The following is excerpted from my forthcoming book on the Lessons from Fallen Civilizations. In AD 450s the Roman Empire’s sovereignty over Western Europe had shriveled to just a few provinces in central Italy and southern Gaul. Two decades earlier, Germanic invaders, Vandals, who controlled all Iberia (today’s Spain and Portugal) were led by a very able general and king, Gaiseric. They gained control of a fleet of ships, landed in North Africa and captured, … More >