They obtained settlements from the
emperors, but being unwisely provoked to revolt, they became the most
formidable enemies of the Romans. After having twice ravaged Italy and
plundered Rome, they ended their conquests by establishing themselves
in Gaul and Spain.
8. The Spanish monarchy of the Visigoths, which in its flourishing
state comprised, besides the entire peninsula, the province of
Septima'nia (_Langucaoc_) in Gaul, and Mauritania, Tingeta'na,
(_north-western Africa_) on the opposite coasts of the Mediterranean,
lasted from the middle of the fifth to the commencement of the eighth
century, when it was overthrown by the Moors. 9. The Thuringians, whom
we find established in the heart of Germany, in the middle of the
fifth century, appear to have been a branch of the Visigoths.
THE FRANKS.
10. A number of petty German tribes having entered into a confederacy
to maintain their mutual independence, took the name of Franks, or
Freemen. The tribes which thus associated, principally inhabited the
districts lying between the Rhine and the Weser, including the greater
part of Holland and Westphalia.
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