The Failure at Milan

The insubordination of John the Sanguinary that led to the division in the Byzantine army between the forces commanded by Belisarius and those commanded by Narses created further problems. The Siege of Milan was one example.

Then called Mediolanum, it was the second wealthiest city in Italy after Rome. Archbishop Dantius of Milan sent messages to Belisarius, asking him to come and free them from Ostrogothic rule. Belisarius sent a force of 1000 men to secure it under a man named Mundilas. After occupying Milan, the soldiers spread out to secure the smaller towns and forts.

King Vitiges of the Ostrogoths then sent for help from the Franks (although Byzantine Emperor Justinian had sent gifts to the Franks to get them to stay out of the conflict). A force of 10,000 Burgundians responded, surrounding Milan. (They were sent by Theudebert I, son of Theuderic I, who later explained to the emperor that, since they were Burgundians and not Franks, he had no control over them.) Since the Byzantine force had been dispersed to other towns, Mundilas could not attempt attacking the siege.

Belisarius ordered other divisions to go to Milan, but those divisions would not do so right away. They asked other nearby divisions for support. Those divisions, led by John the Sanguinary and General Justin, would not agree to help until they got advice from Narses.

The delays were making life in Milan difficult. They were not well provisioned, and starvation was becoming a real threat. Belisarius pleaded with Narses to tell the others to help Milan. Narses relented, but the delays in communication and disagreement proved fatal for Milan. Mundilas had taken the city in April 538. It was now March 539, and starvation forced him to accept the terms presented by the enemy: give over the city and your men's lives will be spared.

The soldiers were allowed to leave with their lives, but for the rebellion of the Milan townspeople, punishment was severe. Procopius reports that 300,000 men were slain, the women given to the Burgundians as payment for their service, and the city destroyed. (The illustration is of some of the remaining Roman walls.) One of the victims was Reparatus, brother of Pope Vigilius.

Narses received some blame for this disaster; it led to his recall (mentioned yesterday). Belisarius, now reconfirmed as supreme commander, prepared to go after the capital city of the Ostrogoths, Ravenna.

See you tomorrow.

Belisarius and Narses

The outcome of the insubordination of John the Sanguinary created a dangerous precedent. General Narses disagreed with General Belisarius' approach to the conquest of Italy from the Ostrogoths, and was motivated to disobey the orders from the man who was supposed to be sole commander of the Byzantine forces. Procopius wrote "And from that time both these men began to regard each other with great suspicion." (The illustration shows mosaics of the two generals; Belisarius is on the left.)

One example of the army splitting was at a siege of Urbino. Originally a united army, at one point John's opinion was that the siege would not work. Narses agreed, and John and Narses withdrew their divisions despite Belisarius pleading for them to stay. Belisarius stayed, and Urbino did succumb (after the failure of their water reserves).

John's impatience with sieges worked against him when he tried and failed to besiege Caesena. Abandoning that goal, he got lucky by taking another town by surprise.

The fall and winter of 538 saw the Byzantine army working under two different commanders. Narses even ignored the letter from Emperor Justinian stating that Belisarius was in charge. Narses was recalled to Constantinople, where he remained secure in the emperor's good graces. (Years later he would help the Empress Theodora and Belisarius' wife, Antonina, in a major coup.)

Jumping ahead a little: Narses returned to Italy and the ongoing Gothic Wars in 551 with Justinian's cousin Germanus. Germanus, however, died on the way, and Narses was given supreme command of the army. Belisarius had at this time occupied Rome (after another siege), but was ready to retire from many years of war. (The retirement was temporary.)

Narses later fought a battle against the Goths that made him regarded as Belisarius' equal as a general and strategist. But let's return to the earlier part of the wars and see what Belisarius was doing when some of his commanders would not follow orders.

John and Narses

I thought we'd elaborate a little on the conflict mentioned yesterday about the taking of Ariminum (modern Rimini) by a Byzantine force under a general called John the Sanguinary. Emperor Justinian I was invading Italy to take control of the Western Roman Empire from the Ostrogoths, and John was part of that plan.

Originally tasked by Justinian to bring supplies to Rome, where General Belisarius was surrounded by the forces of King Vitiges, John decided to raid other Ostrogothic territory and capture Ariminum, close to the Gothic capital of Ravenna. That action caused Vitiges to pull his army away from Rome and move back north to protect Ravenna and re-capture Ariminum. Belisarius sent a message to John to pull the army away from Ariminum, but John decided to stay and hold the town.

This meant John and his army were now under siege. A gathering of Byzantine commanders discussed the situation. There was some discussion that John should be taught a lesson for insubordination. Into this discussion came General Narses, who arrived with Byzantine reinforcements.

Narses, at one time Justinian's chamberlain, was considered just as good a general as Belisarius. He argued that a defeat of John by the Goths would embolden them and demoralize the Byzantines. Belisarius created a plan (see illustration) that would give Vitiges an escape route rather than trying to defeat him in battle. As Belisarius' forces approached and camped, they would light far more campfires than needed to give the impression of superior numbers.

The plan worked, Vitiges withdrew the Goth army to Ravenna, and John and Ariminum were saved. John refused to show gratitude to Belisarius, however, and gave credit for the victory to Narses. Belisarius called a meeting of officers to caution that the Goths still were in command of a larger army than the Byzantines. Belisarius wanted a slower approach, securing towns that were favorable to Byzantium.

Narses argued for an attack on Ravenna itself. Opinions and sentiment about leadership were becoming divided, but Belisarius held a trump card. He had a document from Justinian, which he revealed, that stated:

We have not sent our steward Narses to Italy in order to command the army; for we wish Belisarius alone to command the whole army in whatever manner seems to him to be best, and it is the duty of all of you to follow him in the interest of our state.

Narses replied that Belisarius' plan was not, in fact, "in the interests of the state" and Narses would not accept that plan.

The plan to re-assert imperial control over Italy and reunite the Roman Empire could start falling apart. Let's see how these conflicts played out, starting tomorrow.