hunnic Empire, within which they formed an important part. After the death of Attila, the Gepids under their leader Ardaric, led an alliance of other peoples who had been in the empire, and defeated the sons of Attila and their remaining allies at the Battle of Nedao in 454. The Gepids and their allies subsequently founded kingdoms on the Middle Danube, bordering on the Roman Empire. The Gepid Kingdom was one of the most important and long-lasting of these, centered on Sirmium, and sometimes referred to as Gepidia.[2] It covered a large part of the former Roman province of Dacia, north of the Danube, and compared to other Middle Danubian kingdoms it remained relatively uninvolved with Rome.
The Gepids were defeated by the Lombards and Avars a century later in 567, when Constantinople gave no support to them. Some Gepids joined the Lombards in their subsequent conquest of Italy, some moved into Roman territory, and other Gepids still lived in the area of the old kingdom after it was conquered by the Avars.
Few archaeological sites remain that can be attributed to them with certainty. After their settlement of the Carpathian Basin, their population was mostly centred on the Someș and Körös rivers, but they did not intermingle with other nations.[3]
^CNG Coins
^Jordanes, Getica, XII.74: Haec Gotia, quam Daciam appellavere maiores, quae nunc ut diximus Gepidia dicitur. Rough translation: "This Gothia, which our ancestors called Dacia, we now call Gepidia."
^"A gepidák rövid története" [Short history of the Gepids]. Gepida (in Hungarian). 2024.
Rome. The Gepids were defeated by the Lombards and Avars a century later in 567, when Constantinople gave no support to them. Some Gepids joined the...
forces of the subject peoples under the leadership of Ardaric, king of the Gepids, defeated the Hunnic forces of Ellac, the son of Attila, who had struggled...
their larger neighbours the Gepids and Lombards broke out, but this rebellion was repressed by Justinian. In 549, when the Gepids fought the Romans, and Heruli...
the Gepids. The Lombard king Audoin defeated the Gepid leader Thurisind in 551 or 552, and Audoin's successor Alboin eventually destroyed the Gepids in...
Europe for naming years. The Lombard–Gepid War (567) ends with a Lombard-Avar victory, and the annihilation of the Gepids. Sigebert I, king of Austrasia, marries...
brother-in-law of Sigebert, who sought an alliance to crush his old enemies the Gepids. The latter, by chance, controlled the only practical way from the Lower...
died c. 560) was king of the Gepids, an East Germanic Gothic people, from c. 548 to 560. He was the penultimate Gepid king, and succeeded King Elemund...
and conflict between the Lombards and their main neighbours, the Gepids. The Gepids initially gained the upper hand, but in 567, thanks to his alliance...
local population into submission, but their empire collapsed in 454. The Gepids took possession of the former Dacia province. Place names that are of Slavic...
of the most important peoples within this empire were the Gepids and the Goths. The Gepid king Ardaric came to power around 440 and participated in various...
Ardaric (Latin: Ardaricus; fl. c. 450 AD) was the king of the Gepids, a Germanic tribe closely related to the Goths. He was "famed for his loyalty and...
kingdoms in the region, including not only Goths and Alans, but also Vandals, Gepids, Heruli, Suebians and Rugians. The Huns, especially under their King Attila...
The Period of the Great Migrations (271–895); The Kingdom of the Gepids; The Gepids during and after the Hun Period". In Köpeczi, Béla; Barta, Gábor;...
a Gepid king, based on the inscription on a gold ring called Omharus. At Apahida, near Cluj-Napoca, three princely tombs attributed to the Gepids were...
their empire disintegrated and the Gepids conquered the region in 455, under King Ardaric. For two centuries, the Gepids controlled Transylvania. The Ostrogoths...
brother Dengizich. Ardaric unites the Gepids with other Germanic tribes, and founds the Kingdom of the Gepids in the Pannonian Basin. The Vandals conquer...
distributed by lot". A coalition of Germanic tribes, led by Ardaric, king of the Gepids, revolted against such slavery treatment, and "so they were armed for mutual...
Baduarius, assists the Gepids in their war against the Lombards. The Byzantines win the first battle in the lower Danube (Moesia), but Gepid King Cunimund refuses...
Vandals, probably Hasdingi in the Carpathian region, were associated with Gepids. According to Jordanes' Getica, the Hasdingi came into conflict with the...
was the last king of the Gepids, falling in the Lombard–Gepid War (567) against the Lombards and Pannonian Avars. The Gepids had held the important city...
but died in 453. After Attila's death, his close adviser, Ardaric of the Gepids, led a Germanic revolt against Hunnic rule, after which the Hunnic Empire...
fighting one another, and this caused the Gepids under Ardaric to rebel. The Huns under Ellac then fought the Gepids and were defeated, resulting in Ellac's...
containing the element fast- meaning "fixed, firm, secure", from Proto-Germanic *fastuz. "The Gepids before Hun Rule" Jordanes, Getica, 97, 100. v t e...
and the Greuthungi. The Gepids, who lived northwest of the Goths, are also attested as this time. Jordanes writes that the Gepids shared common origins...
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