caption father death_date religion mother title birth_date spouse issue image article_title name
quarter 501 siliqua featuring theoderic , c. ad 491 -- theodemir 526 454 arianism ereleuva king of ostrogoths 454 audofleda amalasuntha theoderic quarter siliqua 80000847.jpg theoderic the great
 theoderic
theoderic the great

theoderic the great -lrb- thē-ŏd ' ə-rik , ; ; , `` theuderikhos '' ; ; ; 454 -- august 30 , 526 -rrb- , often referred to as theodoric , was king of the ostrogoths -lrb- 475 -- 526 -rrb- , ruler of italy -lrb- 493 -- 526 -rrb- , regent of the visigoths -lrb- 511 -- 526 -rrb- , and a patricius of the roman empire .
his gothic name '' Þiudareiks '' translates into `` people-king '' or `` ruler of the people '' .
theodoric was born in pannonia in 454 , after his people had defeated the huns at the battle of nedao .
his father was king theodemir , a germanic amali nobleman , and his mother was ereleuva .
theodoric grew up as a hostage in constantinople , receiving a privileged education , and he succeeded his father as leader of the pannonian ostrogoths in 473 .
settling his people in lower moesia , theoderic came into conflict with thracian ostrogoths led by theodoric strabo , whom he eventually supplanted , uniting the peoples in 484 .
emperor zeno subsequently gave him the title of patrician and the office of magister militum -lrb- master of the soldiers -rrb- , and even appointed him as roman consul .
seeking further gains , theoderic frequently ravaged the provinces of the eastern roman empire , eventually threatening constantinople itself .
in 488 , emperor zeno ordered theoderic to overthrow the german foederatus odoacer , who had likewise been made patrician and even king of italy , but who had since betrayed zeno , supporting the rebellious leontius .
after a victorious three-year war , theoderic killed odoacer with his own hands , settled his 100,000 to 200,000 people in italy , and founded an ostrogothic kingdom based in ravenna .
while he promoted separation between the arian ostrogoths and the roman population , theoderic stressed the importance of racial harmony , though intermarriage was outlawed .
seeking to restore the glory of ancient rome , he ruled italy in its most peaceful and prosperous period since valentinian , until his death in 526 .
memories of his reign made him a hero of german legend as dietrich von bern .
