face, governor of
Africa, crossed the Straits of Gibraltar and invaded Mauretania.
Genseric, who was hailed with one accord by all the different sectaries
as the champion of their several views, appeared in 439 before the walls
of Carthage, which had been hastily rebuilt after five hundred years by
the order of Theodosius II. The priest Salvianus has left a splendid
picture of Carthage at this moment (_de Gubern._ vii. 16). It had
500,000 inhabitants, and 22 basilicas (several of which have been
discovered by Delattre). Genseric entered almost without a blow (October
19, 439), and gave over the city to plunder before departing for his
attack on Italy. From this time Carthage became, in the hands of the
Vandals, a mere pirate stronghold, such as Tunis and Algiers were
subsequently to become. Once, in 470, the fleet of the Eastern empire
under the orders of Basiliscus appeared in the Bay of Carthage, but
Genseric succeeded in setting fire to the attacking ships and from Byrsa
watched their entire annihilation.

_Byzantine Rule_.--Under Genseric's successors (see VANDALS), Carthage
was still the scene of many displays of savage brutality, though
Thrasamund built new baths and a basilica. Ultimately Gelimer, the last
Vandal king, was defeated at Ad Decimum by the Byzantine army under
Belisarius, who entered Carthage unopposed (September 14, 533). The
restored city now received the name of Colonia Justiniana Carthago;
Belisarius rebuilt the walls and entrusted the government to Solomon.
New basilicas and other monuments were erected, and Byzantine Carthage
recovered for a century the prosperity of the Roman city.

At length the Arabs, having conquered Cyrenaica and Tripolitana (647),
and founded Kairawan (670), arrived before Carthage. In 697 Hasan ibn
en-Noman, the Gassanid governor of Egypt, captured the city almost
without resistance. But the garrison left by the Arabs was quite unable
to defend itself against the patrician Joannes, who retook the city and
hastily put it in a state of defence. Hasan returned furious with anger,
defeated the Byzantines again, and decreed the entire destruction of the
city. His orders were fulfilled; and in 698 Carthage finally disappears
from history. Once again only does the name appear in the middle ages,
when the French king, Louis IX., at the head of the eighth crusade,
disembarked there on the 17th of July 1270. He died, however, of the
plague on the 25th of August without having rec