of the eastern empire. In the meantime, Stilicho was ordered by the court of Constantinople to leave Greece immediately; wishing to avoid a civil war, Stilicho reluctantly complied, returning to Italy.

Alaric, established in his new Illyrian command, now set his sights on the western empire. Crowned king of the Goths by his troops for his successes hitherto, Alaric only waited long enough to exploit the resources of the Imperial armories in the province to finally supply his troops with adequate weapons and armor, and then invaded Italy,