History of Italy: A Captivating Guide to Italian History, Starting from the First Settlements through the Middle Ages to the Modern Period by Captivating History

Author:Captivating History [History, Captivating]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, pdf
Published: 2020-11-19T16:00:00+00:00

Territories controlled by Emperor Justinian

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire#/media/File:Justinian555AD.png

When Justinian became the emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, he greatly desired to retrieve the former western possessions and place them under his control. He was ambitious and wanted Hispania and Britannia back under Roman influence, but his first priorities had to be Africa, which was the main grain supplier, and Italy, which was the cradle of the Roman civilization. Justinian wasn’t a warrior himself, but he knew he could rely on the military genius of his commander, Belisarius. His first task was to wrestle northern Africa from the Vandals, who had occupied it for almost a whole century. Although Justinian dreamed about reuniting the empire, he wasn’t willing to invest funds in military expeditions that would bring him closer to his dream. Instead, he equipped Belisarius with only a small fleet and a few legions. But Belisarius’s commitment to his task was tremendous, and he managed to fulfill it against all odds. Underequipped and with a small army, Belisarius managed to bring North Africa back to what was left of the Roman Empire.

Belisarius’s success was celebrated in Constantinople, and Justinian even organized a triumph for his military general, the first one for a non-emperor since the days of Tiberius’s rule. The next step was to return Italy and Dalmatia to its rightful owner. For decades, they had been ruled by the Ostrogoths. Justinian not only wanted to return Italy back into the empire’s fold, but he also wanted to deal with the heretics, as the Ostrogoths believed in Arianism. This time, he granted Belisarius a larger army and sent him on a mission to not only conquer the territories but also liberate the souls who suffered religious oppression under the Arian rulers.

The dynastic troubles among the Ostrogothic rulers of Italy made Belisarius’s task even easier. The whole country was in dismay, and they were not certain to whom they owed their allegiance. The Ostrogothic army was divided, and during the early years of the campaign, which began in 535, Belisarius took Dalmatia and Sicily. In 536, Belisarius crossed the Adriatic Sea and entered the territory of Italy. After this initial victory, he decided to march directly to Rome. But there was no serious opposition or defense of the Eternal City, and the Eastern Roman army entered it in December that same year.

Justinian sent reinforcements from Constantinople, which ravaged the Italian shores while Belisarius continued the siege of Rome. The new king of the Ostrogoths, Vitiges, had to abandon Rome once the army of Huns, which was sent by Justinian, cut off their access to supplies. Over the next few years, the cities of Italy fell to the Eastern Roman army. But Ravenna, the capital, proved to be a challenge for Belisarius. To conquer it, Belisarius had to move the troops from Dalmatia and cut off the sea supply of the city, but even then, he was unable to take it.

Justinian sent a proposal to Vitiges to split the rule over Italy. The Goths would

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