Ataulf

There are not many records regarding Ataulf's early life, but it is known that he was the son of Athanaric, a king of the Thervingi goths who was at times enemy and at time the ally of the Roman Empire. His first significant act in the historical record was when he, as a gothic leader himself, moved south to help his brother-in-law Alaric I, first king of the Visigoths to lay siege to Rome. He remained with Alaric through the remainder of that round of the Gothic Wars and was unanimously elected to succeed as king of the Visigoths when the king died suddenly of fever shortly after victory against Rome. Despite the momentum that the Visigoths had going and the plans that Alaric had, one of the first decisions Ataulf made as king was to stop their plans regarding southern Italy. This may have been because he did not share the enthusiasm for conquest that Alaric had or it could be because he did not think that he could keep the movement up himself, it is not known.  A more likely explanation is that he was paid off by Honorius, who had more problems than just the Visigoths at the time and would have greatly benefited from one less enemy.

At the time that Ataulf became king in 411, Rome was dealing with the usurper Constantine III, who had been a general in the Roman army in Britain before declaring himself to be emperor in the north and setting up a court in Gaul. In 410, with enemies closing in on the borders of his territory, Constantine III had made an unwise move to try to take over the court of Honorius. Unfortunately for him he did not have the necessary resources to stand up against the western Roman court and was defeated and executed at around the same time as Ataulf's rise to power. This is important because Constantine's death led to an opportunity for Ataulf to step into the power vacuum on the continent. He and his people moved north and proceeded to live off the land unchallenged for a bit before having to deal with a new usurper, Jovinus. At first Ataulf was open to working with the new "emperor," but was distracted by running across Sarus on his way to negotiations. Sarus was an old enemy of Alaric and consequently Ataulf who had thrown a wrench into everyone's plans during the latest round of the gothic wars. The encounter ended with Sarus' execution, a move that Ataulf would come to regret. Another event that changed Visigothic plans occurred before they could reach the new usurper's court when Jovinus declared his own brother Sebastianus to be co-emperor. This was considered to be an insult by Ataulf as he had not been consulted, resulting in him allying with his former enemy Honorius. Shortly after the Visigoths met and defeated the forces of Jovinus and Sebastianus. Jovinus fled to Norbonne, but was executed, while Ataulf executed Sebastianus. He sent both of their heads to Honorius in Ravenna.

Since the fall of Rome Ataulf had kept Galla Placidia, the daughter of Theodosius and sister of emperors Honorius and Arcadius. Ataulf's decision to back Rome in their fight against a usurper strengthened relations sufficiently for Ataulf to be able to solidify their relationship with a marriage to Galla Placidia in 414. This marriage had potential to significantly change the future of Rome/Visigoth relations by creating a blended line, but this was not to be. The couple did have one son, who they named Theodosius after his emperor grandfather (causing potential confusion since his cousin the future Theodosius II had been born in 401), but he died in infancy. The couple never got the chance to have more children.

Ataulf was able to lead the Visigoths in their transition from a nomadic to a settled kingdom when he took control of Narbonne and Toulouse in 413 with the approval of Honorius. It was at this point that Ataulf supposedly made a public declaration formally disavowing his former pro-goth/anti-roman stance and announcing his intent to be a part of a Roman revival with the help of gothic strength. The declaration is likely to be a later propagandic addition. This peace did not last because of the machinations of Honorius' chief advisor Constantius (future emperor Constantius III), who convinced the emperor to blockade the Gallic ports in the Mediterranean. Ataulf immediately declared Priscus Attalus, a former Roman senator who had been previously appointed as emperor in opposition to Honorius by Alaric, to be emperor once again. Attalus was to rule from Bordeaux from 415 but he and the Visigoths were outmatched by Constantius and parted ways. He fled to Italy where he proceeded to live the rest of his life in exile while Ataulf and the Visigoths prudently moved further away from Rome into the Iberian peninsula.

Despite a promising start Ataulf's reign was ended before it could really begin when a servant who secretly held a grudge on behalf of his former master Sarus assassinated while he was bathing at the palace in Barcelona.