Syagrius

Syagrius (died 486/487) was the leader of an isolated Roman community based in Soissons which still existed after the Roman empire lost control over the region around it. Modern historians refer to his state as the Kingdom of Soissons, because the 6th-century writer, Gregory of Tours referred to Syagrius as a "King of Romans" (Latin: rex Romanorum), while the Chronicle of Fredegar calls him a Roman patrician. However, the term "king" (rex) was not traditionally used by Roman leaders, and in this period the term was more associated with the Frankish rulers who were ruling other previously Roman cities in the same region. Syagrius was killed by the Frankish king Clovis I at the Battle of Soissons (Franco-Roman War of 486) in about 486, and this is generally understood to have been a major step in Clovis's subsequent takeover of most of Gaul, which unified Roman and Frankish cities and military forces. The father of Syagrius was named Aegidius, and he had been the Roman military leader of Gaul appointed under the emperor Majorian (reigned 457–461). After the murder of Majorian he did not accept the new emperor, and he held position in northern Gaul, while the south of Gaul was ruled by the large kingdoms of the Visigoths and Burgundians who were both allies of the emperor. The exact division of power between Aegidius and other armed forces in Northern Gaul such as the Franks is unclear, and even more unclear after his death in 465. Gregory mentions that Aegidius had held Soissons before his son did, but the nature of this holding is not clear.