Belisarius: The Emperor's Sword (1/6)

532 a.d constantinople the greatest city in the world is in flames but this is no barbarian attack citizens of the eastern roman empire are rioting murdering state officials and setting buildings on fire trapped inside his own palace emperor justinian fears his reign is over he's already given in to the mob's demands and sacked his most hated officials but now the crowds acclaim a new emperor hypatius it's his wife empress theodora who'll give him the courage to act and his most trusted general belisarius to whom he'll turn to crush his enemies and save the regime after centuries of imperial crisis justinian's reign will witness a roman fight back that few had dreamed possible great victories over the barbarians the re-conquest of rome itself the reunification of the empire belisarius is the commander who will lead this onslaught he will be remembered as rome's last great general math and science are not subjects we talk about enough on epic history tv unless we're calculating 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brilliant for sponsoring this video 527 a.d it's more than 50 years since the fall of the western roman empire rome itself the eternal city is now part of an austrogothic kingdom of italy but though rome may have fallen the empire endures the eastern roman empire remains a force to be reckoned with an estimated 30 million people live under the rule of the emperor in constantinople his authority stretches from the ravaged balkans to the imperial bread basket egypt the arabian desert to the mountains of armenia this christian empire remains unrivalled in administrative sophistication economic power and military might but the new emperor justinian faces formidable challenges in 527 he succeeds justin his uncle and adopted father becoming the first son to succeed his father as emperor in more than a century justinian is from a tough peasant background in thrace what's now serbia he's highly educated restless and driven and sets himself two ambitious goals first to restore harmony in the christian church by ending the schism between calcidonian or orthodox christians and miaphysites who argue over christ's human and divine nature second to reform and rationalize roman law the divinely sanctioned institution that distinguishes the roman world from the barbarian the imperial majesty should not only be adorned with arms but also be armed with laws so that there may be good government in times both of war and peace he later declares [Music] but as for any roman emperor the ultimate test of his legitimacy will come in war for now justinian has good relations with the vandals in north africa and the ostrogoths in italy the balkan frontier requires constant vigilance the successors to attila's hun empire are never quiet for long but it's in the east that justinian faces his most immediate challenge the persian sassanid empire a rival superpower of the middle east this frontier has been a battleground for centuries and witnessed its share of roman defeats including one emperor captured another killed for most of the last century the shared menace of the huns led to a wary coexistence but it could not last in 525 the christian king of iberia in the caucasus appealed to the romans for aid when the persian king kavadh tried to impose zoroastrian rituals on his country the romans send military aid and the conflict escalates with both sides launching cross-border raids when the romans begin building a new fort at minduos the persians attack route the roman troops and destroy the building works one of the roman generals to escape this debacle is flavius belisarius clearly he is not blamed because the next year justinian makes him commander of all roman troops in the east though he's barely 30 years old belisarius and the emperor are old comrades and come from the same humble background in thrace he had served in justinian's own regiment when he was still heir to the throne his wife antonina is the best friend of emperor's theodora and like her from a dubious background in the acting profession with both roman and persian empires mobilizing for war the next year 530 will see belisarius's first major test as a commander [Music] the troops that belisarius commands are far removed from the famous legions with which rome conquered its empire centuries ago hard lessons learned from fighting huns and persians have helped to forge a new roman army for centuries cavalry was the neglected arm of the roman military a role usually outsourced to foreign auxiliaries now heavy armored cavalry known as klipanari and cataphracti armed with lance and sword form the army's elite shock units some armored cavalry as well as kosoris light cavalry also carry bows the romans in imitation of the huns and persians are now horse archers themselves the best units are the buchelari the biscuit eaters named after the army ration these hand-picked soldiers form a general's personal regiment long service good pay and equipment plus a personal oath of loyalty make them his most reliable troops roman archers are now armed with the more powerful composite reflex bows of the huns and while infantry is still made up around two-thirds of a roman army its role is more defensive forming a secure base from which the cavalry could launch its attacks the standard infantry unit is also smaller called a numerous in latin arithmos in greek about regimental size from 1 000 to 1500 men they're more mixed with armored veterans to form a fulcrum or shield wall and more missile troops behind them to unleash a barrage of arrows javelins and darts finally rome boosts its military strength by recruiting the very barbarians it had once despised including huns goths and heruli those outside the empire are recruited as mercenaries those within serve as feyderati federates and are usually commanded by their own officers the military organization of the empire has also been overhauled two central field armies stationed on either side of the bosphorus are commanded by a magister militant presentalis and former strategic reserve field armies based in thrace illyria armenia and the east are each commanded by a magister militant and form regional rapid reaction forces the frontiers are held by the limitani these are the lowest paid and least well-equipped troops only expected to hold their fortified outposts until reinforcements arrive limitani are organized into local groups each commanded by a dukes origin of our word duke yet the thought has many times occurred to me how many and how great are the benefits which accrue to states through history which transmits to future generations the memory of those who have gone before and resists the steady effort of time to bury events in oblivion [Music] the historian procopius is our key witness for the events of this period he was born around 500 in the city of caesarea in palestine and received a first class education in 527 he was appointed assessor or legal adviser to belisarius he effectively became the general's secretary and on occasion ed de kong working from notes and writing in greek he would publish his great work history of the wars in 551 procopius's account is highly favorable to belisarius but there will be a sting in the tale a scandalous secret history which will emerge later in the tale [Music] 5 30 a.d king kavadh sends an army to capture the roman frontier fortress at dara today the ruins of dara lie on the turkish syrian border their scale hinting at the size of the roman fortress that once stood here belisarius is warned that 40 000 persian troops are advancing on dara he can only assemble 25 000 troops to meet them for reasons that are unclear belisarius decides to make his stand outside the city walls to the south his men dig ditches to strengthen their position with both flanks thrown forward the infantry is placed in the center with cavalry on both flanks two groups of 600 hun mercenaries are positioned between them in support at the rear he places his reserve his own bukolari when the huge persian army arrives before dara belisarius is ready and waiting the first day begins with a standoff the two generals exchange letters belisarius urges farooz to withdraw to allow time for further negotiations feroz tells the roman to prepare his bath he intends to be in dara by nightfall the persians launch one probing attack against the roman left wing perhaps testing their defenses the persians are driven off with seven killed when a young persian warrior rides between the lines and challenges any roman to face him in single combat his offer is accepted by andreas andreas has no military training but he's a wrestling instructor of huge strength before the persian knows what's happening andreas has knocked him off his horse with his lance then dismounts to finish him off like a sacrificial animal in the words of progress andreas later kills a second persian challenger to roman cheers and the dismay of the persians the next morning feruz receives 10 000 reinforcements bringing his total strength to 50 000 with odds of two to one in his favor he decides to attack firouze forms up his army with infantry and foot archers in the center and his persian heavy cavalry the feared savaran on both wings he also divides his army into two parts a front line and a reserve line so that fresh troops can be rotated into the fighting he keeps a unit of immortals the elite persian heavy cavalry as his personal reserve but first he waits he knows the romans usually eat in the morning and are growing hungry while his own troops are accustomed to eating later in the day finally at noon he gives the order the persian army advances to within bow shot and both armies unleash a storm of arrows persia is famed for the skill of its archers but today the wind favors the romans when the archers run out of arrows the persian cavalry begins its advance this is the moment belisarius has prepared for the savaran crash into his left wing driving the roman horsemen back but the persians haven't spotted 300 heruli horsemen hidden behind a slope on the roman left waiting for this moment they rush out from cover and attack the persian cavalry from behind then 600 huns fall on their flank under this onslaught the persian cavalry turns and flees with heavy losses firoz switches to the other flank attacking with his heavy cavalry supported by the elite immortals the roman cavalry breaks under the pressure streaming back to the walls of dara but belisarius has seen the threat he recalls the huns that are pursuing the persian right-wing and launches both hun groups as well as his own bukolari against the flank and rear of the persian attack it's the decisive moment of the battle the persian left wing suddenly finds itself under attack from three sides those that can't escape are cut down sunikas one of the hun captains kills a persian standard bearer then general basham himself who commands the persian left wing with the elite units of the persian army in flight the infantry offers little resistance most are peasant conscripts no match for roman cavalry soon the entire persian army is in route belisarius content with his victory and unwilling to risk any last minute reverse halts the pursuit procopius tells us 8 000 persians lay dead on the battlefield a number that could be accurate for on that day the persians had been defeated in battle by the romans the thing which had not happened for a long time belisarius has won a brilliant victory for the empire later that year sitas magister militam of armenia wins another victory over the persians at satala the war is swinging in rome's favor but the following year encouraged by a samaritan revolt in palestine king kavadh orders a large-scale raid along the euphrates river belisarius assembles an army to meet them but having ravaged roman territory the persians are content to withdraw with their loot belisarius shadows them his subordinates urge him to destroy the enemy before they escape so against his better judgment he attacks the persians on easter sunday at kalinikum the battle is a disaster rome's arab allies the hassanids hold the right flank but procopius accuses them of fleeing at the first sign of danger persian cavalry rolls up the entire roman line in desperation the roman infantry form a shield wall with their backs to the river they hold off the enemy cavalry buying time for the remains of the army to escape across the river kalinicum is a humiliation for rome and for belisarius his own role in the battle is unclear according to procopius he remained with the infantry organizing the retreat another source claims he was among the first to flee it had clearly been a serious blunder to give in to pressure from his subordinates to fight an unnecessary battle belisarius is removed from command and recalled to constantinople justinian is forced to pay a subsidy and make a compromise peace with persia not with king kavadh who dies that year but with his 20 year old son khosrow khasarah will prove to be the greatest of all sasanian kings hailed as anushirivan the immortal soul and will prove a dangerous rival to the romans when major rioting breaks out in constantinople the next year belisarius is in the capital eager to restore his tarnished reputation the riots have been instigated by the factions of the hippodrome the greens and blues these are more than chariot racing fans the factions run all areas of the city at first they seek only the release of jailed comrades but then there are calls for a new emperor hypatius nephew of emperor anastasius it's likely that justinian's rivals in the senate are now pulling the strings justinian hesitates he wonders if they should flee the capital then theodora speaks up life as a fugitive she declares would be unendurable better the old saying royal purple makes a noble shroud in other words better to go down fighting the emperor is emboldened by theodora's words and orders belisarius and another general mundus to crush the revolt belisarius's hardened troops launch a sudden attack on the rioters there is no mercy the streets run with blood the final death toll is estimated at 30 000 a staggering one in 20 of the city's population the next day justinian orders the execution of hypatius and his brother probably innocent pawns in somebody else's plot their bodies are tossed into the sea thanks to theodora and belisarius justinian's throne is safe for now [Music] a roman emperor relied on one quality more than any other from his generals loyalty belisarius has proved his beyond doubt now justinian needs to shore up support for his regime assert his legitimacy and god's favor with a military victory he has his costly peace with the sassanid empire so he will turn west a war to reclaim rome's lost provinces from the barbarians will be a service to god and justinian such a mission can be entrusted to only one man belisarius massive thanks to legendarian for providing our total war gameplay footage we highly recommend his documentary youtube channel and in particular his video on the military reforms of king hasrow a character we'll meet again big thanks also to the 555 mod crew for their modding support check out their comprehensive age of justinian mod for total war attila in the usual places and thank you of course to all the epic history tv patreon supporters who make this channel possible you

Channel: Epic History

Views: 1,132,655

Keywords: epic history tv, history, epic history, rome, roman, belisarius, roman empire, byzantine empire, byzantine, byzantium, justinian, constantinople, barbarians, persia, sassanian

Id: QOBH7hMh2Xs

Length: 23min 45sec (1425 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 30 2021