BELISARIUS (
c. 505-565), one of the most famous generals of the
later Roman empire, was born about A.D. 505, in "Germania," a district
on the borders of Thrace and Macedonia. His name is supposed to be
Slavonic. As a youth he served in the bodyguard of Justinian, who
appointed him commander of the Eastern army. He won a signal victory
over the Persians in 530, and successfully conducted a campaign
against them, until forced, by the rashness of his soldiers, to join
battle and suffer defeat in the following year. Recalled to
Constantinople, he married Antonina, a clever, intriguing woman, and a
favourite of the empress Theodora. During the sedition of the "green"
and "blue" parties of the circus (known as the Nika sedition, 532) he
did Justinian good service, effectually crushing the rebels who had
proclaimed Hypatius emperor. In 533 the command of the expedition
against the Vandal kingdom in Africa, a perilous office, which the rest
of the imperial generals shunned, was conferred on Belisarius. With
15,000 mercenaries, whom he had to train into Roman discipline, he took
Carthage, defeated Gelimer the Vandal king, and carried him captive, in
534, to grace the first triumph witnessed in Constantinople. In reward
for these services Belisarius was invested with the consular dignity,
and medals were struck in his honour. At this time the Ostrogothic
kingdom, founded in Italy by Theodoric the Great, was shaken by internal
dissensions, of which Justinian resolved to avail himself. Accordingly,
Belisarius invaded Sicily; and, after storming Naples and defending Rome
for a year against almost the entire strength of the Goths in Italy, he
concluded the war by the capture of Ravenna, and with it of the Gothic
king Vitiges. So conspicuous were Belisarius's heroism and military
skill that the Ostrogoths offered to acknowledge him emperor of the
West. But his loyalty did not waver; he rejected the proposal and
returned to Constantinople in 540. Next year he was sent to check the
Persian king Chosroes (Anushirvan); but, thwarted by the turbulence
of his troops, he achieved no decisive result. On his return to
Constantinople he lived under a cloud for some time, but was pardoned
through the influence of Antonina with the empress. The Goths having
meanwhile reconquered Italy, Belisarius was despatched with utterly
inadequate forces to oppose them. Nevertheless, during five campaigns he
held his enemies at bay, until he was removed from the command, and the
conclusion of the war was entrusted to the eunuch Narses. Belisarius
remained at Constantinople in tranquil retirement until 559, when an
incursion of Bulgarian savages spread a panic through the metropolis,
and men's eyes were once more turned towards the neglected veteran, who
placed himself at the head of a mixed multitude of peasants and
soldiers, and repelled the barbarians with his wonted courage and
adroitness. But this, like his former victories, stimulated Justinian's
envy. The saviour of his country was coldly received and left unrewarded
by his suspicious sovereign. Shortly afterwards Belisarius was accused
of complicity in a conspiracy against the emperor (562); his fortune
was confiscated, and he was confined as a prisoner in his palace. He was
liberated and restored to favour in 563, and died in 565.
The fiction of Belisarius wandering as a blind beggar through the
streets of Constantinople, which has been adopted by Marmontel in his
Belisaire, and by various painters and poets, is first heard of
in the 10th century. Gibbon justly calls Belisarius the
Africanus of New Rome. He was merciful as a conqueror, stern as a
disciplinarian, enterprising and wary as a general; while his courage,
loyalty and forbearance seem to have been almost unsullied. He was the
idol of his soldiers, a good tactician, but not a great strategist.
This article is from the 1911 edition of an
encyclopedia, which is out of copyright here in the U.S. It is in the
public domain and you may copy, download, print and distribute this work
as you see fit.
Every effort has been made to present this text accurately and
cleanly, but no guarantees are made against errors. Neither Melissa
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