GENSERIC, or Gensekich, king of the Vandals, and the most formidable of the Gothic invaders of the Roman empire, was the natural son of Godegiselus the founder of a Vandal kingdom in Spain, and was born at Seville about 406. Though he was only of middle stature, and had a lameness of one leg, such was his renown as a warrior that on the death of his brother Gonderic in 427 he was chosen to succeed him on the throne. At the invitation of Boniface, the Roman general in Africa, who wished to revolt against Valentinian III., Genseric in 429 crossed into Africa, and took possession of Mauretania. Soon afterwards he besieged Boniface in Hippo Regius, and compelled him after a defence of fourteen months to seek safety by a precipitate embarkation, leaving his soldiers and their families to the ruthless cruelty of the Vandals. In 435 Genseric concluded a treaty with the Romans by which he retained possession of western Numidia and Mauretania; but peace was not of long duration, and in October 439 he captured Carthage, which lie made the capital of his kingdom. Genseric was an Arian, and cruelly persecuted the orthodox Catholics in Africa. In 455 at the invitation of Eudoxia, who wished to be revenged on Maximus the murderer of her husband Valentinian, he fitted out an expedition against Rome, and after storming the city, gave it up during fourteen days to be pillaged by his soldiers. Eudoxia and her daughters he carried captive to Carthage, where she was retained in prison till 462. Two attempts were made by the Romans to avenge themselves on the barbarians,—the first by Majorian, emperor of the West, in 457, and the second by Leo, emperor of the East, in 468. Both attempts, however, signally failed, and in 475 Leo’s successor Zeno concluded a truce. Genseric’s dominion ...