On August 24, 410 AD, the fate of Rome took a dramatic turn as the Salaria Gate swung open from within, allowing the Visigoths to enter the city.
The ensuing pillage primarily targeted movable assets, with limited structural damage. The affected areas were around the Salaria Gate and the Aventine neighborhood.
Strikingly, the Visigoths, despite their plunder, displayed reverence for Christian places of worship. However, this did not prevent the theft of a massive chalice made of 918 kg of silver from the Lateran Palace.
Procopius suggests that the treasure from the Jerusalem temple, previously looted by the Romans in 70 AD, was also taken.
While the Visigoths were within the city, there was no widespread massacre, but the death toll among the population numbered in the hundreds. Many were enslaved to transport the stolen goods.
After three days, the Visigoths departed, taking with them Gala Placidia, Honorius’s sister, and Priscus Attalus, who were already in their custody before the siege.
The aftermath saw a city scarred but not defeated, as Rome continued to endure and rebuild in the face of adversity.
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