Siege of Naples (536)
| date | October 536 to November 536 |
|---|---|
| place | Naples |
| output | Byzantine victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 8,000 | 800, citizen militia |
| losses | |
|
unknown |
unknown |
Iberian War
Dara - Satala - Callinicum
Vandal
War Ad Decimum - Tricamarum
Gothic War
1. Naples - 1. Rome - Verona - Faventia - Mucellium - 2. Naples - 2. Rome - 3. Rome - Sena Gallica - Busta Gallorum - Mons Lactarius - Casilinus
Moors wars
Mammes and Bourgaon - Babosis and Zerboule - Cillium - Marta - Fields of Cato
The siege of Naples in AD 536 ended after twenty days with the conquest and sacking of the city by the troops of the Eastern Roman general Belisarius .
course
After the landing in 535 and the rapid conquest of Sicily , the 8,000-strong army of the Eastern Roman general Belisarius marched along the Italian coast towards Naples after crossing the Strait of Messina in late spring 536 . When the inhabitants of the city heard of the approach of the Eastern Roman army, they began to offer violent resistance , also through the dramatic rhetoric of two Gothic leaders.
Belisarius prepared for a long siege in the face of heavy fortifications and the resistance of the city's residents. So he cut them off from the sea by his fleet, from the land by setting up a field camp and from the water supply by disrupting the aqueducts . After all, the initial bombardment of the city by siege engines had little effect. Only after twenty days of siege did an Isaurian traitor succeed in taking the city in a coup. This showed the Byzantines a narrow entrance near the aqueduct that led into the city. The access has now been widened to such an extent that around 400 fully equipped bucellarii could sneak through the water supply system into the city during the night. The guards on the walls were overwhelmed and by trumpet signals the troops who were already waiting were given the signal to storm the walls using ladders.
After the conquest, the 800-man garrison of the Goths was captured. Parts of the population were enslaved and sold to North Africa. There was also looting, torture and murder , in particular by the Hunnic auxiliary forces of Belisarius, the massagers , so that the capture of Naples by the East Romans was considered particularly cruel. In the face of these atrocities, Rome finally surrendered after a relatively short siege by Belisarius in December of the same year.
literature
- Prokopios von Caesarea: Works - 2: Gotenkriege (Greek-German), translated and edited by Otto Veh, Bücherei Tusculum, 2nd volume, Heimeran, Munich 1966, ISBN 9783776520668 , pp. 57-85.