WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - History Off Script: The Kingdom of Soissons — Western Rome's Final Bastion

Episode Date: November 11, 2025

he Western Roman Empire fell in 476 A.D... or did it? Far to the northwest, along the beaches of Normandy, a single Roman army held out against the odds. This is the story of the Kingdom of Soisson.

That's how history can often feel, mechanical, one event after the other. But what's in the fine print? What happens if we peel back the layers? What kind of hidden dramas may unfold? It's time we went beyond the textbook. This is history off script. Here's your host, James Jocke. In 476 AD, Germanic troops marched into the streets of Rome. Their leader was the rebel Roman Gemero Otwaitzer, himself of Germanic blood. Their target was the five-year-old emperor, Romulus Augustulus, the final ruler of the Western Roman Empire. In short order, Rome was seized, its child emperor deposed in its throne usurped by a barbarian.

Rome had fallen. Or had it? Far to the northwest on the frigid shores of Normandy, A single Roman army clung to life. This is the story of the last of the Western Romans, the Kingdom of Suisone. The story of Sweson begins in 4.57 AD, with the coronation of the Western Roman Emperor Marjorian.

Brought to power by the powerful General Reisomer, Marjorian was intended to be a compliant puppet. He would soon prove himself anything but. Marjorian decisively defeated barbarian invaders, reclaimed Roman land, and gained popularity by his gracious treatment of defeated rebels. Realizing the danger that Marjorian's popularity posed to his own interest, Reisomer colluded with Marjorian's enemies in the Senate to bring about the emperor's demise.

In 4.61 AD, as he was returning from war, Marjorian was seized, killed, and replaced by a far more inept puppet. history would remember the slain emperor as the last competent ruler of the Western Empire. Beyond the city of Rome, Marjorian's generals would unanimously condemn this blatant power grab and reject the authority of his feckless replacement. One of these generals was a jidious of Gaul, the future leader of Suisone. Although he would try to overthrow the new puppet emperor, he found his path to Rome blocked. by the very tribes he had fought to bring under submission,

tribes that were now funded by Rome's new regime. In the years that followed, a jidious resolve to govern Northern Gaul as best as he could. In 463 AD, he formed an alliance with the Frankish King Sheldaric to fight off Saxon incursions into northern France. This alliance would prove vital for the survival of Suisseau, allowing them to secure a stable position and the tempestuous sea of Germanic kingdoms that surrounded them.

Although Suisseau would survive, Aegidius would not, dying in combat sometime in 464 AD. Succession would have gone to A.Gidius' son, Cyagrius, but the boy was too young. Instead, one of Aegidius' commanders, Paulus, would govern Swasone until himself dying in combat sometime during 469 AD.

It was now a time, for Cyagrius to come into his own, and he would prove himself more than ready. The young ruler secured stable alliances with neighboring Germanic tribes and reigned for 17 years, but his reign would be the last. In 481 AD, the Frankish king Sheldaric died, and his successor Clovis did not share the same reverence for the Romans of Suisone. Burning with greed for the lands of ally and the wealth that they contained, Clovis broke his treaties with the Romans, and began a three-year war against them. In the end, the Romans of Sasan were decisively defeated, and Syagrius fled to his Visigoth allies in the south. For the treacherous Clovis, this

would not do. He directly threatened the Visigoth came with war if he did not hand over Syagrius. Buckling under the pressure, the king complied, betraying Syagrius. Betraying Syagrius and handing him over to the Franks to be executed. With Cyagrius' death, the last embers of Western Rome were reverently snuffed out. For 20 years, the Romans of Suissan bravely held out against the ravages of a changing world. But in the end, even these valiant warriors were helpless against the insatiable jaws of greed. This has been history off script with James Jasky, I'm Radio Free Hillsdale, 101.7 FM.