Editing Amalasuintha (section)

== Family ==
Amalasuintha was likely born in Ravenna in 495, the only child of [[Theodoric the Great|Theodoric]] and his wife [[Audofleda]], the sister of [[Clovis I|Clovis]], King of the Franks.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Jansen |first=Sharon L. |title=Amalasuintha of Italy, "An Ill-Fated Gothic Queen" |url=https://www.monstrousregimentofwomen.com/2022/04/amalasuintha-of-italy-ill-fated-gothic.html |access-date=2022-12-18}}</ref> The union of Amalasuintha's parents were of a political purpose, as many royal marriages were at the time. Theodoric married Audofleda about the year 493, after he had defeated the various Gothic kingdoms and sought an alliance with the Franks.<ref name=":4" /> Amalasuintha was born into the [[Amal dynasty|Amali dynasty]] on her father's side, which dynasty comprised Goths of Germanic descent.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FamilyTreeDNA - Genetic Testing for Ancestry, Family History & Genealogy |url=https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/amal-amali/about |access-date=2022-12-18 |website=www.familytreedna.com |language=en}}</ref> Like her father, Amalasuintha was married out of political reasons to [[Eutharic]], an Amali prince, to ensure a legitimate heir to the throne.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Vitiello |first=Massimiliano |title=Theohadad: A Platonic King at the Collapse of Ostrogothic Italy |publisher=Toronto: University of Toronto Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-4426-4783-1 |pages=34}}</ref> They had two children together, Athalaric and Matasuntha. Eutharic died in 522, causing Theodoric some alarm, as his kingdom lacked an adult male heir to inherit the throne.<ref name=":5" /> As Amalasuintha's son [[Athalaric]] was only 10 years old at the time of Theodoric's death, Amalasuintha took control of the kingdom alongside her son as regent and, although accounts by Cassiodorus and Procopius refer to Athalaric as King, she effectively ruled on his behalf.