I


The Vandals were another wild and fierce tribe that came from the
shores of the Baltic and invaded central and southern Europe in
the later times of the Roman Empire.

In the fifth century some of these people occupied a region in
the south of Spain. One of their most celebrated kings was name
Genseric (Gen'-ser-ic). He became king in 427, when he was but
twenty-one years of age. He was lame in one leg and looked as if
he were a very ordinary person.

Like most of the Vandals, he was a cruel and cunning man, but he
had great ability in many ways. He fought in battles even when
a boy and was known far and wide for his bravery and skill as a
leader.

About the time that Genseric became king, the governor of the Roman
province in the north of Africa, on the Mediterranean coast, was
a man called Count Boniface. This Count Boniface had been a good
and loyal officer of Rome; but a plot was formed against him by
Aetius, the general who had fought Attila at Chalons. The Roman
emperor at the time of the plot was Valentinian III. He was then
too young to act as ruler, so the affairs of government were managed
by his mother Placidia (Pla-cid'-i-a).

Aetius advised Placidia to dismiss Boniface and call him home from
Africa. He said the count was a traitor, and that he was going