Teia

Teia (died 552), also known as Teja, Theia, Thila, Thela, and Teias, was the last king of the Ostrogoths (Goths). Teia served as the second-in-command under the King Totila during the Gothic resurgence in the Gothic War (535–554) against the Byzantine Empire. Following Totila's death at the Battle of Taginae in July 552, Teia withdrew to Ticinum (modern-day Pavia), the capital of the Gothic Kingdom, where the remaining Goths proclaimed him king. He reorganized the Gothic forces and sought an alliance with the Franks against the Byzantines, but they declined to act. Upon the news that Narses was besieging Cumae, where Teia's brother was a garrison leader and much of Totila's war chest was located, Teia marched to relieve the city. In late summer 552, Teia's army, before reaching Cumae, was intercepted by the Byzantines at the slopes of Mount Vesuvius, where, after a two-month stalemate, he was killed during the battle on the slopes of Mount Lactarius in October 552. The death of Teia marked the end of the Ostrogothic kingdom since no other succeeded him.