Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XVI.djvu/585

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WESTERN EMPIRE to destroy the immense fleet of Majorian in the bay of Cartagena. He immediately ap- plied for peace, however, and the emperor con- sented to a treaty. Count Ricimer, who found that he had raised a master instead of a servant to the throne, persuaded the inconstant soldiers to engage in a sedition, through which Majorian was obliged to abdicate on Aug. 2, 461, while at his camp near Tortona. Five days after- ward he died or was put to death, and the Ro- man senate immediately obeyed the demand of Ricimer and conferred the imperial title upon Libius Severus. Of the events of his reign, which lasted until August, 465, there is scarce- ly any record. The government was entirely in the hands of Count Ricimer, who after the death of Severus made no effort to have any successor placed upon the throne, but nego- tiated alliances, amassed treasures, and formed a separate army, as if he were emperor. His authority, however, did not extend beyond Italy. Meanwhile the Vandals continued their depredations on the Italian coasts. In one of their expeditions they subdued the island of Sardinia. Ricimer humbly solicited the aid of Leo, emperor of the East. That monarch de- termined to destroy the Vandal power, and placed upon the throne of the West Anthemius, one of his most distinguished subjects, who was inaugurated in Rome in 467. The daughter of Anthemius was married to Ricimer, and all the powers of the West and East were assembled to destroy the Vandal authority. A fleet of 1,113 ships, carrying over 100,000 men, sailed from Constantinople to Carthage, and the en- tire armament was put under the command of Basiliscus, the brother-in-law of Leo. Landing his troops at Cape Bona, he was either joined or aided by the army under Heraclius, which had already subdued Africa Syrtica (Tripoli), and the fleet under Marcellinus advancing from Sardinia, and began his march toward Carthage. But the wily Genseric, having obtained a truce of five days, attacked by night the unguarded imperial fleet, and routed his enemies. He soon regained all lost ground, and added Sicily to his dominions. In the mean while Theodoric II., king of -the Visigoths, and his successor Eurie, had brought nearly the whole of Spain and Gaul under Gothic rule. The feeble gov- ernment of Anthemius was finally overthrown by Ricimer in 472, who then proclaimed Oly- brius emperor. Anthemius was killed by or- der of Ricimer, who died himself 40 days after- ward, leaving the command of his army to his nephew Gundobald, prince of the Burgnndians. The death of Olybrins followed on Oct. 23. Gundobald persuaded Glycerins, an obscure soldier, to accept the phantom sovereignty, and he was accordingly elevated to the throne in March, 473, at Ravenna. But his title was not acknowledged by the emperor of the East, who conferred the imperial dignity upon Julius Nepos, the nephew of Marcellinus and govern- or of Dalmatia. He immediately marched against Glycerins, who, unsupported by the WEST FELICIANA 565 Burgundian prince, was overthrown. In 475 the general of the barbarian confederates, Orestes, raised the standard of revolt, and de- posed Nepos. Orestes declined the title of em- peror, but consented that his son Romulus Au- gustus, whose name the Latins contemptuous- ly changed into the diminutive Augustulus, should be invested with the purple. Orestes, in whom the real sovereignty lay, refused the demand of his barbarian allies that a third part of the lands of Italy should be divided among them; whereupon Odoacer, their leader, in 476 revolted, stormed Pavia, in which Orestes had taken refuge, and deposed Augustulus. The barbarian general determined to destroy the name as well as the power of the emperor of the West, and at his wish the Roman senate sent to the emperor Zeno an epistle in which they consented that the seat of universal em- pire should be transferred from Rome to Constantinople. They also requested that the emperor would invest Odoacer with the title of patrician, and charge him with the civil and military administration of the diocese of Italy. Thus fell the western empire, after existing separately from the eastern 81 years, during which it had been ruled over by 12 emperors, besides many usurpers in the provinces. WESTER NORRLAND, or Hernosand, an E. cen- tral Ian of Sweden, bordering on the gulf of Bothnia; area, 9,515 sq. m. ; pop. in 1874, 143,- 614. It is watered by numerous lakes and the rivers Angerman, Adals, and Indals. Capi- tal, Hernosand. WESTERWAtD, a mountain range of Ger- many, in Prussian territory, lying E. of the Rhine, bounded N. by the Sieg and E. and S. by the Lahn. It consists of a lofty plateau from which rise numerous moderate eleva- tions, the highest of which, the Saalberg, reaches a height of about 2,500 ft. The K E. and central parts of the range, known also as Hoher Westerwald or Kalte Eich, are the highest. The rounded eminences frequently enclose a lake or marsh, and the large number of these renders the climate harsh and unfavor- able to agriculture. Forests appear only upon the lower slopes and toward the Rhine. The winters are long and severe, and the snows heavy. The products are potatoes, oats, bar- ley, flax, and hay. Some copper and iron are found, and there are considerable deposits of lignite and potters' clay. At and near Rams- bach large quantities of earthenware are manu- factured, known in commerce as Coblentz ware. Malachite has lately been discovered. WEST FELICIANA, a S. E. parish of Louisiana, bounded N. by Mississippi, E. by Thompson's creek, and S. and W. by the Mississippi river; area, about 350 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 10,499, of whom 8,915 were colored; in 1875, 12,156, of whom 10,058 were colored. The surface is undulating, and the soil fertile. It is traversed by the West Feliciana railroad. The chief productions in 1870 were 66,029 bushels of In- dian corn, 10,200 of sweet potatoes, 7,967 bales