Thrasamund

[2] Upon Gunthamund's death, Thrasamund was one of only two living grandsons of Gaiseric and inherited the throne in accordance with a law enacted by his grandfather, which bestowed the kingship on the eldest male member of a deceased king's family.

"[4] During Thrasamnund's monarchy, the Vandals in North Africa enjoyed lengthy periods of relative peace, the economy was flourishing, and cultural life was thriving.

[2] More specifically, one poem by Florentinus praised Thrasamund's reverence, foresight, bravery, vigorous education, and intelligence, while claiming that with him as king, "the citadel of Carthage shines forth steadily".

[6] Florentinus essentially casts Thrasamund in the very "mold of a Roman emperor" and depicts him as having created a favorable cultural environment for scholarly debate, including over matters of theology.

[10][b] It is conceivable that such a sizable contingent of Goths surrounding Amalafrida was Theodoric's way of ensuring he could intervene in Vandal affairs if necessary and could have potentially made Thrasamund a "subordinate" to the Ostrogothic king.

[20] Thrasamund generously gave Gesalec money, who then returned to his kingdom and formed an army at Aquitaine to fight the Ostrogothic general Ibbas.

[21] Feeling again betrayed by Thrasamund for harboring and aiding an identified rival of the Ostrogothic kingdom, Theodoric expressed his displeasure in a letter to his brother-in-law: Although, to reinforce concord [concordia] with sundry kings, We joined to them, at their request, either nieces or daughters as God inspired Us, still We think We conferred on no one anything comparable to making Our sister, the singular glory of the Amal line, your spouse: a woman your equal in wisdom [prudentia], a woman who can be admired for her council even more than she should be revered by your kingdom.

[23] Historian Peter Heather explains that Theodoric's rejection of a gift and its return was a "calculated insult" and a warning to Thrasamund that "the Vandal kingdom was still on probation".

[25] Throughout the course of his rule, Thrasamund faced the ongoing threat posed by the Moors along the periphery of his territories, who became increasingly destructive and formidable across north Africa.

Yet none of this intellectual exchange prevented him for persecuting members of the Catholic clergy; for instance, he banished Bishop Eugenius of Carthage and Fulgentius several times, including sending them to Sardinia.

[33][e] Eventually, Thrasamund ended many years of pressure upon the Catholic Church, which had begun under his uncle Huneric, a move which improved the Vandals' relations with the Byzantine Empire.