Belisarius excepts Gothic offer to become emperor

I do not think it would have changed anything in the West that drastically. The Eastern Emperor received the Imperial regalia decades before Belisarius came on the scene, and saw himself the real and only Roman Emperor when it comes to political theory. In realpolitik Belisarius was loyal, but aside from that a smart statesman and general who understood that the West was bankrupt and there was not much that could have been done having a split throne. The economy was in shambles following a series of devastating campaigns in Italy. Belisarius would have taken way too much of a defecit to maintain and the Goths would of course want to play a political role in this new iteration of the Western Imperial post, too. Also, while Justinian strained resources to support all these grand projects of his own architectural and military wise, the Empire was still standing on strong legs with Justinian at the helm and Belisarius would have feared a very strong reprisal from him.

Loot won't fix a dwindling population and destroyed agricultural infrastructure.

I thought from the thread title that you were considering leaving us for richer pastures. I'm relieved.

The story of Belisarius is a convoluted one! His victories would make him amongst the greatest generals of all times, but his end is set in controversy. Supposedly he was the last of Rome's great military leaders to receive certain awards or titles. See the Wikipeida article concerning him for more information!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belisarius

Where you can read this strange story;

"In the late summer of 533, Belisarius sailed to Africa and landed near the city of Leptis Magna. He ordered his fleet to never lose sight of the army, then marched along the coastal highway toward the Vandal capital of Carthage. He did this to prevent supplies from being cut off, and to avoid a great defeat such as occurred in the first attempt to retake northern Africa 35 years before.

Ten miles from Carthage, the forces of Gelimer (who had just executed Hilderic) and Belisarius finally met at the Battle of Ad Decimum on September 13, 533. It nearly turned into a defeat for the Byzantines. Gelimer had chosen his position well and had some success along the main road. The Byzantines, however, seemed dominant on both sides of the main road to Carthage. At the height of the battle, Gelimer became distraught upon learning of the death of his brother in battle. This gave Belisarius a chance to regroup, and he went on to win the battle and capture Carthage. A second victory at the Battle of Tricamarum in December 15 of the same year resulted in Gelimer's surrender early in 534 at Mount Papua, restoring the lost Roman provinces of north Africa to the empire. For this achievement, Belisarius was granted a Roman triumph (the last ever given) when he returned to Constantinople. According to Procopius, if he is to be believed, in the procession were paraded the spoils of the Temple of Jerusalem, which had been recovered from the Vandal capital along with Gelimer himself before he was sent into peaceful exile. Medals were stamped in his honor with the inscription Gloria Romanorum, though none seem to have come down to modern times. Belisarius was also made sole consul in 534, being one of the last individuals ever to hold this office, which was by this time merely a ceremonial relic of the ancient Roman Republic."

From the above we see the mention of a story told by Procopius, which told that the "spoils of the Temple of Jerusalem" were paraded along with Belisarius through the streets of Constantinople! It seems that some historians believed that these treasures had been seized by the Vandals during one of their attacks upon the City of Rome!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sack_of_Rome_(455)

Here is a list of the reported "Sacks of Rome", according to Wiki;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sack_of_Rome_(846)

"Sack of Rome (387 BC) - Rome is sacked by the Gauls after the Battle of the Allia
Sack of Rome (410) - Rome is sacked by Alaric, King of the Visigoths
Sack of Rome (455) - Rome is sacked by Geiseric, King of the Vandals
Sack of Rome (546) - Rome is sacked and depopulated by Totila, King of the Ostrogoths, during the war between the Ostrogoths and the Byzantines
Sack of Rome (846) - The Arabs attack Rome and loot old St. Peter's Basilica, though the Roman City walls prevent further damage to the city itself
Sack of Rome (1084) - Rome is sacked by the Normans of Robert Guiscard
Sack of Rome (1527) - Rome is sacked by the mutinous troops of Emperor Charles V"

Strangely the only report of the taking of anything from St. Peter's, is the sack of Rome by the Arabs reportedly in 846 CE! Is that the reason that the Wikipedia authors question the veracity of Procopius? After all, Belisarius also is credited with the capture of Rome!

But, regarding the question of this strand! I would suggest that Belisarius, with the weight of real Gothic support, might well have changed history to a great degree! Instead of the Eastern Empire controling N. Africa, and a part of Spain, it might well have been the Goths and Belisarius? It would have made for a formidable opponent for Narses!

Regards,


Edited by opuslola - 10-Jan-2010 at 14:44

I would add this:

By the way, just what do you think about the tomb of Theodric in Ravenna?

I just wonder what type of crane lifted the roof into place?

And, how about his "iron crown" and "casket?", or am I confusing him with someone else?

Regards,

Haven't examined the tomb, but I'll look into it.

Do you have Lombard ancestors, perchance?  

He's turned into a Loanbard now.

How about the "Star of David" that is depicted upon Belisarius in a famous representation?

It can be seen at;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belisarius

And mention of it can be found at my "chevrons" posts!~

I went back and checked, and it seems the representation that I refered to is no longer there!

Wonder why?

I take that back, it seems that the site reduced the depiction, and thus the entire mosiac can be seen here;

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meister_von_San_Vitale_in_Ravenna_003.jpg

Via the representation in the mosiac, we can assume that Belisarius was the "right hand" of the King!

You can read my entire remarks here;

http://www.allempires.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28424&KW=belisarius&PID=633310#633310

Regards,

Edited by opuslola - 24-Jul-2010 at 18:27