Theodoric Establishes the Ostrogothic Kingdom

Timeline

1. 488–492Italian Peninsula · ItalyEastern Roman emperor Zeno directed Theodoric to lead the Ostrogoths out of the Balkans and attack Italy under Odoacer, gradually gaining control of most of the peninsula after several years of war.
2. 493Ravenna · Emilia-RomagnaTheodoric hosted a banquet in Ravenna where he had Odoacer assassinated, proclaimed himself king of Italy, and formally established the Ostrogothic Kingdom, which became the dominant power in Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
3. 493–526Ravenna · ItalyTheodoric preserved the Roman Senate, offices, and laws, employed Roman scholars such as Boethius, and built churches and palaces in Ravenna, maintaining a fragile balance between the Gothic military aristocracy and the Roman commoners.