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Waccho
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Also spelled:
Vacces
Died:
c. 539
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Waccho

king of the Lombards
Also known as: Vacces
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History

Waccho (died c. 539) was the king of the Lombards in the period preceding the invasion of Italy, when they occupied territory roughly coinciding with Austria north of the Danube River.

A member of the ruling family, Waccho assassinated his uncle Tato and usurped the throne. In 539 the Ostrogoth king of Italy, Witigis, hard-pressed by the Byzantine emperor Justinian’s general Belisarius, sent ambassadors to Waccho, offering him money in exchange for military aid. Waccho refused, preferring to remain on good terms with Constantinople. Married successively to daughters of the kings of the Thuringians, of the Gepidae, and of the Heruli, Waccho was succeeded by a young son who died during the regency of the Lombard chief Audoin; this regent’s son Alboin became the king who invaded Italy.

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