Stilicho vs Alaric

[Sgt Detritus]

If Stilicho hadn't been killed and was in command of the Roman army (such as it was at the time) how would he have coped with Alaric and his guys??

 

[Darkest]

I believe that was part of a timeline I did way back. https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=25701

Can't remember exactly what happened though...

 

[cow defender]

alaric would have torn through him, perhaps i am biased but i think alaric was one of those people, who like caesar was a whirlpool in history. He may not have been inevitable but he may have been close.

 

[Robert Gertz]

I don’t buy it. Stilicho had beaten Alaric several times and would have had the loyalty of the western army which was honorius’ biggest problem after Stilich’s judicial murder. I’m sure he would have thrown the Goths back. The question then is, could he have regained Gaul? My suspicion is that to the end he still hoped to use his old comrade Alaric to regain control in the West, as well as regain Illyria and its manpower resources but Alaric put the bill too high. Perhaps stilicho’s biggest mistake was his obsession with reuniting the empires? The right long term move but tactically wrong.