The Vandals were a German tribe that did not rise to prominence until after the breakdown of the Roman Empire was well underway. They were however, very important in bringing about the complete collapse of the Western empire because of their vicious, and rapacious behavior. Instead of governing, they pillaged. Instead of promoting trade, they became a nation of pirates. They controlled a significant portion of the Western Empire, including Northern Africa, Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia, and the Balearic Islands off of Spain, and their reputation is remembered in their name, which as come to mean "willful and malicious destruction".
By 406 A.D., the defenses in the Western Kingdom had broken down, and the Vandals, along with several other German tribes migrated through the undefended borders into Spain. There, they were opposed by the Visigoths and driven into Spain. Two events triggered the rise of the Vandal nation. The first was a battle against a Roman and Visigoth army in 422, in which they won control of several coastal towns, and came into possession of a large fleet. The second was the rise of Genseric, an unusually capable and ambitious General to leadership of the Vandals. Soon after coming to power in 428, he launched an expedition of 80,000 men to invade Northern Africa. His army included, not only Vandals, but all sorts of ex-slaves, various barbarians, and other miscreants. They looted and terrorized the population, defeated the Roman Commander Boniface in every encounter and eventually besieged Hippo in 430. (St. Augustine of Hippo famously died during this siege.) Eventually a fleet from the Eastern Empire arrived in Carthage, and the new Commander Aspar, after failing to defeat him in the field, negotiated a peaceful settlement with the Genseric in 435, officially recognizing the Vandal Kingdom, with Hippo as its capital.
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