 Only in the 5th century did it suffer from raids by the Vandals operating from the coasts of North Africa.In 535, the island came under Byzantine control and was raided by the Ostrogoths in the Gothic War, but calm returned thereafter.Protected by the sea, the island was spared the ravages inflicted on Byzantine Italy through the Lombard invasions of the late 6th and early 7th centuries, and retained a still flourishing urban life and a civilian administration.