Odoacer
claims to govern Italy despite of the eastern Roman emperor Zeno, after
removing the last emperor Romulus Augustus. The Emperor encouraged the
Ostrogoths led by Theodoric to invade Italy to restore his power in Italy,
freeing it of the presence of Odoacer.
In 489 Theodoric marched towards the Italian lands at the head of his people.
It was a horde of over 100,000 Goths of which about 25,000 were in arms. After
a military campaign that lasted five years, he defeated Odoacer definitively,
taking possession of the whole territory to the south of the Alps. Nominated by
the Roman senate “Patrician” (king) of Italy, governed wisely and moderately,
protecting the pope’s religious authority despite the fact that the Goths were
of Aryan faith. At his death he was succeeded by the very young Athalaric. The
kingdom was ruled by the mother Amalasuntha. She had to share power with
Theodatus, nephew of Theodoric, because of the early death of his son.
In 535 Theodatus, with a coup, expropriated his cousin Amalasuntha, who held
prisoner on the Martana island of Lake Bolsena. Amalasuntha was later strangled
by emissaries of Theodatus, who became the only sovereign of Italy. Justinian,
emperor in Byzantium, took the opportunity of the murder of Amalasuntha to wage
war on the Ostrogoths who, having become too powerful, represented a danger to
his empire.
The emperor entrusted the command of the army to the “magister
militium” Flavius Belisarius. Belisarius, who was born in Germany in the
year 500, had already commanded the Byzantine troops in 533 leading them
victoriously into the “vandal war”, with which he conquered northern
Africa that was under the rule of the vandals.
In 535 General Belisarius moved against the Ostrogoths in the so-called
“Gothic war”. He landed in Sicily and in a short time subdued it.
Palermo was conquered by the Byzantine fleet with an original found. Groups of
archers were placed on the fleet’s lifeboats to overcome the obstacle represented
by the defensive walls in front of the port. The boats were hoisted upwards
with winches attached to the ships’ masts. From that position the archers were
able to target the defenders of Palermo beyond the walls. The soldiers, from
the ground, climbed the ramparts finding little resistance. The Byzantines
could thus penetrate into the city where the defenders, renouncing the battle,
surrendered.
The Sicilians, tired of the abuses of the Goths, had
finally well received the Byzantines led by the wise Belisarius who, to obtain
the favor of the islanders, distributed gold coins to the people.
Belisarius was not resting on one’s laurels. Immediately after the conquest of
Sicily he sent an expeditionary force in Dalmatia under command of General
Mundus, to take away that land from the power of the Goths. The Byzantine
General Mundus, having lost his son in a battle in Dalmatia, pounced on the
Goths to take revenge. The Goths were overwhelmed. In the pursuit that followed
the defeat one of the soldiers of Goth rearguard struck to death the General
Mundus who died on the battlefield.
At first the king of the Goths Theodatus seemed determined to agree with the
Byzantines for the cession of Italy to the emperor Justinian in exchange for
money. The news of the killing of Mundus gave courage to Theodatus who
renounced surrendering. Belisarius embarked his troops and from Sicily reached
Reggio Calabria. In defense of Calabria there were troops led by Ebermorus, the
son-in-law of Theodatus, who however fleeing to renounce fighting. Belisarius
and his troops began the march towards Rome.
The general, with his strong army of 7200 horsemen and 3000 infantrymen,
reinforced by troops hired in Sicily, conquered all the strongholds and towns
he encountered on his way, since he did not want to run the risk of being
attacked from behind by Gothic outposts in the southern cities. In 536,
peacefully conquered Salerno, which had willingly surrendered to General
Belisarius, preferring the Byzantine domination to the Ostrogothic one,
besieged the city of Naples.
Belisarius tried in every way to avoid clashes and loss of time typical of a
siege. He invited the Neapolitans to a negotiation. The Neapolitans
commissioned Stephen, one of the most prominent people in the city, to go to the
Byzantine camp to talk to Belisarius. The general invited the Neapolitans to
surrender, presenting to them all the advantages that Sicily and the other
cities that they had submitted were able to enjoy. Stephen represented the
Byzantine requests to the people of Naples who was inclined to accept, in order
to avoid grief and suffering. The part of the population linked to the Goths
for business and benefits opposed the surrender.
Two exponents of the Gothic partisans, Pastore and Asclepiodoto convinced, with
a fluent talk, the people to make further demands to Belisarius, in the secret
hope of a refusal. Stefano returned to the enemy camp and pointed to further
requests. Surprisingly Belisarius accepted them without any conditions. Stephen
returned to the city and he informed the population. The two representatives of
the conservatives questioned will of Belisarius to respect the agreed
conditions once he had entered the city. The population of Naples decided to
resist the siege faced with this perspective.
Months went by. The Byzantine troops were blocked in
futile attempts to overcome the defenses of the city, which was equipped with
high walls. The interruption of supplies and water, that the Byzantines had
caused by diverting the Serino aqueduct, did not submit the Neapolitan people
because the city had large silos full of grain and wells inside the walls that
allowed the inhabitants to survive without major problems.
While Belisarius was considering whether it was better to abandon the siege to
continue towards Rome, his main objective, an Isaur, belonging to the
auxiliaries of the army, made an important discovery. He was one of the many
Isaurs, a population of Asia Minor, who had been hired as mercenaries in the
Byzantine army. This soldier was taken by the curiosity to explore the ravines
of the aqueduct that, before the interruption of the water supplies wanted by
Belisarius, supplied Naples with water. At the height of the defensive walls he
encountered a tunnel that passed beneath the walls. It was the pipeline through
which water supply entered the city. This tunnel, which was on the north-west
side of the walls, at the height of today’s Via Carbonara, was too narrow for a
man to cross it.
“In this Isaur soldier was born the desire to know the structure of
the aqueduct, and how the citizens had the water. Entering therefore, far from
the city and because of the break made by Belisarius, he spent a lot of time
without reviving a trickle of water because of the interruption. Except that he
was arrested by a huge stone put there by non-human work but by nature near the
walls. The old builders of the aqueduct, urged to continue the work, had
drilled it so much that it was enough for the water course but it was not
enough for the crossing of a man. ” (Procopio, De Bello
Gothico)
The discovery of the soldier was referred to Belisarius who decided to expand
the breach to let his men enter the opposing defenses. Before he wanted to make
a last attempt to avoid the battle that would develop into a great bloodshed
and the subsequent sack to which the city won would be submitted. He sent his
ambassador to parliament with the city authorities urging surrender in exchange
for granting all the benefits requested by Stephen in the last meeting. Because
the umpteenth refusal, Belisarius gave orders to proceed.
Four sturdy soldiers, armed with picks, were led by the Isaur to the breach of
the aqueduct. At a short time they enlarged the conduit as long as it was
enough for armed men to crawl inside. In the night 400 soldiers were ready in
single file for the crossing. To divert the attention of the defenders The
Byzantine besiegers made a loud noise with songs, shouts, insults against the
Neapolitans, to divert the attention of the defenders The first soldier who crossed
the conduit emerged into the courtyard of a house, situated near of the current
church of Santa Sofia, inhabited by a widow. The woman was silenced under the
threat of death. Quickly and silently all the 400 soldiers, accompanied by some
trumpeters, passed through the tunnel.
Meanwhile the Byzantine troops, which were outside
the walls, prepared for battle. The auxiliaries had prepared a large number of
stairs to overcome the walls. The soldiers who penetrated the city killed the
guards and the defenders who were on the ramparts. The trumpeters gave the
signal agreed to the external troops. At the signal the soldiers rushed towards
the walls but they realized with great disappointment that the prepared stairs
were too short to overcome the obstacle. The stairs were tied two by two to
lengthen them in haste. A large number of soldiers finally managed to penetrate
the city. The battle was lit with the troops who were in defense. The Byzantine
soldiers managed to open some gates of the city, others were set on fire by the
besieging army. All the troops entered the city.
In the morning the Byzantine army defeating the Neapolitan defenders. The sack
began, what Belisarius wanted to avoid at all costs. There were slaughters of
innocents, women raped, children taken slaves. Valuables were removed from the
houses. Numerous houses were burnt, often together with the inhabitants of the
same.
Belisarius, worried by the sad consequences of the looting under way and
wanting to do an alliance with the Neapolitan people, spoke to his troops
ordering the end of the violence. He freed men, women and children who could
return to their homes, giving back most of the looted goods. Despite the
intervention of the general the Neapolitan victims were many. In the following
years the city had to be repopulated by people coming from southern Italy,
Sicily and northern Africa.
Pastore and Asclepiodoto, who had worked for resistance to the bitter end, had
a bad ending. Pastore, for fear of the consequences of his work, was seized by
a stroke and died. Asclepiodoto, captured and brought before the Byzantine
general, invoked his forgiveness. Stephen, who had failed to do his utmost to
avoid the painful consequences of the defeat, opposed. Belisarius gave
Asclepiodoto to the Neapolitan people who lynched him and tore his body to
pieces. Naples had been defeated after a siege for the first time in its
history.
The rebellion against their king Theodatus spread among the Goths after the
Neapolitan defeat, who was accused of not having sent reinforcements to Naples
in time. Theodatus was deposed with the fury of the people and Vitiges was
named king.
Conquered and pacified Naples, Belisarius could turn his attention to Rome.
Emissaries of the Roman government met the general, opening the doors of the
eternal city to the Byzantines. The soldiers of the eastern Roman empire
entered the Eternal City without hurting and without the Ostrogoth garrison,
which was stationed in the city, moved against invaders to prevent its
conquest. The chief of the Ostrogoths, Leutari, was sent to Byzantium to
deliver the keys of Rome to the emperor Justinian. Following the example of
Rome, all the cities of Lazio surrendered.
In 541 Totila was acclaimed king of the goths. He
was the successor of Eraric, who was the successor of Ildibad, who had taken
the place of Vitiges, defeated by Belisarius and sent prisoner to Byzantium.
Totila, aware of the Byzantine power, began a policy of reconciliation with the
Italic peoples. He promoted an agrarian reform expropriating the great
landowners, all in favor of the Byzantines, and distributing the land to the
peasants on an equal basis. He engaged in the construction of a naval force to
counter the supremacy of the fleet of the Eastern Roman empire. Every city
conquered by the Goths was deprived of the defensive walls to avoid having to
besiege them in a weary war of position in future.
The Goth king engaged a strange war with the Byzantines, made of attacks and
retreats. Totila did not get into a battle with the bulk of the Byzantine army,
to avoid defeats due to the best organization and the highest number of enemy
soldiers. To attack, to do as much damage as possible and to escape, this was
Totila’s strategy. He renounced the siege of Rome, well defended by the Byzantines
and headed for Naples to try to reconquer it.
In 542, arrived under the city walls, he sent his emissaries to ask the
Neapolitans for spontaneous surrender. After refusing to surrender, Totila
besieged Naples. The few troops, however, did not allow a complete
encirclement. The Goths simply controlled the access routes to prevent
supplies. A Byzantine fleet, commanded by Demetrius, came to the aid of the
Neapolitans. Demetrius had many foodstuffs with him but few soldiers. Totila,
realized that the enemy fleet was almost defenseless, armed the boats able to
transport a large number of fighters and faced the Byzantine ships, defeating
the few defenders of the same.
Byzantine reinforcements, led by Maximinus, were stationary in Syracuse for
fear of facing the Goths. The Dux of Naples, Conone, sent emissaries to that
city to solicit Maximinus to intervene with his fleet to help the Neapolitans.
The Byzantine ships, going to Naples, met a strong storm. The commanders of the
expedition: Demetrius, Faza and Herodian were forced to land in enemy
territory. They were attacked and defeated. Demetrius, one of the few
survivors, was captured and sent to Naples, to parliament with the Neapolitan
defenders to invite them to surrender. Totila for his part promised an honorable
treatment by virtue of the resistance that the city had made during the siege
of the Byzantines.
The city of Naples resisted one more month then, due to lack of food,
surrendered to Totila, opening the gates to the Gothic troops.
Only after the appointment of Narses as commanders of the troops in Italy,
Byzantium was able to definitively defeat the Goths. That people were driven
out of Italy and dispersed in Europe. Naples returned to be Byzantine. In the
seventh century it became an independent duchy that lasted until 1137 when it
was conquered by the Normans.
