The deliberate destruction or damage of public or private property.
Named after the Vandals, a Germanic tribe that sacked Rome in 455 CE. The term was coined in the 1790s during the French Revolution to describe the destruction of cultural monuments and artworks.
The Vandals actually weren't more destructive than other barbarian tribes, but their sack of Rome was so symbolically devastating that their name became synonymous with mindless destruction—an early example of how historical reputation can be shaped by a single dramatic event.
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