A little after this an engagement took place in the Plain of Nero,

wherein various small groups of horsemen were engaged in pursuing their

opponents in various directions; in one group was Chorsamantis, a man of

note among the guards of Belisarius, by birth a Massagete, who with some

others was pursuing seventy of the enemy. And when he had got well out

in the plain the other Romans rode back, but Chorsamantis went on with

the pursuit alone. As soon as the Goths perceived this, they turned

their horses about and came against him. And he advanced into their

midst, killed one of the best of them with his spear, and then went

after the others, but they again turned and rushed off in flight. But

they were ashamed before their comrades in the camp, who, they

suspected, could already see them, and wished to attack him again. They

had, however, precisely the same experience as before and lost one of

their best men, and so turned to flight in spite of their shame, and

after Chorsamantis had pursued them as far as their stockade he returned

alone. And a little later, in another battle, this man was wounded in

the left shin, and it was his opinion that the weapon had merely grazed

the bone. However, he was rendered unfit for fighting for a certain

number of days by reason of this wound, and since he was a barbarian he

did not endure this patiently, but threatened that he would right

speedily have vengeance upon the Goths for this insult to his leg. So

when not long afterwards he had recovered and was drunk at lunch time,

as was his custom, he purposed to go alone against the enemy and avenge

the insult to his leg; and when he had come to the small Pincian Gate he

stated that he was sent by Belisarius to the enemy's camp. And the

guards at the gate, who could not doubt the word of a man who was the

best of the guards of Belisarius, opened the gates and allowed him to go

wherever he would. And when the enemy spied him, they thought at first

that some deserter was coming over to them, but when he came near and

put his hand to his bow, twenty men, not knowing who he might be, went

out against him. These he easily drove off, and then began to ride back

at a walk, and when more Goths came against him he did not flee. But

when a great throng gathered about him and he still insisted upon

fighting them, the Romans, watching the sight from the towers, suspected

that the man was crazy, but they did not yet know that it was

Chorsamantis. At length, after making a display of great and very

noteworthy deeds, he found himself surrounded by the army of the enemy,

and paid the penalty for his unreasonable daring. And when Belisarius

and the Roman army learned this, they mourned greatly, lamenting that

the hope which all placed in the man had come to naught.

FOOTNOTES:

[141] Perhaps the Stadium of Caligula.

II

Now a certain Euthalius, at about the spring equinox, came to Taracina

from Byzantium with the money which the emperor owed the soldiers. And

fearing lest the enemy should come upon him on the road and both rob him

of the money and kill him, he wrote to Belisarius requesting him to make

the journey to Rome safe for him. Belisarius accordingly selected one

hundred men of note from among his own bodyguards and sent them with two

spearmen to Taracina to assist him in bringing the money. And at the

same time he kept trying to make the barbarians believe that he was

about to fight with his whole army, his purpose being to prevent any of

the enemy from leaving the vicinity, either to bring in provisions or

for any other purpose. But when he found out that Euthalius and his men

would arrive on the morrow, he arrayed his army and set it in order for

battle, and the barbarians were in readiness. Now throughout the whole

forenoon he merely held his soldiers near the gates; for he knew that

Euthalius and those who accompanied him would arrive at night. Then, at

midday, he commanded the army to take their lunch, and the Goths did the

same thing, supposing that he was putting off the engagement to the

following day. A little later, however, Belisarius sent Martinus and

Valerian to the Plain of Nero with the troops under their command,

directing them to throw the enemy's camp into the greatest possible

confusion. And from the small Pincian Gate he sent out six hundred

horsemen against the camps of the barbarians, placing them under command

of three of his own spearmen, Artasires, a Persian, and Bochas, of the

race of the Massagetae, and Cutilas, a Thracian. And many of the enemy

came out to meet them. For a long time, however, the battle did not come

to close quarters, but each side kept retreating when the other advanced

and making pursuits in which they quickly turned back, until it looked

as if they intended to spend the rest of the day at this sort of thing.

But as they continued, they began at last to be filled with rage against

each other. The battle then settled down to a fierce struggle in which

many of the best men on both sides fell, and support came up for each of

the two armies, both from the city and from the camps. And when these

fresh troops were mingled with the fighters the struggle became still

greater. And the shouting which filled the city and the camps terrified

the combatants. But finally the Romans by their valour forced back the

enemy and routed them.

In this action Cutilas was struck in the middle of the head by a

javelin, and he kept on pursuing with the javelin still embedded in his

head. And after the rout had taken place, he rode into the city at about

sunset together with the other survivors, the javelin in his head waving

about, a most extraordinary sight. During the same encounter Arzes, one

of the guards of Belisarius, was hit by one of the Gothic archers

between the nose and the right eye. And the point of the arrow

penetrated as far as the neck behind, but it did not shew through, and

the rest of the shaft projected from his face and shook as the man rode.

And when the Romans saw him and Cutilas they marvelled greatly that both

men continued to ride, paying no heed to their hurt. Such, then, was the

course of events in that quarter.

But in the Plain of Nero the barbarians had the upper hand. For the men

of Valerian and Martinus, fighting with a great multitude of the enemy,

withstood them stoutly, to be sure, but suffered most terribly, and came

into exceedingly great danger. And then Belisarius commanded Bochas to

take his troops, which had returned from the engagement unwearied, men

as well as horses, and go to the Plain of Nero. Now it was already late

in the day. And when the men under Bochas had come to the assistance of

the Romans, suddenly the barbarians were turned to flight, and Bochas,

who had impetuously followed the pursuit to a great distance, came to be

surrounded by twelve of the enemy, who carried spears. And they all

struck him at once with their spears. But his corselet withstood the

other blows, which therefore did not hurt him much; but one of the Goths

succeeded in hitting him from behind, at a place where his body was

uncovered, above the right armpit, very close to the shoulder, and smote

the youth, though not with a mortal stroke, nor even one which brought

him into danger of death. But another Goth struck him in front and

pierced his left thigh, and cut the muscles there; it was not a straight

blow, however, but only a slanting cut. But Valerian and Martinus saw

what was happening, and coming to his rescue as quickly as possible,

they routed the enemy, and both took hold of the bridle of Bochas'

horse, and so came into the city. Then night came on and Euthalius

entered the city with the money.

And when all had returned to the city, they attended to the wounded men.

Now in the case of Arzes, though the physicians wished to draw the

weapon from his face, they were for some time reluctant to do so, not so

much on account of the eye, which they supposed could not possibly be

saved, but for fear lest, by the cutting of membranes and tissues such

as are very numerous in that region, they should cause the death of a

man who was one of the best of the household of Belisarius. But

afterwards one of the physicians, Theoctistus by name, pressed on the

back of his neck and asked whether he felt much pain. And when the man

said that he did feel pain, he said, "Then both you yourself will be

saved and your sight will not be injured." And he made this declaration

because he inferred that the barb of the weapon had penetrated to a

point not far from the skin. Accordingly he cut off that part of the

shaft which shewed outside and threw it away, and cutting open the skin

at the back of the head, at the place where the man felt the most pain,

he easily drew toward him the barb, which with its three sharp points

now stuck out behind and brought with it the remaining portion of the

weapon. Thus Arzes remained entirely free from serious harm, and not

even a trace of his wound was left on his face. But as for Cutilas, when

the javelin was drawn rather violently from his head (for it was very

deeply embedded), he fell into a swoon. And since the membranes about

the wound began to be inflamed, he fell a victim to phrenitis[142] and

died not long afterwards. Bochas, however, immediately had a very severe

hemorrhage in the thigh, and seemed like one who was presently to die.

And the reason for the hemorrhage, according to what the physicians

said, was that the blow had severed the muscle, not directly from the

front, but by a slanting cut. In any event he died three days later.

Because of these things, then, the Romans spent that whole night in deep

grief; while from the Gothic camps were heard many sounds of wailing and

loud lamentation. And the Romans indeed wondered, because they thought

that no calamity of any consequence had befallen the enemy on the

previous day, except, to be sure, that no small number of them had

perished in the encounters. This had happened to them before in no less

degree, perhaps even to a greater degree, but it had not greatly

distressed them, so great were their numbers. However, it was learned on

the following day that men of the greatest note from the camp in the

Plain of Nero were being bewailed by the Goths, men whom Bochas had

killed in his first charge.

And other encounters also, though of no great importance, took place,

which it has seemed to me unnecessary to chronicle. This, however, I

will state, that altogether sixty-seven encounters occurred during this

siege, besides two final ones which will be described in the following

narrative. And at that time the winter drew to its close, and thus ended

the second year of this war, the history of which Procopius has

written.

FOOTNOTE:

[142] Inflammation of the brain.

III

But at the beginning of the spring equinox famine and pestilence

together fell upon the inhabitants of the city. There was still, it is

true, some grain for the soldiers, though no other kind of provisions,

but the grain-supply of the rest of the Romans had been exhausted, and

actual famine as well as pestilence was pressing hard upon them. And the

Goths, perceiving this, no longer cared to risk a decisive battle with

their enemy, but they kept guard that nothing in future should be

brought in to them. Now there are two aqueducts between the Latin and

the Appian Ways, exceedingly high and carried on arches for a great

distance. These two aqueducts meet at a place fifty stades distant from

Rome[143] and cross each other, so that for a little space they reverse

their relative position. For the one which previously lay to the right

from then on continues on the left side. And again coming together, they

resume their former places, and thereafter remain apart. Consequently

the space between them, enclosed, as it is, by the aqueducts, comes to

be a fortress. And the barbarians walled up the lower arches of the

aqueducts here with stones and mud and in this way gave it the form of a

fort, and encamping there to the number of no fewer than seven thousand

men, they kept guard that no provisions should thereafter be brought

into the city by the enemy.

Then indeed every hope of better things abandoned the Romans, and every

form of evil encompassed them round about. As long as there was ripe

grain, however, the most daring of the soldiers, led on by lust of

money, went by night to the grain-fields not far from the city mounted

on horses and leading other horses after them. Then they cut off the

heads of grain, and putting them on the horses which they led, would

carry them into the city without being seen by the enemy and sell them

at a great price to such of the Romans as were wealthy. But the other

inhabitants lived on various herbs such as grow in abundance not only in

the outskirts but also inside the fortifications. For the land of the

Romans is never lacking in herbs either in winter or at any other

season, but they always flourish and grow luxuriantly at all times.

Wherefore the besieged also pastured their horses in those places. And

some too made sausages of the mules that died in Rome and secretly sold

them. But when the corn-lands had no more grain and all the Romans had

come into an exceedingly evil plight, they surrounded Belisarius and

tried to compel him to stake everything on a single battle with the

enemy, promising that not one of the Romans would be absent from the

engagement. And when he was at a loss what to do in that situation and

greatly distressed, some of the populace spoke to him as follows:

"General, we were not prepared for the fortune which has overtaken us at

the present time; on the contrary, what has happened has been altogether

the opposite of our expectations. For after achieving what we had

formerly set our hearts upon, we have now come into the present

misfortune, and we realize at length that our previous opinion that we

did well to crave the emperor's watchful care was but folly and the

beginning of the greatest evils. Indeed, this course has brought us to

such straits that at the present time we have taken courage to use force

once more and to arm ourselves against the barbarians. And while we may

claim forgiveness if we boldly come into the presence of Belisarius--for

the belly knows not shame when it lacks its necessities--our plight must

be the apology for our rashness; for it will be readily agreed that

there is no plight more intolerable for men than a life prolonged amid

the adversities of fortune. And as to the fortune which has fallen upon

us, you cannot fail to see our distress. These fields and the whole

country have fallen under the hand of the enemy; and this city has been

shut off from all good things for we know not how long a time. And as

for the Romans, some already lie in death, and it has not been their

portion to be hidden in the earth, and we who survive, to put all our

terrible misfortunes in a word, only pray to be placed beside those who

lie thus. For starvation shews to those upon whom it comes that all

other evils can be endured, and wherever it appears it is attended by

oblivion of all other sufferings, and causes all other forms of death,

except that which proceeds from itself, to seem pleasant to men. Now,

therefore, before the evil has yet mastered us, grant us leave on our

own behalf to take up the struggle, which will result either in our

overcoming the enemy or in deliverance from our troubles. For when

delay brings men hope of safety, it would be great folly for them

prematurely to enter into a danger which involves their all, but when

tarrying makes the struggle more difficult, to put off action even for a

little time is more reprehensible than immediate and precipitate haste."

So spoke the Romans. And Belisarius replied as follows: "Well, as for

me, I have been quite prepared for your conduct in every respect, and

nothing that has happened has been contrary to my expectation. For long

have I known that a populace is a most unreasoning thing, and that by

its very nature it cannot endure the present or provide for the future,

but only knows how rashly in every case to attempt the impossible and

recklessly to destroy itself. But as for me, I shall never, willingly at

least, be led by your carelessness either to destroy you or to involve

the emperor's cause in ruin with you. For war is wont to be brought to a

successful issue, not by unreasoning haste, but by the use of good

counsel and forethought in estimating the turn of the scale at decisive

moments. You, however, act as though you were playing at dice, and want

to risk all on a single cast; but it is not my custom to choose the

short course in preference to the advantageous one. In the second place,

you promise that you will help us do battle against the enemy; but when

have you ever taken training in war? Or who that has learned such things

by the use of arms does not know that battle affords no room for

experiment? Nor does the enemy, on his part, give opportunity, while the

struggle is on, to practise on him. This time, indeed, I admire your

zeal and forgive you for making this disturbance; but that you have

taken this action at an unseasonable time and that the policy of waiting

which we are following is prudent, I shall now make clear. The emperor

has gathered for us from the whole earth and despatched an army too

great to number, and a fleet such as was never brought together by the

Romans now covers the shore of Campania and the greater part of the

Ionian Gulf. And within a few days these reinforcements will come to us

and bring with them all kinds of provisions, to put an end to our

destitution and to bury the camps of the barbarians under a multitude of

missiles. I have therefore reasoned that it was better to put off the

time of conflict until they are present, and thus gain the victory in

the war with safety, than to make a show of daring in unreasoning haste

and thus throw away the salvation of our whole cause. To secure their

immediate arrival and to prevent their loitering longer shall be my

concern."

FOOTNOTE:

[143] Torre Fiscale; but it is only about thirty stades from Rome.

IV

With these words Belisarius encouraged the Roman populace and then

dismissed them; and Procopius, who wrote this history, he immediately

commanded to go to Naples. For a rumour was going about that the emperor

had sent an army there. And he commissioned him to load as many ships as

possible with grain, to gather all the soldiers who at the moment had

arrived from Byzantium, or had been left about Naples in charge of

horses or for any other purpose whatever--for he had heard that many

such were coming to the various places in Campania--and to withdraw

some of the men from the garrisons there, and then to come back with

them, convoying the grain to Ostia, where the harbour of the Romans was.

And Procopius, accompanied by Mundilas the guardsman and a few horsemen,

passed out by night through the gate which bears the name of the Apostle

Paul,[144] eluding the enemy's camp which had been established very

close to the Appian Way to keep guard over it. And when Mundilas and his

men, returning to Rome, announced that Procopius had already arrived in

Campania without meeting any of the barbarians,--for at night, they

said, the enemy never went outside their camp,--everybody became

hopeful, and Belisarius, now emboldened, devised the following plan. He

sent out many of his horsemen to the neighbouring strongholds, directing

them, in case any of the enemy should come that way in order to bring

provisions into their camps, that they should constantly make sallies

upon them from their positions and lay ambushes everywhere about this

region, and thus keep them from succeeding; on the contrary, they should

with all their might hedge them in, so that the city might be in less

distress than formerly through lack of provisions, and also that the

barbarians might seem to be besieged rather than to be themselves

besieging the Romans. So he commanded Martinus and Trajan with a

thousand men to go to Taracina. And with them he sent also his wife

Antonina, commanding that she be sent with a few men to Naples, there to

await in safety the fortune which would befall the Romans. And he sent

Magnus and Sinthues the guardsman, who took with them about five

hundred men, to the fortress of Tibur, one hundred and forty stades

distant from Rome. But to the town of Albani,[145] which was situated on

the Appian Way at the same distance from the city, he had already, as it

happened, sent Gontharis with a number of Eruli, and these the Goths had

driven out from there by force not long afterward.

Now there is a certain church of the Apostle Paul,[146] fourteen stades

distant from the fortifications of Rome, and the Tiber River flows

beside it. In that place there is no fortification, but a colonnade

extends all the way from the city to the church, and many other

buildings which are round about it render the place not easy of access.

But the Goths shew a certain degree of actual respect for sanctuaries

such as this. And indeed during the whole time of the war no harm came

to either church of the two Apostles[147] at their hands, but all the

rites were performed in them by the priests in the usual manner. At this

spot, then, Belisarius commanded Valerian to take all the Huns and make

a stockade by the bank of the Tiber, in order that their horses might be

kept in greater security and that the Goths might be still further

checked from going at their pleasure to great distances from their

camps. And Valerian acted accordingly. Then, after the Huns had made

their camp in the place where the general directed, he rode back to the

city.

So Belisarius, having accomplished this, remained quiet, not offering

battle, but eager to carry on the defence from the wall, if anyone

should advance against it from outside with evil intent. And he also

furnished grain to some of the Roman populace. But Martinus and Trajan

passed by night between the camps of the enemy, and after reaching

Taracina sent Antonina with a few men into Campania; and they themselves

took possession of the fortified places in that district, and using them

as their bases of operations and making thence their sudden attacks,

they checked such of the Goths as were moving about in that region. As

for Magnus and Sinthues, in a short time they rebuilt such parts of the

fortress[148] as had fallen into ruin, and as soon as they had put

themselves in safety, they began immediately to make more trouble for

the enemy, whose fortress was not far away, not only by making frequent

raids upon them, but also by keeping such of the barbarians as were

escorting provision-trains in a constant state of terror by the

unexpectedness of their movements; but finally Sinthues was wounded in

his right hand by a spear in a certain battle, and since the sinews were

severed, he became thereafter unfit for fighting. And the Huns likewise,

after they had made their camp near by, as I have said, were on their

part causing the Goths no less trouble, so that these as well as the

Romans were now feeling the pressure of famine, since they no longer had

freedom to bring in their food-supplies as formerly. And pestilence too

fell upon them and was destroying many, and especially in the camp which

they had last made, close by the Appian Way, as I have previously

stated.[149] And the few of their number who had not perished withdrew

from that camp to the other camps. The Huns also suffered in the same

way, and so returned to Rome. Such was the course of events here. But as

for Procopius, when he reached Campania, he collected not fewer than

five hundred soldiers there, loaded a great number of ships with grain,

and held them in readiness. And he was joined not long afterwards by

Antonina, who immediately assisted him in making arrangements for the

fleet.

At that time the mountain of Vesuvius rumbled, and though it did not

break forth in eruption, still because of the rumbling it led people to

expect with great certainty that there would be an eruption. And for

this reason it came to pass that the inhabitants fell into great terror.

Now this mountain is seventy stades distant from Naples and lies to the

north[150] of it--an exceedingly steep mountain, whose lower parts

spread out wide on all sides, while its upper portion is precipitous and

exceedingly difficult of ascent. But on the summit of Vesuvius and at

about the centre of it appears a cavern of such depth that one would

judge that it extends all the way to the bottom of the mountain. And it

is possible to see fire there, if one should dare to peer over the edge,

and although the flames as a rule merely twist and turn upon one

another, occasioning no trouble to the inhabitants of that region, yet,

when the mountain gives forth a rumbling sound which resembles

bellowing, it generally sends up not long afterward a great quantity of

ashes. And if anyone travelling on the road is caught by this terrible

shower, he cannot possibly survive, and if it falls upon houses, they

too fall under the weight of the great quantity of ashes. But whenever

it so happens that a strong wind comes on, the ashes rise to a great

height, so that they are no longer visible to the eye, and are borne

wherever the wind which drives them goes, falling on lands exceedingly

far away. And once, they say, they fell in Byzantium[151] and so

terrified the people there, that from that time up to the present the

whole city has seen fit to propitiate God with prayers every year; and

at another time they fell on Tripolis in Libya. Formerly this rumbling

took place, they say, once in a hundred years or even more,[152] but in

later times it has happened much more frequently. This, however, they

declare emphatically, that whenever Vesuvius belches forth these ashes,

the country round about is bound to flourish with an abundance of all

crops. Furthermore, the air on this mountain is very light and by its

nature the most favourable to health in the world. And indeed those who

are attacked by consumption have been sent to this place by physicians

from remote times. So much, then, may be said regarding Vesuvius.

FOOTNOTES:

[144] The Porta Ostiensis.

[145] See Book V. vi. 7, note.

[146] The Basilica of St. Paul stood south of the city, outside the

Porta Ostiensis which is still called Porta S. Paolo.

[147] St. Peter and St. Paul.

[148] Tibur.

[149] Chap. iii. 7.

[150] This is an error on the part of Procopius. In point of fact it

lies to the south-east of Naples.

[151] During the eruption of 472 A.D.

[152] Since the great eruption of 79 A.D.--the first in historical

times--eruptions have succeeded one another at intervals varying from

one to more than one hundred years.

V

At this time another army also arrived by sea from Byzantium, three

thousand Isaurians who put in at the harbour of Naples, led by Paulus

and Conon, and eight hundred Thracian horsemen who landed at Dryus, led

by John, the nephew of the Vitalian who had formerly been tyrant, and

with them a thousand other soldiers of the regular cavalry, under

various commanders, among whom were Alexander and Marcentius. And it

happened that Zeno with three hundred horsemen had already reached Rome

by way of Samnium and the Latin Way. And when John with all the others

came to Campania, provided with many waggons by the inhabitants of

Calabria, his troops were joined by five hundred men who, as I have

said, had been collected in Campania. These set out by the coast road

with the waggons, having in mind, if any hostile force should confront

them, to make a circle of the waggons in the form of a stockade and thus

to ward off the enemy; and they commanded the men under Paulus and Conon

to sail with all speed and join them at Ostia, the harbour of Rome[153];

and they put sufficient grain in the waggons and loaded all the ships,

not only with grain, but also with wine and all kinds of provisions. And

they, indeed, expected to find the forces of Martinus and Trajan in the

neighbourhood of Taracina and to have their company from that point on,

but when they approached Taracina, they learned that these forces had

recently been recalled and had retired to Rome.

But Belisarius, learning that the forces of John were approaching and

fearing that the enemy might confront them in greatly superior numbers

and destroy them, took the following measures. It so happened that the

enemy had encamped very close to the Flaminian Gate; this gate

Belisarius himself had blocked up at the beginning of this war by a

structure of stone, as has been told by me in the previous

narrative,[154] his purpose of course being to make it difficult for the

enemy either to force their way in or to make any attempt upon the city

at that point. Consequently no engagement had taken place at this gate,

and the barbarians had no suspicion that there would be any attack upon

them from there. Now Belisarius tore down by night the masonry which

blocked this gate, without giving notice to anyone at all, and made

ready the greatest part of the army there. And at daybreak he sent

Trajan and Diogenes with a thousand horsemen through the Pincian Gate,

commanding them to shoot missiles into the camps, and as soon as their

opponents came against them, to flee without the least shame and to ride

up to the fortifications at full speed. And he also stationed some men

inside this gate. So the men under Trajan began to harass the

barbarians, as Belisarius had directed them to do, and the Goths,

gathering from all the camps, began to defend themselves. And both

armies began to move as fast as they could toward the fortifications of

the city, the one giving the appearance of fleeing, and the other

supposing that they were pursuing the enemy.

But as soon as Belisarius saw the enemy take up the pursuit, he opened

the Flaminian Gate and sent his army out against the barbarians, who

were thus taken unawares. Now it so happened that one of the Gothic

camps was on the road near this gate, and in front of it there was a

narrow passage between steep banks which was exceedingly difficult of

access. And one of the barbarians, a man of splendid physique and clad

in a corselet, when he saw the enemy advancing, reached this place

before them and took his stand there, at the same time calling his

comrades and urging them to help in guarding the narrow passage. But

before any move could be made Mundilas slew him and thereafter allowed

none of the barbarians to go into this passage. The Romans therefore

passed through it without encountering opposition, and some of them,

arriving at the Gothic camp near by, for a short time tried to take it,

but were unable to do so because of the strength of the stockade,

although not many barbarians had been left behind in it. For the trench

had been dug to an extraordinary depth, and since the earth taken from

it had invariably been placed along its inner side, this reached a great

height and so served as a wall[155]; and it was abundantly supplied with

stakes, which were very sharp and close together, thus making a

palisade. These defences so emboldened the barbarians that they began to

repel the enemy vigorously. But one of the guards of Belisarius,

Aquilinus by name, an exceedingly active man, seized a horse by the

bridle and, bestriding it, leaped from the trench into the middle of the

camp, where he slew some of the enemy. And when his opponents gathered

about him and hurled great numbers of missiles, the horse was wounded

and fell, but he himself unexpectedly made his escape through the midst

of the enemy. So he went on foot with his companions toward the Pincian

Gate. And overtaking the barbarians, who were still engaged in pursuing

Roman horsemen,[156] they began to shoot at them from behind and killed

some of them.

Now when Trajan and his men perceived this, since they had meanwhile

been reinforced by the horsemen who had been standing near by in

readiness, they charged at full speed against their pursuers. Then at

length the Goths, being now outgeneraled and unexpectedly caught between

the forces of their enemy, began to be killed indiscriminately. And

there was great slaughter of them, and very few escaped to their camps,

and that with difficulty; meanwhile the others, fearing for the safety

of all their strongholds, shut themselves in and remained in them

thereafter, thinking that the Romans would come against them without the

least delay. In this action one of the barbarians shot Trajan in the

face, above the right eye and not far from the nose. And the whole of

the iron point, penetrated the head and disappeared entirely, although

the barb on it was large and exceedingly long, but the remainder of the

arrow immediately fell to the ground without the application of force by

anyone, in my opinion because the iron point had never been securely

fastened to the shaft. Trajan, however, paid no heed to this at all, but

continued none the less killing and pursuing the enemy. But in the fifth

year afterward the tip of the iron of its own accord began to project

visibly from his face. And this is now the third year since it has been

slowly but steadily coming out. It is to be expected, therefore, that

the whole barb will eventually come out, though not for a long time. But

it has not been an impediment to the man in any way. So much then for

these matters.

FOOTNOTES:

[153] The regular harbour, Portus, was held by the Goths.

[154] Book V. xix. 6.

[155] Cf. Book V. xix. 11.

[156] These were the forces of Trajan and Diogenes.

VI

Now the barbarians straightway began to despair of winning the war and

were considering how they might withdraw from Rome, inasmuch as they had

suffered the ravages both of the pestilence and of the enemy, and were

now reduced from many tens of thousands to a few men; and, not least of

all, they were in a state of distress by reason of the famine, and while

in name they were carrying on a siege, they were in fact being besieged

by their opponents and were shut off from all necessities. And when they

learned that still another army had come to their enemy from Byzantium

both by land and by sea--not being informed as to its actual size, but

supposing it to be as large as the free play of rumour was able to make

it,--they became terrified at the danger and began to plan for their

departure. They accordingly sent three envoys to Rome, one of whom was a

Roman of note among the Goths, and he, coming before Belisarius, spoke

as follows:

"That the war has not turned out to the advantage of either side each of

us knows well, since we both have had actual experience of its

hardships. For why should anyone in either army deny facts of which

neither now remains in ignorance. And no one, I think, could deny, at

least no one who does not lack understanding, that it is only senseless

men who choose to go on suffering indefinitely merely to satisfy the

contentious spirit which moves them for the moment, and refuse to find a

solution of the troubles which harass them. And whenever this situation

arises, it is the duty of the commanders on both sides not to sacrifice

the lives of their subjects to their own glory, but to choose the course

which is just and expedient, not for themselves alone, but also for

their opponents, and thus to put an end to present hardships. For

moderation in one's demands affords a way out of all difficulties, but

it is the very nature of contentiousness that it cannot accomplish any

of the objects which are essential. Now we, on our part, have

deliberated concerning the conclusion of this war and have come before

you with proposals which are of advantage to both sides, wherein we

waive, as we think, some portion even of our rights. And see to it that

you likewise in your deliberations do not yield to a spirit of

contentiousness respecting us and thus destroy yourselves as well as us,

in preference to choosing the course which will be of advantage to

yourselves. And it is fitting that both sides should state their case,

not in continuous speech, but each interrupting the other on the spur of

the moment, if anything that is said shall seem inappropriate. For in

this way each side will be able to say briefly whatever it is minded to

say, and at the same time the essential things will be accomplished."

Belisarius replied: "There will be nothing to prevent the debate from

proceeding in the manner you suggest, only let the words spoken by you

be words of peace and of justice."

So the ambassadors of the Goths in their turn said: "You have done us an

injustice, O Romans, in taking up arms wrongfully against us, your

friends and allies. And what we shall say is, we think, well known to

each one of you as well as to ourselves. For the Goths did not obtain

the land of Italy by wresting it from the Romans by force, but Odoacer

in former times dethroned the emperor, changed the government of Italy

to a tyranny, and so held it.[157] And Zeno, who then held the power of

the East, though he wished to avenge his partner in the imperial office

and to free this land from the usurper, was unable to destroy the

authority of Odoacer. Accordingly he persuaded Theoderic, our ruler,

although he was on the point of besieging him and Byzantium, not only to

put an end to his hostility towards himself, in recollection of the

honour which Theoderic had already received at his hands in having been

made a patrician and consul of the Romans,[158] but also to punish

Odoacer for his unjust treatment of Augustulus, and thereafter, in

company with the Goths, to hold sway over the land as its legitimate and

rightful rulers. It was in this way, therefore, that we took over the

dominion of Italy, and we have preserved both the laws and the form of

government as strictly as any who have ever been Roman emperors, and

there is absolutely no law, either written or unwritten, introduced by

Theoderic or by any of his successors on the throne of the Goths. And we

have so scrupulously guarded for the Romans their practices pertaining

to the worship of God and faith in Him, that not one of the Italians has

changed his belief, either willingly or unwillingly, up to the present

day, and when Goths have changed,[159] we have taken no notice of the

matter. And indeed the sanctuaries of the Romans have received from us

the highest honour; for no one who has taken refuge in any of them has

ever been treated with violence by any man; nay, more, the Romans

themselves have continued to hold all the offices of the state, and not

a single Goth has had a share in them. Let someone come forward and

refute us, if he thinks that this statement of ours is not true. And one

might add that the Goths have conceded that the dignity of the

consulship should be conferred upon Romans each year by the emperor of

the East. Such has been the course followed by us; but you, on your

side, did not take the part of Italy while it was suffering at the hands

of the barbarians and Odoacer, although it was not for a short time, but

for ten years, that he treated the land outrageously; but now you do

violence to us who have acquired it legitimately, though you have no

business here. Do you therefore depart hence out of our way, keeping

both that which is your own and whatever you have gained by plunder."

And Belisarius said: "Although your promise gave us to understand that

your words would be brief and temperate, yet your discourse has been

both long and not far from fraudulent in its pretensions. For Theoderic

was sent by the Emperor Zeno in order to make war on Odoacer, not in

order to hold the dominion of Italy for himself. For why should the

emperor have been concerned to exchange one tyrant for another? But he

sent him in order that Italy might be free and obedient to the emperor.

And though Theoderic disposed of the tyrant in a satisfactory manner, in

everything else he shewed an extraordinary lack of proper feeling; for

he never thought of restoring the land to its rightful owner. But I, for

my part, think that he who robs another by violence and he who of his

own will does not restore his neighbour's goods are equal. Now, as for

me, I shall never surrender the emperor's country to any other. But if

there is anything you wish to receive in place of it, I give you leave

to speak."

And the barbarians said: "That everything which we have said is true no

one of you can be unaware. But in order that we may not seem to be

contentious, we give up to you Sicily, great as it is and of such

wealth, seeing that without it you cannot possess Libya in security."

And Belisarius replied: "And we on our side permit the Goths to have the

whole of Britain, which is much larger than Sicily and was subject to

the Romans in early times. For it is only fair to make an equal return

to those who first do a good deed or perform a kindness."

The barbarians: "Well, then, if we should make you a proposal concerning

Campania also, or about Naples itself, will you listen to it?"

Belisarius: "No, for we are not empowered to administer the emperor's

affairs in a way which is not in accord with his wish."

The barbarians: "Not even if we impose upon ourselves the payment of a

fixed sum of money every year?"

Belisarius: "No, indeed. For we are not empowered to do anything else

than guard the land for its owner."

The barbarians: "Come now, we must send envoys to the emperor and make

with him our treaty concerning the whole matter. And a definite time

must also be appointed during which the armies will be bound to observe

an armistice."

Belisarius: "Very well; let this be done. For never shall I stand in

your way when you are making plans for peace."

After saying these things they each left the conference, and the envoys

of the Goths withdrew to their own camp. And during the ensuing days

they visited each other frequently and made the arrangements for the

armistice, and they agreed that each side should put into the hands of

the other some of its notable men as hostages to ensure the keeping of

the armistice.

FOOTNOTES:

[157] 476 A.D. Cf. Book V. i. 6-8 and note.

[158] Cf. Book V. i. 10, 11.

[159] The Goths were Christians, but followed the Arian heresy.

VII

But while these negotiations were in progress at Rome, meanwhile the

fleet of the Isaurians put in at the harbour[160] of the Romans and John

with his men came to Ostia, and not one of the enemy hindered them

either while bringing their ships to land or while making their camp.

But in order that they might be able to pass the night safe from a

sudden attack by the enemy, the Isaurians dug a deep trench close to the

harbour and kept a constant guard by shifts of men, while John's

soldiers made a barricade of their waggons about the camp and remained

quiet. And when night came on Belisarius went to Ostia with a hundred

horsemen, and after telling what had taken place in the engagement and

the agreement which had been made between the Romans and the Goths and

otherwise encouraging them, he bade them bring their cargoes and come

with all zeal to Rome. "For," he said, "I shall take care that the

journey is free from danger." So he himself at early dawn rode back to

the city, and Antonina together with the commanders began at daybreak to

consider means of transporting the cargoes. But it seemed to them that

the task was a hard one and beset with the greatest difficulties. For

the oxen could hold out no longer, but all lay half-dead, and,

furthermore, it was dangerous to travel over a rather narrow road with

the waggons, and impossible to tow the barges on the river, as had

formerly been the custom. For the road which is on the left[2] of the

river was held by the enemy, as stated by me in the previous

narrative,[162] and not available for the use of the Romans at that

time, while the road on the other side of it is altogether unused, at

least that part of it which follows the river-bank. They therefore

selected the small boats belonging to the larger ships, put a fence of

high planks around them on all sides, in order that the men on board

might not be exposed to the enemy's shots, and embarked archers and

sailors on them in numbers suitable for each boat. And after they had

loaded the boats with all the freight they could carry, they waited for

a favouring wind and set sail toward Rome by the Tiber, and a portion of

the army followed them along the right[161] bank of the river to support

them. But they left a large number of Isaurians to guard the ships. Now

where the course of the river was straight, they found no trouble in

sailing, simply raising the sails of the boats; but where the stream

wound about and took a course athwart the wind, and the sails received

no impulse from it, the sailors had no slight toil in rowing and forcing

the boats against the current. As for the barbarians, they sat in their

camps and had no wish to hinder their enemy, either because they were

terrified at the danger, or because they thought that the Romans would

never by such means succeed in bringing in any provisions, and

considered it contrary to their own interest, when a matter of no

consequence was involved, to frustrate their hope of the armistice which

Belisarius had already promised. Moreover, the Goths who were in Portus,

though they could see their enemy constantly sailing by almost near

enough to touch, made no move against them, but sat there wondering in

amazement at the plan they had hit upon. And when the Romans had made

the voyage up the river many times in the same way, and had thus

conveyed all the cargoes into the city without interference, the sailors

took the ships and withdrew with all speed, for it was already about the

time of the winter solstice; and the rest of the army entered Rome,

except, indeed, that Paulus remained in Ostia with some of the

Isaurians.

And afterwards they gave hostages to one another to secure the keeping

of the armistice, the Romans giving Zeno, and the Goths Ulias, a man of

no mean station, with the understanding that during three months they

should make no attack upon one another, until the envoys should return

from Byzantium and report the will of the emperor. And even if the one

side or the other should initiate offences against their opponents, the

envoys were nevertheless to be returned to their own nation. So the

envoys of the barbarians went to Byzantium escorted by Romans, and

Ildiger, the son-in-law of Antonina, came to Rome from Libya with not a

few horsemen. And the Goths who were holding the stronghold at Portus

abandoned the place by the order of Vittigis because their supplies were

exhausted, and came to the camp in obedience to his summons. Whereupon

Paulus with his Isaurians came from Ostia and took possession of it and

held it. Now the chief reason why these barbarians were without

provisions was that the Romans commanded the sea and did not allow any

of the necessary supplies to be brought in to them. And it was for this

reason that they also abandoned at about the same time a sea-coast city

of great importance, Centumcellae[163] by name, that is, because they

were short of provisions. This city is large and populous, lying to the

west of Rome, in Tuscany, distant from it about two hundred and eighty

stades. And after taking possession of it the Romans went on and

extended their power still more, for they took also the town of Albani,

which lies to the east of Rome, the enemy having evacuated it at that

time for the same reason, and they had already surrounded the barbarians

on all sides and now held them between their forces. The Goths,

therefore, were in a mood to break the agreement and do some harm to the

Romans. So they sent envoys to Belisarius and asserted that they had

been unjustly treated during a truce; for when Vittigis had summoned the

Goths who were in Portus to perform some service for him, Paulus and the

Isaurians had seized and taken possession of the fort there for no good

reason. And they made this same false charge regarding Albani and

Centumcellae, and threatened that, unless he should give these places

back to them, they would resent it. But Belisarius laughed and sent them

away, saying that this charge was but a pretext, and that no one was

ignorant of the reason why the Goths had abandoned these places. And

thereafter the two sides were somewhat suspicious of one another.

But later, when Belisarius saw that Rome was abundantly supplied with

soldiers, he sent many horsemen to places far distant from Rome, and

commanded John, the nephew of Vitalian, and the horsemen under his

command, eight hundred in number, to pass the winter near the city of

Alba, which lies in Picenum; and with him he sent four hundred of the

men of Valerian, whom Damianus, the nephew of Valerian, commanded, and

eight hundred men of his own guards who were especially able warriors.

And in command of these he put two spearmen, Suntas and Adegis, and

ordered them to follow John wherever he should lead; and he gave John

instructions that as long as he saw the enemy was keeping the agreement

made between them, he should remain quiet; but whenever he found that

the armistice had been violated by them, he should do as follows: With

his whole force he was to make a sudden raid and overrun the land of

Picenum, visiting all the districts of that region and reaching each

one before the report of his coming. For in this whole land there was

virtually not a single man left, since all, as it appeared, had marched

against Rome, but everywhere there were women and children of the enemy

and money. He was instructed, therefore, to enslave or plunder whatever

he found, taking care never to injure any of the Romans living there.

And if he should happen upon any place which had men and defences, as he

probably would, he was to make an attempt upon it with his whole force.

And if he was able to capture it, he was to go forward, but if it should

so happen that his attempt was unsuccessful, he was to march back or

remain there. For if he should go forward and leave such a fortress in

his rear, he would be involved in the greatest danger, since his men

would never be able to defend themselves easily, if they should be

harassed by their opponents. He was also to keep the whole booty intact,

in order that it might be divided fairly and properly among the army.

Then with a laugh he added this also: "For it is not fair that the

drones should be destroyed with great labour by one force, while others,

without having endured any hardship at all, enjoy the honey." So after

giving these instructions, Belisarius sent John with his army.

And at about the same time Datius, the priest of Milan, and some notable

men among the citizens came to Rome and begged Belisarius to send them a

few guards. For they declared that they were themselves able without any

trouble to detach from the Goths not only Milan, but the whole of

Liguria also, and to recover them for the emperor. Now this city is

situated in Liguria, and lies about half way between the city of Ravenna

and the Alps on the borders of Gaul; for from either one it is a journey

of eight days to Milan for an unencumbered traveller; and it is the

first of the cities of the West, after Rome at least, both in size and

in population and in general prosperity. And Belisarius promised to

fulfil their request, but detained them there during the winter season.

FOOTNOTES:

[160] Ostia, since the regular harbour, Portus, was held by the Goths.

[161] _i.e._ facing upstream.

[162] Book IV. xxvi. 14.

[163] Modern Civita Vecchia.

VIII

Such was the course of these events. But the envy of fortune was already

swelling against the Romans, when she saw their affairs progressing

successfully and well, and wishing to mingle some evil with this good,

she inspired a quarrel, on a trifling pretext, between Belisarius and

Constantinus; and how this grew and to what end it came I shall now go

on to relate. There was a certain Presidius, a Roman living at Ravenna,

and a man of no mean station. This Presidius had given offence to the

Goths at the time when Vittigis was about to march against Rome, and so

he set out with some few of his domestics ostensibly on a hunting

expedition, and went into exile; he had communicated his plan to no one

and took none of his property with him, except indeed that he himself

carried two daggers, the scabbards of which happened to be adorned with

much gold and precious stones. And when he came to Spolitium, he lodged

in a certain temple outside the fortifications. And when Constantinus,

who happened to be still tarrying there,[164] heard of this, he sent one

of his guards, Maxentiolus, and took away from him both the daggers for

no good reason. The man was deeply offended by what had taken place, and

set out for Rome with all speed and came to Belisarius, and Constantinus

also arrived there not long afterward; for the Gothic army was already

reported to be not far away. Now as long as the affairs of the Romans

were critical and in confusion, Presidius remained silent; but when he

saw that the Romans were gaining the upper hand and that the envoys of

the Goths had been sent to the emperor, as has been told by me above, he

frequently approached Belisarius reporting the injustice and demanding

that he assist him in obtaining his rights. And Belisarius reproached

Constantinus many times himself, and many times through others, urging

him to clear himself of the guilt of an unjust deed and of a

dishonouring report. But Constantinus--for it must needs be that evil

befall him--always lightly evaded the charge and taunted the wronged

man. But on one occasion Presidius met Belisarius riding on horseback in

the forum, and he laid hold of the horse's bridle, and crying out with a

loud voice asked whether the laws of the emperor said that, whenever

anyone fleeing from the barbarians comes to them as a suppliant, they

should rob him by violence of whatever he may chance to have in his

hands. And though many men gathered about and commanded him with threats

to let go his hold of the bridle, he did not let go until at last

Belisarius promised to give him the daggers. On the following day,

therefore, Belisarius called Constantinus and many of the commanders to

an apartment in the palace, and after going over what had happened on

the previous day urged him even at that late time to restore the

daggers. But Constantinus refused to do so; nay, he would more gladly

throw them into the waters of the Tiber than give them to Presidius. And

Belisarius, being by now mastered by anger, enquired whether

Constantinus did not think that he was subject to his orders. And he

agreed to obey him in all other things, for this was the emperor's will;

this command, however, which at the present time he was laying upon him,

he would never obey. Belisarius then commanded his guards to enter,

whereupon Constantinus said: "In order, plainly, to have them kill me."

"By no means," said Belisarius, "but to have them compel your bodyguard

Maxentiolus, who forcibly carried away the daggers for you, to restore

to the man what he took from him by violence." But Constantinus,

thinking that he was to die that very instant, wished to do some great

deed before he should suffer anything himself. He accordingly drew the

dagger which hung by his thigh and suddenly thrust it at the belly of

Belisarius. And he in consternation stepped back, and by throwing his

arms around Bessas, who was standing near, succeeded in escaping the

blow. Then Constantinus, still boiling with anger, made after him; but

Ildiger and Valerian, seeing what was being done, laid hold of his

hands, one of the right and the other of the left, and dragged him back.

And at this point the guards entered whom Belisarius had summoned a

moment before, snatched the dagger of Constantinus from his hand with

great violence, and seized him amid a great uproar. At the moment they

did him no harm, out of respect, I suppose, to the officers present, but

led him away to another room at the command of Belisarius, and at a

somewhat later time put him to death. This was the only unholy deed done

by Belisarius, and it was in no way worthy of the character of the man;

for he always shewed great gentleness in his treatment of all others.

But it had to be, as I have said, that evil should befall Constantinus.

FOOTNOTE:

[164] Cf. Book V. xvi. 1 ff.

IX

And the Goths not long after this wished to strike a blow at the

fortifications of Rome. And first they sent some men by night into one

of the aqueducts, from which they themselves had taken out the water at

the beginning of this war.[165] And with lamps and torches in their

hands they explored the entrance into the city by this way. Now it

happened that not far from the small Pincian Gate an arch of this

aqueduct[166] had a sort of crevice in it, and one of the guards saw the

light through this and told his companions; but they said that he had

seen a wolf passing by his post. For at that point it so happened that

the structure of the aqueduct did not rise high above the ground, and

they thought that the guard had imagined the wolf's eyes to be fire. So

those barbarians who explored the aqueduct, upon reaching the middle of

the city, where there was an upward passage built in olden times leading

to the palace itself, came upon some masonry there which allowed them

neither to advance beyond that point nor to use the ascent at all. This

masonry had been put in by Belisarius as an act of precaution at the

beginning of this siege, as has been set forth by me in the preceding

narrative.[167] So they decided first to remove one small stone from the

wall and then to go back immediately, and when they returned to

Vittigis, they displayed the stone and reported the whole situation. And

while he was considering his scheme with the best of the Goths, the

Romans who were on guard at the Pincian Gate recalled among themselves

on the following day the suspicion of the wolf. But when the story was

passed around and came to Belisarius, the general did not treat the

matter carelessly, but immediately sent some of the notable men in the

army, together with the guardsman Diogenes, down into the aqueduct and

bade them investigate everything with all speed. And they found all

along the aqueduct the lamps of the enemy and the ashes which had

dropped from their torches, and after observing the masonry where the

stone had been taken out by the Goths, they reported to Belisarius. For

this reason he personally kept the aqueduct under close guard; and the

Goths, perceiving it, desisted from this attempt.

But later on the barbarians went so far as to plan an open attack

against the fortifications. So they waited for the time of lunch, and

bringing up ladders and fire, when their enemy were least expecting

them, made an assault upon the small Pincian Gate, emboldened by the

hope of capturing the city by a sudden attack, since not many soldiers

had been left there. But it happened that Ildiger and his men were

keeping guard at that time; for all were assigned by turns to

guard-duty. So when he saw the enemy advancing in disorder, he went out

against them before they were yet drawn up in line of battle and while

they were advancing in great disarray, and routing those who were

opposite him without any trouble he slew many. And a great outcry and

commotion arose throughout the city, as was to be expected, and the

Romans gathered as quickly as possible to all parts of the

fortifications; whereupon the barbarians after a short time retired to

their camp baffled.

But Vittigis resorted again to a plot against the wall. Now there was a

certain part of it that was especially vulnerable, where the bank of the

Tiber is, because at this place the Romans of old, confident in the

protection afforded by the stream, had built the wall carelessly, making

it low and altogether without towers; Vittigis therefore hoped to

capture the city rather easily from that quarter. For indeed there was

not even any garrison there of any consequence, as it happened. He

therefore bribed with money two Romans who lived near the church of

Peter the Apostle to pass along by the guards there at about nightfall

carrying a skin full of wine, and in some way or other, by making a show

of friendship, to give it to them, and then to sit drinking with them

well on into the night; and they were to throw into the cup of each

guard a sleep-producing drug which Vittigis had given them. And he

stealthily got ready some skiffs, which he kept at the other bank; as

soon as the guards should be overcome by sleep, some of the barbarians,

acting in concert, were to cross the river in these, taking ladders with

them, and make the assault on the wall. And he made ready the entire

army with the intention of capturing the whole city by storm. After

these arrangements were all complete, one of the two men who had been

prepared by Vittigis for this service (for it was not fated that Rome

should be captured by this army of the Goths) came of his own accord to

Belisarius and revealed everything, and told who the other man was. So

this man under torture brought to light all that he was about to do and

displayed the drug which Vittigis had given him. And Belisarius first

mutilated his nose and ears and then sent him riding on an ass into the

enemy's camp. And when the barbarians saw him, they realised that God

would not allow their purposes to have free course, and that therefore

the city could never be captured by them.

FOOTNOTES:

[165] Book V. xix. 13.

[166] The _Aqua Virgo_.

[167] Book V. xix. 18.

X

But while these things were happening, Belisarius wrote to John and

commanded him to begin operations. And he with his two thousand horsemen

began to go about the land of Picenum and to plunder everything before

him, treating the women and children of the enemy as slaves. And when

Ulitheus, the uncle of Vittigis, confronted him with an army of Goths,

he defeated them in battle and killed Ulitheus himself and almost the

whole army of the enemy. For this reason no one dared any longer to

engage with him. But when he came to the city of Auximus,[168] though he

learned that it contained a Gothic garrison of inconsiderable size, yet

in other respects he observed that the place was strong and impossible

to capture. And for this reason he was quite unwilling to lay siege to

it, but departing from there as quickly as he could, he moved forward.

And he did this same thing at the city of Urbinus,[169] but at

Ariminum,[170] which is one day's journey distant from Ravenna, he

marched into the city at the invitation of the Romans. Now all the

barbarians who were keeping guard there were very suspicious of the

Roman inhabitants, and as soon as they learned that this army was

approaching, they withdrew and ran until they reached Ravenna. And thus

John secured Ariminum; but he had meanwhile left in his rear a garrison

of the enemy both at Auximus and at Urbinus, not because he had

forgotten the commands of Belisarius, nor because he was carried away by

unreasoning boldness, since he had wisdom as well as energy, but because

he reasoned--correctly, as it turned out--that if the Goths learned that

the Roman army was close to Ravenna, they would instantly break up the

siege of Rome because of their fears regarding this place. And in fact

his reasoning proved to be true. For as soon as Vittigis and the army

of the Goths heard that Ariminum was held by him, they were plunged into

great fear regarding Ravenna, and abandoning all other considerations,

they straightway made their withdrawal, as will be told by me directly.

And John won great fame from this deed, though he was renowned even

before. For he was a daring and efficient man in the highest degree,

unflinching before danger, and in his daily life shewing at all times a

certain austerity and ability to endure hardship unsurpassed by any

barbarian or common soldier. Such a man was John. And Matasuntha, the

wife of Vittigis, who was exceedingly hostile to her husband because he

had taken her to wife by violence in the beginning,[171] upon learning

that John had come to Ariminum was absolutely overcome by joy, and

sending a messenger to him opened secret negotiations with him

concerning marriage and the betrayal of the city.

So these two kept sending messengers to each other without the knowledge

of the rest and arranging these matters. But when the Goths learned what

had happened at Ariminum, and when at the same time all their provisions

had failed them, and the three months' time had already expired, they

began to make their withdrawal, although they had not as yet received

any information as far as the envoys were concerned. Now it was about

the spring equinox, and one year had been spent in the siege and nine

days in addition, when the Goths, having burned all their camps, set out

at daybreak. And the Romans, seeing their opponents in flight, were at a

loss how to deal with the situation. For it so happened that the

majority of the horsemen were not present at that time, since they had

been sent to various places, as has been stated by me above,[172] and

they did not think that by themselves they were a match for so great a

multitude of the enemy. However, Belisarius armed all the infantry and

cavalry. And when he saw that more than half of the enemy had crossed

the bridge, he led the army out through the small Pincian Gate, and the

hand-to-hand battle which ensued proved to be equal to any that had

preceded it. At the beginning the barbarians withstood their enemy

vigorously, and many on both sides fell in the first encounter; but

afterwards the Goths turned to flight and brought upon themselves a

great and overwhelming calamity; for each man for himself was rushing to

cross the bridge first. As a result of this they became very much

crowded and suffered most cruelly, for they were being killed both by

each other and by the enemy. Many, too, fell off the bridge on either

side into the Tiber, sank with all their arms, and perished. Finally,

after losing in this way the most of their number, the remainder joined

those who had crossed before. And Longinus the Isaurian and Mundilas,

the guards of Belisarius, made themselves conspicuous for their valour

in this battle. But while Mundilas, after engaging with four barbarians

in turn and killing them all, was himself saved, Longinus, having proved

himself the chief cause of the rout of the enemy, fell where he fought,

leaving the Roman army great regret for his loss.

FOOTNOTES:

[168] Modern Osimo.

[169] Modern Urbino.

[170] Modern Rimini.

[171] Cf. Book V. xi. 27.

[172] Chap. vii. 25.

XI

Now Vittigis with the remainder of his army marched toward Ravenna; and

he strengthened the fortified places with a great number of guards,

leaving in Clusium,[173] the city of Tuscany, one thousand men and

Gibimer as commander, and in Urviventus[174] an equal number, over whom

he set Albilas, a Goth, as commander. And he left Uligisalus in

Tudera[175] with four hundred men. And in the land of Picenum he left in

the fortress of Petra four hundred men who had lived there previously,

and in Auximus, which is the largest of all the cities of that country,

he left four thousand Goths selected for their valour and a very

energetic commander, Visandus by name, and two thousand men with Moras

in the city of Urbinus. There are also two other fortresses, Caesena and

Monteferetra,[176] in each of which he established a garrison of not

less than five hundred men. Then he himself with the rest of the army

moved straight for Ariminum with the purpose of laying siege to it.

But it happened that Belisarius, as soon as the Goths had broken up the

siege of Rome, had sent Ildiger and Martinus with a thousand horsemen,

in order that by travelling more quickly by another road they might

arrive at Ariminum first, and he directed them promptly to remove John

from the city and all those with him, and to put in their place fully

enough men to guard the city, taking them from the fortress which is on

the Ionian Gulf, Ancon by name, two days' journey distant from Ariminum.

For he had already taken possession of it not long before, having sent

Conon with no small force of Isaurians and Thracians. It was his hope

that if unsupported infantry under commanders of no great note should

hold Ariminum, the Gothic forces would never undertake its siege, but

would regard it with contempt and so go at once to Ravenna, and that if

they should decide to besiege Ariminum, the provisions there would

suffice for the infantry for a somewhat longer time; and he thought also

that two thousand horsemen,[177] attacking from outside with the rest of

the army, would in all probability do the enemy great harm and drive

them more easily to abandon the siege. It was with this purpose that

Belisarius gave such orders to Martinus and Ildiger and their men. And

they, by travelling over the Flaminian Way, arrived long before the

barbarians. For since the Goths were moving in a great throng, they

proceeded in a more leisurely manner, and they were compelled to make

certain long detours, both because of the lack of provisions, and

because they preferred not to pass close to the fortresses on the

Flaminian Way, Narnia and Spolitium and Perusia, since these were in the

hands of the enemy, as has been stated above.[178]

When the Roman army arrived at Petra, they made an attack upon the

fortress there, regarding it as an incident of their expedition. Now

this fortress was not devised by man, but it was made by the nature of

the place; for the road passes through an extremely mountainous country

at that place. On the right of this road a river descends which no man

can ford because of the swiftness of the current, and on the left not

far away rises a sheer rock which reaches to such a height that men who

might chance to be standing on its summit, as seen by those below,

resemble in size the smallest birds. And in olden times there was no

passage through as one went forward. For the end of the rock reaches to

the very stream of the river, affording no room for those who travel

that way to pass by. So the men of ancient times constructed a tunnel at

that point, and made there a gate for the place.[179] And they also

closed up the greatest part of the other[180] entrance, leaving only

enough space for a small gate there also, and thus rendered the place a

natural fortress, which they call by the fitting name of Petra. So the

men of Martinus and Ildiger first made an attack upon one of the two

gates,[181] and shot many missiles, but they accomplished nothing,

although the barbarians there made no defence at all; but afterwards

they forced their way up the cliff behind the fortress and hurled stones

from there upon the heads of the Goths. And they, hurriedly and in great

confusion, entered their houses and remained quiet. And then the Romans,

unable to hit any of the enemy with the stones they threw, devised the

following plan. They broke off large pieces from the cliff and, many of

them pushing together, hurled them down, aiming at the houses. And

wherever these in their fall did no more than just graze the building,

they yet gave the whole fortress a considerable shock and reduced the

barbarians to great fear. Consequently the Goths stretched out their

hands to those who were still about the gate and surrendered themselves

and the fort, with the condition that they themselves should remain free

from harm, being slaves of the emperor and subject to Belisarius. And

Ildiger and Martinus removed the most of them and led them away, putting

them on a basis of complete equality with themselves, but some few they

left there, together with their wives and children. And they also left

something of a garrison of Romans. Thence they proceeded to Ancon, and

taking with them many of the infantry in that place on the third day

reached Ariminum, and announced the will of Belisarius. But John was not

only unwilling himself to follow them, but also proposed to retain

Damianus with the four hundred.[182] So they left there the infantry and

retired thence with all speed, taking the spearmen and guards of

Belisarius.

FOOTNOTES:

[173] Modern Chiusi.

[174] Urbs Vetus, modern Orvieto.

[175] Tuder or Tudertum, modern Todi.

[176] Modern Montefeltro.

[177] _i.e._ the force which John had when he had set out on his raid of

Picenum (cf. Chap. x. 1) and with which he was now holding Ariminum.

[178] Book V. xxix. 3.

[179] The tunnel was made by the Emperor Vespasian, 76 A.D. This gate

was at the southern end.

[180] _i.e._ northern.

[181] The upper, or southern, gate.

[182] Cf. Chap. vii. 26.

XII

And not long afterward Vittigis and his whole army arrived at Ariminum,

where they established their camp and began the siege. And they

immediately constructed a wooden tower higher than the circuit-wall of

the city and resting on four wheels, and drew it toward that part of the

wall which seemed to them most vulnerable. But in order that they might

not have the same experience here which they had before the

fortifications of Rome, they did not use oxen to draw the tower, but hid

themselves within it and thus hauled it forward. And there was a

stairway of great breadth inside the tower on which the barbarians in

great numbers were to make the ascent easily, for they hoped that as

soon as they should place the tower against the fortifications, they

would have no trouble in stepping thence to the parapet of the wall; for

they had made the tower high with this in view. So when they had come

close to the fortifications with this engine of war, they remained quiet

for the time, since it was already growing dark, and stationing guards

about the tower they all went off to pass the night, supposing that they

would meet with no obstacle whatever. And indeed there was nothing in

their way, not even a trench between them and the wall, except an

exceedingly small one.

As for the Romans, they passed the night in great fear, supposing that

on the morrow they would perish. But John, neither yielding to despair

in face of the danger nor being greatly agitated by fear, devised the

following plan. Leaving the others on guard at their posts, he himself

took the Isaurians, who carried pickaxes and various other tools of this

kind, and went outside the fortifications; it was late in the night and

no word had been given beforehand to anyone in the city; and once

outside the wall, he commanded his men in silence to dig the trench

deeper. So they did as directed, and as they dug they kept putting the

earth which they took out of the trench upon the side of it nearer the

city-wall, and there it served them as an earthwork. And since they were

unobserved for a long time by the enemy, who were sleeping, they soon

made the trench both deep and sufficiently wide, at the place where the

fortifications were especially vulnerable and where the barbarians were

going to make the assault with their engine of war. But far on in the

night the enemy, perceiving what was being done, charged at full speed

against those who were digging, and John went inside the fortifications

with the Isaurians, since the trench was now in a most satisfactory

condition.

But at daybreak Vittigis noted what had been accomplished and in his

exceeding vexation at the occurrence executed some of the guards;

however, he was as eager as before to bring his engine to bear, and so

commanded the Goths to throw a great number of faggots as quickly as

possible into the trench, and then by drawing the tower over them to

bring it into position. This they proceeded to do as Vittigis commanded,

with all zeal, although their opponents kept fighting them back from the

wall with the utmost vigour. But when the weight of the tower came upon

the faggots they naturally yielded and sank down. For this reason the

barbarians were quite unable to go forward with the engine, because the

ground became still more steep before them, where the Romans had heaped

up the earth as I have stated. Fearing, therefore, that when night came

on the enemy would sally forth and set fire to the engine, they began to

draw it back again. This was precisely what John was eager to prevent

with all his power, and so he armed his soldiers, called them all

together, and exhorted them as follows:

"My men, who share this danger common to us all, if it would please any

man among you to live and see those whom he has left at home, let him

realize that the only hope he has of obtaining these things lies in

nothing but his own hands. For when Belisarius sent us forth in the

beginning, hope and desire for many things made us eager for the task.

For we never suspected that we should be besieged in the country along

the coast, since the Romans command the sea so completely, nor would one

have supposed that the emperor's army would so far neglect us. But apart

from these considerations, at that time we were prompted to boldness by

an opportunity to display our loyalty to the state and by the glory

which we should acquire in the sight of all men as the result of our

struggles. But as things now stand, we cannot possibly survive save by

courage, and we are obliged to undergo this danger with no other end in

view than the saving of our own lives. Therefore, if any of you

perchance lay claim to valour, all such have the opportunity to prove

themselves brave men, if any men in the world have, and thereby to cover

themselves with glory. For they achieve a fair name, not who overpower

those weaker than themselves, but who, though inferior in equipment,

still win the victory by the greatness of their souls. And as for those

in whom the love of life has been more deeply implanted, it will be of

advantage to these especially to be bold, for it is true of all men, as

a general thing, that when their fortunes stand on the razor's edge, as

is now the case with us, they may be saved only by scorning the danger."

With these words John led his army out against the enemy, leaving some

few men to guard the battlement. But the enemy withstood them bravely,

and the battle became exceedingly fierce. And with great difficulty and

late in the day the barbarians succeeded in bringing the tower back to

their own camp. However, they lost so great a number of their fighting

men that they decided thenceforth to make no further attacks upon the

wall, but in despair of succeeding that way, they remained quiet,

expecting that their enemy would yield to them under stress of famine.

For all their provisions had already failed them completely, since they

had not found any place from which they could bring in a sufficient

supply.

Such was the course of events here. But as for Belisarius, he sent to

the representatives of Milan[183] a thousand men, Isaurians and

Thracians. The Isaurians were commanded by Ennes, the Thracians by

Paulus, while Mundilas was set over them all and commanded in person,

having as his guard some few of the guardsmen of Belisarius. And with

them was also Fidelius, who had been made praetorian prefect. For since

he was a native of Milan, he was regarded as a suitable person to go

with this army, having as he did some influence in Liguria. They set

sail, accordingly, from the harbour of Rome and put in at Genoa, which

is the last city in Tuscany and well situated as a port of call for the

voyage to Gaul and to Spain. There they left their ships and travelling

by land moved forward, placing the boats of the ships on their waggons,

in order that nothing might prevent their crossing the river Po. It was

by this means, in any event, that they made the crossing of the river.

And when they reached the city of Ticinum,[184] after crossing the Po,

the Goths came out against them and engaged them in battle. And they

were not only numerous but also excellent troops, since all the

barbarians who lived in that region had deposited the most valuable of

their possessions in Ticinum, as being a place which had strong

defences, and had left there a considerable garrison. So a fierce battle

took place, but the Romans were victorious, and routing their opponents,

they slew a great number and came within a little of capturing the city

in the pursuit. For it was only with difficulty that the barbarians

succeeded in shutting the gates, so closely did their enemy press upon

their heels. And as the Romans were marching away, Fidelius went into a

temple there to pray, and was the last to leave. But by some chance his

horse stumbled and he fell. And since he had fallen very near the

fortifications, the Goths seeing him came out and killed him without

being observed by the enemy. Wherefore, when this was afterwards

discovered by Mundilas and the Romans, they were greatly distressed.

Then, leaving Ticinum, they arrived at the city of Milan and secured

this city with the rest of Liguria without a battle. When Vittigis

learned about this, he sent a large army with all speed and Uraïas, his

own nephew, as commander. And Theudibert, the leader of the Franks, sent

him at his request ten thousand men as allies, not of the Franks

themselves, but Burgundians, in order not to appear to be doing injury

to the emperor's cause. For it was given out that the Burgundians made

the expedition willingly and of their own choice, not as obeying the

command of Theudibert. And the Goths, joined by these troops, came to

Milan, made camp and began a siege when the Romans were least expecting

them. At any rate the Romans, through this action, found it impossible

to bring in any kind of provisions, but they were immediately in

distress for want of necessities. Indeed, even the guarding of the walls

was not being maintained by the regular soldiers, for it so happened

that Mundilas had occupied all the cities near Milan which had defences,

namely Bergomum, Comum, and Novaria,[185] as well as some other

strongholds, and in every place had established a considerable garrison,

while he himself with about three hundred men remained in Milan, and

with him Ennes and Paulus. Consequently and of necessity the inhabitants

of the city were regularly keeping guard in turn. Such was the progress

of events in Liguria, and the winter drew to its close, and the third

year came to an end in this war, the history of which Procopius has

written.

FOOTNOTES:

[183] Cf. Chap. vii. 35.

[184] Modern Pavia.

[185] Modern Bergamo, Como, and Novara.

XIII

And Belisarius at about the time of the summer solstice marched against

Vittigis and the Gothic army, leaving a few men to act as a garrison in

Rome, but taking all the others with him. And he sent some men to Tudera

and Clusium, with orders to make fortified camps there, and he was

intending to follow them and assist in besieging the barbarians at those

places. But when the barbarians learned that the army was approaching,

they did not wait to face the danger, but sent envoys to Belisarius,

promising to surrender both themselves and the two cities, with the

condition that they should remain free from harm. And when he came

there, they fulfilled their promise. And Belisarius removed all the

Goths from these towns and sent them to Sicily and Naples, and after

establishing a garrison in Clusium and in Tudera, he led his army

forward.

But meanwhile Vittigis had sent another army, under command of Vacimus,

to Auximus, commanding it to join forces with the Goths there, and with

them to go against the enemy in Ancon and make an attempt upon that

fortress. Now this Ancon is a sort of pointed rock, and indeed it is

from this circumstance that it has taken its name; for it is exceedingly

like an "elbow." And it is about eighty stades distant from the city of

Auximus, whose port it is. And the defences of the fortress lie upon the

pointed rock in a position of security, but all the buildings outside,

though they are many, have been from ancient times unprotected by a

wall. Now as soon as Conon, who was in command of the garrison of the

place, heard that the forces of Vacimus were coming against him and were

already not far away, he made an exhibition of thoughtless folly. For

thinking it too small a thing to preserve free from harm merely the

fortress and its inhabitants together with the soldiers, he left the

fortifications entirely destitute of soldiers, and leading them all out

to a distance of about five stades, arrayed them in line of battle,

without, however, making the phalanx a deep one at all, but thin enough

to surround the entire base of the mountain, as if for a hunt. But when

these troops saw that the enemy were greatly superior to them in number,

they turned their backs and straightway fled to the fortress. And the

barbarians, following close upon them, slew on the spot most of their

number--those who did not succeed in getting inside the circuit-wall in

time--and then placed ladders against the wall and attempted the ascent.

Some also began burning the houses outside the fortress. And the Romans

who resided habitually in the fortress, being terror-stricken at what

was taking place, at first opened the small gate and received the

soldiers as they fled in complete disorder. But when they saw the

barbarians close at hand and pressing upon the fugitives, fearing that

they would charge in with them, they closed the gates as quickly as they

could, and letting down ropes from the battlement, saved a number by

drawing them up, and among them Conon himself. But the barbarians scaled

the wall by means of their ladders and came within a little of capturing

the fortress by storm, and would have succeeded if two men had not made

a display of remarkable deeds by valorously pushing off the battlements

those who had already got upon the wall; one of these two was a

bodyguard of Belisarius, a Thracian named Ulimuth, and the other a

bodyguard of Valerian, named Gouboulgoudou, a Massagete by birth. These

two men had happened by some chance to come by ship to Ancon a little

before; and in this struggle, by warding off with their swords those who

were scaling the wall, they saved the fortress contrary to expectation,

but they themselves were carried from the battlement half dead, their

whole bodies hacked with many wounds.

At that time it was reported to Belisarius that Narses had come with a

great army from Byzantium and was in Picenum. Now this Narses[186] was a

eunuch and guardian of the royal treasures, but for the rest keen and

more energetic than would be expected of a eunuch. And five thousand

soldiers followed him, of whom the several detachments were commanded by

different men, among whom were Justinus, the general of Illyricum, and

another Narses, who had previously come to the land of the Romans as a

deserter from the Armenians who are subject to the Persians; with him

had come his brother Aratius,[187] who, as it happened, had joined

Belisarius a little before this with another army. And about two

thousand of the Erulian nation also followed him, commanded by Visandus

and Aluith and Phanitheus.

FOOTNOTES:

[186] He was an Armenian of Persia; see Book I. xv. 31.

[187] Book I. xv. 31.

XIV

Now as to who in the world the Eruli are, and how they entered into

alliance with the Romans, I shall forthwith explain.[188] They used to

dwell beyond the Ister[189] River from of old, worshipping a great host

of gods, whom it seemed to them holy to appease even by human

sacrifices. And they observed many customs which were not in accord with

those of other men. For they were not permitted to live either when they

grew old or when they fell sick, but as soon as one of them was

overtaken by old age or by sickness, it became necessary for him to ask

his relatives to remove him from the world as quickly as possible. And

these relatives would pile up a quantity of wood to a great height and

lay the man on top of the wood, and then they would send one of the

Eruli, but not a relative of the man, to his side with a dagger; for it

was not lawful for a kinsman to be his slayer. And when the slayer of

their relative had returned, they would straightway burn the whole pile

of wood, beginning at the edges. And after the lire had ceased, they

would immediately collect the bones and bury them in the earth. And when

a man of the Eruli died, it was necessary for his wife, if she laid

claim to virtue and wished to leave a fair name behind her, to die not

long afterward beside the tomb of her husband by hanging herself with a

rope. And if she did not do this, the result was that she was in ill

repute thereafter and an offence to the relatives of her husband. Such

were the customs observed by the Eruli in ancient times.

But as time went on they became superior to all the barbarians who dwelt

about them both in power and in numbers, and, as was natural, they

attacked and vanquished them severally and kept plundering their

possessions by force. And finally they made the Lombards, who were

Christians, together with several other nations, subject and tributary

to themselves, though the barbarians of that region were not accustomed

to that sort of thing; but the Eruli were led to take this course by

love of money and a lawless spirit. [X]When, however, Anastasius took

over the Roman empire, the Eruli, having no longer anyone in the world

whom they could assail, laid down their arms and remained quiet, and

they observed peace in this way for a space of three years. But the

people themselves, being exceedingly vexed, began to abuse their leader

Rodolphus without restraint, and going to him constantly they called him

cowardly and effeminate, and railed at him in a most unruly manner,

taunting him with certain other names besides. And Rodolphus, being

quite unable to bear the insult, marched against the Lombards, who were

doing no wrong, without charging against them any fault or alleging any

violation of their agreement, but bringing upon them a war which had no

real cause. And when the Lombards got word of this, they sent to

Rodolphus and made enquiry and demanded that he should state the charge

on account of which the Eruli were coming against them in arms, agreeing

that if they had deprived the Eruli of any of the tribute, then they

would instantly pay it with large interest; and if their grievance was

that only a moderate tribute had been imposed upon them, then the

Lombards would never be reluctant to make it greater. Such were the

offers which the envoys made, but Rodolphus with a threat sent them away

and marched forward. And they again sent other envoys to him on the same

mission and supplicated him with many entreaties. And when the second

envoys had fared in the same way, a third embassy came to him and

forbade the Eruli on any account to bring upon them a war without

excuse. For if they should come against them with such a purpose, they

too, not willingly, but under the direst necessity, would array

themselves against their assailants, calling upon God as their witness,

the slightest breath of whose favour, turning the scales, would be a

match for all the strength of men; and He, in all likelihood, would be

moved by the causes of the war and would determine the issue of the

fight for both sides accordingly. So they spoke, thinking in this way to

terrify their assailants, but the Eruli, shrinking from nothing

whatever, decided to meet the Lombards in battle. And when the two

armies came close to one another, it so happened that the sky above the

Lombards was obscured by a sort of cloud, black and very thick, but

above the Eruli it was exceedingly clear. And judging by this one would

have supposed that the Eruli were entering the conflict to their own

harm; for there ran be no more forbidding portent than this for

barbarians as they go into battle. However, the Eruli gave no heed even

to this, but in absolute disregard of it they advanced against their

enemy with utter contempt, estimating the outcome of war by mere

superiority of numbers. But when the battle came to close quarters, many

of the Eruli perished and Rodolphus himself also perished, and the rest

fled at full speed, forgetting all their courage. And since their enemy

followed them up, the most of them fell on the field of battle and only

a few succeeded in saving themselves.

DATE:

[X]491 A.D.

For this reason the Eruli were no longer able to tarry in their

ancestral homes, but departing from there as quickly as possible they

kept moving forward, traversing the whole country which is beyond the

Ister River, together with their wives and children. But when they

reached a land where the Rogi dwelt of old, a people who had joined the

Gothic host and gone to Italy, they settled in that place. But since

they were pressed by famine, because they were in a barren land, they

removed from there not long afterward, and came to a place close to the

country of the Gepaedes.[190] And at first the Gepaedes permitted them

to dwell there and be neighbours to them, since they came as suppliants.

But afterwards for no good reason the Gepaedes began to practise unholy

deeds upon them. For they violated their women and seized their cattle

and other property, and abstained from no wickedness whatever, and

finally began an unjust attack upon them. And the Eruli, unable to bear

all this any longer, crossed the Ister River and decided to live as

neighbours to the Romans in that region; this was during the reign of

the Emperor Anastasius, who received them with great friendliness and

allowed them to settle where they were. But a short time afterwards

these barbarians gave him offence by their lawless treatment of the

Romans there, and for this reason he sent an army against them. And the

Romans, after defeating them in battle, slew most of their number, and

had ample opportunity to destroy them all. But the remainder of them

threw themselves upon the mercy of the generals and begged them to spare

their lives and to have them as allies and servants of the emperor

thereafter. And when Anastasius learned this, he was pleased, and

consequently a number of the Eruli were left; however, they neither

became allies of the Romans, nor did they do them any good.

But when Justinian took over the empire,[Y] he bestowed upon them good

lands and other possessions, and thus completely succeeded in winning

their friendship and persuaded them all to become Christians. As a

result of this they adopted a gentler manner of life and decided to

submit themselves wholly to the laws of the Christians, and in keeping

with the terms of their alliance they are generally arrayed with the

Romans against their enemies. They are still, however, faithless toward

them, and since they are given to avarice, they are eager to do violence

to their neighbours, feeling no shame at such conduct. And they mate in

an unholy manner, especially men with asses, and they are the basest of

all men and utterly abandoned rascals.

DATE:

[Y]527 A.D.

Afterwards, although some few of them remained at peace with the Romans,

as will be told by me in the following narrative,[191] all the rest

revolted for the following reason. The Eruli, displaying their beastly

and fanatical character against their own "rex," one Ochus by name,

suddenly killed the man for no good reason at all, laying against him no

other charge than that they wished to be without a king thereafter. And

yet even before this, while their king did have the title, he had

practically no advantage over any private citizen whomsoever. But all

claimed the right to sit with him and eat with him, and whoever wished

insulted him without restraint; for no men in the world are less bound

by convention or more unstable than the Eruli. Now when the evil deed

had been accomplished, they were immediately repentant. For they said

that they were not able to live without a ruler and without a general;

so after much deliberation it seemed to them best in every way to summon

one of their royal family from the island of Thule. And the reason for

this I shall now explain.

FOOTNOTES:

[188] Cf. Book IV. iv. 30.

[189] Modern Danube.

[190] Cf. Book III. ii. 2-6, VII. xxiv. 10.

[191] Book VII. xxxiv. 42.

XV

When the Eruli, being defeated by the Lombards in the above-mentioned

battle, migrated from their ancestral homes, some of them, as has been

told by me above,[192] made their home in the country of Illyricum, but

the rest were averse to crossing the Ister River, but settled at the

very extremity of the world; at any rate, these men, led by many of the

royal blood, traversed all the nations of the Sclaveni one after the

other, and after next crossing a large tract of barren country, they

came to the Varni,[193] as they are called. After these they passed by

the nations of the Dani,[194] without suffering violence at the hands of

the barbarians there. Coming thence to the ocean, they took to the sea,

and putting in at Thule,[195] remained there on the island.

Now Thule is exceedingly large; for it is more than ten times greater

than Britain. And it lies far distant from it toward the north. On this

island the land is for the most part barren, but in the inhabited

country thirteen very numerous nations are settled; and there are kings

over each nation. In that place a very wonderful thing takes place

each year. For the sun at the time of the summer solstice never sets for

forty days, but appears constantly during this whole time above the

earth. But not less than six months later, at about the time of the

winter solstice, the sun is never seen on this island for forty days,

but never-ending night envelops it; and as a result of this dejection

holds the people there during this whole time, because they are unable

by any means to mingle with one another during this interval. And

although I was eager to go to this island and become an eye-witness of

the things I have told, no opportunity ever presented itself. However, I

made enquiry from those who come to us from the island as to how in the

world they are able to reckon the length of the days, since the sun

never rises nor sets there at the appointed times. And they gave me an

account which is true and trustworthy. For they said that the sun during

those forty days does not indeed set just as has been stated, but is

visible to the people there at one time toward the east, and again

toward the west. Whenever, therefore, on its return, it reaches the same

place on the horizon where they had previously been accustomed to see it

rise, they reckon in this way that one day and night have passed. When,

however, the time of the nights arrives, they always take note of the

courses of the moon and stars and thus reckon the measure of the days.

And when a time amounting to thirty-five days has passed in this long

night, certain men are sent to the summits of the mountains--for this is

the custom among them--and when they are able from that point barely to

see the sun, they bring back word to the people below that within five

days the sun will shine upon them. And the whole population celebrates a

festival at the good news, and that too in the darkness. And this is the

greatest festival which the natives of Thule have; for, I imagine, these

islanders always become terrified, although they see the same thing

happen every year, fearing that the sun may at some time fail them

entirely.

But among the barbarians who are settled in Thule, one nation only, who

are called the Scrithiphini, live a kind of life akin to that of the

beasts. For they neither wear garments of cloth nor do they walk with

shoes on their feet, nor do they drink wine nor derive anything edible

from the earth. For they neither till the land themselves, nor do their

women work it for them, but the women regularly join the men in hunting,

which is their only pursuit. For the forests, which are exceedingly

large, produce for them a great abundance of wild beasts and other

animals, as do also the mountains which rise there. And they feed

exclusively upon the flesh of the wild beasts slain by them, and clothe

themselves in their skins, and since they have neither flax nor any

implement with which to sew, they fasten these skins together by the

sinews of the animals, and in this way manage to cover the whole body.

And indeed not even their infants are nursed in the same way as among

the rest of mankind. For the children of the Scrithiphini do not feed

upon the milk of women nor do they touch their mother's breast, but they

are nourished upon the marrow of the animals killed in the hunt, and

upon this alone. Now as soon as a woman gives birth to a child, she

throws it into a skin and straightway hangs it to a tree, and after

putting marrow into its mouth she immediately sets out with her husband

for the customary hunt. For they do everything in common and likewise

engage in this pursuit together. So much for the daily life of these

barbarians.

But all the other inhabitants of Thule, practically speaking, do not

differ very much from the rest of men, but they reverence in great

numbers gods and demons both of the heavens and of the air, of the earth

and of the sea, and sundry other demons which are said to be in the

waters of springs and rivers. And they incessantly offer up all kinds of

sacrifices, and make oblations to the dead, but the noblest of

sacrifices, in their eyes, is the first human being whom they have taken

captive in war; for they sacrifice him to Ares, whom they regard as the

greatest god. And the manner in which they offer up the captive is not

by sacrificing him on an altar only, but also by hanging him to a tree,

or throwing him among thorns, or killing him by some of the other most

cruel forms of death. Thus, then, do the inhabitants of Thule live. And

one of their most numerous nations is the Gauti, and it was next to them

that the incoming Eruli settled at the time in question.

On the present occasion,[196] therefore, the Eruli who dwelt among the

Romans, after the murder of their king had been perpetrated by them,

sent some of their notables to the island of Thule to search out and

bring back whomsoever they were able to find there of the royal blood.

And when these men reached the island, they found many there of the

royal blood, but they selected the one man who pleased them most and set

out with him on the return journey. But this man fell sick and died when

he had come to the country of the Dani. These men therefore went a

second time to the island and secured another man, Datius by name. And

he was followed by his brother Aordus and two hundred youths of the

Eruli in Thule. But since much time passed while they were absent on

this journey, it occurred to the Eruli in the neighbourhood of

Singidunum that they were not consulting their own interests in

importing a leader from Thule against the wishes of the Emperor

Justinian. They therefore sent envoys to Byzantium, begging the emperor

to send them a ruler of his own choice. And he straightway sent them one

of the Eruli who had long been sojourning in Byzantium, Suartuas by

name. At first the Eruli welcomed him and did obeisance to him and

rendered the customary obedience to his commands; but not many days

later a messenger arrived with the tidings that the men from the island

of Thule were near at hand. And Suartuas commanded them to go out to

meet those men, his intention being to destroy them, and the Eruli,

approving his purpose, immediately went with him. But when the two

forces were one day's journey distant from each other, the king's men

all abandoned him at night and went over of their own accord to the

newcomers, while he himself took to flight and set out unattended for

Byzantium. Thereupon the emperor earnestly undertook with all his power

to restore him to his office, and the Eruli, fearing the power of the

Romans, decided to submit themselves to the Gepaedes. This, then, was

the cause of the revolt of the Eruli.[197]

FOOTNOTES:

[192] This has not been stated before by Procopius.

[193] Or Varini, a tribe living on the coast near the mouth of the

Rhine.

[194] A group of tribes inhabiting the Danish Peninsula.

[195] Probably Iceland or the northern portion of the Scandinavian

peninsula, which was then regarded as an island and called "Scanza." The

name of Thule was familiar from earlier times. It was described by the

navigator Pytheas in the age of Alexander the Great, and he claimed to

have visited the island. It was variously placed, but always considered

the northernmost land in the world--"ultima Thule."

[196] Cf. Chap. xiv. 42.

[197] Chap. xiv. 37 introduces this topic.

INDEX

Acarnania, a Roman fleet winters there, V. xxiv. 20

Adegis, bodyguard of Belisarius, VI. vii. 27

Adriatic Sea, of which the modern Adriatic was an inlet, V. xv. 16

Aemilia, district in northern Italy, on the right of the Po, V. xv. 30

Aeneas, son of Anchises, meets Diomedes at Beneventus and receives

from him the Palladium, V. xv. 9

Aeschmanus, a Massagete, bodyguard of Belisarius, V. xvi. 1

Aetolia, a Roman fleet winters there, V. xxiv. 20

Africa, mentioned in the oracle regarding Mundus, V. vii. 6, 7

Alamani, barbarian people of Gaul, V. xii. 11

Alani, a Gothic nation, V. i. 3

Alaric,

leader of the Visigoths, V. i. 3;

deposited plunder of Rome in Carcasiana, V. xii. 41

Alaric the Younger, ruler of the Visigoths;

betrothed to Theodichusa, daughter of Theoderic, V. xii. 22;

attacked by the Franks, V. xii. 33;

appeals to Theoderic, V. xii. 34;

meets the Franks in battle and is slain, V. xii. 35-40;

father of Giselic, V. xii. 43

Alba, town in Picenum, VI. vii. 25

Albani, a people north of Liguria, V. xv. 29

Albani,

town near Rome, V. vi. 7;

occupied by Gontharis, VI. iv. 8, vii. 20, 23

Albanum, VI. vii. 23, see Albani

Albilas, Gothic commander of Urviventus, VI. xi. 1

Albis, a Goth sent as envoy to Belisarius, V. xx. 7

Alexander, Roman senator,

envoy of Justinian, V. iii. 13, vi. 26;

meets Amalasuntha in Ravenna, V. iii. 16;

his report, V. iii. 29;

brother of Athanasius, V. vi. 26

Alexander, commander of cavalry, VI. v. 1

Aluith, Erulian commander, VI. xiii. 18

Alps,

form boundary between Gaul and Liguria, V. xii. 4, 20;

distance from Milan, VI. vii. 37, 38;

definition of the word "alps," V. xii. 3, 4.

Amalaberga, daughter of Amalafrida,

betrothed to Hermenefridus, V. xii. 22;

sister of Theodatus, V. xiii. 2

Amalafrida, sister of Theoderic and

mother of Theodatus, V. iii. 1;

mother of Amalaberga, V. xii. 22

Amalaric,

grandson of Theoderic and son of Theodichusa, V. xii. 43, 46;

becomes king of the Visigoths, with Theoderic as regent, V. xii. 46;

marries the daughter of the Frankish king, and divides Gaul with the

Goths and his cousin Atalaric, V. xiii. 4;

receives back the treasures of Carcasiana, V. xiii. 6;

gives offence to Theudibert by his treatment of his wife, V. xiii. 9, 10;

defeated by him in battle and slain, V. xiii. 11

Amalasuntha,

daughter of Theoderic, V. ii. 23, xxiv. 25;

mother of Atalaric, V. ii. 1;

acts as regent for him, V. ii. 3;

her plan for his education frustrated by the Goths, V. ii. 6 ff.;

allows him to be trained according to the ideas of the Goths,

V. ii. 18 ff.;

her conflict with the Gothic nobles, V. ii. 20-22;

sends a ship to Epidamnus, V. ii. 26 ff., iii. 14;

later recalls it, V. ii. 29;

her concern at the failing health of Atalaric, V. iii. 10, 11;

plans to hand over Italy to Justinian, V. iii. 12;

accused by Justinian, V. iii. 15-18;

meets Alexander in Ravenna, V. iii. 16;

receives Justinian's letter, V. iii. 16-18;

her reply, V. iii. 19-27;

sends envoys agreeing to hand over all Italy to Justinian,

V. iii. 28, 29;

hears accusations against Theodatus, V. iv. 1;

compels him to make restitution, V. iv. 2;

attempts to gain his support, V. iv. 4 ff.;

deceived by him, V. iv. 10;

imprisoned, V. iv. 13-15;

compelled by him to write Justinian, V. iv. 16;

the envoy Peter sent to treat with her, V. iv. 18;

championed by Justinian, V. iv. 22;

her death, V. iv. 25-27, 31;

her death foreshadowed by the crumbling of a mosaic in Naples,

V. xxiv. 25;

her noble qualities, V. iv. 29;

her ability and justice as a ruler, V. ii. 3-5;

mother of Matasuntha, V. xi. 27

Anastasius,

Roman Emperor, VI. xiv. 10;

makes alliance with the Eruli, VI. xiv. 28, 32

Anchises, father of Aeneas, V. xv. 9

Ancon,

fortress on the Ionian Gulf, VI. xi. 4, 21;

its strong position, VI. xiii. 6;

taken by Belisarius, VI. xi. 5;

attacked by the Goths, VI. xiii. 5 ff.;

port of Auximus, VI. xiii. 7;

distance from Ariminum, VI. xi. 4;

and from Auximus, VI. xiii. 7

Antae, a people settled near the Ister River;

serve in the Roman army, V. xxvii. 2

Anthium,

used as a harbour by the Romans, V. xxvi. 17;

distance from Ostia, _ibid._

Antiochus, a Syrian, resident in Naples, favours the Roman party,

V. viii. 21

Antonina,

wife of Belisarius, V. xviii. 43;

departs for Naples, VI. iv. 6;

arriving in Taracina, proceeds to Campania, VI. iv. 14,

where she assists Procopius, VI. iv. 20;

assists in shipping provisions from Ostia to Rome, VI. vii. 4 ff.;

mother of Photius, V. v. 5, xviii. 18;

mother-in-law of Ildiger, VI. vii. 15

Aordus, an Erulian, brother of Datius, VI. xv. 29

Appian Way,

built by Appius, V. xiv. 6;

description of the road, V. xiv. 6-11;

travelled by refugees from Rome, V. xxv. 4;

Gothic camp near it, VI. iii. 3, iv. 3, 17

Appius, Roman consul, builder of the Appian Way, V. xiv. 6-9

Apulians,

a people of Southern Italy, V. xv. 21;

voluntarily submit to Belisarius, V. xv. 3

Aquileia, city in northern Italy, V. i. 22

Aquilinus, bodyguard of Belisarius;

performs a remarkable feat, VI. v. 18, 19

Aratius, commander of Armenians,

who had deserted from the Persians, VI. xiii. 17;

joins Belisarius in Italy with an army, _ibid._

Arborychi, barbarians in Gaul,

formerly subject to the Romans, V. xii. 9;

become Roman soldiers, V. xii. 13;

absorbed by the Germans, V. xii. 13-15;

receive land from Roman soldiers, V. xii. 17

Ares, worshipped by the inhabitants of Thule, VI. xv. 25

Argos, Diomedes repulsed thence, V. xv. 8

Arians,

their views not held by the Franks, V. v. 9;

not trusted by Roman soldiers in Gaul, V. xii. 17;

Arian heresy espoused by Amalaric, V. xiii. 10

Ariminum, city of northern Italy,

occupied by John, VI. x. 5 ff.;

abandoned by the Goths, VI. x. 6;

besieged by Vittigis, VI. xi. 3, xii. 1 ff.;

Ildiger and Martinus sent thither, VI. xi. 4, 21;

distance from Ravenna, VI. x. 5;

from Ancon, VI. xi. 4

Armenians, Narses an Armenian, VI. xiii. 17

Artasires, a Persian, bodyguard of Belisarius, VI. ii. 10

Arzes, bodyguard of Belisarius;

his remarkable wound, VI. ii. 16-18;

treatment of his wound, VI. ii. 25-29;

of the household of Belisarius, VI. ii. 25

Asclepiodotus, of Naples, a trained speaker;

with Pastor opposes the plan to surrender the city, V. viii. 22 ff.;

they address the Neapolitans, V. viii. 29-40;

bring forward the Jews, V. viii. 41;

his effrontery after the capture of the city, V. x. 39, 43-45;

bitterly accused by Stephanus, V. x. 40-42;

killed by a mob, V. x. 46

Asia, the continent adjoining Libya, V. xii. 1

Asinarian Gate, in Rome, V. xiv. 14

Asinarius,

Gothic commander in Dalmatia, V. vii. 1, xvi. 8;

gathers an army among the Suevi, V. xvi. 12, 14;

joins Uligisalus and proceeds to Salones, V. xvi. 15, 16

Assyrians, V. xxiv. 36

Atalaric, grandson of Theoderic;

succeeds him as king of the Goths, V. ii. 1;

reared by his mother Amalasuntha, _ibid._;

who attempts to educate him, V. ii. 6 ff.;

corrupted by the Goths, V. ii. 19 ff.;

receives the envoy Alexander, V. vi. 26;

divides Gaul with his cousin Amalaric, V. xiii. 4, 5;

returns the treasures of Carcasiana to him, V. xiii. 6;

attacked by a wasting disease, V. iii. 10, iv. 5;

his death, V. iv. 4, 19;

his quaestor Fidelius, V. xiv. 5;

his death foreshadowed by the crumbling of a mosaic in Naples,

V. xxiv. 24

Athanasius,

brother of Alexander, V. vi. 26;

envoy of Justinian, V. vi. 25, vii. 24

Athena,

her statue stolen from Troy, V. xv. 9;

given to Aeneas, V. xv. 10;

different views as to the existence of the statue in the time of

Procopius, V. xv. 11-14;

a copy of it in the temple of Fortune in Rome, V. xv. 11;

Greek statues of, V. xv. 13

Athenodorus, an Isaurian, bodyguard of Belisarius, V. xxix. 20, 21

Attila, leader of the Huns, V. i. 3