Battles and Generals: Combat, Culture, and Didacticism in Procopius’ "Wars"

291 Pages·2016·3.642 MB·English

by  Conor Whately

 i
BattlesandGenerals
© koninklijkebrillnv,leiden,2016 | doi10.1163/9789004310384_001
ii 
History of Warfare
Editors
KellyDeVries(Loyola University Maryland)
JohnFrance(University of Wales, Swansea)
MichaelS.Neiberg(United States Army War College, Pennsylvania)
FrederickSchneid(High Point University, North Carolina)
VOLUME111
Thetitlespublishedinthisseriesarelistedat brill.com/hw
 iii
Battles and Generals
Combat, Culture, and Didacticism in Procopius’ Wars
By
ConorWhately
LEIDEN|BOSTON
iv 
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Title:Battlesandgenerals:combat,culture,anddidacticisminProcopius’
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Description:Leiden;Boston:Brill,2016.|Series:Historyofwarfare;
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Subjects:LCSH:Procopius.Historyofthewars.|ByzantineEmpire--History,
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War(Philosophy)
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ContentCsontents v
Contents
Prologue: The Battle of Callinicum ix
Acknowledgements xii
Note on Translation and Transliteration xiv
Introduction 1
1 Premise 1
2 ACulturalApproachtoProcopianCombat 6
3 HistoryasLiterature 8
4 RhetoricandTruthinProcopius’Wars 13
5 Methodology 20
6 ThreeFacetsofAncientCombat 22
a DescribingCombatinAntiquity 22
b ExplainingCombatinAntiquity 25
c GreatManHistoryandGeneralship 31
7 ChapterOrganization 34
8 TheWiderApplicabilityofProcopianCombat 36
1 The Life of Procopius 38
1 Procopius’Life,Family,andSocialBackground 38
2 ReligiousViews 43
3 TheBreadthofProcopius’Reading 45
4 ProcopiustheRhetor 56
5 ProcopiusthePhilosopherandEngineer 58
6 Procopius’LiteraryCareer 61
7 Procopius’ServiceintheMilitaryandHisSources 64
8 ConcludingThoughts 66
2 How to Defeat the Persians in Combat 68
1 ThePersianWars 69
2 DescribingCombat 70
a ProgrammaticCombat 70
b ForeshadowingandtheExhortationsofGenerals 75
c TheExcitementofBattle 84
3 ExplainingCombat 89
a Tactics,Morale,andtheStratagem 89
b Procopius,GodandMorality 101
vi Contents
4 Generalship:Belisariusvs.theShahanshah 105
a EnterBelisarius 107
b EnterKhusro 109
c Belisariusvs.Khusro 111
5 ConcludingThoughts 113
3 How to Defeat the Vandals in Combat 115
1 TheVandalWars 116
2 DescribingCombat 117
a NarrativeOrder 117
b TheRoleoftheNarrator 122
c NumbersandNames 125
d TextualUnityandInternalReferencing 131
3 ExplainingCombat 134
a ExhortationsandMorale 134
b GuerrillaWarfareandtheAbsenceofFighting 139
c TheDesireforPlunder 141
d ProcopiusandAncientMilitaryMaxims 145
4 Generalship:Belisarius,theLuckyandPreparedGeneral 152
5 ConcludingThoughts 157
4 How to Defeat the Goths in Combat 158
1 TheGothicWars 159
2 DescribingCombat 160
a GraphicBattleScenes 161
b SingleCombat 169
c Myriads,RomansandBarbarians 171
3 ExplainingCombat 177
a Arete 177
b Horse-Archery 181
4 Generalship:BelisariusandHeroicLeadership 188
a LeadingFromtheFront:HeroicLeadership 188
b TheAchillesEthosvs.theOdysseusEthos 190
5 ConcludingThoughts 196
5 Book Eight 197
1 Battles 199
a RiverHippis 199
b Senogallia 201
c BustaGallorum 203
Contents vii
2 Sieges 210
a Archaeopolis 210
b Petra 214
3 ConcludingThoughts 218
6 Procopius’ Worldview and the Wider Intellectual Context 219
1 Procopius’Audience 219
2 Didacticism,CombatandCulture 224
3 The“FaceofProcopianCombat” 231
4 Conclusion 232
Map: The World of Justinian 236
Appendix 1: Glossary of Procopian Battles and Sieges 237
Appendix 2: Win/Loss Records of the Persian and Roman Armies in the
 Persian Wars 244
Select Bibliography 247
Index 272
276
248
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viii Contents
ProloguPer:oTlhoegCuaes:eTohfeCCaallsienoicfuCmallinicum ix
Prologue: The Case of Callinicum
InEasterof531,theRomanArmy,whichhadfamouslydefeatedtheSasanid
PersiansjustayearearlieratDara,facedthoseveryPersiansagainnearCall-
inicum.Onthisoccasion,however,weknowthattheRomansweredefeated,
andthatthedefeatwassevereenoughthattheRomanstate,ledbyJustinian,
launchedaninquiryintothedebacle,whichresultedinthereassignmentof
thegeneralBelisarius.HowtheRomansmanagedtosuffersuchamisfortune,
however,islesscertain.Tosomedegree,thisisunderstandablegiventhatbat-
tlesarenotoriouslycomplexaffairs.Yet,itmightbeasurprisetolearnthat
unlikemanyotherancientbattles,inthisparticularinstancewehavenotjust
onedescription,butthree.FortheBattleofCallinicumisincludedin:theEc-
clesiastical History ofPseudo-Zachariah;1theChronograph ofMalalas;andthe
Wars ofProcopius.And,thereareafewbasicpointsofdetailaboutthebattle
onwhichallthreehistoriansagree.Asnoted,ittookplaceneartheEuphrates
inEasterof531,2BelisariuswasattheheadoftheRomanforces,andthebattle
itselfcamenotlongafter–relativelyspeaking–themajorvictoryatDara.All
threeauthorsalsoagreethatthePersianswerevictors,andthattheymanaged
toturntheRomans,andBelisariushimself,inflight,withtheresultthatthe
Romanssustainedheavycasualties.Why,then,theallegeduncertainty?
Well,therearemanyotherpointsonwhichthethreeauthorsdisagreewith
thenamesofRomanparticipantsprovidingaparticularlyillustrativeexample.
Forinstance,onlytwoofthethree,MalalasandProcopius,nameleading
RomancommanderssuchasHermogenesandArethas,nottomentionBelisar-
ius.3Ontheotherhand,MalalasmentionsDorotheus,SunicasandaStephani-
ciusinhisaccountofthebattle,whileProcopiusnamesDorotheusandSunicas
earlierintheWars,4andaStephaniciustheIsaurianinhisaccountofthebat-
tle.5Procopius’StephaniciusislikelyMalalas’Stephanicius.6Procopiusex-
cludesothercommanders,suchasApscal,Mamantius,andSimmas.Ifwelook
atPseudo-Zachariah’sbriefaccountwefindthatheexcludesmostRoman
1 AdiscussionofPseudo-Joshua’sversionisfoundinthefootnotesofGreatrexetal.2011:
320–325.
2 Zach.Hist.Eccl.9.95;Procop.Wars1.18.15;Malalas18.60.
3 Malalas18.60.Procop.Wars 1.18.16,1.18.35.
4 Procop.Wars 1.13.2and1.15.3(bothDorotheus–maybethesameman),1.14.47–50(Sunicas).
5 Procop.Wars 1.18.7.
6 Malalas(18.60)doesnotetheIsaurianpresence,butheonlyspecifiesthatthecommanders
DorotheusandMamantiuswereIsaurian.