Maurice's Balkan campaigns
Encyclopedia
Maurice's Illyricum campaigns were a series of military expeditions conducted by emperor of Constantinopolis Maurice
(582
-602
) in an attempt to defend the Illyrian provinces of the East Roman Empire from Avars
and Slavs. Maurice was the only East Roman Emperor, except for Anastasius I
, who did his best to implement determined Ullyricum policies in Late Antiquity
, paying adequate attention to the safety of the northern frontier against Barbarian incursions. During the second half of his reign, the Illyricum campaigns were the main focus of his foreign policies, as a favourable peace treaty with Persia in 591 enabled him to shift his experienced troops from the Persian front to the region. The refocusing of Roman efforts soon paid off: the frequent Roman failures before 591 were succeeded by a string of successes afterwards.
Although it is widely believed that his campaigns were only a token measure and that Roman rule over the Illyricum collapsed immediately after his overthrow in 602, Maurice was in fact well on his way to forestalling the Slavic landfall on Illyria, nearly preserving the order of Late Antiquity there. His success was only undone over ten years after his overthrow. Retrospectively, these campaigns were the last in the series of classical Roman campaigns against the Barbarians on the Rhine and Danube
, effectively delaying Slavic landfall on Illyricum by two decades. With respect to the Slavs, these campaigns had the typical trait of Roman campaigns against unorganized tribes and of what we now call asymmetric warfare
.
At Maurice's accession, the greatest omissions of his predecessors were to be found in Illyricum. Justinian I
neglected Illyrian defences against the Slavs, who threatened the frontier since 500 and pillaged the Balkan provinces ever since. Although he rebuilt the fortifications of the Danube Limes, he forwent campaigns against the Slavs in favour of a policy focusing on western and oriental theatres. His nephew and successor Justin II
played off the Avars
against the Gepids and later on against the Slavs. But this only allowed the Avar Khaganate to become a more powerful threat than Gepids and Slavs. As Justin II let the Avars attack the Slavs from Roman territory, they soon noted where the most booty was to be made. To make matters worse, Justin II started the Roman-Persian War of 572-591, which tied down forces in the east at a time when they were needed in Illyria.
Maurice's predecessor and father-in-law Tiberius II Constantine
emptied the treasury. For all those reasons, the Slavic incursions in Illyria continued and destroyed Late Antiquity features.
A few months before Maurice's accession, fighting entered a new dimension as the Avar Khagan Bayan
, aided by Slavic auxiliary troops, took Sirmium
in Pannonia
. Doing this, Bayan established a new base of operations south of the Danube from which he could raid the Illyria unhindered, given the fact that the Sava was more easy to ford than the Danube. Even though it was possible to buy peace from the Avars and to persuade them to withdraw from Roman territory, they repeatedly violated peace terms. The Slavs, partially under Avar rule, were a different matter. Having only a tribal organisation, they pillaged the Illyricum independently, even trying to evade the Avar rule by doing so. Avars and Slavs therefore posed two different levels of threat.
After the Fall of Sirmium, the Slavic incursions increased. In 583, raids on the Peloponnese
led to the foundation of the fortress town of Monemvasia
. 584 saw the Avar conquest of Singidunum
, proving scope for a roll-up of the fortress belt along the Danube limes, which saw the destruction of many fortifications formerly built or rebuilt by Justinian I. Viminacium
was conquered the same year.
As Maurice's forces were tied down in a war against the Persians caused by Justin II, (see Roman-Persian Wars
for details), he could muster only a small army against the Avars and Slavs marauding Illyricum. His efforts were hampered by the fact that operations on Illyria were a completely defensive matter. As opposed to the Persian war theatre, the Illyrian theatre proved little possibility for a soldier to bolster his pay by pillaging, thus making fighting rather unattractive. Maurice's badly motivated troops found it difficult to achieve even minor and local success. Rather an exception, a victory won by Comentiolus
at Adrianople 584/585 deflected Slavic incursions to Greece. The evident destruction of vast parts of old Athens
probably happened in this period.
The situation in the Illyria deteriorated in such a manner that in 585 the Persian Shah
Hormizd IV
could reasonably hope to negotiate a peace treaty leaving Armenia
to the Persians. Maurice rejected the offer, being able to negotiate much more favourable peace terms in 591, after substantial successes on the battlefield. For the time being, however, he had to abide by Avar and Slavic incursions and hope that his forces garrisoned at Singidunum
could deter the invaders, posing a constant threat to the Avar homeland, just on the other side of the Danube. Roman presence at Singidunum was strong enough to effect constant break-offs of Avar raids. However, it could not prevent the attacks. Despite the Roman garrison at Singidunum, the Avars destroyed the fortified towns of Ratiaria
and Oescus
on the Danube and besieged Thessaloniki
in 586, accompanied by Slavic raids down to the Peloponnese. Under the leadership of Comentiolus, the outnumbered Roman Army avoided any direct confrontation and restricted itself to disturbing the Avar raids by skirmishes and night attacks - a tactical expedient advised in Maurice's Strategikon. In 586 and 587, Comentiolus won several victories against the Slavs on the lower Danube and nearly caught the Avar Khagan Bayan two times. At Tomis, on the shores of the Black Sea
the Khagan escaped via the lagoon-shaped coast, whereas an ambush on the south slope of the Balkan mountains was thwarted by miscommunication amongst Roman troops:
The quoted phrase at the root of the misunderstanding is held to be the first sample of the Romanian language.
The following year, Priscus
took over from Comentiolus. His first campaign in Thrace
and Moesia
turned out to be a fiasco, even encouraging the Avars to advance as far as the Marmara Sea. As the state of the Avar bridges across the Sava river near Sirmium deteriorated, Avar pressure decreased nevertheless.
Even so Maurice did all he can to enforce his troops on Illyricum, as Slavic pillaging continued. He hoped to acquire the money by cutting soldier's payment by a quarter. Announcing these plans led to a mutiny on the Persian front in 588, which in turn forced Maurice to abandon the idea. As a consequence, in Illyria Maurice had only limited means to keep Avars and Slavs at bay for the next three years.
, the latter ceding Armenia
to the Roman empire. Finally, the veterans of the Persian wars were at his disposal, and so was the recruiting potential of Armenia. Decreasing Avar and Persian pressure enabled the Romans to focus on the Slavs in 590/591. Maurice had already visited Anchialos and other cities in Thrace personally in 590, to oversee reconstruction and to boost the morale of his troops and the local population. After making peace with Persia, he speeded up this development by redeploying troops to Illyricum.
In 592 his troops retrieved Singidunum, which was to be however lost to the Avars again. Smaller Roman units were involved in policing actions against Slavic raiders in Moesia, reestablishing lines of communication between the Roman cities. Maurice aimed to reestablish a sturdy defense line along the Danube river, as Anastasius I
had done a century before. Furthermore, he intended to keep Avars and Slavs off Illyrian territory by counter-invading their homelands, so as to enable Roman troops to increase their pay by pillaging in hostile territory, making these campaigns more attractive.
Maurice's general Priscus began to hinder the Slavs crossing the Danube in spring 593. He routed them several times before crossing the Danube to carry on the fight in the uncharted swamps and forests of modern-day Greater Wallachia until autumn. Then, he disobeyed Maurice's order to spend the winter on the northern Danube bank, among frozen swamps and rivers and leafless forests. Instead, Priscus retired to winter quarters in Odessos (modern Varna
). This led to a new Slav incursion 593/594 in Moesia and Macedonia, during which the towns of Aquis, Scupi
and Zaldapa in Dobruja
were destroyed.
In 594 Maurice disposed of Priscus and replaced him by his own, rather inexperienced brother Peter
. Despite initial failure, Peter maintained his position, defeated the Slavs (Priscus speaks about Bulgars
) at Marcianopolis
and patrolled the Danube between Novae
(modern Svishtov
) and the Black Sea. In late August, he crossed the Danube near Securisca west of Novae and fought his way to the Helibacia river, effectively disturbing Slav preparations for new pillaging campaigns.
This success enabled Priscus, who had in the meantime been entrusted with the command of another army upstream, to prevent an Avar siege of Singidunum in 595 in a combined action with the Roman Danube fleet. The fact that the Avars retreated and gave up their plans to destroy the city and deport its inhabitants, as opposed to their conquest of 584, showed their lack of confidence and the threat they saw in this border fortress.
Subsequently, the Avars turned off to Dalmatia
, where they sacked several fortresses, avoiding direct confrontation with Priscus. Roman commanders were never unduly concerned about barbarian incursions into this remote and impoverished province, so Priscus had to act cautiously. He could not afford to neglect the defence of the Danube, so he dispatched a small force to check the Avar advance. This small force hampered Avar advance and even retrieved part of the booty.
in 596. Meanwhile, the Romans used Marcianopolis
near Odessos as a base of operations on the lower Danube against the Slavs, rather than exploiting Avar absence. No notable Slav raids took place in this time, either.
and was moving along the Danube up to Zikidiba, near modern-day Medgidia
, just 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Tomis. For reasons unknown, Priscus did not pursue the Avars and aid Comentiolus. The latter was forced to evade to Iatrus, where his troops were nonetheless routed and had to fight their way south over the Haemus range. The Avars utilized this victory and advanced to Drizipera near Arkadiopolis
, between Adrianople and Constantinople
, where a large part of their army and seven sons of the Avar Khagan were killed by the plague. Comentiolus was temporarily relieved of his command and replaced by Philippicus
, whereas Maurice summoned the Circus factions and his own bodyguards to defend the long walls
east of Constantinople. For the time being, Maurice managed to buy off the Avars, and in the same year, a peace treaty was concluded with Bayan, the Avar Khagan, explicitly allowing Roman expeditions in Wallachia
.. The Romans used the remainder of the year to reorganize their forces and analyze the causes of failure.
Then the Romans violated the treaty: Priscus advanced in the area surrounding Singidunum and wintered there in 598/599. In 599 the armies of Priscus and Comentiolus moved downstream to nearby Viminacium
and crossed the Danube. On the north bank, they defeated the Avars in open battle in their own homeland. This was not only the first Avar defeat in their own homeland, but also saw the death of several more sons of Bayan Khagan. Priscus subsequently thrust north into the Pannonian plain, the Avar homeland. He defeated the Avars deep within their empire, whereas Comentiolus remained near the Danube. Afterwards Priscus devastated vast tracts of the land east of the Tisza
, much in the same way Avars and Slavs had done in Illyria before. Several Avar tribes and their Gepid subjects suffered particularly high casualties. Two other battles on the banks of the Tisza meant further Avar defeats.
Furthermore, the Exarch of Ravenna
Callinicus
repulsed Slav attacks on Istria
in 599.
In autumn 599 Comentiolus reopened the Gate of Trajan
pass, near modern-day Ihtiman
. This mountain pass had not been used by the Romans for decades. In 601 Peter advanced to the Tisza
and kept the Avars away from the Danube cataracts, the latter being vital for the Roman Danube fleet in order to maintain access to the cities of Sirmium and Singidunum. In 602 Peter inflicted another severe defeat on the Slavs in Wallachia, whereas the Avar Khaganate was opposed by the Antes
and was on the brink of collapse due to the mutiny of several Avar tribes. One of these rebellious tribes even defected to the Roman side. For the time, the Romans had successfully reestablished the Danube line, and forward defense in the hostile territories of Wallachia and Pannonia was waged with success. But when Maurice ordered the army to spend the winter of 602/603 on the northern bank of the Danube, as to further his success and to save money on quarters, his troops mutinied as they had done in 593. While Priscus back then had used his own judgment and initiative, Peter did not dare disobey the emperor's orders. He therefore soon lost control of his army, which marched straight to Constantinople. This led to the well-known overthrow and death of Maurice, the first successful coup d'état in Constantinople.
(602–610) would have to fight against the Persians
once more: the eastern enemy occupied Armenia in the first phase of the new war. Therefore, Phocas could not continue the campaigns on the same scale as before, or settle any Armenians in Illyricum. This finally led to the decline of Roman rule in the Illyrian Prefecture, marking the end of Late Antiquity
in that region.
Phocas indeed continued Maurice's campaigns on an unknown scale (albeit with likely much less rigour and discipline...) and probably transferred forces to the Persian front after 605. But even after 605, it is unlikely that he withdrew all forces from Illyria, given his Thracian heritage. There is no archaeological evidence such as coin hoards or destruction showing Slav or Avar incursions, let alone a total collapse of Roman power during Phocas' regnal years. On the contrary, it is known that refugees from Dardania, Dacia
, and Pannonia
sought protection in Thessalonica only under his successor Heraclius
(610
-641
). Even a moderate recovery under Phocas may have taken place. Evidently, many fortresses were rebuilt either under Maurice or Phocas. But even so, it was Phocas' inaction, more or less imposed by the deteriorating situation on the Persian front, that paved the way for the massive invasions of Heraclius' first decade and for the eventual collapse of Roman rule over the Illyricum.
in Friuli
in 610 and against the Franks in 611, probably encouraged the Avars and their Slav subjects to renew their incursions some time after 612. At the latest, the Persian capture of Jerusalem
in 614 was the key event showing the unlikeliness of Roman retaliation. In fact, the 610s chronicles again record wholesale pillaging. Cities like Justiniana Prima
and Salona
succumbed to these attacks. It is unknown at which time a certain area was suberged by Slavic tribes but some events clearly stick out; the destruction of Novae
after 613, the conquest of Naissus and Serdica as well as the destruction of Justiniana Prima in 615, three sieges of Thessalonica (610?, 615 und 617), the battle of Heraclea Perinthus on the shores of the Marmara sea in 619, Slavic raids on Crete in 623 and the siege of Constantinople
in 626. From 620 on, archaeological evidence too proves Slav settlements within the destructed Illyrian regions.
on the Yantra River
, which even has a church built in the seventh century. Heraclius made use of the short time between the end of the last war against Persia in 628 and the commencement of Arab attacks in 634 to try to re-establish at least some sort of authority over the Illyricum. Clear evidence is the construction of the fortress of Nicopolis
in 629. Heraclius also allowed the Serbs
to settle in Illyria as foederati
against the Avars, and the Croats
in Dalmatia and Lower Pannonia; the Croats even pushed the frontier to the Sava in 630. Having to fight off the Arabs in the east, however, he could not finish his project. Roman rule in rural areas of Illyria was limited to the successes attained in short summer campaigns. The cities of Illyria, traditionally the major centres of Roman civilization, had degenerated from the populous, wealthy and self-sufficient polis
of Antiquity to a limited, fortified kastron. Unable to flourish again, they were unable to form a cultural and economic nucleus upon which the Roman state could build. Their population was consequently assimilated by the Slavic settlers. Even so, some cities along the Danube retained their Roman traits until the Proto-Bulgarian
invasion of 679, also being under Byzantine rule until this date. The fact that the Proto-Bulgarians used a debased form of Greek as administrative language shows that Roman population and administrative structures existed there even after 679. In Dalmatia, Romance idioms (Dalmatian
) persisted into the late 19th century, whereas in Macedonia, the ancestors of modern-day Aromanians
survived as transhumant nomads. In dispute to this very day is the origin of the Romanians. According to Robert Roesler, the ancestors of modern-day Romanians formerly lived south of the Danube and migrated to Romania: a thesis dear to Hungarians in their nationalistic feuds with Romania over Transylvania
. The other theory, supported by Romanian nationalists, is that a Daco-Romanian continuity originated from the Roman conquest of Dacia
in 106. In central Albania
, a small ethnic group, unnoticed over centuries of Roman rule, retained its pre-Roman language and also survived Slavic landfall, the ancestors of modern-day Albanians
. Summed up, the decline of Roman power on the Illyria was a slow affair, only taking place due to the lack of military Byzantine presence. Being short on troops in Illyria, there was no possibility for Byzantium to provide for safe communication between the cities. Byzantium could only locally impose a rule over the Balkan Slavs and only on a short-term basis, not enough to assimilate
them. Byzantium, however, used any opportunity given by pauses of activity on the Arab front to subjugate the Slavs and resettle them en masse to Asia Minor. With a delay of two centuries, Thrace and Greece were re-hellenized, whereas the remainder of the Byzantine Balkans was conquered by the Bulgarians except for Albanians and Vlachs
/proto-Romanians
, permanently Slavicized.
In the end, the successes of Maurice's campaigns were foregone by Phocas. Maurice's hopes for rebuilding Illyricum and resettling Armenian militia peasants to the depopulated areas were not realized. Heraclius would do even less for the Illyria. Therefore, the only immediate consequence was the mentioned delay in Slavic landfall on the Balkans. For this reason, it is often falsely and superficially assumed that Maurice's Balkan campaigns were a failure.
Probably, Avar defeats in the late part of the campaigns from 599 on had a long term impact. The Avars had been bloodily defeated in their own country and had proven to be unable to protect themselves, let alone their subjects. Until the battle of Viminacium in 599, they were held to be invincible, allowing them to thoroughly exploit their subjects. After this had been proven wrong, the first rebellions occurred, to be crushed after 603. The Avars were able to score further successes against the Lombards, Franks and Romans; however, they were unable to restore their old reputation. This can explain the Slavic uprising under the leadership of Samo
in 623, three years before the abortive Siege of Constantinople.
Maurice's campaigns put an end to Avar dreams of hegemony on Illyria and paved the way for an end of the Avar threat. The Khagan's power collapsed only after the abortive siege of Constantinople
in 626 and; the Avar Khaganate would be eventually destroyed much later by Charlemagne
in (791–803). The Muslim conquests
, beginning in the 630s, led to the loss of all the Oriental provinces of the Roman Empire. The constant Arab threat over strategically important Asia Minor
had a great impact on Illyricum. Several decades were to pass before Constantinople could regain the initiative and reconquer parts of Slav-controlled areas (Sklavinia). Several centuries were to pass before Basil II
was to bring, by fire and sword, the entire Illyria under Byzantine control again.
Maurice (emperor)
Maurice was Byzantine Emperor from 582 to 602.A prominent general in his youth, Maurice fought with success against the Sassanid Persians...
(582
582
Year 582 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 582 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.- Byzantine Empire :* The Avars take over the city of...
-602
602
Year 602 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 602 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.- Byzantine Empire :* Maurice, at war with the Avars and...
) in an attempt to defend the Illyrian provinces of the East Roman Empire from Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
and Slavs. Maurice was the only East Roman Emperor, except for Anastasius I
Anastasius I (emperor)
Anastasius I was Byzantine Emperor from 491 to 518. During his reign the Roman eastern frontier underwent extensive re-fortification, including the construction of Dara, a stronghold intended to counter the Persian fortress of Nisibis....
, who did his best to implement determined Ullyricum policies in Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages, in both mainland Europe and the Mediterranean world. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but noted historian of the period Peter Brown proposed...
, paying adequate attention to the safety of the northern frontier against Barbarian incursions. During the second half of his reign, the Illyricum campaigns were the main focus of his foreign policies, as a favourable peace treaty with Persia in 591 enabled him to shift his experienced troops from the Persian front to the region. The refocusing of Roman efforts soon paid off: the frequent Roman failures before 591 were succeeded by a string of successes afterwards.
Although it is widely believed that his campaigns were only a token measure and that Roman rule over the Illyricum collapsed immediately after his overthrow in 602, Maurice was in fact well on his way to forestalling the Slavic landfall on Illyria, nearly preserving the order of Late Antiquity there. His success was only undone over ten years after his overthrow. Retrospectively, these campaigns were the last in the series of classical Roman campaigns against the Barbarians on the Rhine and Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
, effectively delaying Slavic landfall on Illyricum by two decades. With respect to the Slavs, these campaigns had the typical trait of Roman campaigns against unorganized tribes and of what we now call asymmetric warfare
Asymmetric warfare
Asymmetric warfare is war between belligerents whose relative military power differs significantly, or whose strategy or tactics differ significantly....
.
The Illyricum before 582
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
neglected Illyrian defences against the Slavs, who threatened the frontier since 500 and pillaged the Balkan provinces ever since. Although he rebuilt the fortifications of the Danube Limes, he forwent campaigns against the Slavs in favour of a policy focusing on western and oriental theatres. His nephew and successor Justin II
Justin II
Justin II was Byzantine Emperor from 565 to 578. He was the husband of Sophia, nephew of Justinian I and the late Empress Theodora, and was therefore a member of the Justinian Dynasty. His reign is marked by war with Persia and the loss of the greater part of Italy...
played off the Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
against the Gepids and later on against the Slavs. But this only allowed the Avar Khaganate to become a more powerful threat than Gepids and Slavs. As Justin II let the Avars attack the Slavs from Roman territory, they soon noted where the most booty was to be made. To make matters worse, Justin II started the Roman-Persian War of 572-591, which tied down forces in the east at a time when they were needed in Illyria.
Maurice's predecessor and father-in-law Tiberius II Constantine
Tiberius II Constantine
Tiberius II Constantine was Byzantine Emperor from 574 to 582.During his reign, Tiberius II Constantine gave away 7,200 pounds of gold each year for four years....
emptied the treasury. For all those reasons, the Slavic incursions in Illyria continued and destroyed Late Antiquity features.
A few months before Maurice's accession, fighting entered a new dimension as the Avar Khagan Bayan
Bayan (Avar Khagan)
Bayan I was an Avar khagan, between 562 and 602. As the Göktürk Empire expanded westwards, Bayan Khagan led a group of Avars and Bulgars out of their reach, eventually settling in Pannonia in 568.- Raids against the Franks and Lombards :...
, aided by Slavic auxiliary troops, took Sirmium
Sirmium
Sirmium was a city in ancient Roman Pannonia. Firstly mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by the Illyrians and Celts, it was conquered by the Romans in the 1st century BC and subsequently became the capital of the Roman province of Lower Pannonia. In 294 AD, Sirmium was...
in Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
. Doing this, Bayan established a new base of operations south of the Danube from which he could raid the Illyria unhindered, given the fact that the Sava was more easy to ford than the Danube. Even though it was possible to buy peace from the Avars and to persuade them to withdraw from Roman territory, they repeatedly violated peace terms. The Slavs, partially under Avar rule, were a different matter. Having only a tribal organisation, they pillaged the Illyricum independently, even trying to evade the Avar rule by doing so. Avars and Slavs therefore posed two different levels of threat.
Avar and Slavic incursions, 582 to 591
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
led to the foundation of the fortress town of Monemvasia
Monemvasia
Monemvasia is a town and a municipality in Laconia, Greece. The town is located on a small peninsula off the east coast of the Peloponnese. The peninsula is linked to the mainland by a short causeway 200m in length. Its area consists mostly of a large plateau some 100 metres above sea level, up to...
. 584 saw the Avar conquest of Singidunum
Singidunum
Singidunum is the name for the ancient city in Serbia which became Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It was recorded that a Celtic tribe Scordisci settled the area in the 3rd century BC following the Gallic invasion of the Balkans. The Roman Empire conquered the area in 75 BC and later garrisoned...
, proving scope for a roll-up of the fortress belt along the Danube limes, which saw the destruction of many fortifications formerly built or rebuilt by Justinian I. Viminacium
Viminacium
Viminacium was a major city and military camp of the Roman province of Moesia , and the capital of Moesia Superior. The archeological site occupies a total of 450 hectares. Viminacium is located 12 km from Kostolac, was devastated by Huns in the 5th century, but rebuilt by Justinian...
was conquered the same year.
As Maurice's forces were tied down in a war against the Persians caused by Justin II, (see Roman-Persian Wars
Roman-Persian Wars
The Roman–Persian Wars were a series of conflicts between states of the Greco-Roman world and two successive Iranic empires: the Parthian and the Sassanid. Contact between the Parthian Empire and the Roman Republic began in 92 BC; wars began under the late Republic, and continued...
for details), he could muster only a small army against the Avars and Slavs marauding Illyricum. His efforts were hampered by the fact that operations on Illyria were a completely defensive matter. As opposed to the Persian war theatre, the Illyrian theatre proved little possibility for a soldier to bolster his pay by pillaging, thus making fighting rather unattractive. Maurice's badly motivated troops found it difficult to achieve even minor and local success. Rather an exception, a victory won by Comentiolus
Comentiolus
Comentiolus was a prominent Eastern Roman general at the close of the 6th century, during the reign of Emperor Maurice . He played a major role in Maurice's Balkan campaigns, and fought also in the East against the Persians.- Life :...
at Adrianople 584/585 deflected Slavic incursions to Greece. The evident destruction of vast parts of old Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
probably happened in this period.
The situation in the Illyria deteriorated in such a manner that in 585 the Persian Shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
Hormizd IV
Hormizd IV
Hormizd IV, son of Khosrau I, reigned as the twenty-first King of Persia from 579 to 590.He seems to have been imperious and violent, but not without some kindness of heart. Some very characteristic stories are told of him by Tabari. His father's sympathies had been with the nobles and the priests...
could reasonably hope to negotiate a peace treaty leaving Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
to the Persians. Maurice rejected the offer, being able to negotiate much more favourable peace terms in 591, after substantial successes on the battlefield. For the time being, however, he had to abide by Avar and Slavic incursions and hope that his forces garrisoned at Singidunum
Singidunum
Singidunum is the name for the ancient city in Serbia which became Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It was recorded that a Celtic tribe Scordisci settled the area in the 3rd century BC following the Gallic invasion of the Balkans. The Roman Empire conquered the area in 75 BC and later garrisoned...
could deter the invaders, posing a constant threat to the Avar homeland, just on the other side of the Danube. Roman presence at Singidunum was strong enough to effect constant break-offs of Avar raids. However, it could not prevent the attacks. Despite the Roman garrison at Singidunum, the Avars destroyed the fortified towns of Ratiaria
Ratiaria
Ratiaria was a city founded by Moesi, a Daco-Thracian tribe, in 4th century BC, along the river Danube. The city had a gold mine in the vicinity, which was exploited by the Thracians.It is located 2 km west of present village Archar in Vidin Province, northwestern Bulgaria...
and Oescus
Oescus
Oescus, or Palatiolon Palatiolum, was an ancient town in Moesia, northwest of the modern Bulgarian city of Pleven, near the village of Gigen. It is a Daco-Moesian toponym. Ptolemy calls it a Triballian town, but it later became Roman...
on the Danube and besieged Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
in 586, accompanied by Slavic raids down to the Peloponnese. Under the leadership of Comentiolus, the outnumbered Roman Army avoided any direct confrontation and restricted itself to disturbing the Avar raids by skirmishes and night attacks - a tactical expedient advised in Maurice's Strategikon. In 586 and 587, Comentiolus won several victories against the Slavs on the lower Danube and nearly caught the Avar Khagan Bayan two times. At Tomis, on the shores of the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
the Khagan escaped via the lagoon-shaped coast, whereas an ambush on the south slope of the Balkan mountains was thwarted by miscommunication amongst Roman troops:
-
- "a beast of burden had shucked off his load. It happened as his master was marching in front of him. But the ones who were coming from behind and saw the animal dragging his burden after him, had shouted to the master to turn around and straighten the burden. Well, this event was the reason for a great agitation in the army, and started a flight to the rear, because the shout was known to the crowd: the same words were also a signal, and it seemed to mean “run”, as if the enemies had appeared nearby more rapidly than could be imagined. There was a great turmoil in the host, and a lot of noise; all were shouting loudly and goading each other to turn back, calling with great unrest in the language of the country “torna, torna, fratre”, as a battle had suddenly started in the middle of the night."
The quoted phrase at the root of the misunderstanding is held to be the first sample of the Romanian language.
The following year, Priscus
Priscus (general)
Priscus was a leading East Roman general during the reigns of the Byzantine emperors Maurice , Phocas and Heraclius . Although the contemporary sources are markedly biased in his favour, Priscus comes across as an effective and capable military leader...
took over from Comentiolus. His first campaign in Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
and Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
turned out to be a fiasco, even encouraging the Avars to advance as far as the Marmara Sea. As the state of the Avar bridges across the Sava river near Sirmium deteriorated, Avar pressure decreased nevertheless.
Even so Maurice did all he can to enforce his troops on Illyricum, as Slavic pillaging continued. He hoped to acquire the money by cutting soldier's payment by a quarter. Announcing these plans led to a mutiny on the Persian front in 588, which in turn forced Maurice to abandon the idea. As a consequence, in Illyria Maurice had only limited means to keep Avars and Slavs at bay for the next three years.
Campaigns in 591–595
In the late summer of 591 Maurice finally made peace with the Persian Shah Khosrau IIKhosrau II
250px|thumb|Khosrau II 250px|thumb|Khosrau II 250px|thumb|Khosrau II (Khosrow II, Chosroes II, or Xosrov II in classical sources, sometimes called Parvez, "the Ever Victorious" – (in Persian: خسرو پرویز), was the twenty-second Sassanid King of Persia, reigning from 590 to 628...
, the latter ceding Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
to the Roman empire. Finally, the veterans of the Persian wars were at his disposal, and so was the recruiting potential of Armenia. Decreasing Avar and Persian pressure enabled the Romans to focus on the Slavs in 590/591. Maurice had already visited Anchialos and other cities in Thrace personally in 590, to oversee reconstruction and to boost the morale of his troops and the local population. After making peace with Persia, he speeded up this development by redeploying troops to Illyricum.
In 592 his troops retrieved Singidunum, which was to be however lost to the Avars again. Smaller Roman units were involved in policing actions against Slavic raiders in Moesia, reestablishing lines of communication between the Roman cities. Maurice aimed to reestablish a sturdy defense line along the Danube river, as Anastasius I
Anastasius I (emperor)
Anastasius I was Byzantine Emperor from 491 to 518. During his reign the Roman eastern frontier underwent extensive re-fortification, including the construction of Dara, a stronghold intended to counter the Persian fortress of Nisibis....
had done a century before. Furthermore, he intended to keep Avars and Slavs off Illyrian territory by counter-invading their homelands, so as to enable Roman troops to increase their pay by pillaging in hostile territory, making these campaigns more attractive.
Maurice's general Priscus began to hinder the Slavs crossing the Danube in spring 593. He routed them several times before crossing the Danube to carry on the fight in the uncharted swamps and forests of modern-day Greater Wallachia until autumn. Then, he disobeyed Maurice's order to spend the winter on the northern Danube bank, among frozen swamps and rivers and leafless forests. Instead, Priscus retired to winter quarters in Odessos (modern Varna
Varna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
). This led to a new Slav incursion 593/594 in Moesia and Macedonia, during which the towns of Aquis, Scupi
Scupi
Scupi is an archaeological site located between Zajčev Rid and the Vardar River, several kilometers from the center of Skopje, in the Republic of Macedonia. A Roman military camp was founded here in the second decade BC on the site of an older Dardanian settlement...
and Zaldapa in Dobruja
Dobruja
Dobruja is a historical region shared by Bulgaria and Romania, located between the lower Danube river and the Black Sea, including the Danube Delta, Romanian coast and the northernmost part of the Bulgarian coast...
were destroyed.
In 594 Maurice disposed of Priscus and replaced him by his own, rather inexperienced brother Peter
Peter (curopalates)
Petrus |Cappadocia]] – 27 November 602 in Constantinople or Chalcedon) was a brother of the Byzantine Emperor Maurice, who reigned from 582 to 602.-Background:...
. Despite initial failure, Peter maintained his position, defeated the Slavs (Priscus speaks about Bulgars
Bulgars
The Bulgars were a semi-nomadic who flourished in the Pontic Steppe and the Volga basin in the 7th century.The Bulgars emerge after the collapse of the Hunnic Empire in the 5th century....
) at Marcianopolis
Marcianopolis
Marcianopolis or Marcianople was an ancient Roman city in Thracia. It was located at the site of modern day Devnya, Bulgaria.-History:...
and patrolled the Danube between Novae
Novae
Archaeological site situated on the Danube in northern Bulgaria, about 4 kilometres east of the modern town Svishtov. A legionary base and late Roman town in the Roman province Moesia Inferior, later Moesia II.-Localisation and topography:...
(modern Svishtov
Svishtov
Svishtov is a town in northern Bulgaria, located in Veliko Tarnovo Province on the right bank of the Danube river opposite the Romanian town of Zimnicea. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Svishtov Municipality...
) and the Black Sea. In late August, he crossed the Danube near Securisca west of Novae and fought his way to the Helibacia river, effectively disturbing Slav preparations for new pillaging campaigns.
This success enabled Priscus, who had in the meantime been entrusted with the command of another army upstream, to prevent an Avar siege of Singidunum in 595 in a combined action with the Roman Danube fleet. The fact that the Avars retreated and gave up their plans to destroy the city and deport its inhabitants, as opposed to their conquest of 584, showed their lack of confidence and the threat they saw in this border fortress.
Subsequently, the Avars turned off to Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
, where they sacked several fortresses, avoiding direct confrontation with Priscus. Roman commanders were never unduly concerned about barbarian incursions into this remote and impoverished province, so Priscus had to act cautiously. He could not afford to neglect the defence of the Danube, so he dispatched a small force to check the Avar advance. This small force hampered Avar advance and even retrieved part of the booty.
A quiet interlude, 596–597
After this only moderately successful Avar raid into Dalmatia, there was only minor action in Illyricum for about one and a half years. Discouraged by the lack of success, the Avars saw more prospect for booty in the West and therefore raided the FranksFranks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
in 596. Meanwhile, the Romans used Marcianopolis
Marcianopolis
Marcianopolis or Marcianople was an ancient Roman city in Thracia. It was located at the site of modern day Devnya, Bulgaria.-History:...
near Odessos as a base of operations on the lower Danube against the Slavs, rather than exploiting Avar absence. No notable Slav raids took place in this time, either.
Renewed campaigns, 597–602
Strengthened by Frankish pay-offs, the Avars resumed their Danubian campaigns in autumn 597, surprising the Romans. They even managed to besiege Priscus' army in Tomis. On 30 March 598 however they lifted the siege, since Comentiolus had led an army of rather inexperienced soldiers over the HaemimonsHaemus Mountains
Haemus Mountains can refer to the following:*Haemus Mons was an ancient Greek name for the Balkan mountains*Montes Haemus is a mountain range on the Moon*Haemus Montes is the name of a ridge on Io, a moon of Jupiter...
and was moving along the Danube up to Zikidiba, near modern-day Medgidia
Medgidia
-History:Archaeological findings show that Dobruja was inhabited since the Neolithic period. Starting with 46 BC the region was administered by the Roman Empire. A castrum was built in the Carasu Valley, becoming the cradle of the settlement....
, just 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Tomis. For reasons unknown, Priscus did not pursue the Avars and aid Comentiolus. The latter was forced to evade to Iatrus, where his troops were nonetheless routed and had to fight their way south over the Haemus range. The Avars utilized this victory and advanced to Drizipera near Arkadiopolis
Lüleburgaz
Lüleburgaz, is a town and district of Kırklareli Province in the Marmara region of Turkey.-Facts:The city has a population of 100,412 and is the largest town in Kırklareli Province....
, between Adrianople and Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, where a large part of their army and seven sons of the Avar Khagan were killed by the plague. Comentiolus was temporarily relieved of his command and replaced by Philippicus
Philippicus (general)
Philippicus or Philippikos was an East Roman general, comes excubitorum, and brother-in-law of Emperor Maurice. His successful career as a general spanned several decades, chiefly against the Persians.- Under Maurice :...
, whereas Maurice summoned the Circus factions and his own bodyguards to defend the long walls
Anastasian Wall
The Anastasian Wall or the Long Walls of Thrace is an ancient, stone and turf fortification located west of Istanbul, Turkey built by the Byzantines during the late 5th century...
east of Constantinople. For the time being, Maurice managed to buy off the Avars, and in the same year, a peace treaty was concluded with Bayan, the Avar Khagan, explicitly allowing Roman expeditions in Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
.. The Romans used the remainder of the year to reorganize their forces and analyze the causes of failure.
Then the Romans violated the treaty: Priscus advanced in the area surrounding Singidunum and wintered there in 598/599. In 599 the armies of Priscus and Comentiolus moved downstream to nearby Viminacium
Viminacium
Viminacium was a major city and military camp of the Roman province of Moesia , and the capital of Moesia Superior. The archeological site occupies a total of 450 hectares. Viminacium is located 12 km from Kostolac, was devastated by Huns in the 5th century, but rebuilt by Justinian...
and crossed the Danube. On the north bank, they defeated the Avars in open battle in their own homeland. This was not only the first Avar defeat in their own homeland, but also saw the death of several more sons of Bayan Khagan. Priscus subsequently thrust north into the Pannonian plain, the Avar homeland. He defeated the Avars deep within their empire, whereas Comentiolus remained near the Danube. Afterwards Priscus devastated vast tracts of the land east of the Tisza
Tisza
The Tisza or Tisa is one of the main rivers of Central Europe. It rises in Ukraine, and is formed near Rakhiv by the junction of headwaters White Tisa, whose source is in the Chornohora mountains and Black Tisa, which springs in the Gorgany range...
, much in the same way Avars and Slavs had done in Illyria before. Several Avar tribes and their Gepid subjects suffered particularly high casualties. Two other battles on the banks of the Tisza meant further Avar defeats.
Furthermore, the Exarch of Ravenna
Exarchate of Ravenna
The Exarchate of Ravenna or of Italy was a centre of Byzantine power in Italy, from the end of the 6th century to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the Lombards.-Introduction:...
Callinicus
Callinicus (exarch)
Callinicus was the exarch of Ravenna . He is called Gallicinus, or Gallicini patricii, by the Lombard historian Paul the Deacon ....
repulsed Slav attacks on Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
in 599.
In autumn 599 Comentiolus reopened the Gate of Trajan
Gate of Trajan
The Gate of Trajan or Trajan's Gate is a historic mountain pass near Ihtiman, Bulgaria. It was named so after Roman Emperor Trajan, on whose order a fortress by the name of Stipon was constructed on the hill over the pass, as a symbolic border between the provinces of Thrace and Macedonia.The pass...
pass, near modern-day Ihtiman
Ihtiman
Ihtiman is a town in western Bulgaria, part of Sofia Province. It is located in the Ihtimanska Sredna Gora mountains and lies in a valley 48 km from Sofia and 95 km from Plovdiv, close to Trakiya motorway....
. This mountain pass had not been used by the Romans for decades. In 601 Peter advanced to the Tisza
Tisza
The Tisza or Tisa is one of the main rivers of Central Europe. It rises in Ukraine, and is formed near Rakhiv by the junction of headwaters White Tisa, whose source is in the Chornohora mountains and Black Tisa, which springs in the Gorgany range...
and kept the Avars away from the Danube cataracts, the latter being vital for the Roman Danube fleet in order to maintain access to the cities of Sirmium and Singidunum. In 602 Peter inflicted another severe defeat on the Slavs in Wallachia, whereas the Avar Khaganate was opposed by the Antes
Antes (people)
The Antes or Antae were an ancient Slavic-Iranian tribal union in Eastern Europe who lived north of the lower Danube and the Black Sea in the 6th and 7th century AD and who are associated with the archaeological Penkovka culture.- Historiography :Procopius and Jordanes mention the Antes as one of...
and was on the brink of collapse due to the mutiny of several Avar tribes. One of these rebellious tribes even defected to the Roman side. For the time, the Romans had successfully reestablished the Danube line, and forward defense in the hostile territories of Wallachia and Pannonia was waged with success. But when Maurice ordered the army to spend the winter of 602/603 on the northern bank of the Danube, as to further his success and to save money on quarters, his troops mutinied as they had done in 593. While Priscus back then had used his own judgment and initiative, Peter did not dare disobey the emperor's orders. He therefore soon lost control of his army, which marched straight to Constantinople. This led to the well-known overthrow and death of Maurice, the first successful coup d'état in Constantinople.
The Illyricum after 602
Maurice had pacified the Illyrian borders, a feat not performed since the reign of Anastasius I. Avars and Slavs had been kept sternly at bay. The provinces were at a stage of potential recovery; reconstruction and resettlement were the keys to firmly secure Roman rule again. Maurice had planned to settle Armenian militia peasants within the depopulated areas and to romanize the Slavs settlers in the area. After his overthrow, these plans went astray as well as the campaigns and the possible destruction or submission of the Avar empire. The new Roman emperor PhocasPhocas
Phocas was Byzantine Emperor from 602 to 610. He usurped the throne from the Emperor Maurice, and was himself overthrown by Heraclius after losing a civil war.-Origins:...
(602–610) would have to fight against the Persians
Byzantine-Sassanid War of 602–628
The Byzantine–Sassanid War of 602–628 was the final and most devastating of the series of wars fought between the Roman Empire and the Sassanid Empire. The previous war had ended in 591 after Emperor Maurice had helped the Sassanian king Khosrau II regain his throne. In 602, Maurice was murdered...
once more: the eastern enemy occupied Armenia in the first phase of the new war. Therefore, Phocas could not continue the campaigns on the same scale as before, or settle any Armenians in Illyricum. This finally led to the decline of Roman rule in the Illyrian Prefecture, marking the end of Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages, in both mainland Europe and the Mediterranean world. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but noted historian of the period Peter Brown proposed...
in that region.
Phocas' Illyricum campaigns? - Silence before the storm, 602–612/615
The widespread opinion that Roman control of Illyricum collapsed immediately after his accession, is against all evidence.Phocas indeed continued Maurice's campaigns on an unknown scale (albeit with likely much less rigour and discipline...) and probably transferred forces to the Persian front after 605. But even after 605, it is unlikely that he withdrew all forces from Illyria, given his Thracian heritage. There is no archaeological evidence such as coin hoards or destruction showing Slav or Avar incursions, let alone a total collapse of Roman power during Phocas' regnal years. On the contrary, it is known that refugees from Dardania, Dacia
Dacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
, and Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
sought protection in Thessalonica only under his successor Heraclius
Heraclius
Heraclius was Byzantine Emperor from 610 to 641.He was responsible for introducing Greek as the empire's official language. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the exarch of Africa, successfully led a revolt against the unpopular usurper Phocas.Heraclius'...
(610
610
Year 610 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 610 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...
-641
641
Year 641 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 641 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.- Byzantine Empire :* February 11 – Byzantine...
). Even a moderate recovery under Phocas may have taken place. Evidently, many fortresses were rebuilt either under Maurice or Phocas. But even so, it was Phocas' inaction, more or less imposed by the deteriorating situation on the Persian front, that paved the way for the massive invasions of Heraclius' first decade and for the eventual collapse of Roman rule over the Illyricum.
The great Slav and Avar raids, 612–626
Very likely Heraclius withdrew all Roman forces from Illyria. The civil war against Phocas led to a deterioration of the Persian front unequalled by anything before. This, alongside successful campaigns against the LombardsLombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
in Friuli
Friuli
Friuli is an area of northeastern Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, i.e. the province of Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia, excluding Trieste...
in 610 and against the Franks in 611, probably encouraged the Avars and their Slav subjects to renew their incursions some time after 612. At the latest, the Persian capture of Jerusalem
Siege of Jerusalem (614)
The Siege of Jerusalem in 614 was part of the final phase of the Byzantine-Sassanid Wars. The Persian Shah Khosrau II appointed his generals to conquer the Byzantine controlled areas of the Near East, establishing a strategic alliance with the Jewish population of the Sassanid Persia...
in 614 was the key event showing the unlikeliness of Roman retaliation. In fact, the 610s chronicles again record wholesale pillaging. Cities like Justiniana Prima
Justiniana Prima
Justiniana Prima is an archaeological site near today's Lebane in southern Serbia, It was a Byzantine city that served as the seat of an Archbishopric that had jurisdiction of the Central Balkans...
and Salona
Salona
Salona was an ancient Illyrian Delmati city in the first millennium BC. The Greeks had set up an emporion there. After the conquest by the Romans, Salona became the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia...
succumbed to these attacks. It is unknown at which time a certain area was suberged by Slavic tribes but some events clearly stick out; the destruction of Novae
Novae
Archaeological site situated on the Danube in northern Bulgaria, about 4 kilometres east of the modern town Svishtov. A legionary base and late Roman town in the Roman province Moesia Inferior, later Moesia II.-Localisation and topography:...
after 613, the conquest of Naissus and Serdica as well as the destruction of Justiniana Prima in 615, three sieges of Thessalonica (610?, 615 und 617), the battle of Heraclea Perinthus on the shores of the Marmara sea in 619, Slavic raids on Crete in 623 and the siege of Constantinople
Siege of Constantinople (626)
The Siege of Constantinople in 626 by the Avars, aided by large numbers of allied Slavs and the Sassanid Persians, ended in a strategic victory for the Byzantines...
in 626. From 620 on, archaeological evidence too proves Slav settlements within the destructed Illyrian regions.
Slow decline of Illyricum after 626
Some cities survived the Avar and Slav incursions and were able to maintain communications with Constantinople via sea and rivers. Chronicles mention a Roman commander of Singidunum in the middle of Heraclius' reign. But also on many Danube tributaries accessible by ship, Roman settlements survived, as for instance modern-day Veliko TarnovoVeliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists...
on the Yantra River
Yantra River
The Yantra is a river in northern Bulgaria, a right tributary of the Danube. It is 285 km long and has a watershed of 7,862 km²....
, which even has a church built in the seventh century. Heraclius made use of the short time between the end of the last war against Persia in 628 and the commencement of Arab attacks in 634 to try to re-establish at least some sort of authority over the Illyricum. Clear evidence is the construction of the fortress of Nicopolis
Nikopol, Bulgaria
Nikopol is a town in northern Bulgaria, the administrative center of Nikopol municipality, part of Pleven Province, on the right bank of the Danube river, 4 km downstream from the mouth of the Osam river. It spreads at the foot of steep chalk cliffs along the Danube and up a narrow valley...
in 629. Heraclius also allowed the Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
to settle in Illyria as foederati
Foederati
Foederatus is a Latin term whose definition and usage drifted in the time between the early Roman Republic and the end of the Western Roman Empire...
against the Avars, and the Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
in Dalmatia and Lower Pannonia; the Croats even pushed the frontier to the Sava in 630. Having to fight off the Arabs in the east, however, he could not finish his project. Roman rule in rural areas of Illyria was limited to the successes attained in short summer campaigns. The cities of Illyria, traditionally the major centres of Roman civilization, had degenerated from the populous, wealthy and self-sufficient polis
Polis
Polis , plural poleis , literally means city in Greek. It could also mean citizenship and body of citizens. In modern historiography "polis" is normally used to indicate the ancient Greek city-states, like Classical Athens and its contemporaries, so polis is often translated as "city-state."The...
of Antiquity to a limited, fortified kastron. Unable to flourish again, they were unable to form a cultural and economic nucleus upon which the Roman state could build. Their population was consequently assimilated by the Slavic settlers. Even so, some cities along the Danube retained their Roman traits until the Proto-Bulgarian
Bulgars
The Bulgars were a semi-nomadic who flourished in the Pontic Steppe and the Volga basin in the 7th century.The Bulgars emerge after the collapse of the Hunnic Empire in the 5th century....
invasion of 679, also being under Byzantine rule until this date. The fact that the Proto-Bulgarians used a debased form of Greek as administrative language shows that Roman population and administrative structures existed there even after 679. In Dalmatia, Romance idioms (Dalmatian
Dalmatian language
Dalmatian was a Romance language spoken in the Dalmatia region of Croatia, and as far south as Kotor in Montenegro. The name refers to a pre-Roman tribe of the Illyrian linguistic group, Dalmatae...
) persisted into the late 19th century, whereas in Macedonia, the ancestors of modern-day Aromanians
Aromanians
Aromanians are a Latin people native throughout the southern Balkans, especially in northern Greece, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and as an emigrant community in Serbia and Romania . An older term is Macedo-Romanians...
survived as transhumant nomads. In dispute to this very day is the origin of the Romanians. According to Robert Roesler, the ancestors of modern-day Romanians formerly lived south of the Danube and migrated to Romania: a thesis dear to Hungarians in their nationalistic feuds with Romania over Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
. The other theory, supported by Romanian nationalists, is that a Daco-Romanian continuity originated from the Roman conquest of Dacia
Dacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
in 106. In central Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, a small ethnic group, unnoticed over centuries of Roman rule, retained its pre-Roman language and also survived Slavic landfall, the ancestors of modern-day Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
. Summed up, the decline of Roman power on the Illyria was a slow affair, only taking place due to the lack of military Byzantine presence. Being short on troops in Illyria, there was no possibility for Byzantium to provide for safe communication between the cities. Byzantium could only locally impose a rule over the Balkan Slavs and only on a short-term basis, not enough to assimilate
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
them. Byzantium, however, used any opportunity given by pauses of activity on the Arab front to subjugate the Slavs and resettle them en masse to Asia Minor. With a delay of two centuries, Thrace and Greece were re-hellenized, whereas the remainder of the Byzantine Balkans was conquered by the Bulgarians except for Albanians and Vlachs
Vlachs
Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
/proto-Romanians
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
, permanently Slavicized.
Retrospective
Probably, Avar defeats in the late part of the campaigns from 599 on had a long term impact. The Avars had been bloodily defeated in their own country and had proven to be unable to protect themselves, let alone their subjects. Until the battle of Viminacium in 599, they were held to be invincible, allowing them to thoroughly exploit their subjects. After this had been proven wrong, the first rebellions occurred, to be crushed after 603. The Avars were able to score further successes against the Lombards, Franks and Romans; however, they were unable to restore their old reputation. This can explain the Slavic uprising under the leadership of Samo
Samo
Samo was a Frankish merchant from the "Senonian country" , probably modern Soignies, Belgium or Sens, France. He was the first ruler of the Slavs whose name is known, and established one of the earliest Slav states, a supra-tribal union usually called Samo's empire, realm, kingdom, or tribal...
in 623, three years before the abortive Siege of Constantinople.
Maurice's campaigns put an end to Avar dreams of hegemony on Illyria and paved the way for an end of the Avar threat. The Khagan's power collapsed only after the abortive siege of Constantinople
Siege of Constantinople (626)
The Siege of Constantinople in 626 by the Avars, aided by large numbers of allied Slavs and the Sassanid Persians, ended in a strategic victory for the Byzantines...
in 626 and; the Avar Khaganate would be eventually destroyed much later by Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
in (791–803). The Muslim conquests
Muslim conquests
Muslim conquests also referred to as the Islamic conquests or Arab conquests, began with the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He established a new unified polity in the Arabian Peninsula which under the subsequent Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphates saw a century of rapid expansion of Muslim power.They...
, beginning in the 630s, led to the loss of all the Oriental provinces of the Roman Empire. The constant Arab threat over strategically important Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
had a great impact on Illyricum. Several decades were to pass before Constantinople could regain the initiative and reconquer parts of Slav-controlled areas (Sklavinia). Several centuries were to pass before Basil II
Basil II
Basil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...
was to bring, by fire and sword, the entire Illyria under Byzantine control again.
Primary sources
- Maurice's Strategikon: Handbook of Byzantine Military Strategy. translated by George T. Dennis. Philadelphia 1984, Reprint 2001.
- Theophylact SimocattaTheophylact SimocattaTheophylact Simocatta was an early seventh-century Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as the last historian of Late Antiquity, writing in the time of Heraclius about the late Emperor Maurice .-Life:His history of the reign of emperor Maurice is in eight books...
, Historiae
Secondary sources
- Fischer Weltgeschichte, Band 13, "Byzanz" (pp. 139ff.). Franz Georg Maier, Frankfurt a. M. (1973)