Ascum ( el, ) was a general of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

, active early in the reign of

Justinian I Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renova ...

(r. 527–565). He was in command of the

Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum The praetorian prefecture of Illyricum ( la, praefectura praetorio per Illyricum; el, ἐπαρχότης/ὑπαρχία �ῶν πραιτωρίωντοῦ Ἰλλυρικοῦ, also termed simply the Prefecture of Illyricum) was one of four ...

. His name is reported by John Malalas. Both

Theophanes the Confessor Theophanes the Confessor ( el, Θεοφάνης Ὁμολογητής; c. 758/760 – 12 March 817/818) was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy who became a monk and chronicler. He served in the court of Emperor Leo IV the Khazar before taking ...

and

George Kedrenos George Kedrenos, Cedrenus or Cedrinos ( el, Γεώργιος Κεδρηνός, fl. 11th century) was a Byzantine Greek historian. In the 1050s he compiled ''Synopsis historion'' (also known as ''A concise history of the world''), which spanned the ...

render his name "Ακούμ" (Acum).Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136

Biography

John Malalas writes that Ascum was a Hun and a godson of

. Some modern historians consider it possible that the "Huns" of the primary sources were actually Bulgars.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136

Denis Sinor Denis Sinor (born Dénes Zsinór, April 17, 1916 in Kolozsvár (Austria-Hungary, now Cluj-Napoca, Romania) – January 12, 2011 in Bloomington, Indiana) was a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Central Asian Studies at the Department of Ce ...

and Michael Withby described Ascum as a Hun, as did

Hyun Jin Kim Hyun Jin Kim (born 1982) is an Australian academic, scholar and author. He was born in Seoul and raised in Auckland, New Zealand. Kim got his Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Oxford. He started learning Latin, German, and Fren ...

, who specifies he was a Caucasian Hunnic sub-king. Patrick Amory considers the name Ascum to be Germanic in origin, though with the Huns ethnicity and etymology rarely go hand in hand (the name of Attila himself is considered to be of Germanic origin). Ascum first appears in 528, already holding the title of

stratelates ''Stratēlatēs'' ( el, στρατηλάτης, "driver/leader of the army") was a Greek term designating a general, which also became an honorary dignity in the Byzantine Empire. In the former sense, it was often applied to military saints, such ...

of Illyricum ( el, ). His title in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

would be

magister militum (Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...

per Illyricum.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136 In 528, Ascum joined forces with Constantiolus and

Godilas Godilas ( el, ) was a Byzantine general, active in the reigns of Emperor Justin I () and Emperor Justinian I (). Biography According to some scholars Godilas was probably a Goth. The name has also been considered to be of Gothic origin (''Gudila ...

against an invasion force of Huns/Bulgars. Having passed through

Scythia Scythia (Scythian: ; Old Persian: ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) or Scythica (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ), also known as Pontic Scythia, was a kingdom created by the Scythians during the 6th to 3rd centuries BC in the Pontic–Caspian steppe. Hi ...

(

Scythia Minor Scythia Minor or Lesser Scythia (Greek: , ) was a Roman province in late antiquity, corresponding to the lands between the Danube and the Black Sea, today's Dobruja divided between Romania and Bulgaria. It was detached from Moesia Inferior by th ...

) and Moesia ( Moesia Secunda), the invaders were at the time raiding

Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to ...

.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), pp. 748 The Byzantine army defeated one group of invaders.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136 Shortly after their victory, the Byzantine forces were ambushed and routed by a second group of invaders. Both Ascum and Constantiolus were captured in this battle. While Constantiolus was ransomed back to the Byzantines, Ascum "was carried off into captivity". He is not mentioned again and his eventual fate is unknown.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 136

References

Sources

* * {{Huns Generals of Justinian I Huns Magistri militum Bulgars Byzantine prisoners of war Byzantine people of Hunnic descent