Rodulf was described by Procopius as the king of the Danubian Heruli already three years after the beginning of the reign of Emperor Anastasius (reigned 491-518). Paul the Deacon gave the same name for the Herul king who died when they were defeated by the Lombards, which is normally dated by historians to about 508. After this defeat Procopius reported that while some crossed the Danube into the Roman empire, another part of the Heruli nobility migrated north to the island of Thule (the name Procopius gave to Scandinavia). They passed through the lands of Sclavenes, Warini, and finally the "Dani" (Danes), before crossing Ocean and settling near the Gauti. He mentions that later generations of Heruli still living near the Danube successfully went to search for royalty in this region in the 540s.