Battle of Ad Decimum

Last updated
Battle of Ad Decimum
Part of the Vandalic War
Battle of Ad Decimum - First phase.svg
DateSeptember 13, 533 CE
Location
Near Carthage and modern-day Tunis.
Result Byzantine victory
Belligerents
Byzantine Empire Vandal Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Belisarius
John the Armenian
Calonymus 		Gelimer
Ammatas   †
Strength
18,000 men [1] or 15,000 men Greater than the Romans, [2] 20,000 men at maximum. Most likely 10,000–12,000 men [1] or 11,000 men.
Casualties and losses
1,000? Still unknown modern estimate 3,000–4,000? Still unknown modern estimate

The Battle of Ad Decimum took place on September 13, 533 between the armies of the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, and the Byzantine Empire, under the command of General Belisarius. This event and events in the following year are sometimes jointly referred to as the Battle of Carthage, one of several battles to bear that name. The Byzantine victory marked the beginning of the end for the Vandals and began the reconquest of the west under the Emperor Justinian I.

Contents

Battle

Prelude

The Vandal Kingdom in North Africa was ruled by King Hilderic. His reign was noteworthy for the kingdom's excellent relations with the Byzantine Empire ruled by Emperor Justinian I. [1] Procopius writes that he was "a very particular friend and guest-friend of Justinian, who had not yet come to the throne", [3] noting that Hilderic and Justinian exchanged large presents of money to each other. Hilderic allowed a new Chalcedonian bishop to take office in the Vandal capital of Carthage, and many Vandals began to convert to the Chalcedonians, to the alarm of the Vandal nobility. Hilderic rejected the Arian Christianity that most Vandals followed. However, in 531, [4] Hilderic was overthrown by his cousin Gelimer, a popular military commander who had commanded successfully against the Moors. [1] Gelimer began persecuting the non-Arian population, and many fled to the Byzantine Empire. Justinian sent Byzantine general Belisarius to reconquer the former Roman province of North Africa. On Midsummer Day 533 the expedition set off. It consisted of 5,000 Byzantine cavalry and twice as many infantry and some additional units but their number and composition is not named by the primary sources. [1] They travelled in a fleet of 500 transports, [1] escorted by ninety-two dromons. [5] Once the fleet arrived safely in North Africa, the Byzantine army disembarked and marched up the coast to Carthage, the Vandal capital, the ships keeping pace with the army offshore. [1] Contact with the fleet was lost however when it had to sail round Cape Bon. [1]

Preparation

Ad Decimum (Latin for "at the tenth [mile post]"), was a marker along the Mediterranean coast road ten Roman miles (9.2 miles (15 km)) south of Carthage. Hearing of the Byzantine landing, Gelimer marched north from his position towards Ad Decimum. [1] He divided his forces, sending 2,000 men under his nephew Gibamund to block one of the three roads to Carthage, the other two converging at Ad Decimum. [1]

Gelimer retained 5,000–6,000 men under his own command while his brother Ammatus approached from the north with 6,000–7,000 troops, Ammatus scouting ahead of his troops in person. [1] At Ad Decimum there was a narrow defile where the Byzantines could be trapped. [1] The Byzantines did not know the layout of the road network and would probably be surprised if an army appeared behind them. [1] When the Byzantines advanced towards Carthage they would most likely try to go through the path blocked by Gibamund who was ordered to charge them. [1] This was supposed to push the Byzantines back into the valley and disorganise them. [1] Gelimer would advance into the valley and attack them from behind. [1]

When Belisarius landed in North Africa he knew the Vandals would move against him before he could reach Carthage. [5] However he did not know the Vandal dispositions so he wanted to gain intelligence about them before giving battle. [1] [5] [6] [3] At the time when Ammatus was scouting the location of the battle, Belisarius found a good spot for a fortified camp roughly four miles from Ad Decimum, [1] [7] leaving his infantry there while he advanced with his cavalry. [1] [5] Belisarius had not ordered the 300-strong contingent of scouts under John the Armenian, or the 600 Huns guarding his left flank to stop so they kept advancing while Belisarius was still with his encamping infantry. [1]

Battle

The battle started with two roughly simultaneous engagements between smaller Vandal and Byzantine units. [1]

One of these was between the Byzantine Hun mercenaries and the Vandals of Gibamundus. One of the roughly 600 Huns rode out in front of the rest when encountering the Vandals. [1] Upon seeing this the Vandals stopped in their tracks allowing the Huns to charge and disperse them. [1] [5] They possibly did this because of fear of a trap, being stunned at the bravery of this Hun or being surprised upon seeing Byzantines so far away from the main road. [1] They were also possibly scared of the Huns due to their reputation as great warriors. [1] [5] Thus the 600 Hun mercenaries defeated 2,000 Vandals and killed Gibamundus in combat. [1] [8]

At roughly the same time Ammatus made an error that would cost him his life. [1] [9] Ammatus was scouting the battlefield with just a few men when he encountered the much stronger Byzantine vanguard under John, and was killed in the ensuing combat. [1] [5] [7] The rest of Ammatus' forces moved out of Carthage in small bands of at most thirty men, thinly stretching themselves over the road between Carthage and the battlefield. [1] [5] [7] As these small groups in turn encountered the Byzantines they were quickly defeated and fled. [1] [7]

By now a Byzantine contingent under a man called Solomon, sent to contact John, reached the scene where battle had taken place. [1] They questioned local inhabitants to what took place there. [1] Soon after Gelimer's main force came into sight, Solomon promptly informed Belisarius of the situation. [1] Seeing the importance of a nearby hill, an ideal location for a camp, some of Gelimer's and Solomon's troops began to skirmish. [1] The Byzantines had to attack uphill and against superior numbers quickly leading to defeat. [1] The retreating Byzantines encountered 800 more Byzantine troops and reformed. [1] Upon being informed of the current situation however, these 800 retreated to the safety of Belisarius’ main force. [1] [5] [7] Reforming these troops and listening to their reports, Belisarius noticed that many Vandals had already been routed while the rest had halted. [1] Rightly believing he outnumbered the Vandals, Belisarius moved rapidly on Ad Decimum. [1] Procopius believed that if Gelimer had pursued the fleeing Byzantines he would have completely overrun Belisarius' unsuspecting contingent, while if he would have moved towards Carthage he would have cut the Byzantine army off from John's advance guard. [1] [7] The second option would have put Gelimer in a position to attack the weaker and unsuspecting Byzantine fleet from Carthage, [1] and either outcome could have been disastrous for the Byzantines. [1] Seeing only a few dead troops around the body of his brother Ammatas, Gelimer became convinced that the Byzantine troops led by Solomon had been only a small rear guard, and that an overwhelming attack by a much larger force earlier in the battle had forced Ammatas' troops to abandon their fallen commander. [1] In the clear space around Carthage the Vandals would not have had surprise on their side and the outcome of engagement would be more in doubt, [1] and as such he did not try to pursue the “overwhelming” Byzantine force. [1] Instead, Gelimer elected to set up camp at the favorable position he had captured, gather intelligence, and wait for reinforcements from Sardinia to arrive rather than engage Belisarius (at this point still extremely vulnerable), who moved towards Carthage. [1]

When Belisarius attacked the unprepared Vandals from an unexpected direction, he quickly routed the Vandals who had fled away from Carthage in order to avoid being trapped between Belisarius and a potential other Byzantine force [1] [5] (one under John indeed being present on that road). [1]

After this battle Carthage was left relatively lightly defended and was captured by the Byzantines. [1] [5] [8]

Aftermath

Belisarius camped near the site of the battle, not wanting to be too close to the city at night. The next day he marched on the city, with his wife Antonina at his side, ordering his men not to kill or enslave the population (as was normal practice at the time) because he stated the people were actually Roman citizens under Vandal rule. They found the gates to the city open, and the army was generally welcomed. Belisarius went straight to the palace and sat on the throne of the Vandal King. He then set about rebuilding the fortifications of the city, and his fleet sought shelter in the Lake of Tunis, five miles (8 km) south of Carthage.

After a second defeat at the Battle of Tricamarum later in the year, the Vandal Kingdom was all but ended.

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 Hughes, Ian (Historian) (2009). Belisarius : the last Roman general . Yardley, Pa.: Westholme. ISBN   978-1594160851. OCLC   294885267.
  2. ↑ Brogna, Anthony (1995). The Generalship of Belisarius (PDF) (Master of Military Art and Science thesis). United States Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth: Defense Technical Information Center. p.  50–56. OCLC   227839393. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 Procopius; Dewing, H. B. (Henry Bronson) (1914). Procopius, with an English translation by H.B. Dewing. Robarts – University of Toronto. London S. Heinemann.
  4. ↑ J-J.Norwich "A short history of Byzantium", Penguin Books
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Brogna, Anthony (2015). The Generalship of Belisarius. Hauraki Publishing.
  6. ↑ "History of the Wars/Book III". en.m.wikisource.org. Retrieved 2019-11-28.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Heather, P. J. (Peter J.) (2018). Rome resurgent : war and empire in the age of Justinian. New York. ISBN   978-0-19-936274-5. OCLC   1007044617.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. 1 2 Oman, Charles. The Dark Ages 476–918 A.D.
  9. ↑ Bury, J. B. History of the later Roman Empire: from the Death of Theodosius I to the Death of Justinian.

Related Research Articles

The 530s decade ran from January 1, 530, to December 31, 539.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">533</span> Calendar year

Year 533 (DXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iustinianus without colleague. The denomination 533 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gelimer</span> King of the Vandals and Alans (r. 530–534)

Gelimer, King of the Vandals and Alans (530–534), was the last Germanic ruler of the North African Kingdom of the Vandals. He became ruler on 15 June 530 after deposing his first cousin twice removed, Hilderic, who had angered the Vandal nobility by converting to Chalcedonian Christianity, as most of the Vandals at this time were fiercely devoted to Arian Christianity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hilderic</span> King of the Vandals

Hilderic was the penultimate king of the Vandals and Alans in North Africa in Late Antiquity (523–530). Although dead by the time the Vandal Kingdom was overthrown in 534, he nevertheless played a key role in that event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandals</span> East Germanic tribe

The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vandal kingdoms first within the Iberian Peninsula, and then in the western Mediterranean islands, and North Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Tricamarum</span> Part of the Vandalic War (December 15, 533)

The Battle of Tricamarum took place on December 15, 533 between the armies of the Byzantine Empire, under Belisarius, and the Vandal Kingdom, commanded by King Gelimer, and his brother Tzazon. It followed the Byzantine victory at the Battle of Ad Decimum, and eliminated the power of the Vandals for good, completing the reconquest of North Africa under the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. The main contemporary source for the battle is Procopius, De Bello Vandalico, which occupies Books III and IV of his magisterial Wars of Justinian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Dara</span> Battle of the Iberian War, 530 AD

The Battle of Dara was fought between the Eastern Roman Empire and the Sasanians in 530 AD. It was one of the battles of the Iberian War.

Tzazo was the brother to King Gelimer (530–534), the last Vandal ruler of the North Africa. Tzazo died on 15 December 533 during the Battle of Tricamarum, which finally brought to an end the Vandal Kingdom in North Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Godas</span> Gothic nobleman of the Vandal kingdom

Godas was a Gothic nobleman of the Vandal kingdom in North Africa. King Gelimer of the Vandals made him governor of the Vandalic province of Sardinia, but Godas stopped forwarding the taxes he collected and declared himself ruler of Sardinia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandalic War</span> Byzantine–Vandal war in North Africa (533–534)

The Vandalic War (533–534) was a conflict fought in North Africa between the forces of the Byzantine Empire and the Germanic Vandal Kingdom. It was the first war of Emperor Justinian I's Renovatio imperii Romanorum, wherein the Byzantines attempted to reassert Roman sovereignty over territory formerly controlled by the Western Roman Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Praetorian prefecture of Africa</span> Byzantine administrative division in the Maghreb

The Praetorian Prefecture of Africa was an administrative division of the Byzantine Empire in the Maghreb. With its seat at Carthage, it was established after the reconquest of northwestern Africa from the Vandals in 533–534 by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. It continued to exist until 591, when it was replaced by the Exarchate of Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauri</span> Latin designation for the Berber population of Mauretania

Mauri was the Latin designation for the Berber population of Mauretania, located in the west side of North Africa on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, Mauretania Tingitana and Mauretania Caesariensis, in present-day Morocco and northwestern Algeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belisarius</span> 6th-century Byzantine general

Belisarius 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 the greatest of all Byzantine generals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John the Armenian</span> Military leader during the Vandalic War

John the Armenian was a Byzantine official and military leader of Armenian origin. There is no written account of his physical appearance or confirmation of the year he was born. John served as financial manager of the campaign and was a close friend of Belisarius. He was killed during the Vandalic War in 533. John the Armenian was the linchpin general of the Byzantine army during the Vandalic war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Byzantine Empire under the Justinian dynasty</span> Period of Eastern Roman (Byzantine) history from 518 to 602

The Byzantine Empire underwent a golden age under the Justinian dynasty, beginning in 518 AD with the accession of Justin I. Under the Justinian dynasty, particularly the reign of Justinian I, the empire reached its greatest territorial extent since the fall of its Western counterpart, reincorporating North Africa, southern Illyria, southern Spain, and Italy into the empire. The Justinian dynasty ended in 602 with the deposition of Maurice and the ascension of his successor, Phocas.

Apollinarius was a Byzantine governor of the Balearic Islands, appointed in 534. The main source about him is Procopius.

Solomon was an East Roman (Byzantine) general from northern Mesopotamia, who distinguished himself as a commander in the Vandalic War and the reconquest of North Africa in 533–534. He spent most of the next decade in Africa as its governor general, combining the military post of magister militum with the civil position of praetorian prefect. Solomon successfully confronted the large-scale rebellion of the native Berbers, but was forced to flee following an army mutiny in spring of 536. His second tenure in Africa began in 539 and it was marked by victories over the Berbers, which led to the consolidation of the Byzantine position. A few years of prosperity followed, but were cut short by the rekindled Berber revolt and Solomon's defeat and death at the Battle of Cillium in 544.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vandal Kingdom</span> Germanic Kingdom in North Africa

The Vandal Kingdom or Kingdom of the Vandals and Alans was a confederation of Vandals and Alans, which was a barbarian kingdom established under Gaiseric, a Vandalic warlord. It ruled parts of North Africa and the Mediterranean for 99 years from 435 to 534 AD.

Ammatus also spelled Ammatas was a Vandal noble and military leader. He was the brother of the Vandal king Gelimer. He had the previous Vandal king, Hilderic, executed on the orders of his brother. On his brother's orders he moved to support Gelimer himself in repulsing a Byzantine invasion at Ad Decimum. During the battle there he was killed.

The Siege of Carthage occurred around Easter of 536, when dissatisfied Byzantine soldiers revolted against Solomon, the ruler of the Praetorian prefecture of Africa, because he refused to share with the soldiers the wealth that had been plundered from the Vandal Kingdom, which had been defeated two years prior in 534. A sizeable number of these soldiers were also Arian Christians, and were disgruntled because Emperor Justinian had banned Arians from practicing their religion. Solomon, as well as his secretary, Procopius, fled to Sicily, where they informed Belisarius, who had just recently conquered the island, about the revolt. Carthage was being besieged by 9,000 rebels, 1,000 of which were Vandals. The rebels were being led by Stotzas, a former soldier in the Byzantine Army. After being made aware of the revolt by Solomon, Belisarius prepared for an invasion of Carthage to crush the revolt. He, along with Solomon, prepared an invasion force of 100 elite troops and around 2,000 regular troops, as well as one warship to blockade the city. By the time Belisarius arrived in c. June – August, the defenders of Carthage were considering surrendering to Stotzas and the rebels. Belisarius was significantly outnumbered, as he had about 2,100 troops compared to Stotzas's 9,000. However, he still presented a significant threat to the rebels, who lifted their siege of Carthage, and subsequently withdrew. Belisarius pursued the withdrawing rebels, and the two sides clashed at the Battle of Membresa, also known as the Battle of the Bagradas River. The battle ended in Stotzas's troops being defeated by those of Belisarius, and the former subsequently retreated, despite having suffered low casualties. Belisarius's troops then looted the abandoned rebel camp, where large amounts of gold and female slaves were found, which the rebels had seized during the siege. Stotzas would continue his to rebel against the Byzantines until his death in 545.

References

Further reading

36°45′00″N10°20′00″E / 36.7500°N 10.3333°E / 36.7500; 10.3333

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.