In Paragraph 2 Ermanaric’s kingdom is considered in the light of modern theories of potestarity. According to the typology of early polities, Ermanaric’s regnum had several features of an early state, but not those of a complex chiefdom. Numerous archaeological data denote the increase of cultural and social complexity of Ostrogothic society in IV^h century AD, which is more characteristic for a stage of civilization. Probably, this explains the fact that Chernyakhov culture turned out to be the most developed among all the barbarian cultures of Late antiquity. Ermanaric’s empire’ demonstrated a historical possibility for formation of a ‘barbaric kingdom’ beyond the territory of Roman provinces, in East-European Barbaricum. But, unlike classical barbarian states of V—VI^th centuries AD, it did not have a nutrient Roman medium, towns and other institutions of old civilization, though the IV^th century Goths managed to assimilate a lot from that.

Most of Soviet scholars who rested upon the Marxist concept of history a priori assigned the Ostrogothic society to a stage known as a breakdown of tribal society (A.R. Korsunsky, E.A. Rikman, E.A. Symonovich, V.D. Baran, etc.). B.D. Grekov, B.A. Rybakov, V.I. Dovzhenok defined the Chernyakhov society as a forming early-feudal one. Recently some scholars started to lean towards a conclusion that this society was already at the stage of ‘proto-civilization’ (M.Y. Braychevsky, О. M. Prikhodnyuk). In our opinion, formation of an integrated archaeological culture occupying a vast territory and having several significant features characteristic for a stage of civilization is very indicative. In this regard classic Chernyakhov culture of IV^th century AD may be considered as some kind of a ‘state’ culture of Ermanaric’s kingdom being a result and a material reflection of complex consolidation of various tribes and peoples within the framework of forming Gothic potestarity with preservation of certain local peculiarity in the provinces.

The analyzed data of narrative sources and archaeology allow us to conclude that Ostrogothic society of Ermanarich’s age appeared as a multilevel sociopolitical organization (over-tribal ‘imperial’, ‘national’ Gothic, regional and local communal levels) for regulation of social and interethnic relations in the forming stratified society. It was already divided into at least some estates (strata): a ruling family of Amali and its company, including king’s retinue; free Goths; various groups of dependent population, as well as tributaries from the remote periphery. Social organization of Goths did not have any features of feudal society but had a lot of attributes of forming early state’.