Count Belisarius (Penguin Modern Classics)

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With the same reasoning he used in Italy for the siege of Auximus and other sieges and the marching column in Africa, he determined that Nisibis had to be taken first to secure his rear if he moved further into Persia. [15] Meanwhile, the war was going poorly for the Byzantines to the north, Lazica was taken and a significant Byzantine garrison changed sides, possibly not having been paid for years. As to its historical worth, I suggest appreciating Graves' efforts but proceed with caution. The Ostrogothic nation did not exist at the Battle of Adrianople, and the comment: e.g. Quinn, P.J. ,ed. , New Perspectives on Robert Graves, Susquehanna UP, 1999; Firla, I., ed., Robert Graves’s Historical Novels, Peter Lang, 2002; Firla, I. and Lindop, G., eds., Graves and the Goddess: Essays on Robert Graves’s The White Goddess, Susquehanna UP, 2003. See also the peer-reviewed journal of the Robert Graves Society, Gravesiana. As a result, many Byzantine soldiers defected or mutinied. The command of the troops in Italy was divided by Justinian to prevent any commander from becoming too powerful. Most of the time these commanders refused to work together as Justinian's plague made it dangerous to leave the base. Meanwhile, the Goths under the brilliant and energetic leadership of Ildibad and Totila went on the offensive and recaptured all of northern Italy and parts of the south. Apparently Totila considered the opportunity to win an easy victory greater than the risk of losing his force due to plague. As a result, they won many engagements against the uncoordinated Byzantines including the Battle of Treviso, the siege of Verona, the Battle of Faventia, the Battle of Mucellium and the siege of Naples. But by now they weren't powerful enough to capture Rome.

While Belisarius was in the east, the situation in Italy had vastly deteriorated. [15] The governor sent to the area, a man named Alexander, was corrupt. He trimmed the edges of coins and kept the trimmings of precious metal to increase his own wealth. He charged many soldiers with corruption and demanded they pay fines, and he decreased military spending and demanded that tax withheld from the Goths would be instead paid to the Byzantines. Archaeological and Ancient Literary Evidence for a Battle near Dara Gap, Turkey, AD 530: Topography, Texts and Trenches" in: BAR –S1717, 2007 The Late Roman Army in the Near East from Diocletian to the Arab Conquest Proceedings of a colloquium held at Potenza, Acerenza and Matera, Italy edited by Ariel S. Lewin and Pietrina Pellegrini, pp.299–311Graves writes in the style of Classical authors. The conceit is that this is the biography of Belisarius as written by his wife’s trusted domestic slave, and it possesses many of the flourishes and literary devices common to that period. But if I’m going to read something of that sort, I’d rather just go to the source itself and read some Procopius directly. Of course, if I did that, I would miss out on the fact that Count Belisarius is actually more a biography of the military leader’s remarkable wife, Antonina, and her close childhood friend, the Empress Theodora. This is a nice approach – both women are fascinating figures in their own right, but it wasn't enough in itself to really hook me. Hard and Soft Power on the Eastern Frontier: a Roman Fortlet between Dara and Nisibis, Mesopotamia, Turkey, Prokopios' Mindouos?" in: The Byzantinist, edited by Douglas Whalin, Issue 2 (2012), pp.4–5, [1] Compare the fine, simple story contained in the four Gospels, obviously born among illiterate peasants and fishermen who never studied either grammar or rhetoric, which the wearisome philosophic Christianity of our time! His name is mentioned, and his "ancient palace"/"sunken city" ruins—below a Mosque in Istanbul—are a playable level in Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb.

Hanson, Victor Davis. The Savior Generals: How Five Great Commanders Saved Wars That Were Lost. Bloomsbury Press, 2013. ISBN 978-1-6081-9163-5 online edition Jeffrey Richards (2014). The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages (Routledge Revivals). Routledge. pp.476–752. ISBN 978-1317678175. Parnell, David Alan (2023). Belisarius & Antonina: love and war in the age of Justinian. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780197574706.Belisarius is a general in the game European War 7: Medieval and is in the "Rise of Byzantium" Conquest leading the "Byzantine Expedition" where you start in a war against the Vandals but there is always a chance to declare war on the Byzantines. [ promotion?] Shahid, Irfan (1995). Byzantium and the Arabs in the Sixth Century. Dumbarton Oaks. p.78. ISBN 978-0-88402-214-5. a b c d e f g "Saint Silverius | Italian saint". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 30 August 2019. One critical difference between ancient Rome and Justinian’s Constantinople, however, was in regard to discipline. The mercenaries and foreign auxiliaries were as highly trained as the Roman infantry of old but were more prone to disobedience. Since the most important part of the army was the cavalry, however, which naturally operated more loosely than infantry and depended more upon individual initiative, that vice was not as significant as it would have been to infantry fighting in close formation. Procopius' portrayal of Belisarius being weak-willed can often also be explained with a good understanding of politics; taking action against his wife, for example, would not have been appreciated by empress Theodora at all. Just like the weak-mindedness in relation to his wife, the influence his soldiers had on him was probably not enough to convince him to move out of Rome. Instead, it was probably overconfidence on his own part. For the rest of his career, he became a cautious commander, which is in line with the notion that Belisarius knew his limits and tried to act within them. [12] He often moved out with only a small force, with which he would have no control and communication problems. [12] Another example of this is when at the battle of Tricamerum he merely advised John, not taking full command. He recognized John was competent and knew more about the situation, and as such John remained in overall command, winning a great victory.

Belisarius appears as the playable main protagonist in the Last Roman campaign DLC for Total War: Attila as well as the Historical Battle of Dara, The player receives missions of historical context. Starting at the beginning of the Vandal Wars, he leads the Roman Expedition to reconquer the West (North Africa, Italy, Gaul, Spain), officially for Justinian, but there's always the option to Declare Independence and turn Belisarius himself the Emperor of the West and what he conquers.The Archmagos Belisarius Cawl of Warhammer 40,000 also draws his namesake and inspiration from Belisarius. While the full conquest of Africa is often portrayed as the original objective of the campaign, it is unlikely this was actually the case. [13] Belisarius had the full authority to act in any way he saw fit. [13] Only when Belisarius was already in Sicily was the choice made to sail straight for the Vandal heartland. [13] If the Vandal fleet had been ready, such an operation would have been unlikely to succeed. [13] When information arrived in Constantinople it was already weeks, if not months, old, so it seems unlikely that Justinian in Constantinople would have made the decision on whether to move on the area at all. [13] Only at Sicily would one be in any kind of position to decide on how to proceed. [13] It is not a masterpiece of characterisation, except as to Belisarius' wife Antonina, but the book holds up as still very readable, with notweworthy asides such as letters about elephants and other such diversions: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb Heather, P. J. (Peter J.) (2018). Rome resurgent: war and empire in the age of Justinian. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199362745. OCLC 1007044617.

The volume concludes with a bibliography and index. Some typographical and substantive errors were found, but did not in the main obstruct comprehension or appreciation. 3 Every other character, almost without exception, is quite repulsive and unlikable and all betray Belisarius in one way or another (Justinian, Theodora, and even his beloved Antonina). This is a tale of a tragic hero, whose very unbending moral goodness is seen as his only weakness in a world that is neither worthy of him nor appreciates him. His eventual, inevitable, final fall and death is suitably heart breaking and reads like something from a Greek tragedy. From the later part of the siege of Rome onwards, reinforcements had arrived in Italy; [15] during the siege of Ariminum, another 5,000 reinforcements landed in Italy, close to the siege where they were needed, clearly by design. [13] The last group of reinforcements was 7,000 strong and led by Narses. [13] After these arrived, the Byzantines had around 20,000 troops in Italy in total. [13] John claimed that about half of the troops were loyal to Narses instead of Belisarius. [13]The exact date of his birth is unknown. Martindale, John R., ed. (1992). The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire: Volume III, AD 527–641. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p.182. ISBN 0-521-20160-8. Lawrence And The Arabs (not of as in the title on GR). I read this first as I was in the mood for a bit of history. Graves is a strange biographer. There are numerous asides when he recalls conversations or thoughts that wander from the subject under discussion, but once you get used to this it all becomes rather easy going. There is a lot of war detail, but again it is not dry, sometimes even funny, in a tame kind of way. He knew Lawrence well, and although he tries to give an honest portrayal he does limit himself to what would have been acceptable at the time. Lawrence was alive when the book was written, and I believe it was an attempt on his part to give a truthful account after other publications had dealt with his heroic exploits during the First World War. There is also a chapter later on which makes for poignant reading concerning Lawrence's love of riding his motorcycle at great speed through the English countryside. But how was Graves to know what was soon to occur? Belisarius as a character [ edit ] Sculpture [ edit ] Bust of Belisarius, 1785–91, Marble, J. Paul Getty Villa a b c Dupuy, Trevor Nevitt (1977). A genius for war: the German army and general staff, 1807–1945. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0133511146. OCLC 3088892.