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Iberian War
The Iberian War was fought from 526 to 532 between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanian Empire over the eastern Georgian kingdom of Iberia—a Sasanian client state that defected to the Byzantines. Conflict erupted among tensions over tribute and the spice trade. The Sasanians maintained the upper hand until 530 but the Byzantines recovered their position in battles at Dara and Satala while their Ghassanid allies defeated the Sasanian-aligned Lakhmids. A Sasanian victory at Callinicum in 531 continued the war for another year until the empires signed the " Perpetual Peace". Origin After the Anastasian War, a seven-year truce was agreed on, yet it lasted for nearly twenty years. Even during the war in 505, Emperor Anastasius I had already started fortifying Dara as a counter to the Persian fortress city of Nisibis for a looming conflict. During the reign of Justin I, investment in fortification efforts were increased in Dara. Fearing the security of his succession, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belisarius
BelisariusSometimes called Flavia gens#Later use, Flavius Belisarius. The name became a courtesy title by the late 4th century, see (; ; The exact date of his birth is unknown. March 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under Emperor Justinian I. Belisarius was instrumental in the reconquest of much of the Mediterranean territory belonging to the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century prior. He is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history and in Byzantium. One of the defining features of Belisarius' career was his success despite varying levels of available resources. He is frequently cited as being among the "Last of the Romans". He conquered the Vandal Kingdom of North Africa in the Vandalic War in nine months and conquered much of Italy during the Gothic War (535–554), Gothic War. He also defeated the Vandal armies in the battle of Battle of Ad Decimum, Ad Decimum and played an important role at Battle of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ascan
Ascan (died 19 April 531) was a Byzantine ''dux'' of Hunnish descent. He fought at the Battle of Dara in 530, and at the Battle of Callinicum one year later, where he put up a brave fight when his flank was exposed, dying on the field. Biography He was one of several warriors of Hunnic descent fighting for the Byzantine Empire; the Huns were known to "fight like tigers when driven to bay" and to "die sword in hand". Ascan fought at the Battle of Dara in 530 AD, where he commanded 600 horsemen (constituting the right-hand Hunnic cavalry force) together with fellow Hunnic commander Simmas. He, Simmas and the other two Hunnic commanders, Sunicas and Aïgan, played a fundamental role in the Roman victory of this battle. He led the greater part of the Byzantine cavalry, made up of cataphracts, at the Battle of Callinicum. Here, the Persians tried to defeat the Romans as they had attempted at Dara in vain, by deploying their cavalry to try and attack a weak spot in the Roman army. Be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Simmas
Simmas () was a Huns, Hunnic general in the service of the Byzantine Empire, serving as ''dux'' (regional military commander). Active in the early 6th century, he fought at the Battle of Dara, commanding six hundred horseman along with fellow Hun commander Ascan, and played a fundamental role in the Byzantine victory. Biography He fought for the Byzantine Empire, Byzantines against the Sasanian Empire at the Battle of Dara in 530 AD, alongside fellow Hun commanders Aigan (Hunnic commander), Aïgan, Ascan, and Sunicas. He and Ascan commanded the right-hand Hunnic cavalry force, whereas Aïgan and Sunicas commanded the left wing of the Hunnic cavalry. During the battle, the Sasanian commander, Perozes, had concentrated his Immortals (Sasanian Empire), Immortals against the Byzantines to his left. The Byzantine generals countered this by stopping the action of Aïgan and Sunicas on the left and sending them to the right, where they joined Simmas and Ascan. The Huns were also backed b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aigan (Hunnic Commander)
Aigan or ''Aïgan'' (late 5th century or early 6th century – ) was a Hun general serving as a cavalry commander for the Byzantine Empire, active in the early 6th century. Biography Aigan commanded a body of Hun cavalry at the Battle of Dara against the Sasanians, terrifying the Persians. He was fundamental in the Byzantine victory. He then participated in the Byzantine expedition against the Vandalic Kingdom in 533, being one of the four cavalry commanders under Belisarius. He remained in Africa to serve under Solomon after Belisarius returned to Constantinople in the summer of 534. In 534 he and Rufinus the Thracian fought against the Moors in Byzacena Byzacena (or Byzacium) (, ''Byzakion'') was a Late Roman province in the central part of Roman North Africa, which is now roughly Tunisia, split off from Africa Proconsularis. History At the end of the 3rd century AD, the Roman emperor Dioclet .... They ambushed a Moorish raiding party, whom they killed, and released t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Domnentiolus
Domnentiolus () was a Byzantine military officer, active in the reign of Justinian I (r. 527–565). He is better known for his service in Sicily during the Gothic War.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 413 Name Primary sources are inconsistent in the rendering of his name. The spelling "Domnentiolus" derives from Procopius. Menander Protector names him "Domenentiolus" (). John Malalas reports him as "Dometiolus", Theophanes the Confessor as " Domentziolus". Zacharias Rhetor names him "Domitziolus". A fragment of Theophanes of Byzantium, preserved by Patriarch Photios, calls him " Comentiolus". Biography Domnentiolus was born to an unnamed sister of Bouzes. The relation is reported by both Zacharias Rhetor and Procopius. His other maternal uncles included Coutzes and Venilus. His maternal grandfather was probably the general and rebel Vitalian.Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 366 Domnentiolus is first mentioned in April, 531, at about the time of the Battle of C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorotheus (magister Militum)
Dorotheus was a Byzantine military commander. While being ''magister militum per Armeniam'' he won a battle against the Persians, in 530, as well as taking part in the Battle of Satala. At Satala he defended the city while his superior Sittas was hidden with some cavalry in the nearby area and attacked the Persians in the rear, routing their 30,000 with the Byzantine 15,000. He defeated the Persians again in 531 and later drove the Sabir Huns out through the Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i .... He was sent to North Africa with Belisarius, but died on the way, which caused mourning throughout the army. References 533 deaths Generals of Justinian I People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars {{Byzantine-bio-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Harith Ibn Jabalah
Al-Ḥārith ibn Jabalah (; known in Byzantine sources as Flavios Arethas (Greek: ) and Khālid ibn Jabalah () in later Islamic sources), was a king of the Ghassanids, a pre-Islamic Arab Christian tribe who lived on the eastern frontier of the Byzantine Empire. The fifth Ghassanid ruler of that name, he reigned from to 569, the longest of any Christian Arab ruler and played a major role in the Roman–Persian Wars and the affairs of the Syriac Orthodox Church. For his services to Byzantium, he was made ''patrikios'' and '' vir gloriosissimus''. Biography Early life Harith was the son of Jabalah IV (Gabalas in Greek sources) and brother of Abu Karab (Abocharabus), phylarch of Palaestina Salutaris. He became ruler of the Ghassanids and phylarch of Arabia Petraea and Palaestina Secunda probably in 528, following the death of his father in the Battle of Thannuris. Soon after () he was raised by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565), in the words of the historian Procopiu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jabalah IV Ibn Al-Harith
Jabalah IV ibn al-Ḥārith (), known also by the tecnonymic Abū Shammar (), known in Byzantine sources as Gabalas (Greek: ), was a ruler of the Ghassanids. At first an enemy of the Eastern Roman Empire, he raided Palestine but was defeated, becoming a Byzantine vassal in 502 until circa 520, and again in 527 until his death a year later. Biography Jabalah was the son of al-Harith (Arethas in Greek sources) and grandson of the sheikh Tha'laba. He first appears in the historical sources in 498 during the reign of Byzantine emperor Anastasius I (), when, according to Theophanes the Confessor, the Diocese of Oriens suffered from large-scale Arab raids. The head of one of the Arab groups invading Byzantine territory was Jabalah, who raided Palaestina III before being defeated and driven back by the local Byzantine '' dux'', Romanus. Romanus then proceeded to evict the Ghassanids from the island of Iotabe (modern Tiran), which controlled trade with the Red Sea and which had been oc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tzath I Of Lazica
Tzath I ( ka, წათე), Tzathius or Tzathios () in Byzantine sources, was king of Lazica (western Georgia) from 521/522 to an unknown date. He rejected Sassanid Persian overlordship and turned to the Byzantine emperor Justin I (r. 518–527) for aid. He was the first Christian king of Lazica. Tzath was the son of Damnazes, of whom almost nothing is known. Upon his father's death, in 521 or 522, he refused to recognize the traditional suzerainty exercised by the Persian ruler over Lazica, rejected Zoroastrianism, and instead turned to the Byzantine Empire. He went to Constantinople, where he was received by Emperor Justin I, baptized as a Christian, and wedded to a noble wife, Valeriana. After having received the insignia and royal robes that signified both his royal status and his submission to the Byzantine emperor, he returned to Lazica.. Tzath is mentioned for the last time with the outbreak of the Iberian War in 527, when Lazica was attacked by the Persians, who had easily ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sunicas
Sunicas () was a Hun who served in the Byzantine military during the Iberian War, in the early reign of Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). Biography According to Zacharias of Mytilene, Sunicas was a Hun who fled to the Byzantine Empire, where he was baptized. By 527, he was an officer stationed at the fortress of Dara in Mesopotamia along with Simmas, and defended it against Sassanid Persian attacks.. In 530, he appears as a ''dux'', although it is not clear whether he held the territorial command of ''dux Mesopotamiae'' or if he just received the title. In this capacity, he participated at the great Byzantine victory in the Battle of Dara in June 530, where, along with Aigan, he commanded a 600-strong unit of Hun cavalry stationed on the Byzantine left flank. During the battle, Sunicas's Huns repelled the Persian attack on the Byzantine left and were then sent by Belisarius, the Byzantine commander, to reinforce the threatened right flank. There, Sunicas killed the Persian seco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Of Lydia
John the Lydian or John Lydus (; ) ( AD 490 – 565) was a Byzantine administrator and writer. He is considered a key figure in antiquarian studies from the fourth to the sixth century A.D. Although he is a secondary author, his works are significant because they are filled with valuable insights into history, astronomy, astrology, mythology, religion, and language. Additionally, they provide important information on Roman and Byzantine culture, making them worthy of in-depth study. Life and career He was born in AD 490 at Philadelphia in Lydia, whence his cognomen "Lydus". At an early age he set out to seek his fortune in Constantinople, and held high court and state offices in the praetorian prefecture of the East under Anastasius and Justinian. Around 543, Lydus was appointed to a chair of Latin language and literature at an institute of higher education of Constantinople. In 552, he lost Justinian's favour and was dismissed. The date of his death is not known, but he was pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
