Belisarius: The Battle of Rome (3/6)

534 AD. Flavius Belisarius, Eastern Roman general, has waged one of the most successful campaigns in the Empire's history – the complete reconquest of North Africa in just six months, almost without loss. He is well-rewarded by Emperor Justinian. He celebrates his victory with a triumph in Constantinople, and receives the title of Consul. Belisarius has helped Justinian's regime survive political crisis. Now his victory offers irrefutable proof of God's divine sanction. Emboldened, Justinian will pursue a new strategic vision – the reconquest of the Western Roman Empire, and its reunification. Belisarius' next mission will be to Italy, where he will fight a desperate struggle for the eternal city, Rome itself. Sixty years have passed since the Western Roman Empire fell to barbarians. Many kings emerged to rule over its shattered remains. Above them all, towered Theodoric the Great. With Eastern Roman approval, he'd led his Ostrogoth warbands from the Balkans into Italy. He overthrew and killed Odoacer, the man who'd deposed the last Western Emperor, and forged his own Goth superstate. Theodoric, an Arian Christian, worked with the Senate in Rome, and sought close relations with the Eastern Roman Empire. To Emperor Anastasius he wrote, Our royalty is an imitation of yours, modelled on your good purpose, a copy of the only empire. Procopius, the 6th century historian and aid to Belisarius, would himself praise Theodoric as, in name, a tyrant, but in fact, an emperor, no less than any who've ever distinguished themselves in that office. In the eyes of his supporters, Theodoric had revived the Western Roman Empire, in all but name. But the succession would unravel his great achievement. Theodoric had three daughters, so his heir was to have been his son-in-law, Euthyric. But he died four years before the king, in 522. The succession passed to Theodoric's 10-year-old grandson, Athaleric. His mother, the highly educated and formidable Amalasunta, ruled as regent. In defending her position, Amalasunta made powerful enemies among the Goths, and when her son died aged just 18, one of those enemies, her cousin Theodohad, became king. In 535, he has Amalasunta imprisoned on an island in the middle of Lake Borsina. Weeks later, assassins arrive. They're rumoured to be vengeful relatives of men Amalasunta had had killed during her regency. The daughter of Theodoric the Great is strangled in her bath. Theodohad thinks he can quietly eliminate his rival without repercussions. But Amalasunta had been a trusted ally of the Emperor Justinian, and he is looking for an excuse for war. And the Emperor, upon learning what had befallen Amalasunta, immediately entered upon the war, being in the ninth year of his reign. For Justinian, chaos at the Ostrogoth court presents an opportunity. After success in North Africa, he wants Italy for the Empire. The strategic and symbolic gains will be immense. Before her death, Amalasunta had offered him the kingdom, in exchange for political asylum. Now Justinian pressures Theodohad, a notoriously corrupt and greedy man, to accept the same deal, or face war. Justinian's tough diplomacy is backed up by military deployments. Mundus, commanding the army in Illyria, advances into Goth-controlled Dalmatia, and takes Salona, the modern city of Split. Belisarius, meanwhile, is ordered to sail with 9,000 men to Sicily, to see if the Goths there will put up a fight. Only the garrison of Palermo offers resistance, which is soon overcome. The rest of Sicily submits to the Romans without a fight. On the last day of 535, Belisarius marks the end of his consulship, scattering coins to the crowds in Syracuse, as his troops march triumphantly through the city. As negotiations continue in the Goth capital, Ravenna, between Theodohad and Justinian's envoy, Solomon, Praetorian Prefect of North Africa, arrives in Sicily with alarming news from Carthage. The army, angered by late pay and religious discrimination, has murdered its officers and mutinied. Belisarius immediately sails for Carthage, with just 100 picked men. His own formidable reputation, plus generous handouts of cash, quickly secures the loyalty of 2,000 troops, whom he leads out to face the 9,000 mutineers. The mutineer army is a motley crew of Romans, mercenaries, renegade vandals, and escaped slaves, commanded by Stotsas, a former buccalarius. They have no generals, and little discipline. When Stotsas tries to manoeuvre his army into a better position, it becomes badly disordered. Belisarius immediately launches an all-out attack. Stotsas and his army turn and run. Belisarius has saved Carthage, but the war in North Africa against Berbers and rebels will drag on for 15 more years. This task falls to Solomon, as Belisarius must race back to Sicily to quash another mutiny among his own troops. In the Balkans, meanwhile, a Goth counterattack results in the death of General Mundus, and the Romans make a tactical withdrawal. When news of this minor triumph reaches King Theodohad, he feels suddenly emboldened, and rejects all Justinian's demands. Belisarius receives new orders. He is to cross the Strait of Messina, and reconquer Italy from the Ostrogoths. Belisarius lands in Italy with barely 8,000 men. The bulk of his troops are infantry, including 3,000 Isaurians, fierce warriors from the Taurus Mountains of Anatolia. His cavalry includes Hun and Berber mercenaries, as well as the elite Buccalari, the picked troops maintained by Belisarius, and other senior commanders. As in North Africa, he is accompanied on campaign by his wife Antonina, a capable and trusted ally of Empress Theodora. That the Emperor entrusts the campaign to such a small force, when the Goths can field an army four times its size, indicates Justinian's supreme confidence in Belisarius. But it is also a sign that he has badly underestimated the Goths, and their will to fight. Belisarius' army is welcomed by southern Italians, and meets no opposition as far as Naples. This city has strong walls, and a garrison of 800 Goths. Belisarius appeals directly to its citizens, urging them to throw open the gates, and warning of the dire consequences of an assault. I pray that an ancient city which has long been inhabited by Christians and Romans may not meet with such a fortune, especially at my hands, as a commander of Roman troops. The citizens of Naples are divided, but ultimately their leaders reject the demand to hand over the city. When Belisarius' troops sneak into the city using an old aqueduct, there is a savage slaughter of Goths and Italian citizens alike, until the general can restore order. The main Ostrogoth army has been standing idle 60 miles to the north. Theodohad, never suited to military command, and now unsettled by omens, does nothing to save Naples. It's his own death sentence. He is deposed and killed. Vitigas becomes the new king of the Ostrogoths. He is in his 60s, but he's an experienced soldier who fought alongside Theoderic the Great. He assumes that Belisarius must be leading a large army up from the south, and wants more time to gather his forces. He also plans to negotiate a truce with the Franks, which will free up more troops for the war against the Romans. So leaving 4,000 men to hold Rome, Vitigas withdraws to Ravenna. Belisarius garrisons Naples, and advances up the old Roman road, the Via Latina. To Rome. But as he nears the great city, the Goths simply abandon it. They march out through the Porta Flaminia, as Belisarius and his army march in through the Porta Assinaria, a gate which, though much restored, survives to this day. Sixty years after the fall of the Western Empire, Rome once more belongs to the Romans. Belisarius duly dispatches the keys to the city to Emperor Justinian. Rome in the 6th century is still a great city, but a shadow of its former glory. In its imperial heyday, Rome's population had been around half a million. Now it's just a fifth of that. But it remains the seat of the Roman Senate and the Pope, and a city of intense emotional and cultural significance to all Romans. The city is also notoriously difficult to defend, which is why the Goths have abandoned it. The famous Aurelian Walls are crumbling, and at 12 miles in length, are too long for a small army to easily hold. The Goths had also worried that Rome's large population might turn against them. Belisarius is down to 7,000 men – not enough to face the Goths in open battle. So he sends detachments to garrison key strongholds along the Via Flaminia, the road to Ravenna, which he hopes will delay the inevitable Goth advance. While in Rome, he and his men begin hurried preparations for a siege. The walls are repaired, and merlons are added. A deep moat is dug around the city. The granaries are filled with grain. All Rome's adult male citizens are conscripted into the city guard. Vitigus, meanwhile, has been told how small Belisarius' army is. Embarrassed by his earlier caution, he gives the order for his reinforced army to march on Rome. His chief concern is to get there before Belisarius can escape. But Belisarius has no plans to flee. And whoever of you has hopes of setting foot in Rome without a fight is mistaken in his judgement. For as long as Belisarius lives, it is impossible for him to relinquish this city. Such were the words of Belisarius. 537 AD. In early spring, Vitigus leads a huge Goth army, probably more than 30,000 men, down the Via Flaminia, sweeping past the small Roman outposts. Belisarius plans to fight a delaying action a mile and a half north of the city, at the Milvian Bridge. But his infantry, terrified by the size of the Goth army, abandon the bridge without a fight. Belisarius is left facing the Goth army with just 1,000 horsemen. He orders his men to charge. Belisarius himself fights in the front rank. Scores of men fall around him. Goth spears finally drive Belisarius and his men back, towards the Porta Salaria. At first, its defenders don't recognise Belisarius, covered in dust and gore, and won't let him in. He's forced to launch another desperate charge, to drive the Goths back from the walls. Finally the gate is opened, and he and his men get back into the city. The Siege of Rome begins. The city is too large for Vitegas to completely surround. He builds seven fortified camps north of the city, and cuts the aqueducts that have supplied Rome with water for 800 years. There will be no baths for the Romans, but the city's wells will still supply drinking water. When Belisarius rejects calls to surrender, the Goths begin building rams, ladders and siege towers for a major assault. 18 days later, they attack. But their inexperience in siege warfare is soon evident. Their towers are pulled by oxen. The Romans shoot all the animals, and the towers are left stranded. The Goths assault the city from multiple directions. The Mausoleum of Hadrian, converted into a fortress, comes under heavy pressure. But eventually, the Goths are thrown back on all fronts. That night, the Romans celebrate a great victory, lighting fires and singing from the battlements. Both sides prepare for a long siege. Belisarius is an inspiring presence in the city. Active, calm and confident, even when others begin to despair. He has written to Justinian, urgently requesting reinforcements. Now he oversees every aspect of the city's defence and supply. He orders all non-combatants to travel south to Naples, so there are fewer mouths to feed. He has the keys to the gates changed regularly, to reduce the risk from treachery. While his Berber mercenaries patrol at night with dogs, to detect any surprise attack. His wife Antonina also takes an active role. When the Pope is suspected of conducting secret talks with the Goths, she demands, Tell us, Lord Pope Silvarius, what have we done to you and the Romans, to make you want to betray us to the Goths? The Pope is arrested and sent out of the city. A month into the siege, Belisarius receives much-needed reinforcements. 1,600 cavalry, mostly Huns and Slavs, led by Martinus and Valerian. Belisarius has seen that the Goths have no mounted archers. Now he can use his own to make hit-and-run attacks against the enemy. A few hundred horsemen will ride within range of the Goths, shower them with arrows, then fall back, under covering fire from the city walls. Procopius counts 67 actions of this type, both large and small. Almost all are won by the Romans, because of their superior cavalry. The victories raise morale and frustrate the enemy. But they will not break the siege. The situation deteriorates dramatically when the Goths take Portus, Rome's port at the mouth of the river Tiber, making it much more difficult to get supplies into the city. By September, six months into the siege, hunger and sickness begin to take hold. Even the army's mules are killed to make sausages. The citizens of Rome beg Belisarius to stake everything on one decisive battle for the city. But he refuses, telling them, you act as though you were playing dice and want to risk everything on a single roll. But it is not my custom to choose the short course over the best course. Instead, Belisarius sends Antonina and Procopius to Naples, with instructions to use his authority to requisition all grain, and every soldier who can be spared, and send both to Rome. 500 men and a convoy of supplies are soon rolling up the Via Appia. They're followed by 1,800 cavalry reinforcements, who land at Dryas, modern Otranto. Then 3,000 Isaurians arrive at Naples aboard grain ships, and travel on to Ostia by sea. After months of delay, the vast resources of the Eastern Roman Empire are finally coming to Belisarius' aid. The garrison of Rome launch a series of diversionary attacks on the Goths. These allow the supplies, under Antonina's direction, to slip into the city. The threat of starvation is ended. It's the last straw for Vitigus. His own men have been camped outside Rome for almost a year, harassed by the enemy, themselves decimated by disease and hunger. The Ostrogoth king asks for a truce, to open negotiations with the Emperor. He offers Justinian all of southern Italy. But it is not enough. The initiative has swung to Belisarius. Belisarius has sent an elite force of 2,000 cavalry, commanded by John, north into Pecanum, behind enemy lines. When the Goths break the terms of the truce, Belisarius orders John to unleash hell. Almost all the Goth warriors are away on military service. Their farms and settlements are completely exposed. John sacks, burns and plunders at will, enslaving hundreds of Goth women and children. Romans are not harmed. Vitigus' uncle gathers a small force to challenge John. They're no match for his buccalari. John ignores the Goth strongholds at Urbino and Auximum, but at the invitation of its citizens, occupies the walled city of Ariminum, just 30 miles south of the Ostrogoth capital at Ravenna. Vitigus has no choice but to abandon the siege, and march north to defend the Goth heartland. Against the odds, under-resourced and outnumbered, Belisarius has triumphed in one of history's most epic sieges – a siege that has lasted one year and nine days. Because of him, the city of Romulus and the Caesars once more belongs to the Roman Empire. The war against the Goths in Italy seems to be entering its final phase. Belisarius' position appears unassailable. But, as every emperor knows, the history of the Empire has been blighted time and again by the treachery of overmighty generals. Belisarius' victories are as glorious as any in Rome's history. How can Justinian not regard him with suspicion? Soon, Belisarius will find himself facing new rivals from within the Empire, just as an old enemy re-emerges in the East. Big thanks to Legendarian for providing our Total War Attila gameplay footage. Check out his own YouTube channel for more videos on this period, including his latest video on the Sasanian Civil War of the late 6th century. Thank you also to Professor David Parnell of Indiana University Northwest, our series consultant. You can follow David on Twitter at ByzantineProf, or via the link in our video description. And thank you, of course, to all the Epic History TV Patreon supporters, who make this channel possible.