Dil Sh. History of the Byzantine Empire

Foreign policy Foreign policy, as noted by V.O. Klyuchevsky, is the most brilliant side of Catherine’s government activity, which made the strongest impression on her contemporaries and immediate descendants. When they want to say the best that can be said about

In his foreign policy in the West, Justinian was guided primarily by the idea of ​​restoring the Roman Empire. To implement this grandiose plan, Justinian needed to conquer the barbarian states that arose from the ruins of the Western Roman Empire. The first to fall in 534 under the attacks of Byzantine troops was the state of the Vandals in North Africa. Internal strife among the Vandal nobility, discontent among local Barbary tribes with the rule of the Vandals, and assistance to the Byzantines from Roman slave owners and the Orthodox clergy, oppressed by the Aryan Vandals, ensured victory for Justinian's commander Belisarius.

However, the restoration of slave relations and the Roman tax system in the conquered province caused protest from the population. It was also shared by the soldiers of the Byzantine army, dissatisfied with the fact that the government did not provide them with land in the conquered country. In 536 the soldiers rebelled and were joined by local Barbary tribes and runaway slaves and colones. The Byzantine soldier Stotza led the uprising. Only by the end of the 40s of the 6th century. North Africa was finally subordinated to the power of the empire.

The conquest of the Ostrogothic kingdom in Italy cost the empire even greater sacrifices. Having landed in Sicily in the summer of 535, Belisarius quickly captured this island, crossed to Southern Italy and began a successful advance into the interior of the country. Relying on the help of the Italian slave-owning nobility and the orthodox clergy (the Goths, like the Vandals, were Arians), Belisarius captured Rome in 536.

But here, too, Justinian’s restoration policy and the arbitrariness of the conquerors caused a broad popular movement, which was led by the Ostrogothic king Totila (551-552), a talented commander and far-sighted politician. As a representative of the Ostrogothic nobility, he, far from wanting to abolish the institution of slavery, understood that without the support of the broad masses he would not be able to defeat the enemy. Therefore, Totila accepted runaway slaves and colons into his army and gave them freedom. At the same time, he supported free land ownership of the Ostrogothic and Italian peasantry and confiscated the estates of some large Roman owners, especially those who opposed the Ostrogoths. This provided him with the support of all segments of the Italian population who suffered from the restorationist policies of the Justinian government. Totila won brilliant victories over the Byzantine troops. In 546 he took Rome, and soon conquered most of Italy from the Byzantines, as well as Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica.

Totila's victories worried his rivals among the Ostrogothic nobility. Many noble Ostrogoths began to move away from him. At the same time, Totila himself was not consistent in his policies. Often he made concessions to the Ostrogothic and Italian nobility, thereby alienating the masses and losing supporters. In 552, Belisarius’s successor, commander Narses, arrived in Italy with a huge army. In June of the same year, in the battle near the town of Tagina, Totila’s army, despite the heroism shown by the Ostrogoths, suffered a severe defeat, and Totila himself fell in the battle. However, the Ostrogoths continued stubborn resistance, and only by 555 Italy was completely conquered by the Byzantines.

As in North Africa, Justinian tried to preserve slaveholding relations in Italy and restore the Roman system of government. In 554 he issued the "Pragmatic Sanction", which canceled all of Totila's reforms. Lands previously confiscated from the slave-owning nobility were returned to them. Colonies and slaves who received freedom were again handed over to their masters.

Simultaneously with the conquest of Italy, Justinian began a war with the Visigoths in Spain, where he managed to capture a number of strongholds in the southeastern part of the Iberian Peninsula.

Thus, it seemed that Justinian's dreams of restoring the Roman Empire were close to fruition. Many of the previously included regions were re-annexed to the Byzantine state. However, the dominance of the Byzantines caused discontent among the conquered population, and Justinian's conquests turned out to be fragile.

In the East, Byzantium in the 6th century. waged exhausting wars with Sasanian Iran. The most important reason for the centuries-long dispute between them was the rich regions of Transcaucasia and, first of all, Lazika (modern Western Georgia). In addition, Byzantium and Iran have long competed in the trade of silk and other precious goods with China, Ceylon and India. Taking advantage of the fact that Byzantium was drawn into a war with the Ostrogoths, the Sasanian king Khosrow I Anushirvan attacked Syria in 540. Thus began a difficult war with Iran, which lasted intermittently until 562. According to the peace treaty, Lazika remained with Byzantium, Svaneti and other regions of Georgia - with Iran. Byzantium undertook to pay Iran an annual tribute, but still did not allow the Persians to the coast of the Mediterranean and Black Seas. The wars on the northern borders of the empire were also unsuccessful for Justinian. Almost every year, Slavs, Avars, Huns, Proto-Bulgarians, Heruls, Gepids and other barbarian tribes and peoples crossed the Danube and attacked the territory of Byzantium. Slavic invasions were especially dangerous for Byzantium.

Its main direction is known: to restore the Roman Empire. The main stages can be clearly identified. To free his hands in the West, Justinian hastily ended the Persian War. Then he conquered Africa from the Vandals, Italy from the Ostrogoths, and part of Spain from the Visigoths. Although he never reached the former borders of Rome, he at least succeeded in turning the Mediterranean Sea into a “Roman lake” again. But then the East wakes up: again there is a war with the Persians, the empire is threatened by invasions of the Huns and Slavs. Exhausted, Justinian no longer fights, he pays tribute. With the help of deft diplomacy, he keeps the barbarians at a distance, and by building a complex and deep defensive system, he turns the empire into a “huge fortified camp” (S. Diehl).

Conquests in the West

The Roman Empire was unable to solve either the German problem or the Persian one. Trajan's enormous efforts were in vain. Julian died on the battlefield, and his successor Jovian left the left bank of the Tigris. Military campaigns 521-531 under the leadership of one of the best commanders, Justinian Belisarius, did not produce decisive results. In a hurry to finish them, Justinian concluded in 532 with the new Persian king Khosroy, despite very harsh conditions, “eternal peace” (in fact, it was nothing more than a truce). And immediately his aspirations turned to the West.

The Roman Orthodox population, who had not come to terms with the rule of the barbarian Arians, dreamed of conquering the West. The offensive began in Africa - against the kingdom of the Vandals, founded by Geiseric. The pretext was the usurpation of power by Gelimer in 531. The brilliant campaign of Belisarius, which began in 533, forced Gelimer to capitulate a year later. True, the Berber uprisings cast doubt on this victory: Belisarius's successor in Africa, Solomon, was defeated and killed. But in 548 John Troglita finally restored order. With the exception of western Morocco, North Africa became Roman again.

The campaign against the Ostrogoths was more difficult and lengthy. It began in 535, immediately after the victory in Africa, ostensibly in response to the murder of Theodoric the Great's heir-daughter Amalasunta by her husband Theodatus. Belisarius conquered Dalmatia, Sicily, Naples, Rome and the capital of the Ostrogoths, Ravenna. In 540, he pushed the captured Ostrogoth king Witigis at the feet of Justinian in Constantinople. But everything was again called into question due to the vigorous resistance of the new Gothic king Totila. Belisarius, who had a small army at his disposal, was defeated. His successor Narses was more successful and, after a long and skillful campaign, won a decisive victory in 552.

Finally, in 550-554, Justinian captured several strongholds in southeastern Spain. The Emperor took many measures designed to restore the previous organization in the returned territories, divided into two prefectures - Italy and Africa. However, he was able to carry out only part of his plans. He never got West Africa, three-quarters of Spain, all of Gaul with Provence, Noricum and Raetia (that is, the cover of Italy). The conquered territories were in a dire economic situation. There were not enough military forces to occupy them. The barbarians, driven back from the borders but not defeated, still posed a threat.

Threat from the East. Nevertheless, these incomplete and fragile results cost the empire very great efforts. This was confirmed when Khosroes, taking advantage of the fact that Justinian was exhausted by battles in the West, terminated the “perpetual peace” treaty of 532. Despite all the efforts of Belisarius, the Persians won victories for a long time, they reached the Mediterranean Sea and devastated Syria (Antioch was razed to the ground in 540). Justinian more than once had to buy a truce for two thousand pounds of gold a year. Finally, in 562, peace was signed for fifty years. Justinian undertook to pay the Persians a very large indemnity and not to preach Christianity in their country. However, the Persians withdrew from Lazica, or the country of the Laz (ancient Colchis), a territory on the eastern coast of the Pontus Euxine, which they had long disputed with the Romans. They did not gain a foothold either in the Mediterranean or in the Black Sea, where their presence would also have been dangerous for Byzantium. But a threat immediately arose on the Danube border. It came from the Huns and Slavs. The Huns periodically crossed the Danube and captured Thrace, then descended to the south and plundered Greece or headed east, reaching as far as Constantinople. They were always driven back to the borders, but these raids ravaged the provinces.

The Slavs were even more worried. Perhaps their troops invaded the empire several times already under Anastasia, but during the time of Justinian the Slavic danger, henceforth inseparable from the history of Byzantium, first appeared in all seriousness. The more or less conscious intentions of the Slavs boiled down to the desire to gain access to the Mediterranean Sea. From the very beginning, they chose Thessalonica as their goal, which already under Justinian enjoyed the reputation of the second city of the empire. Almost every year, detachments of Slavs crossed the Danube and raided the interior of Byzantium. In Greece they reached the Peloponnese, in Thrace - to the outskirts of Constantinople, in the west - to the Adriatic. Byzantine commanders always forced the Slavs to retreat, but never defeated them; the next year even more numerous detachments of Slavs appeared again. The era of Justinian “laid the foundation for the Slavic question in the Balkans” (A. Vasiliev).

Defense of the Empire

Unfinished conquests in the West, painful defense in the East: it was obvious that the empire was recklessly relying only on military force. The army had excellent fighting units (for example, cavalry), but its number did not exceed 150 thousand people, it lacked internal unity (too many barbarian “federates”) and, finally, it had the disadvantages of any mercenary army, greedy and undisciplined . To reduce the burden on the soldiers, Justinian covered the entire territory of the empire with fortifications. This was one of the most significant and most useful deeds of his reign, which aroused the admiration and surprise of the historian Procopius of Caesarea. In his treatise “On Buildings,” Procopius lists the emperor’s military buildings and notes that those who see them with their own eyes will find it difficult to believe that they were created by the will of one person. In all the provinces, Justinian ordered the repair or construction of hundreds of buildings, from fortresses to simple castles. Naturally, there were much more of them near the border and they were located closer to each other, but fortifications were also erected in the internal regions, forming several defensive lines: all strategic points were guarded, all cities of any significance were protected.

The barbarian detachments, if they still had enough strength for frequent devastating raids, had to bypass fortifications, which they did not know how to capture, that is, they could not stay in the country. The skillful organization was complemented by skillful diplomacy, rightly called “the science of managing barbarians.” In accordance with this science, the Byzantines, generously distributing honorary titles or command positions to the leaders of the barbarians, solemnly received at court, took advantage of the vanity characteristic of the barbarians and the authority that the empire and the emperor enjoyed in their eyes. The Christianization of barbarian countries was also encouraged, where the influence of Byzantium penetrated simultaneously with religion. Numerous and usually successful missions reached the northern shores of the Black Sea and Abyssinia. Finally, subsidies and peace payments were distributed among the barbarians.

However, the last technique only revealed the weakness of the others. Procopius noted that it was extremely reckless to ruin the treasury by paying compensation - this only aroused in their recipients the desire to seek new ones. However, this is the inevitable consequence of the mistake made by Justinian from the very beginning. He exhausted his strength in the West for illusory results. They came at too high a price for forced, grueling defense in the East.

Justinian began the implementation of his grandiose plan to restore the borders of the Roman Empire in the West with the conquest of the Vandal kingdom in North Africa (Libya). This was favored by the international situation and the internal situation in the Vandal kingdom. By that time, the Byzantine government had managed to eliminate the danger that threatened from the East: in 532, the “Eternal Peace” was concluded between Byzantium and Iran. Justinian's hands were untied. The implementation of his plans was also facilitated by the lack of unity among the German kingdoms. By the 30s of the 6th century. the Vandals broke with the Ostrogoths, the Ostrogoths were constantly at enmity with the Franks, and the Franks with the Visigoths. Byzantine diplomacy incited these conflicts in every possible way. Of all the barbarian kingdoms, Vandal was perhaps the most weakened by internal strife. Over a hundred years of domination in North Africa, the Vandals and Alans lost their former belligerence. The Vandal fleet, which once brought terror to all the countries of the Mediterranean, fell into decay 1.

Having come to North Africa as liberators of the local population from Roman rule and at first enjoying the support of the masses, the Vandals carried out widespread confiscation of the lands of the Roman aristocracy, the Orthodox Church and the imperial fiscus. The Vandal kings and their entourage seized the richest lands into their hands; ordinary Vandal warriors (about 50 thousand people) received inherited land plots - clerks, which were exempt from paying taxes. The old owners were left only with marginal lands, and for them they had to pay high taxes to the treasury. Some noble and wealthy Romans and Libyans were enslaved or killed by the Vandals, others managed to escape. Being zealous Arians, the first Vandal kings Geiseric (428-477), Huneric (477-484) and Gundamund (484-496) severely persecuted African clergy of the orthodox persuasion 2 .

The Arian clergy, irreconcilable in their pious fanaticism, incited religious strife in the country. The lands and other wealth of the local churches were seized by the Arian hierarchs and the Vandal nobility. Among the Roman nobility and Orthodox clergy who remained in North Africa, bitterness against the conquerors grew.

At the same time, in Vandal society itself there was a deep property and social stratification: the nobility was increasingly moving away from its people. Royal warriors and the kings themselves often took over the allotments of their fellow tribesmen. Part of the Vandal nobility, which became rich, adopted Roman customs and the Roman way of life. A party emerged that focused on rapprochement with the Eastern Roman Empire. If Geiseric stubbornly quarreled with her, if then the Vandal fleet plundered Illyricum, Greece, the Peloponnese and other possessions of the empire, then Trazamund (499-523) in every possible way sought friendship with the Byzantine emperor Anastasia; he stopped persecuting the Orthodox clergy, trying to attract his subjects to Arianism by granting honors and positions, and not by violence. The policy of the Vandals acquired an even more “pro-Roman” character during the reign of King Hilderic (523-530). At his court, the “Roman” party clearly prevailed. There was a break with the Ostrogothic state. Hilderic himself sought Justinian's friendship. Religious tolerance was established in the country. Byzantine diplomacy tried in every possible way to place Hilderic in a subordinate position in relation to the empire. The anti-Roman Vandal nobility blamed the king for the heavy defeats suffered by the Vandals in wars with the native, Mauretanian (Berberian) tribes of North Africa. The latter, striving for complete independence, took advantage of the weakening of the military forces of the Vandals and raised an uprising against them in Byzacene. Military failures were associated with the decline of the Vandal army, caused by the growing stratification among its rank and file soldiers.

The attitude towards vandals on the part of the population of North Africa has also changed. The Vandal nobility began to pursue a policy of enslaving free peasants 3 . Among the masses devoted to the Orthodox religion, the preaching of the Orthodox clergy, hostile to the Vandal-Arians, had a certain success. There was also ethnic discord between the local population and the Vandal conquerors. Justinian's emissaries did their best to add fuel to the fire.

During the reign of the pro-Roman Vandal kings, the surviving Roman aristocracy revived, and the Orthodox clergy, using the religious world, again began to strengthen their positions. The Roman nobility and orthodox clergy eagerly awaited help from the East. Secretly they were preparing an uprising against the Vandals.

The merchants of North African cities, connected by trade interests with the eastern provinces of Byzantium, were also an ally of the Byzantines in North Africa.

In 530, the weak Hilderic was overthrown from the throne by anti-Roman circles of the Vandal nobility. The throne was taken by his relative Gelimer, who also came from the royal family of Geiseric. Promoted to the throne by the military party and enjoying the support of the army, Gelimer decisively dealt with his predecessor. Hilderic and all his relatives were captured and thrown into prison. Justinian demanded that Gelimer immediately release Hilderic and began preparing for war. Having suppressed the Nika uprising in 532, the emperor planned a broad policy of conquest to distract his subjects from the difficult situation within the country. With the brilliance of his conquests, he hoped to restore his prestige and earn the glory of a great commander.

However, when preparing an expedition to North Africa, the emperor unexpectedly encountered opposition from the court nobility, led by John the Cappadocian himself. Most of all she was afraid of the dangers of a distant sea expedition. Court officials associated with the treasury were concerned about the enormous costs it would require. Military leaders and soldiers were frightened by a war in a distant and unknown country; in addition, they feared a possible attack on the Persian empire. Among the soldiers, who had just returned from the Persian campaign and had not yet enjoyed peace, there was no desire to embark on a dangerous expedition again. It was believed that even if it succeeded, Byzantine troops would not be able to consolidate their power over North Africa while Sicily and Italy were in the hands of the Ostrogoths.

The bureaucratic nobility temporarily shook the emperor’s resolve. But at this time those forces in the empire that insisted on conquering the Vandal kingdom became more active. A delegation of Eastern Orthodox clergy arrived to the emperor. Numerous African emigrants, Roman aristocrats and church dignitaries pestered the emperor with requests for revenge. Justinian's foreign allies also became more active. In Tripolis, the noble Roman Pudentius rebelled against the Vandals and handed the city over to the empire. The Vandal governor of Sardinia, Goth Goda, went over to the side of the emperor, whom he asked to immediately send troops to transfer the island to the Byzantines.

In the spring of 533, active preparations for war began. Covering up his true goals of conquest, Justinian sought to portray the campaign in Libya as a great liberation mission. Belisarius was appointed commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, by this time already a famous commander who had successfully completed the Persian campaign 4 . The army gathered under his banner consisted of 10 thousand infantry and 6 thousand cavalry. It was a multi-tribal and multilingual army. The infantry were recruited from the population of Thrace and Macedonia, the cavalry consisted mainly of barbarian federates, Huns, and Heruls. To transport the army, 500 transport ships were equipped, on which there were 30 thousand sailors. In addition, Belisarius had at his disposal a squadron of warships, consisting of 92 fast ships - dromons. There were about 2 thousand Byzantines, oarsmen and warriors on the dromons at the same time.

On June 22, 533, the squadron sailed from Constantinople. Together with Belisarius, his adviser, the historian Procopius, also left for the long campaign, who later described in detail in his work all the events associated with the conquest of Africa. With harsh measures, Belisarius imposed discipline in the army. In the harbor of Methone on the Peloponnesian Peninsula, another military detachment joined the main forces. On the sixteenth day of the journey, the Byzantine fleet landed on the deserted coast of Sicily. Belisarius sent Procopius to Syracuse to clarify the situation on the island and the attitude of the Ostrogoths, the masters of Sicily, towards the Byzantine campaign. Procopius reported to Belisarius that the path to Carthage was clear, for the Vandals did not expect the arrival of the Byzantine army at all. Shortly before the appearance of Belisarius, the Vandal king Gelimer sent his best fleet (120 selected fast ships) to Sardinia to recapture it from Goda. Gelimer himself, having left Carthage, lived at that time in Byzacene, far from the coast.

The Ostrogoths were not going to help the Vandals. Their queen Amalasunta even allowed the Byzantines to purchase food for the army in Sicily.

Belisarius immediately ordered the sails to be raised, and the fleet quickly landed on the shores of North Africa. At the beginning of September 533, the army landed unhindered at a distance of about 200 kilometers from Carthage. Wanting to win over the local population, Belisarius severely punished the soldiers for looting. The Byzantine commander sent a small detachment to the nearby city of Select. The warriors cunningly entered it, mingling with the crowd of villagers entering the city on carts. In Selecte they were joyfully greeted by supporters of the empire - the local bishop and the noblest townspeople. Byzantine troops continued to successfully advance towards Carthage.

Having learned about the landing of enemy troops, Gelimer ordered to immediately kill Hilderic and all his relatives, while he himself, with a detachment of light cavalry, followed on the heels of Belisarius, without, however, coming into contact with his army. The vandals were gathering strength. The general battle of both armies took place on September 13, 533 near the town of Decim, 13 kilometers from Carthage. The Vandals lost the battle. The path to Carthage was open to Byzantine troops. The inhabitants of Carthage opened the gates of the city in front of them and, having removed the iron chain blocking the entrance to the Bay of Mandrakis, allowed the Byzantine fleet to enter the harbor. On September 15, 533, Belisarius solemnly, without a fight, entered Carthage. Complete order reigned in the conquered city, trade and business life were not interrupted, shops were not closed, soldiers were assigned according to lists to stay in the houses of residents, and they bought food for themselves on the market with money issued by the treasury. Having occupied Carthage, Belisarius raised its walls from the ruins.

Gelimer began to urgently gather troops, trying in vain to recapture the lost capital. All his attempts to find allies against Belisarius failed. The Visigothic king Teud refused to enter into a military alliance with the Vandals 5 . The leaders of the Mauretanian tribes took a neutral position, waiting for the outcome of the war to go over to the winning side. Only a few Maurusians and his brother Zazon, who by this time had killed Goda and captured Sardinia, came to the aid of Gelimer. Gelimer's attempts with generous gifts and promises to win over to his side the leaders of the Huns who were in Belisarius's army were also unsuccessful. Gelimer's hopes for an uprising of the Carthaginians against the Byzantines also did not come true.

The second battle between the Vandals and the Byzantines took place in mid-December 533 at Tricamara. The cavalry of the Byzantine commander John managed to quickly defeat a detachment of Vandals commanded by Zazon. He himself fell in this skirmish. Gelimer, having learned of his death, left the troops to bury his brother’s body. When news of this spread among the Vandals, they fled. The defeat of Gelimer's army was complete. The winners got the vandal camp, where their wives, children and property were located. Belisarius' warriors overnight became the owners of enormous wealth and many slaves. Gelimer's family and treasures also fell into the hands of the Byzantines. For five days and five nights, Byzantine troops pursued Gelimer. He managed to elude pursuit and find refuge on the border of Numidia, with the friendly tribe of the Maurusians. Belisarius, having ordered to block Gelimer, who was entrenched on Mount Papua, and to cut him and his warriors off from the supply of food, he himself and the rest of the army returned to Carthage.

Following this, he began to conquer the remaining possessions of the Vandals. The talented military leader Kirill was sent with an army to the island of Sardinia. Having easily subdued it, Cyril soon captured Corsica just as easily. Next, important strategic points passed to the Byzantines - Caesarea (Caesarea) in Mauretania and the fortress of Septem (Ceuta) - not far from the Pillars of Hercules (Gibraltar), as well as the Balearic Islands - Majorca and Minorca. The Byzantines consolidated their power in Tripolis and other important fortified places.

In March 534, Gelimer decided to surrender to the mercy of the winner. The conditions of surrender were honorable: Gelimer, all his relatives and Vandal associates were guaranteed personal safety; he was promised that upon arrival at the court of Justinian he would enjoy honor and, living in Byzantium, would not need anything. Taking with him Gelimer and all the wealth of the Vandal kings, Belisarius urgently sailed from Carthage to Constantinople. In honor of Belisarius, a solemn triumph was celebrated in the capital of Byzantium.

The Emperor and Empress dealt mercifully with the noble Vandals. Gelimer was granted lands in Galatia in Asia Minor, and he settled there as a private citizen. Captured Vandal warriors were taken from North Africa, included in the Byzantine army, stationed in the remote eastern regions of the empire and sent to war with the Persians.

Arrogantly believing that all of North Africa already lay at his feet, the Byzantine emperor meanwhile appropriated the titles of “Vandal” and “African” to himself, recalled Belisarius from the not yet pacified province and reduced the composition of the occupying army. In 534, immediately after the victory over Gelimer, Justinian published a Novella on the structure of the conquered country. A praetorian prefecture was organized here, headed by the praetorian prefect of Africa, who enjoyed broad powers. All of North Africa was divided into seven provinces: Zevgitana, Carthage, Byzacena, Tripoli, Numidia, Mauretania and Sardinia. Four of them were headed by rectors, the other three were managed by presidents. The military administration was separated from the civil one. The occupation army consisted of a corps of committees stationed in the interior regions, and border troops - limitans. All officials of the civil administration, all military commanders and soldiers received salaries from the state, which were paid from taxes collected in the province 6. In North Africa, the Roman tax system, abolished by the Vandals, was completely restored. Taxes were also imposed on the population of Sardinia and Corsica.

Justinian's first task in the field of agrarian policy in North Africa was the restoration of large Roman landholdings. All lands lost by the previous owners during the reign of the Vandals were returned to the old owners - the imperial fiscus, the Orthodox Church, the descendants of Roman possessors and the local Romanized African nobility 7. Justinian appropriated the lion's share of the lands confiscated from the Vandals to himself or transferred them to the fiscus. It was forbidden to alienate church property. The Carthaginian church was granted all the rights enjoyed by the metropolitan churches.

Other believers - Arians, Donatists, Jews and pagans - were persecuted. It is not for nothing that the Byzantine conquest was enthusiastically greeted by the African Orthodox clergy 8 .

All slaves and colons who fled from their masters during the period of Vandal rule and lived in freedom were returned to the heirs of their former masters 9 . The heavy hand of the conquerors was soon felt by the Maurusians, many of whose leaders, during the war between the Byzantines and the Vandals, took a position of neutrality. Having defeated Gelimer, the Byzantines openly set a course for the subjugation of the native tribes to the power of the empire.

The policy of the Byzantine government, aimed at restoring slave-owning orders in North Africa, caused discontent among the popular masses of this province 10 . A wide movement against the conquerors unfolded, in which the most diverse segments of the population of North Africa took part. The Maurusians were the first to raise their weapons. These tribes were at the stage of decomposition of the primitive communal system, and their military organization still retained the features of the people's militia - mass character and mobility, which made the Maurusians a dangerous enemy of the Byzantines.

The revolt began in 534 in Numidia and Byzacene, shortly after Belisarius left for Byzantium. The Maurusians devastated a significant part of these remote areas. The few Byzantine troops here, moreover, taken by surprise, were completely defeated by the Maurusians and almost completely exterminated. The eunuch Solomon, a brave and experienced commander, was sent against the Maurusians with a significant army. The war was stubborn and bloody. The first battle took place in the region of Mamma. Although the Maurusians outnumbered the Byzantines, they were inferior in weapons. Byzantine troops returned to Carthage with rich booty. However, the Maurusians, not wanting to submit to the Byzantines, immediately rose again as a whole and began to devastate Byzacena again. The second major battle took place at Mount Burgaon. Solomon won again. The winners brutally dealt with the rebellious natives. After the defeat of the Maurusians on Mount Burgaon, the Byzantine soldiers “took captive such a number of women and children that those who wanted to buy (as slaves) a child from the Maurusians (him) were given for the price of a sheep” 11 .

The remnants of the defeated Maurusians retreated into the depths of Numidia, finding salvation in the Avres Mountains. The Maurusian movement temporarily died down. However, the respite for the Byzantine government was short-lived.

Already at the beginning of the next year, 536, a new uprising of the Byzantine army and the people 12 broke out in North Africa, extremely dangerous for the empire. 12 Its most important reason was the unfolding 12. There is intense competition for land in North Africa. Byzantine soldiers laid claim to land in the conquered province. They sought to establish themselves firmly here, many married widows, daughters and sisters of the dead Vandals and considered themselves the rightful owners of their plots of land. Meanwhile, Constantinople considered the lands of the Vandals as the property of the emperor or the treasury; they were returned to the Orthodox Church or to the descendants of Roman landowners. Attempts to take away the vandals' plots for the treasury caused terrible indignation in the army. The struggle for land temporarily united ordinary soldiers, privileged soldiers from the commander-in-chief's guard and a significant number of military leaders. The dissatisfaction of ordinary soldiers was aggravated by the fact that the government delayed payment of their salaries for a long time, and their commanders oppressed them in every possible way.

One of the important reasons for the uprising was also the increasing religious discord between the Arians and the Orthodox in the army and throughout the country. According to Procopius, the Byzantine troops in North Africa included at least a thousand soldiers, most of them barbarians who professed Arianism 13 (there were especially many Heruli among them). The religious persecution of Justinian created the basis for the rapprochement of the rebel soldiers with the local Arians. The Vandals, who survived the defeat of their army by Belisarius, also played a prominent role in the uprising.

In the spring of 536, a conspiracy was hatched against Solomon in Carthage. The conspirators wanted to kill him, but the murder failed, and some of the conspirators fled from Carthage. Solomon decided to make concessions. But four days after the conspiracy was discovered, the soldiers of the Carthaginian garrison rose in open rebellion at the hippodrome, where they hoped to receive the support of the Carthaginian poor. They chose the prominent military leader Theodore the Cappadocian as their leader. Having captured the palace by storm, the rebels began to kill all of Solomon’s supporters and destroy the houses of the rich and nobles. However, Theodore the Cappadocian, who expressed the interests of the privileged part of the army, which only temporarily joined the movement, did not want to make a complete break with the government, so he secretly helped Solomon, his close associate Martin and the historian Procopius escape by ship from Carthage at night. Martin went to Numidia. to gather troops there to fight the rebel soldiers, and Solomon and Procopius arrived for help in Sicily, where Belisarius, sent by Justinian to wage war against the Ostrogoths, was at that time.

After Solomon's flight, a split began in the rebel camp. Power in the city was seized by moderate elements led by Theodore the Cappadocian. The warriors who left Carthage elected one of Martin's bodyguards, Stotza, as their leader. An entire army gathered under the banner of Stotza - 8 thousand well-armed Byzantine soldiers and a thousand Vandal warriors. They were joined, according to Procopius, by “a large mass of slaves” 14. The participation of slaves gave the movement a social character.

The moderate party sought to preserve the city for the emperor and locked itself in Carthage. Then Stotza began his siege. He was already close to capturing the city when Belisarius arrived in North Africa from Sicily. Apparently, taking advantage of the disagreements in the rebel camp and relying on the help of Theodore the Cappadocian, he managed to split a significant number of soldiers from Stotza. Soon after Belisarius arrived, he already had two thousand soldiers at his disposal. After this, Stotza retreated, but did not lay down his arms.

A decisive battle between the troops of Belisarius and the rebel army of Stotza took place in 536 near the city of Membresa, on the banks of the Bagrada River. The victory went to Belisarius, a more experienced commander in battles. Belisarius did not dare to pursue Stotza and returned to Carthage. Here, alarming news awaited him about a soldier's uprising in his own army in Sicily, which forced him to hastily leave Africa.

But the uprising of Stotza's warriors continued. The rebels won brilliant victories in Numidia. The entire army of the ruler of Numidia, Marcellus, went over to Stotza’s side. Stotza's victories so worried Justinian that he sent his nephew, the patrician Germanus, to North Africa, giving him greater powers. Herman immediately made a census of all the soldiers who remained loyal to the empire. It turned out that only one third of the army remained in Carthage and other cities on the side of the emperor, and the rest went to Stotze. Using emergency measures, Herman managed to return some of the soldiers to his army: they were paid all their salaries, even for the time when they fought against the government, all those returning to the banner of the emperor were given a complete amnesty and generous gifts were given. However, Stotza continued to fight. He managed to win over some of the Maurusian tribes to his side. Stotza even tried to attack Carthage, but failed.

In 537, near the town of Skale Veteres in Numidia, the rebel army met with the troops of Herman. The superiority of forces was on Herman's side, and he won the battle. A significant role in this was played by the position of some Maurusian leaders who suddenly went over to Herman’s side. Stotza was forced to flee to Mauretania. However, unrest among the Byzantine troops in Africa did not subside. In the winter of 537/38, an uprising of the Carthaginian garrison broke out under the leadership of Maximin, which was hardly suppressed by Germanus. Soon Germanus was recalled from Africa by Justinian, and its final pacification was again entrusted to the eunuch Solomon.

To restore order, Solomon began to carry out a severe purge of the army. He evicted all Vandals from the province, built numerous fortifications throughout the country, and demanded strict adherence to Roman laws. By 539, Solomon managed to defeat the rebellious Maurusian tribes in the Avres mountains, capture the Zab region in First Mauretania and temporarily establish peace in Africa. But this peace lasted only four years. In 543, military operations against the Maurusians resumed. In 544, in the battle of the town of Cillius, near Tebesta, the Byzantine troops were completely defeated by the Maurusians of Tripoli and Byzacena, and Solomon himself, the governor of Africa, was killed.

In the spring of the following year, 545, the second Stotza uprising began. Arriving from Mauretania, he again raised an uprising in Byzacene against Solomon's successor, Sergius. Stotza was supported by the Maurusians and the local population. The rebels defeated the army of the governor of Byzacena, Imerius, and captured him. The warriors of Imeria joined the troops of Stotza, who then captured the large coastal city of Hadrumet. The rebels became the de facto masters of all of Byzacena. Stotza again achieved great power, and many Byzantine warriors again hurried to his banner.

At this critical moment, Justinian made the mistake of sending Senator Areovindus to North Africa. Unversed in military affairs, he hardly looked like a commander capable of saving Africa. The emperor compounded his blunder by dividing power in the province between Sergius and Areovindus: the first was entrusted with fighting the rebels in Numidia, the second in Byzacene. A deadly feud soon broke out between the two rulers, giving rise to endless feuds that were to the benefit of the rebels. Sergius did not want to help Areovindus and coordinate the actions of both armies.

In 545, Stotza's troops completely defeated a detachment of Byzantines near the town of Tatsea, located near the city of Sikka Veneria, in the region of Zevgitana. However, the rebels lost their brave leader in this battle, which was a heavy blow for them. Stotza’s place at the head of the rebels was taken by a certain John, who managed to once again unite all those dissatisfied with Byzantine rule.

Convinced that the strife between the rulers of the province only contributed to the strengthening of the rebels, Justinian finally recalled Sergius and transferred all power in Africa to Areovindus. However, his sole rule did not bring the pacification of the province desired by the government. Just two months after Sergius’s departure, it was again engulfed in civil war.

Hordes of Maurusians, uniting with the rebel soldiers, moved towards Carthage. Immediate danger loomed over the very residence of the ruler of Africa. Areovinda's predicament was taken advantage of by one of the military leaders of the Byzantine army, the adventurer and ambitious Gontaris, who set the task of placing on his own head the crown of the ruler of an African kingdom independent of the empire. Wanting to use the Maurusian troops in the fight against Areovind, Gontaris began secret negotiations with one of their leaders. He promised to give the barbarian Byzacenus half of Areovind's wealth and subsequently send him 1,500 warriors as auxiliary troops. For now, Gontaris intended to keep Carthage, the rest of Africa and the royal title for himself. The agreement took place, but both sides were not very keen to implement it. Meanwhile, Areovindus managed to lure another Maurusian leader to his side and sow discord between his opponents. Then Gontaris, relying on part of the soldiers of the Carthaginian garrison, to whom he promised to pay the salary withheld by the treasury, carried out an open armed coup in Carthage. A bloody battle took place on the walls and at the gates of Carthage, from which the usurper emerged victorious.

Areovind fled in fear with his family and hid in one of the Carthaginian churches. Having seized power in the capital, Gontaris began negotiations with his rival. With false promises he managed to lure Areovind from his hiding place, after which he was treacherously killed. Gontharis did not want to part with the treasures of Areovind and did not fulfill his obligations given to the leader of the Maurusians. The Maurusians refused to help Gontaris and went over to the side of the Byzantine government. The death of the governor Justinian was enthusiastically greeted by the rebel soldiers, who were ready to support the usurper in the fight against the common enemy. About a thousand of John's soldiers, including 500 Byzantine soldiers, 80 Huns and the rest of the Vandals, went over to the side of Gontaris and were allowed into Carthage. Needing their help, Gontaris did not at all want to contribute to the victory of the popular movement. He expressed the interests of the top of the Byzantine army and was not associated with the broad masses of soldiers. Having seized power, Gontaris unleashed the most severe terror on the heads of his personal enemies.

Gontaris's ambitious plans were not destined to come true. His reign lasted only 36 days. In March 546, he fell victim to a military conspiracy carried out to the benefit of the Byzantine government. This conspiracy was led by a noble Armenian from the Arsacid family - Artaban; he was supported by senior officers of the Byzantine army. Artaban dealt with all the supporters of Gontharis, especially the Vandals and the rebel soldiers of John. The latter was captured and sent to Constantinople, where he was brutally executed. Soon Artaban left Africa.

It took the empire another two whole years to completely pacify the rebellious province. In 548 Africa was finally returned to the rule of Justinian.

The conquered province included Tripoli, Byzacena, Proconsularia, Numidia, and part of Mauretania. Sardinia, Corsica and the Balearic Islands also became part of the empire. But almost all of West Africa remained independent, with the exception of some coastal areas: the most important acquisition for the Byzantines here was the Septem fortress. The victory of the Byzantine weapons is explained by the fragmentation of the Mauretanian tribes, the heterogeneity of the social composition of the participants in the movement, its spontaneity, and the lack of discipline among the rebels.

This victory was bought at a high price. The country was devastated by long wars. Wanting to revive the economy of the conquered province, the Byzantine government tried to strengthen free land ownership. The novel of 552 established that the colons who fled from the estates during the Vandals retained their freedom. The publication of this law was also dictated by the fear of new popular uprisings. But African landowners did not comply with government regulations. Therefore, in 558, it again prohibited “illegal returns,” immediately ordering that all colons, rusticas and clerics who fled from the estates of their masters or the church after the conquest of Africa by Byzantine troops should immediately be returned to their former owners 15.

Justinian carried out extensive construction activities in Africa, which contributed to economic growth. Evagrius says that Justinian rebuilt 150 cities in North Africa. The wide scope of construction is confirmed by archaeological discoveries of numerous cities and fortifications erected in Africa during the reign of Justinian. The established relative calm of navigation in the Mediterranean Sea and the revived trade relations of Carthage and other North African cities with the eastern regions of the Byzantine Empire also contributed to the restoration of crafts, trade and urban life in North Africa. Economic growth continued here until the conquest of the country by the Arabs.

The fall of the Vandal kingdom in North Africa in 534 was a prelude to the conquest of Italy by Byzantine troops. While fighting the Vandals, the empire flirted with the Ostrogoths in every possible way: it needed the neutrality of the Ostrogothic kingdom. But as soon as the victory was won over the Vandals, the eyes of the Byzantine government turned to Italy. The conquest of North Africa provided the rear of the Byzantine troops from the south. In addition, it showed how a barbarian kingdom, considered invincible, collapsed. This inspired supporters of the empire in Italy.

Like the state of the Vandals, the kingdom of Theodoric in the 30s of the 6th century. was torn apart by internal turmoil. Under his weak successors, it began to decline. The official successor of Theodoric, who died on August 30, 526, was his young grandson Atalaric, but in fact the country was ruled by his mother, Theodoric's daughter, regent Amalasunta (Amalasvinta) 16. At that time she was 28 years old. Theodoric's daughter combined extraordinary beauty and femininity with the intelligence, energy and determination of a mature person. She received an excellent education and was fluent in Greek and Latin. From the first steps of her reign, Amalasunta faced enormous difficulties. Continuing the policies of her father, Amalasunta adhered to a pro-Roman orientation and relied on that part of the Gothic nobility that stood for rapprochement with the Romans. In addition, she surrounded herself with advisors from the Roman aristocracy who supported the Ostrogothic government. During the reign of Amalasuntha, the Ostrogothic kingdom sought to live in peace with the Byzantine Empire. The government forbade the Goths to seize the lands of Roman owners and patronized the Catholic Church; The Pope was given the right to judge Catholics. All this could not but cause sharp opposition from the anti-Roman Ostrogothic military nobility. The leaders of the opposition did not want to come to terms with the fact that Amalasunta was raising King Atalaric according to the Roman model. They demanded that the young king abandon science and indulge in military exercises in the circle of noble Gothic youths. Fearing for her life, Amalasunta yielded, and Atalaric, falling under the influence of the Gothic party, soon abandoned his mother’s obedience. A conspiracy was hatched against the queen.

By this time, the discontent of the popular masses had also worsened. The international position of the Ostrogothic kingdom also became extremely complicated - it was threatened from the north-west by the Franks, and in the south there was a break with the Vandal kingdom. In the fight against the opposition, Amalasunta could only turn to the empire for help.

In 532, at the moment of greatest danger from the Gothic military nobility, Amalasunta secretly informed Justinian of her intention to seek refuge in Byzantium. However, then Amalsunta managed to deal with the leaders of the opposition and again strengthen his position on the throne. The news of Amalasunta's impending flight opened up the opportunity for Justinian to capture Italy, acting as the defender of the legitimate ruler. But at the same time, this news worried Empress Theodora: she feared Justinian’s marriage with the beautiful heiress of Theodoric, who would bring the Ostrogothic kingdom as a dowry to her husband. Amalasuntha's victory was fragile. Her son Atalaric, a worthless and depraved reveler, fell ill and died on October 2, 534. Wanting to retain power at all costs, Amalasunta decided to compromise with the opposition-minded Gothic nobility. She made her co-ruler and husband her cousin, the last representative of the male line of the royal house of Amal - Theodat (Theodahad). Theodatus was acceptable as a man loyal to the Roman Senate and the Eastern Roman Empire. The alliance of Amalasuntha and Theodatus was concluded with the approval of the Gothic nobility and with the consent of the Roman Senate. But secretly the queen demanded from Theodat an oath that real power would remain in her hands. She hoped to preserve the previous political line of the Ostrogothic state. Amalasuntha's hopes were not justified. A fickle, weak-hearted man, devoid of a strong will and full of deceit, Theodat was least able to remain faithful to his oaths. Like Gelimer, he was an ardent admirer of Roman civilization, studied the Latin language and Roman literature, and was proud of his knowledge of Platonic philosophy. Theodat was completely ignorant of military affairs. The main trait of his character was greed. Diplomacy, not the battlefield, was the arena of his activities. Having hypocritically agreed to all Amalasunta's demands, Theodat, having come to power, entered into an alliance against the queen with the leaders of the Gothic military nobility, dealt with Amalasunta's entourage and at the end of October 534 exiled her to one of the islands of Lake Bulsini (now Marsciano Island on Lago di Bolsena). On April 30, 535, the royal daughter Theodoric was strangled in a bathhouse by Theodatus' henchmen. This method of killing Amalasunta was chosen hypocritically by the killers - so as not to shed the royal blood of the great king Theodoric. The death of the queen meant the victory of the Gothic party over the supporters of an alliance with the empire.

The murder of the rightful queen by Theodatus served Justinian as a convenient pretext for interfering in the internal affairs of the Ostrogothic kingdom. In the spring of 535, an open break occurred between both states.

The real reason for the war was Justinian's desire to carry out broad plans for the restoration of the empire in the West. Religious strife between the Orthodox and the Arian Goths also played a significant role. The conquest of Italy would not only immeasurably raise the political prestige of the Byzantine Empire, but also give it the enormous wealth and economic resources it needed.

The Ostrogothic kingdom was supposed to be attacked from three sides. The army of the commander Munda was supposed to occupy Dalmatia and attack Italy from the east; Belisarius, with a fleet and army numbering about 8 thousand soldiers, moved to Sicily and intended to invade the Ostrogothic kingdom from the south; The enemies of the Ostrogoths, the Franks, were preparing to strike them from the northwest. With gold, the emperor's ambassadors bought the help of the Merovingian - King Theodebert - against the kingdom of the Ostrogoths. Important trump cards in this diplomatic game were the Byzantines' promise to cede land to the Franks in Provence and the call for the struggle of the Catholic Franks against the Arian heretics. For the second time, Byzantine diplomacy managed to split the front of the German states.

In June 535, one of the bloodiest wars of that time broke out, bringing enormous disaster to the people of Italy. The beginning of military operations was very favorable for Byzantium 17. Mund easily occupied the largest port of Dalmatia, Salona (now Split), and Belisarius, having landed in Sicily, moved deeper into the island, almost encountering no resistance. Catana (now Catania), Syracuse and other cities surrendered to the Byzantines without a fight. On December 31, 535, Belisarius solemnly entered Syracuse. In a short time, Sicily was conquered by Byzantine troops and became a province of the empire. Such successes of the Byzantines are explained primarily by the support of large Roman landowners and the Catholic Church. The population of the island (as well as southern Italy) was dissatisfied with the rule of the Ostrogoths. In addition, Belisarius had a clear superiority of forces. Even some Gothic leaders in Sicily went over to the winning side.

The capture of Sicily deprived the Ostrogothic kingdom of its main breadbasket. The Byzantines acquired an excellent base of operations from which to attack Italy. The very first successes of Belisarius in Sicily instilled panic in the cowardly king, and he began negotiations for peace with Justinian. Theodatus was also driven to this by the growing discontent in the country. His mismanagement caused both the Ostrogothic military nobility and the Roman Senate to turn their backs on him. In 535, a popular uprising broke out in Rome. The discord between the Romans and the Goths intensified. In such a situation, Theodat made all concessions to Justinian. At the beginning of 539, Theodat concluded a secret agreement with the imperial ambassador, according to which he was ready to transfer all of Italy to the emperor for rich estates and an annual income of 1,200 libras of gold. Justinian sent new envoys to Italy to carry out this secret treaty. But when in April 536 the ambassadors came to the Ostrogothic king, he abruptly changed his position. Changeable and inconsistent, Theodat was just as easily discouraged as he fell into arrogance. By this time, the Ostrogothic commanders had defeated the army of Munda in Dalmatia, near Salona. The news of Stotza's uprising in North Africa also contributed to the rise in the warlike spirit of the Ostrogothic government. Theodat threw the emperor's ambassadors into prison. At the same time, he managed to place his protege, Deacon Silverius, on the papal throne. The diplomacy of the Ostrogothic kingdom also intensified. In negotiations with the Franks, Theodatus was lucky to achieve some successes. For the cession of Ostrogothic possessions in Provence and a large tribute, the Franks promised to help their German neighbors, but refused to terminate the treaty with Byzantium.

In the summer of 536, the Byzantine commander Constantian recaptured Dalmatia from the Ostrogoths, and Belisarius suppressed a revolt of soldiers in North Africa and returned to Sicily. Soon he landed in Regia (now Reggio di Calabria). The population of Southern Italy greeted the Byzantines as liberators. Byzantine troops passed Bruttium, Lucania and reached Campania. Here they unexpectedly encountered stubborn resistance from the Gothic garrison and the inhabitants of the largest center of Southern Italy - Naples. His siege lasted twenty days. It was only thanks to military cunning that the Byzantines secretly entered the city at night and took possession of it. This happened in mid-November 536. Naples was subjected to a brutal defeat, after which this beautiful city became desolate and depopulated.

The fall of Naples caused terrible resentment against Theodat in the Ostrogothic army, which turned into open indignation. Ostrogothic warriors suspected the king of treason.

In November 536, in the town of Regatta, not far from Terracina (now Terricina), Ostrogothic soldiers rebelled against Theodatus and proclaimed their leader Witigis king. Having learned about the uprising, Theodat tried to escape, but was killed by order of Vitigis.

Theodatus's successor seemed to be his complete opposite. A brave soldier of humble origin, Vitigis was proud of his military prowess. However, energetic and courageous on the battlefield, he proved himself to be a mediocre commander and an ordinary politician. Initially, the coming to power of Witigis, who enjoyed the support of wide sections of Gothic warriors and moved towards rapprochement with the Gothic party, instilled great hopes in the Goths. But his strategic plan in the fight against Belisarius was unsuccessful. Instead of advancing, Witigis retreated from Rome to Ravenna, leaving the "Eternal City" to the Byzantines. In an effort to secure his rear, he entered into negotiations with the Franks, which ended with the cession of Provence to them and the payment of a large tribute. But the Merovingians played a double game and, while verbally promising help to Vitigis, in reality did not terminate their agreement with the empire. Witigis was also forced to leave Rome by the unfriendly attitude of the Roman Senate, the Catholic clergy and the city population itself towards the Goths. Coming from a soldier's environment, the new king wanted to give his power a legal character at all costs. He married the daughter of Queen Amalasunta - Matasunta (Matasvinta). Proud of her nobility, Theodoric's granddaughter Matasunta hated Witigis, a man of "low" origin. She constantly intrigued against her husband and, together with noble Goths and Romans, plotted against him in favor of the Byzantine emperor. Having been cut off from ordinary soldiers, Vitigis was not accepted by the higher nobility. While the king was celebrating his marriage to Matasunta in Ravenna, time was lost for an offensive against Belisarius. With a swift rush, Belisarius approached Rome and on December 10, 536, captured it without a fight. In this case, noble conspirators in Rome, led by Pope Silverius and Senator Fidelius, provided active assistance to the Byzantines. The masses of the Romans, who hated the Goths, sympathetically greeted their expulsion from the ancient capital and liberation from the power of the Gothic kings.

The Byzantines also managed to capture many important points in Southern and Central Italy. In Central Italy they captured the cities of Narnia (now Narni), Spoletium (now Spoleto) and Perusia (now Perugia). In the spring of 537, a huge army of Ostrogoths approached Rome. The siege began. Belisarius' position was very difficult: he had a relatively small garrison of 5 thousand soldiers. Discontent grew in the city due to hunger and disease. The reinforcements promised by the emperor did not arrive. The siege lasted fourteen months. But all the efforts of Witigis to take Rome were in vain, and in March 538 he lifted the siege. He was forced to this by illness and hunger that began in the army, as well as by the skillful maneuver of the Byzantines, who sent a cavalry detachment of the commander John on a raid to Picenum, behind the Goths, who plundered this area and captured the wives and children of the Gothic soldiers who had gone on a campaign. John's detachment took Arimini (now Rimini) and threatened Ravenna itself. The resistance of the Goths continued for another two years, which was facilitated by disagreements that arose between Belisarius and the eunuch Narses, who was sent to his aid with an army of 7,000. In 539, Justinian was forced to recall Narses from Italy and again transfer the entire conduct of the war into the hands of Belisarius.

At this time, Gothic diplomacy intensified. In search of allies against Byzantium, Vitigis entered into an agreement with the Lombards. In the spring of 539, he secretly sent envoys to the Persian Shah Khosrow I Anosharvan with the aim of rekindling the old enmity between Byzantium and Iran. The Goths were successful. The Shah of Persia began to prepare for war against Byzantium and in the spring of 540 he violated the “eternal peace.” However, the Sassanids failed to save Vitigis from defeat. At the same time, a third force intervened in the war between the Goths and the Byzantines: the Franks of King Theodebert of Austrasia with a large army crossed the Alps and suddenly invaded Liguria, and then attacked both the Ostrogoths and the Byzantines and devastated a number of regions in the north of the country. In the summer of 539, on their way back, the Franks completed their bloody exploits with the destruction of the city of Genoa.

At this time, discontent began to grow in the Ostrogoth army. The middle strata of Ostrogothic society increasingly moved away from their king. At the same time, a conspiracy was drawn up against Witigis in Ravenna by the Ostrogothic and Roman nobility. The soul of the conspiracy was Matasunta. And when, at the end of 539, Belisarius moved his troops to Ravenna and began the siege of the capital of the Ostrogothic kingdom, he found loyal allies inside the city in the royal palace itself. Noble conspirators burned grain barns in Ravenna, and a terrible famine began in the city. The siege of Ravenna lasted until May 540. Witigis began peace negotiations with the empire. He agreed that all the lands south of the Po River would go to Byzantium, and the Ostrogoths would remain only in the territory north of this river. Justinian was ready to accept these conditions in view of the aggravation of relations with Sasanian Iran and the invasion of the Slavs from the Danube. However, Belisarius, always submissive to his emperor, this time demanded the complete surrender of Witigis. Then the Ostrogothic nobility offered Belisarius himself the throne of the emperor of the former Western Roman Empire and the crown of the Ostrogothic king. Pretending to accept the proposals of the Goths, he entered Ravenna in May 540 without a fight. The surrender of Ravenna to the nobility aroused the indignation of the Goths. A certain role in its capitulation was also played by the fact that among the ordinary Ostrogoth warriors there was growing indifference to the fate of the Vitigis government, which had already completely discredited itself. The warrior-farmers sought to end the war as quickly as possible and return to their families.

Vitigis surrendered to the mercy of the winner. Ravenna was not sacked, but all the Goths were removed from it. Belisarius soon returned to Constantinople, carrying with him the same precious trophies as after the expedition to North Africa. King Witigis received lands in Asia Minor and the rank of patrician and died two years later on his estate. Matasunta received the highest honors and after the death of her husband she married Justinian's nephew, patrician Germanus. The difficult five-year war seemed to end in complete victory. Justinian added to his titles “African” and “Vandal” another title - “Gothic”. But soon, as in North Africa, the policy of the Byzantine government in Italy aroused resistance from the masses, this time decisively supporting the seemingly finally defeated Goths.

A few months after the capitulation of Witigis, a new stage of the war began, much more dangerous for the empire, since the broad masses of not only the Ostrogothic, but also the Roman-Italic population of the country took part in the struggle.

Immediately after the conquest, the Byzantine administrative and financial system and Byzantine laws were introduced in Italy, which significantly worsened the legal and real position of the curials, colons and slaves.

In the Byzantine army stationed in Italy, very dangerous signs of decay and discontent emerged. The commanders endlessly quarreled and feuded with each other, robbed the local population and left the local population at the mercy of the soldiers. The soldiers were unhappy with the pay cut.

The center of resistance to Byzantium became Northern Italy - the regions located beyond the Padua River (now the Po), where, after the defeat of Witigis, free Ostrogothic farmers-warriors remained to live. In the fall of 541, the Ostrogoths proclaimed Totila (Baduilu), known not only for his nobility, but also for his great intelligence, extraordinary energy and outstanding personal courage, as their king. At the time of his election to the Ostrogothic throne, Totila had not yet reached the age of thirty. Extraordinarily handsome, stately and dexterous, an excellent horseman and archer, amiable in his manners, he soon gained great popularity among his warriors. Totila turned out to be not only a brave warrior, but also a talented commander. The last defender of the Gothic state was a charming personality and earned the praise of even his enemies. He was also an extraordinary politician. Totila and his entourage showed foresight, realizing that without the support of the people of Italy, victory over such a strong enemy as the empire was impossible. Therefore, they made serious concessions to the oppressed population of the country.

Totila carried out important socio-economic reforms 19. He defended the land holdings of small free owners from the claims of large Roman landowners. At the same time, Totila confiscated the lands of the old Roman aristocracy and the Catholic Church as the most implacable enemies of the Ostrogothic government and distributed these lands to his warriors and free soldiers. He widely practiced enlisting runaway colones and slaves into his army 20 . This policy ensured the consolidation of all segments of the Italian population around Totila.

Having started the war with the Byzantines in 542, Totila had only an army of 5 thousand people. But having crossed the Po with them, he quickly captured all of Central Italy, then made a swift raid on the south of the country and in a short time captured Bruttium, Calabria, Apulia and Lucania. In the spring of 543, Totila took Naples. Then the Ostrogothic troops blocked the last stronghold of the Byzantines in the south of the Apennine Peninsula - the port of Hydrunt (now Otranto), through which the Byzantines received reinforcements from the East. Everywhere where Ostrogothic troops appeared, a popular movement arose against the Byzantine rulers.

Justinian decided to send Belisarius to Italy again, however, not trusting his general, he did not give him either an army or money. This time the winner of Gelimer and Vitigis showed unusual slowness. Totila continued his triumphal march through Italy. At the end of 545, he approached the walls of Rome and began a siege. Totila set up a blockade of the city and decided to starve it out. Soon, terrible famine and disease began in Rome. The Byzantine commanders hid the grain in Rome and now shamelessly speculated on it. Anarchy grew in the besieged city. On the night of December 17, 546, Totila's troops were allowed into Rome by a detachment of Isaurians. According to the custom of those times, Totila gave the rich city to the soldiers for plunder. Roman senators and patricians lost all their wealth. Residents were evicted from Rome, part of the fortifications was destroyed, and the “Eternal City” remained uninhabited for 6 weeks. The poor people, who had suffered greatly from hunger and disease even during the siege, now also had to leave their homes and, at the request of the winner, wander to Campania, looking for shelter and food there. But it was precisely at the moment of his brilliant successes that Totila made a strategic and political mistake: he left Rome. With an unexpected and bold blow, Belisarius suddenly occupied him.

Military happiness, however, did not leave Totila, and he tirelessly pressed the Byzantine troops. In 548, Totila took Perusia in the north, and Rosciana in the south. He actually paralyzed the offensive actions of Belisarius, and the Byzantine commander was forced to leave Italy, forever burying his former military glory here. In January 550, Totila captured Rome for the second time. He completely restored the destroyed fortifications and public buildings. By his order, its former inhabitants hastily returned to Rome. The dead city gradually came to life. Totila blocked Ancona and forced Arimini and Tarentum to surrender. Now, throughout the entire Apennine Peninsula, only a few cities remained in the hands of the Byzantines, mainly in the Ravenna region and in the far south. To gain an advantage over the Byzantines and at sea, Totila built a large fleet. This gave him the opportunity to make rapid raids on the Dalmatian coast and threaten the ancestral possessions of Byzantium itself. Thanks to a strong fleet, Totila was able to capture Sicily in 550. In the spring of 551, an Ostrogothic fleet of 300 ships unexpectedly attacked the island of Kerkyra (now Corfu) on the coast of Epirus and devastated them.

Only four coastal cities remained in the hands of the Byzantines: Ravenna, Ancona, Otranto and Croton.

But it was at this time that the turning point came. Totila's victories worried not only Justinian, who began to gather a huge army against him, but also Totila's rivals from the Ostrogothic nobility. Many noble Ostrogoths believed that their king had made too many concessions to the people and, fearing the loss of their possessions, their slaves and columns, they little by little began to move away from Totila. After not only Southern, but also Central Italy, where large land holdings of the Ostrogothic nobility were located, was conquered from the Byzantines, any new measures in favor of the people inevitably meant infringement of the interests of large Ostrogothic landowners. At the same time, Totila himself was not consistent in his socio-economic policies.

One of Totila's major failures was the defeat of the Ostrogothic fleet in the naval battle of the Gallic Seine (now Senigal) in the summer of 551, when the Ostrogothic exadre blockading the port of Ancona was destroyed. However, even in these difficult conditions, Totila showed energy and courage. After the defeat at the Seine of Gaul, at the end of the summer of 551, Totila captured Sardinia and Corsica with a strike from the sea. This posed a threat to the Byzantine possessions in North Africa. But that was the last military success of Totila 20a.

By the spring of 552, grandiose preparations for a new campaign in Italy were completed in Byzantium. An influential man at court and loyal to the emperor, the eunuch Narses, was appointed commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army. Possessing a clear and insightful mind as a politician, cunning and ingenuity as a diplomat, Narses combined courage with caution, determination with cunning. He acted deliberately and carefully prepared for war. In April 552, a large, multi-tribal and multi-lingual army gathered at Salon under the banner of Narses, perhaps the most powerful of all that the empire had ever assembled. Passing along the coast of the Adriatic Sea, this huge army invaded Italy and arrived in Ravenna, where it united with the Byzantine troops remaining in Italy. The general battle of the troops of Totila and Narses took place at the end of June 552 in the Apennines, near the town of Tagina (now Gvaldo Tadino) 21.

Totila's plan boiled down to a swift cavalry attack on the center of Narses's army, lined up in a crescent. But the Ostrogothic cavalry came under flanking fire from Byzantine archers, began to retreat and crushed the ranks of their infantry standing behind. Totila's defeat was completed by the sudden appearance of Narses's cavalry from an ambush. By nightfall it was all over. More than 6 thousand of Totila's warriors fell on the battlefield; those captured were killed. A tragic fate befell Totila himself. Mortally wounded in a bloody battle, he sought refuge in the town of Capra (now Caprara), where, bleeding, he died a few hours after the end of the battle. Narses, celebrating the victory, sent Totila's bloody clothes and signs of his royal dignity to Constantinople. The Byzantine commander, distinguished by his exceptional greed, immediately seized for himself all the wealth of the Ostrogothic king.

The tragic death of Totila was a heavy blow for the Ostrogoths. The loss of the leader, however, did not break the resistance of the opponents of the empire, who soon gathered in Northern Italy near the city of Ticin (now Pavia). The area beyond the Po River, as before, became the center of the revival of the defeated Ostrogothic army. The Ostrogoths proclaimed Totila's associate, the very young military leader Teia, king.

Meanwhile, Narses continued his systematic conquest of Italy with energy and determination. His troops captured Central Italy and captured Rome. He then transferred them to Campania and besieged the fortress of Cuma. Teia's troops also entered southern Italy and rushed to the aid of the Cumae. The last major battle of the Ostrogoths with the troops of Narses took place in Campania in October 552, at the foot of the Milk Mountain (now Monte Lattaro), near the Sarn River (now Sarno). This battle, unprecedented in its ferocity, lasted for two days. But the forces were unequal, and Theia fell, struck by a blow from a dart. However, the Goths did not retreat a single step. Only in the evening of the second day did Theia’s warriors begin negotiations, and Narses agreed to stop the terrible bloodshed and make peace. The agreement was honorable. All surviving Goths, with their families and property, could freely leave Italy for new places of residence or join the army of Narses. The independent Ostrogothic kingdom on the Apennine Peninsula ceased to exist. But for the people of Italy, tormented by many years of war, the end of the trials has not yet come.

In the middle of 553, the Franks and Alemanni under the command of Leutaris and Butilin, taking advantage of the defeat of the Goths and the weakening of the Byzantines in this fight, a huge avalanche, numbering 75 thousand soldiers, fell on Northern Italy, which was put to fire and sword. In the spring of 554, devastating everything in their path, they moved to the south of the country. Their hordes were divided into two armies. One moved to Campania, then made a predatory raid on Lucania and Bruttium, reaching the Strait of Messina; the other plundered Apulia and Calabria. Fortunately for the inhabitants of Italy, who were threatened with slavery or extermination, epidemic diseases began among the northern barbarians in the summer of 554. By the fall of 554, Narses managed to unite all forces against the Franks and Alemanni. The Ostrogoths, who were still resisting Narses in separate fortresses, in the face of a new enemy united with the Byzantines. In the battle of Casilina, on the banks of the Volturno River, near the city of Capua in Campania, the barbarians were completely defeated by Narses. It was one of the bloodiest battles Italy has ever known. The army of the Franks and Alamanni was almost completely exterminated. Soon the resistance of the Ostrogoths in southern Italy also ceased. By 555, Italy was conquered by the Byzantines, and only isolated detachments of the Goths still fought in Northern Italy until the early 60s of the 6th century.

The territory conquered by the Byzantines in Italy was somewhat smaller than the possessions of the Ostrogothic kingdom. The southern regions of Raetia and Noricum were ceded to the Lombards. Italy's line of defense now formed on the natural borders formed by the Alps. To protect Italy from the ever-increasing pressure of barbarian peoples, four military-administrative districts were created - the so-called ducats, where border fortresses with strong garrisons were located. As in North Africa, in Italy and Sicily the administrative structure introduced by the Byzantines, in contrast to several other areas of the Byzantine Empire, was based on the separation of civil and military powers. At the head of the civil administration was the Praetorian Prefect of Italy, his residence was Ravenna 23. But real power was concentrated in the hands of the army commander-in-chief - Narses, who became the de facto governor of Italy. After a twenty-year war, Italy was devastated and depopulated. The fields were deserted and remained uncultivated, and crafts and trade in the cities fell into decay 24.

On August 13, 554, while the war with the Goths was still ongoing, the Byzantine government issued the Pragmatic Sanction on the internal structure of Italy. The main principle of agrarian policy was the restoration of large land ownership and the return of lands to the former owners from among the Roman-Italian nobility. The pragmatic sanction canceled all reforms and grants from the hated “tyrant” Totila. Roman aristocrats who had emigrated to Constantinople were now allowed to return to Italy to restore their estates. Roman senators were given back all their privileges. The Catholic Church was not only given the lands it had lost, but also all the property confiscated from the Arian churches. The Ravenna Church was especially enriched. The interests of the emperor and the fiscus were not forgotten, to whom were given the best lands taken from the Ostrogothic kings and the Ostrogothic nobility. In some areas of the country, especially in Northern Italy and near Ravenna, the land holdings of the Ostrogothic nobility, who transferred to the service of the emperor, were preserved. The small free land ownership that grew up during the reign of Totila decreased, but still remained, since plots taken from free Ostrogothic soldiers were transferred in the form of allotments to Byzantine soldiers, often also barbarians. Those who suffered most from the Byzantine conquest were dependent holders and small Italian owners, who, under Totila, freed themselves and seized the lands of noble emigrants.

Simultaneously with the redistribution of land property and the restoration of land ownership by the Roman aristocracy and the Catholic Church, the Byzantine government began to restore slavery and colony in Italy. All slaves and coloni who received freedom during the reign of Totila, who fled from the estates of their former masters, according to the Pragmatic Sanction of 554, were returned to their old owners. All the offspring born to slaves and colones during the time when they enjoyed freedom were also passed on to them. The offspring of a mixed marriage retained the status of the mother. The purpose of all these regulations was to provide labor for the Roman aristocracy, which was reviving its estates. However, the prescriptions of the Pragmatic Sanction were not always implemented. The restoration of slavery was not successful, and in the 7th century. its scale was increasingly reduced. It was replaced by various forms of colony and lease 25.

The Byzantine government made a lot of efforts to restore the economy of Italian cities affected by the war. During the reign of Narses, Mediolan and other cities of Northern Italy, destroyed by the Goths, were restored. Justinian's special concern was Rome. The city was rebuilt, the Tiber bed was cleared and the Roman port was restored, state workshops were revived, and public buildings were repaired. They began, as before, to practice free distributions of bread and other products to the Roman plebs. Rome again became the seat of the Senate and the head of the Catholic Church - the Pope. Italy's trade ties with Constantinople and the eastern provinces of the empire strengthened again. By strengthening a full-fledged coin - the gold solidus - coin circulation was regulated.

However, all these government measures were undermined by the tax system introduced in Italy and the abuses of tax collectors. Therefore, Italy never achieved a true economic revival under the Byzantines. The restoration of Roman land ownership and slave-owning orders, heavy taxes aroused the hatred of the Italian people towards the conquerors, and that is why their rule turned out to be so short-lived.

After the fall of the Ostrogothic kingdom, the turn came to the Toledo kingdom of the Visigoths in Spain. The riches of the Iberian Peninsula had long attracted Byzantium. Spain was famous as a country of abundance and prosperity. In the VI century. she conducted intensive trade with the East. Valuable metals, salt, wine, vinegar, honey and slaves were exported from the ports of Spain and Southern Gaul. However, luxury goods, the finest products of Byzantine artisans, and clothes embroidered with gold were also imported from Byzantium to Spain.

Justinian's plans of conquest for Spain were supported by the merchants of the eastern provinces. At the same time, part of the Spanish merchant class apparently sympathized with the rapprochement with the empire.

In the implementation of plans for the revival of the Roman Empire, the conquest of Spain was of no small importance, primarily from a military-strategic point of view. An important task for the empire was to secure its newly acquired possessions in North Africa from possible attack by the Visigoths. The capture of Spain would again turn the Mediterranean into a Roman lake (“mare nostrum”), making the Byzantine fleet its complete master 26 .

The internal situation in the Visigothic kingdom was favorable to Justinian's plans of conquest. The crisis of the slave system and the unfolding process of feudalization led to the aggravation of all social contradictions in the country 27 . The Spanish-Roman slaveholding nobility was especially strong in Southern Spain. She sympathized with the establishment of Byzantine power and feared the Visigoths. The nobility and clergy skillfully exploited the tribal and religious discord between the Arian Visigoths and the local Catholic population. The people of Spain were burdened by the yoke of the Visigothic kings and nobles. The difficult situation was aggravated by endless unrest and bloody struggle for the throne. In 548, King Theud was killed by one of his confidants. His successor Tiudigisklus (548-549) reigned for only one year and also fell victim to a conspiracy. Part of the Visigothic nobility became close to the local aristocracy, while others stood for a firm anti-Roman policy. The struggle between various groups of Visigothic military leaders and warriors especially intensified during the reign of King Agila (549-554).

Under pressure from the Arian clergy and military nobility, Agil began persecuting the population who professed the Catholic faith. The local Roman-Spanish nobility and Catholic clergy rebelled against Aguila. The uprising was led by the brave military leader Atanagild, a representative of that part of the Visigothic nobility that agreed to an alliance with the local aristocracy. The rebels turned to the Byzantine government asking for help. In 554, when the conquest of Italy was already coming to an end, Justinian sent troops to conquer the Visigothic kingdom of Toledo. The aged Roman patrician Peter Marcellinus Felix of Liberia was placed at the head of the Byzantine fleet and expeditionary force. In a short time he won a number of serious victories. Having landed in Spain, Liberius' troops captured many cities in the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula. In an extremely short period of time, a significant part of the province of Batiki fell under the rule of the Byzantines. The Visigothic nobility very soon realized what a threat the Byzantine invasion posed. She stopped the internal turmoil. Agil was killed in 554 in the city of Emerite by his confidants.

Atanagild (554-567) was proclaimed king of the Visigothic state. The new king was able to quickly rally all the enemies of the empire around himself and waged war against Liberius. And although Atanagild failed to oust the Byzantines from the lands they had captured, their advance to the north was stopped. Atanagild prevented the capture of Seville, although he failed to recapture Cordoba. The successes of the Byzantines in Spain came to an end. In the fight against the empire, Atanagild received the support of broad layers of Visigothic warriors. He was apparently supported by part of the Spanish free peasantry. A peace treaty was concluded between Justinian and Atanagild, which determined the boundaries of Byzantine possessions in Spain. These were the results of Justinian's last conquest in the West 28 .

As in other conquered countries, Byzantine administration and tax system were introduced in Betic. But unlike the nobility of the Vandal and Ostrogothic kingdoms, the Visigothic nobility in Spain, to a greater extent than their Germanic neighbors, forged an alliance with part of the local Spanish-Roman aristocracy. Striving for independence, the local nobility of Batiki very soon began to be burdened by the domination of the Byzantines. The Catholic clergy also quickly began to express dissatisfaction with the overly authoritarian policy of the throne of Constantinople. The southern Spanish cities and urban curiae, as well as the Betic merchants, who expected to find support and protection in the Byzantines against the arbitrariness of the Visigothic rulers, became convinced of the severity of Byzantine rule and the danger of competition between Greek and Syrian merchants 29 . The rule of the Byzantines in Southern Spain turned out to be short-lived and fragile. Already in the 70s of the 6th century. The Visigothic “reconquista” begins and, despite the fact that the Visigoths simultaneously had to fight the Franks and Suevi, already at the beginning of the 7th century. The Byzantines were driven out of the Iberian Peninsula 30.

The period of Byzantine rule left its mark on the political life and culture of Spain. Justinian's legislation had a significant impact on the legal norms of the Visigothic kingdom of Toledo. Byzantine church influence received diverse expression - in the borrowing of Byzantine monastic rules, forms of liturgy, and even Eastern techniques of iconography. From the middle of the 6th century. In Spain, according to archaeological data, products of Byzantine craftsmen became quite widespread. The architecture of Spain, like iconography, in the 6th century. bore the well-known imprint of the Byzantine style 31 .

Justinian did not make any attempts at an aggressive policy towards the powerful state of the Franks in Gaul. Realizing that he could not cope with the Franks, Justinian preferred to have them among unreliable allies rather than dangerous enemies. Therefore, he agreed with the transfer of Provence into the hands of the Franks. A certain role in Justinian’s peace-loving policy towards the Franks was also played by the fact that, unlike other Germanic tribes, the Franks professed the Catholic faith: religious community with the empire made it possible to maintain at least the appearance of good relations between both states.

In the mid-50s of the 6th century. bloody wars in the West were coming to an end. The territory of the empire almost doubled. Dalmatia, Italy, North Africa, southeast Spain, the islands of the western Mediterranean basin - Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, Balearics - were annexed to Justinian's power. Almost the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea was again in his hands, and this sea itself again turned into a Roman lake. The political resonance of the Byzantine conquests in the West was great. The Roman world saw with hope and amazement that the “invincible” barbarians were no longer so strong. In the West, Roman “patriotism” was revived again, Roman culture was restored, intricately intertwined with Byzantine civilization and the barbarian heritage. An attempt was made to revive the socio-economic order of the Roman Empire. However, it was precisely these attempts to restore the outdated slave system that turned out to be the pitfall against which Byzantine rule in the West crashed. No restoration policy of the Byzantine government could delay the development of feudal relations; it was doomed to failure.

Victories in the West were bought at a high price. They led to the ruin of many of the original regions of the Byzantine Empire, to an increase in taxes, and to an increase in discontent among the masses. These conquests weakened the empire in the North and East and largely determined the failures of the Byzantine troops in the wars with the Persians and Slavs.

It was not nearly as successful as in the West in the 6th century. foreign policy situation of the Byzantine Empire in the East. Here she constantly had to deal with a powerful rival, sometimes an ally, most often an enemy - Sasanian Iran. In the VI century. Sasanian Iran was still a vast and strong state 33. His possessions extended to the entire Iranian plateau with the Caspian lowland (modern Iran and Afghanistan), Lower Mesopotamia (now Iraq), Caucasian Albania and most of Armenia and Georgia. Iran's motley population, part settled, part nomadic, mostly spoke the languages ​​of the Iranian system. In the central regions of Iran, the Persians played a predominant role. Many Syrians, Arabs, and Jews lived in Mesopotamia, speaking various languages ​​of the Semitic system 34. In the VI century. In Iran, the process of decomposition of the slave system and the formation of early feudal society took place. Irrigated agriculture and cattle breeding have achieved significant development. The rich cities of Iran were famous for their crafts and trade 35 . Iranian products made of silver and copper, beautiful weapons, vegetable dyes, perfumes, carpets, linen, wool, and from the 6th century. silk fabrics decorated with artistic patterns were known far beyond the borders of the country. Many of these products were exported both to the Mediterranean countries and to Asian states, in particular to China. Transit trade played a huge role in the Iranian economy: expensive goods were transported along long caravan routes from the Mediterranean countries to Central Asia, China and India, through Iraq 36 and Iran: Syrian and Egyptian fabrics, glass and metal products, works of skilled artisans. Caravans returned from fabulous India and unknown China, loaded with precious stones, aromas, spices and, most importantly, the most valuable Chinese silk. China was a supplier not only of silk fabrics of unprecedented beauty, but also of raw silk, which in the 6th century. processed in the silk weaving workshops of Iranian artisans. From the 6th century Iran, however, began to develop its own sericulture, but China's monopoly on silk production still remained unshakable. Byzantium in the 6th century. was also vitally interested in transit trade with the countries of the Far East, especially the silk trade with China. Since the caravan routes to India and China ran through the territory of Iran, and the exits to the Mediterranean and Black Seas were in the hands of Byzantium, there was inevitably constant intense rivalry between them over the possession of these most important trade arteries 37 .

Political reasons also played a significant role in the clashes between Byzantium and Iran. In the VI century. Byzantium and Iran were the largest political forces in the Near East, and all minor states, as well as various tribes and peoples, were grouped around them, being under the protectorate, or even in direct dependence, either on the basileus empire or on the Sassanid power.

Therefore, clashes between Byzantium and Iran were so frequent, not only because of border disputes, especially in Mesopotamia, but also because of dominion over various tribes and peoples living in close proximity to both great powers. A constant source of contention between Iran and Byzantium were the Arab tribes that roamed the territory between Syria and the lower reaches of the Euphrates, as well as the states of Transcaucasia. By that time, early feudal states had formed in Transcaucasia, the most important of which was Armenia, from the 4th century. divided into two parts - Western Roman Armenia, which was in the orbit of Byzantine influence, and Persian Armenia, subordinate to Iran. Early feudal states also developed in Georgia. Moreover, from the 4th century, after the division of Armenia between Rome and Iran, Lazika was recognized as the sphere of influence of Rome, and Kartli and Albania had to recognize the sovereignty of Iran. Both Byzantium and Iran were not happy with this division and dreamed of change. Due to the conquest and subjugation of the states of Transcaucasia, especially the strategically important Armenian Highlands and Lazika, which had important ports on the Black Sea coast, in the 6th century. There was a constant struggle between Byzantium and Iran 38. An important trump card in this struggle was the successful Christianization of the peoples of Transcaucasia carried out by Byzantium. Christianity, in its Orthodox form, established itself in Armenia, Kartli and Caucasian Albania from the 4th century, and in Lazika - from the 6th century. Only in Atropatene did Zoroastrianism dominate.

Byzantium at first acted as a defender of Christians persecuted in Iran, but when Nestorianism and then Monophysitism prevailed among the Christian population of Iran, it stopped providing them with protection. In defiance of Constantinople, the Iranian government began to pursue a policy of religious tolerance towards the Nestorians and Monophysites.

The threat of invasion by nomadic peoples - the Hephthalite Huns - led to the fact that between 337 and 502. Iran and Byzantium lived in peace. But already under Emperor Anastasia and especially Justin, the threat of war again loomed.

The war began in 527. The immediate pretext for this first war with Iran was the construction by the Byzantines on the Persian border, in addition to the already existing Dara fortress, of another fortress - near the Iranian city of Nisibis (Nisibina). Shahinshah of Iran Kavad (488-531) broke the peace and attacked Mesopotamia. The Persians managed to defeat the troops of Belisarius, who was at that time the head of the garrison in Dar, and prevent the construction of a new fortress. In 529, Belisarius was appointed commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army assembled to wage war with Iran. But military operations were carried out rather sluggishly. A grandiose popular heretical movement of the Mazdakites unfolded in Iran, with which Navad and his son Khosrow had to wage a stubborn struggle. The Mazdakit movement reached the widest circles of peasants and slaves, and also found a response among the urban poor. The Mazdakits demanded universal equality, division of the property of the rich, and transfer of land to peasant communities 39 .

The movement reached enormous scale and extraordinary ferocity. Kavad was forced to make concessions and make Mazdak his advisor. In addition, Kavad was constantly threatened by conspiracies of the nobility and clergy. Justinian, having conceived the conquest of the West, was also burdened by the war in the East. The Byzantine emperor was forced to be compliant by the popular movement in Palestine. Peace negotiations with Iran followed. The lull in the theater of operations that came in 529 helped Justinian suppress the formidable uprising of the Samaritans in the summer of that year.

In 530, the Iranian commander Peroz invaded the empire, but was defeated by the troops of Belisarius and retreated. However, this victory did not bring real fruit. The protracted peace negotiations with Kavad had by that time been interrupted. The internal situation in Iran has changed. The son of Kavad, Khosrow, having cunningly lured the leaders of the Mazdakite movement for negotiations to Ctesiphon, treacherously killed them in the palace during a feast. The mass extermination of the Mazdakits began. The lands taken by the rebel peasants from their masters were returned to their former owners. The Mazdakit movement went underground. The Samaritans invited the Persians to Palestine. In addition, the conflict between Byzantium and Iran was fueled by the intensified struggle between these great powers over the northern group of Arab tribes 40 .

The northern Arabs who lived outside the Arabian Peninsula, predominantly nomadic pastoralists, were divided into many tribes that experienced various stages of decomposition of the communal-tribal system. By the 5th century On the border of Palestine and the Syrian Desert, the Arab state of the Ghassanids was formed, which was a vassal of Byzantium. On the border of Mesopotamia and the Syrian Desert, a little earlier (in the 4th century) another Arab kingdom arose, led by the Lakhm tribe, known as the Lakhmid state. The Lakhmid kingdom was a vassal of Iran. The Arab sheikhs and rulers of these states were fickle in their political sympathies, they were at enmity with each other, they intrigued against Byzantium and Iran, they sought favors either at the court of the Byzantine emperor or the great “king of kings,” the Shahin Shah of Iran. Constantinople tried, for a high reward, to use the Arab tribes of the Ghassanid state to protect the borders of the empire from the Iranian threat. Justinian's government constantly incited the Ghassanid hatred of Iran and the Lakhmid kingdom 41 (its center was the city of Hira on the Euphrates). For a long time, at the head of this kingdom was the equally brave and treacherous leader Mundhir III (505-554), whom the Byzantines called Alamundar. Alamundar enjoyed the patronage of the Iranian government. With his devastating raids, he terrified the inhabitants of Syria, Phenicia and Mesopotamia for many years. In 528, Alamundar killed the leader of the Ghassanid tribes, Arefa, an ally of Byzantium. Then Byzantium moved its troops against Alamundar and destroyed his nomadic camps. But the next year, Alamundar made a daring attack on Syria, reaching the walls of Antioch itself, devastating everything with fire and sword. The blow to Syria was extremely sensitive for Byzantium, and it had to oppose the Arab tribes allied to Alamundar.

In 531, with the help of Justinian, a protege of Byzantium, also Arefa, the son of Gabala (Ha-rig-ibn-Gabala) (531-570), became king of the Ghassanid kingdom. Arefa remained a loyal ally of Byzantium, but he was far inferior in courage and energy to Alamundar. In 531, Iran decided not only to intervene more energetically in the affairs of the Arabs, to prevent their alliance with Byzantium, but also to invade Syria along the road blazed by Alamundar. Persian troops under the command of the commander Azaret actually entered Euphratesia, and then into Syria. Belisarius and his army moved towards them from Mesopotamia. On April 19, 531, a fierce battle took place between the Persians and the Byzantines near the city of Callinike in Syria. Belisarius suffered a complete defeat, the reasons for which were the lack of discipline in his army and the treacherous behavior of the Arabs of Arefa, who fled from the battlefield at the most decisive moment of the battle. Despite the Persian victory, the goal of the campaign was not achieved. Due to heavy losses, they returned to Iran. Justinian removed Belisarius from the post of commander-in-chief of the troops of the East, appointing Mundus in his place. The Byzantine government decided to attract to its side such a dangerous enemy as Alamundar, and to a certain extent was successful, temporarily securing its possessions from his attacks.

Simultaneously with the clashes in Syria and Mesopotamia, military operations between Byzantium and Iran were carried out in other theaters of war - in Armenia and Lazika. Justinian strove in every possible way to consolidate his power in the western part of Armenia. Under him, the Tsani tribes living in the mountainous areas north of the Euphrates were subjugated and Christianized. In the early 30s, the Persians fought a war with the Byzantines over the fortress of Martyropol. The war was fought with varying degrees of success and ended only with the death of Shah Kavad. He died in September 531. Isolated skirmishes between the Byzantines and Persians also took place in Lazika.

Kavad's death served as a signal for an intense struggle for the throne. Shahinshah left it to his youngest, beloved and most talented son - Khosrow. Part of the Iranian nobility and clergy conspired in favor of Khosrow's elder brother, Zam, but since he was crooked and, due to established custom, could not take the throne, the conspirators decided to proclaim Zam's young son Shah as Shah, and Zam himself to make him his guardian. However, the plot was discovered and all of Khosrow’s brothers from his father’s different wives were destroyed.

The internal difficulties encountered by Khosrow I Anosharvan ("The Just") (531-579) forced him to seek reconciliation with Byzantium. Justinian also strived for this. In September 532, a peace treaty was signed, although without specifying the duration of its validity - therefore the peace was called “Eternal”. The borders between Iran and Byzantium remained the same. The Empire, however, undertook to pay Iran 110 thousand libras of gold, allegedly for the defense of the Caucasus from attacks by nomads. Justinian agreed to move the residence of the dux, the commander of the Mesopotamian troops, away from the Persian borders. Iberia remained under the protection of the Sassanids, but the Persians left the fortresses they had captured in Lazika and recognized it as the sphere of influence of Byzantium.

The “eternal” peace was a great political and diplomatic gain for Byzantium. Nevertheless, its rivalry with Iran continued. Byzantine diplomacy managed to establish the influence of the empire in the Caucasus, Lazika and Armenia, the Crimea, and even penetrate into Arabia and distant Ethiopia 42 . The regions of the southern Arabs, as well as the northern ones, constantly served as a bone of contention between Iran and Byzantium. The Arabs of Yemen, a country with a developed agricultural culture and trading cities, were an intermediary in the trade of Egypt, Palestine and Syria with Ethiopia (Abyssinia) and India. Yemen was also a link in the trade relations of the countries of the Far East with the coast of the Persian Gulf and the port of Obolla at the mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates. Incense and medicinal substances were exported to Byzantium from Yemen: incense, myrrh, aloe, rhubarb, cassia.

From Western Arabia - Hijaz (with the center in Mecca) leather, raisins, dates, incense, gold dust and silver were exported to the Mediterranean countries. Transit trade was also carried out through these countries: spices, cinnamon, aromas, and Chinese silk were brought from India; from Africa - gold, ivory, black slaves. In turn, Meccan merchants exported valuable Byzantine textiles, weapons and other metal products, glassware, olive oil, and grain from Syria.

From the 6th century Yemen and Western Arabia became the object of a fierce diplomatic struggle between Byzantium and Iran. Among the local Arab nobility and merchants, two political groups emerged, one pro-Byzantine, the other pro-Iranian. Clashes between these groups sometimes took the form of religious strife: Christian merchants supported Byzantium, Jewish merchants supported Iran.

Under Justinian, Byzantium brought under its influence the Arab tribes who lived in the Land of Palms, located between Palestine and “Happy” Arabia, as well as the Kinda and Maad tribes who inhabited the central plateau of Neja. In 530, Justinian intervened in the struggle of the tribal leaders of Nej against the Himyarite state, supported one of them, Kais, whom he helped consolidate in power, and subjugated the Maadite tribes subject to him to the empire.

The Himyarite Kingdom, a large slave state in Yemen, arose in the 2nd century. n. e. and occupying the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, was famous for its developed trade and cities. Trade with East Africa was conducted through its port of Aden. The rulers of Himyar were allies of Iran. A significant part of the population, committed to pagan polytheism, Judaism and Nestorianism, also supported the Persians. In the V-VI centuries. Byzantine influence began to penetrate into Himyar, Monophysite Christianity spread. A constant rival in Himyar's trade with African countries was the Aksumite kingdom of the Kushites. In the VI century. it was a huge state that included Ethiopia, part of Nubia and some other areas of East Africa. Unlike Himyar, Byzantine influence prevailed early in Aksum; trade relations with Byzantium had long been developed here (through the port of Adulis), and Greek was even the official language of diplomacy. Monophysite Christianity was firmly established in the country. The rulers of Aksum more than once tried to conquer and subjugate the state of the Himyarites, and Byzantium skillfully incited this enmity. Constantinople not only supported the pro-Byzantine Monophysite party in Himyar, but also in every possible way encouraged the claims of the king of Aksum to the kingdom of the Himyarites. With the active assistance of Byzantine diplomacy, Kaleb (Elesboa), king of Aksum in the early 20s of the 6th century. made a campaign in Himyar, overthrew the local dynasty and placed his governor on the throne. But the popular uprising in Himyar against the conquerors led to the fall of Himyar, and then to a new war with Aksum. Caleb brutally suppressed the uprising. Aksum, pushed by Byzantium, acted this time as a defender of the Christians of Himyar from the persecution of the pagans.

In 522-531 Justinian made an attempt to involve Aksum in the fight against the Persians. Soon another uprising against the Ethiopians broke out in Himyar, and the Himyarite kingdom again became independent. Ultimately, Byzantium's complex diplomatic game in Arabia and East Africa did not succeed: the silk trade with India and China through the island of Taprobana (Ceylon) continued to flow through Persia, although Byzantine influence in Yemen and Aksum increased.

The military successes of Byzantium in the West and the active diplomatic activities of Justinian in the Crimea, the Caucasus, Arabia and Abyssinia could not help but worry the Iranian government. Khosrow I was a worthy rival of Justinian and one of the most prominent and most brutal rulers of the Iranian Sassanid state. He immediately showed himself to be a strong sovereign, ruling a huge country with a firm hand. Khosrow I carried out a serious reorganization of the army, which from that time turned into a formidable force. Striving constantly to expand the borders of his state, he truly succeeded in this; under him, the borders of Iran extended to the Oxus (Amu Darya) - in Central Asia and Yemen - in Arabia. Having crushed the Mazdakit movement, the Shahinshah began an offensive against the masses. The tax reform carried out by Khosrow I, which introduced constant rates of land tax - kharaja (kharaga) (regardless of the harvest), worsened the situation of the people, but increased treasury revenues. After suppressing the conspiracy of the aristocracy, Khosrow I managed to find ways of rapprochement with the feudalized nobility and the Zoroastrian clergy; by distributing rich sinecures, he made the dissident aristocrats obedient, and the clergy - accommodating. Khosrow I, like his rival Justinian, launched extensive construction activities: luxurious palaces, temples and fortresses were built, roads were laid. Shahinshah was educated, had a penchant for science, especially philosophy and medicine, and patronized literature and art. By his order, a medical academy was founded in Gundishapur (Khuzistan), which gained great fame throughout the East. Shahinshah surrounded himself with Greek philosophers and lawyers - he gave political asylum to pagan scientists who emigrated from Byzantium.

In the VI century. Khosrow I was the most dangerous and formidable enemy of Byzantium. Having anxiously watched Justinian's successes in the West throughout the peaceful period (532-540), the Shahinshah secretly prepared for war against his rival. The Iranian government was well aware that the uncontrollable desire of the Roman basileus for domination over the entire Christian ecumene would sooner or later pose a threat to the Sassanid state itself.

By 540, the situation in that part of Armenia that was under the protectorate of the empire had become extremely aggravated. The endless strife between the warring families of the local nobility was skillfully used by the Byzantines to strengthen their influence in Armenia. Very soon its population felt the heavy hand of Byzantine officials. Contrary to the agreement, the Byzantines introduced a heavy monetary tax, which caused general indignation. The Armenian nobility turned to the Persian Shah for help against Byzantium. At the same time, discontent against the Byzantines grew in Lazika. The Laz also asked the Iranian government to rid them of the emperor's rule. All this testified to the activation of the pro-Iranian party in Armenia and Lazika, which included the nobility and part of the merchants. Khosrow I immediately took advantage of the favorable moment, especially since at this time almost all of Justinian’s troops were transferred to the West. The Ctesiphon court began feverishly looking for a pretext to break with Constantinople. This pretext was given by the clashes between the Arab tribes of Alamundara and Arefa over the region of Strata, near Palmyra. In addition, Khosrow I accused Justinian of secret relations with the Hun tribes. In 540, Khosrow I, breaking the “Eternal Peace”, invaded the empire. Justinian's second war with Iran began, much more severe and devastating than the previous one.

In the spring of 540, a huge Persian army led by the Shah himself invaded Syria. The country was drenched in blood, thousands of inhabitants were taken captive and enslaved. Having plundered everything in his path and taken a huge ransom from the fortified cities, Shah Khosrow approached the walls of Antioch. The Byzantine commander Herman, sent to protect it, fled, leaving the garrison and residents to the mercy of fate. The soldiers of the Byzantine garrison fled at the first assault. The Persians broke into Antioch. The city was subjected to terrible destruction. Khosrow allowed his soldiers to enslave all the surviving Antiochians and plunder their property. Having destroyed Antioch, Khosrow moved to Seleucia, located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. However, he did not dare to strengthen himself on the coast, realizing that Byzantium would not come to terms with this and would move new troops against him. Khosrow I turned to Persia, taking a huge ransom on the way back from many large cities - Apamea, Chalkis, Edessa, Constantine, Dara, etc. The Byzantine military leaders were inactive, remaining passive witnesses to the devastation of Syria by the Persians; not a single attempt was made to stop the victorious advance of the Shah across the country. The robbery of Syria and the fall of Antioch was a heavy blow for the empire, from which it could not recover for a long time.

The following year, 541, hostilities between Iran and Byzantium were transferred to Lazika. A mountainous country covered with forests, with narrow passes in the mountains - klisurs, which could easily be defended by small detachments of soldiers, Lazika represented for Byzantium a very convenient barrier from attacks by the Huns and Avars from the north, and from the south it blocked Iran’s access to the Black Sea. For Iran, in turn, Lazika could become an excellent springboard for an attack on Byzantium from the sea. From an economic point of view, Lazika was needed by both powers as an area that was important in Black Sea trade. Close trade relations have long linked the Mediterranean world with Lazika. In the VI century. skins of wild animals, leather and slaves were exported from Lazika to Byzantium, and Byzantine merchants brought there bread, salt, and wine. Christianization and dynastic marriages were quickly followed by the political and military subjugation of the country. Under Justinian, the Byzantines brought their troops into Lazika, built a number of fortresses there, where they stationed their own garrisons. The most important stronghold of Byzantine rule here was the powerful seaside citadel of Petra, built on the orders of Justinian, located south of the Phasis River. The actual administration of Lazika was concentrated in the hands of Byzantine governors.

Discontent began to grow in the country. The Laz were indignant that, under the guise of friendly assistance, the Byzantines actually occupied their territory. The rule of the Byzantine governor John Tzibus caused especially strong indignation. He established a monopoly on trade and took it into his own hands, sold spoiled products to the Laz that his soldiers did not need, and charged huge prices for them, and banned the import of bread, salt and wine from Byzantium by merchants. This was the last straw that broke the cup of patience.

The Laz sent envoys to the Persian Shah, asking him for help. Khosrow I began to prepare for the invasion of Lazika. He wanted to finally subjugate flourishing Iberia. Having invaded Lazika in 541 with a huge army, Khosrow I won a number of victories and, thanks to the help of local residents, captured the fortress of Petra, after which the fortresses of Sevastopol and Titicit were captured. The commanders of the Byzantine troops stationed in these fortresses set fire to houses, destroyed fortress walls, and themselves fled by sea to Trebizond. Khosrow decided to return to Persia, leaving a strong garrison in Petra. To divert Persian troops from the Caucasus, Justinian's government sent Belisarius to the territory of Persia itself. And although he won only a minor victory, taking the small fortress of Sisavran in Mesopotamia, the goal of sabotage was achieved: Khosrow returned to his country.

In subsequent years, the war was fought with varying degrees of success. Failures in the war with Totila in Italy and the difficult economic situation of the country forced Justinian in 545 to seek peace with Iran. A truce was concluded for five years. Justinian bought this respite at a high price: he sent the Shah 2 thousand or gold; however, in return, Khosrow released three thousand captured Byzantines to their homeland without ransom.

After 545, to everyone's relief, a period of relative calm began in the relations between Byzantium and Iran, disturbed only by constant conflicts between the Arabs of Arefa and Alamundar, and alarming events in Lazika and other regions of the Caucasus. Here, a kind of “war during peace” was constantly going on between the great powers to lure away new satellites. The Laz, having experienced the brunt of Persian rule, again surrendered under the protection of Byzantium in 549. At the same time, the Persians began to build a fleet in Lazika with the aim of attacking Byzantium. They decided to kill the Laz king Gubaz. The attempt on his life served as a signal for the Laz to switch to the side of the empire. The never-ending struggle for Lasika began again. Taking advantage of the Laz's requests for help, Justinian immediately sent a 7,000-strong army here in 549. The fortress of Peter again became the center of military operations. The flight of the Byzantines from under the walls of Petra did not take long to affect the mood of other Caucasian tribes, wavering between Iran and Byzantium. In 550, the Abkhazians, who until that time had been vassals of the empire, went over to the side of Iran.

At the beginning of 551, using the help of the Savir Huns and the advantages of Byzantine military equipment, the military leader Bessa finally captured Petra and tore down its fortifications to the ground so that they could no longer fall into the hands of the Persians. But neither side could achieve a decisive advantage. The Caucasian tribes leaned either towards Iran, then again switched to Byzantium. In 552, Svaneti became a satellite of Iran, and in 554, the Misimian tribe. The Laz king Gubaz firmly adhered to the alliance with the empires. However, the treachery and greed of the Byzantine commanders almost ruined the position of the Byzantines in Lazika. Gubaz complained to Justinian about the robberies of his commanders, and out of revenge they treacherously killed this faithful ally of the empire. The murder of Gubaz almost led to an uprising in Lazika. Nevertheless, the pro-Byzantine party of the nobility and merchants was so strong here that it insisted on maintaining allied relations with the empire, although it put forward the conditions for the punishment of the regicides and the transfer of the throne to Gubaz’s brother, Guafia. The demands of the Laz were immediately fulfilled by Justinian. But the position of the Byzantines in Lazika was greatly shaken, which Iran was not slow to take advantage of.

In the spring of 555, a 60,000-strong Persian army flooded Lazika and began a bloody battle with the Byzantines for the main city of the country, Fasis, located in the lower reaches of the river of the same name. The Persians suffered a terrible defeat. The Mysimian tribe, which rebelled against the empire, was again subjugated and severely punished. Khosrow decided at the same time to stop active military operations in Lazika. After a truce that lasted 6 years, peace was finally concluded in 561 for a period of 50 years. Both great powers had to make serious concessions. Khosrow had to abandon Lazika and thus the dream of gaining a foothold on the Black Sea. However, Svaneti and Georgia (Iberia) remained under Iranian rule. The status quo was recognized in Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Syria. The Shah's hopes of gaining access to the Mediterranean Sea also failed. Byzantium was obliged to pay Iran annually 300 thousand nomism, or over 400 libras of gold. Both powers accepted obligations not to attack countries and peoples under the supreme authority of the other contracting party, and not to build new fortifications in the border areas. Much attention in the peace treaty was paid to issues of trade regulation. It was established that trade should be carried out in Nisibis - on Iranian territory and in Dar - on Byzantine territory, subject to the payment of customs duties equal to 10% of the value of goods. Not only the Iranian and Byzantine merchants themselves, but also the Arabs had to obey this order. According to an additional agreement, the Byzantine government managed to achieve religious tolerance for Christians living in Iran.

So, the long-term and extremely exhausting wars of Byzantium and Iran ended in lasting peace. This was a huge relief for the peoples of both great powers. The sacrifices were largely in vain. Iran remained cut off from the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and Byzantium was unable to break the Persian monopoly in trade with the countries of the Far East. Ultimately, both Byzantium and Iran emerged from these wars weakened. The peoples subject to Byzantium and Iran, in particular, the inhabitants of both Armenia, Lazika, Iberia and other regions of the Caucasus, as well as the northern Arab tribes, never freed themselves from the foreign yoke.

In the 6th century, especially during the reign of Emperor Justinian, the influence of Byzantium in the Northern Black Sea region increased significantly. At this time, she firmly held in her hands a trade monopoly and military dominance in the Black Sea. The empire owned Kherson, Bosporus (now Kerch) and the Taman Peninsula. Crimea, this pearl of the Northern Black Sea region, has long attracted Byzantium. She was attracted by the riches of Crimea itself, and its role in transit trade with the tribes of the Black Sea region, the Azov region and the North Caucasus, and the opportunities that its military-strategic position would give the empire in the fight against the vast barbarian periphery. The outposts of Byzantine influence on the southern shore of the Black Sea - Kherson and Bosporus - were not only barriers against dangerous attacks by nomadic peoples, but also centers of peaceful relations with the Huns, Alans, Goths, and Slavs. It was from these barbarian tribes that Byzantium drew the mercenary army it so needed for its conquests in the West and endless wars with Iran in the East. Kherson and Bosporus, in addition, were trading posts of the empire. Byzantine merchants brought here precious goods of the East - spices, aromas, pearls, luxurious fabrics, jewelry. Archaeological excavations of Kherson and other cities of Crimea indicate the import in the 6th century. to Taurica metal (especially lead) products, agricultural implements, glass and ceramic dishes, various fabrics 43. It is possible that bread, which was needed by the large population of this city, was also imported from Asia Minor to Kherson. Through Kherson and the Bosporus there was a constant exchange with the local agricultural population of Taurica and the steppe Huns. In exchange for Byzantine goods, furs, leather, cattle and many slaves were exported from here. In addition, salt was brought from Kherson - an object of primordial trade of the Chersonese people. Cherson's trade with Byzantium went along the well-known sea route - to Asia Minor and Constantinople. In the VI century. There was a significant development of shipping on the Black Sea. For Cherson, Bosporus and Lazika, the Byzantine government even established a maritime duty, which consisted of supplying ships and their equipment to the state. Through the Bosporus in the 6th century. Economic ties between the empire and the settled population and nomads of the Azov region and the North Caucasus were established. Fishing, winemaking, production of building ceramics, bricks, tiles, stone and wood processing, and shipbuilding 44 were developed in Kherson.

To subjugate the barbarian tribes of Taurica to its influence, Byzantium, as always, widely used bribery; tribal leaders were granted various privileges and pompous imperial titles; The preaching of Christianity was also called upon to play a significant role. In the first years of Justinian's reign, Byzantine diplomats and Orthodox missionaries managed to win over the nobility of the Hunnic tribes of Taurica to the side of the empire. The khan of one Hun tribe, Grod (Gord), favored by the emperor, recognized the supremacy of Byzantium and was sent to the Bosporus to “guard the interests of the empire.” He agreed to accept Byzantine troops into his possessions. However, an uprising broke out in the Bosporus. Grod was killed and the Byzantine detachment was completely destroyed. Then Justinian resorted to open military intervention in the affairs of the Bosporus. The uprising of the Huns was brutally suppressed, the Bosporus was finally subjugated to the power of the empire. The city's fortifications were rebuilt. Without stopping there, Justinian included the opposite bank of the Bosporus into the orbit of Byzantine influence. The dominance of Byzantium in the Bosporus continued until the Khazar invasion at the end of the 7th century.

Mindful of the constant danger from the barbarians, Justinian energetically took up the construction of fortifications also in Kherson. The construction activity of the Byzantines covered the southwestern mountainous region of Tavrika - the so-called Dori region with its center in the Doros (Mangup) fortress. Here, on the site of ancient settlements, the Byzantines built two fortresses: Alustiy (now Alushta) and Gurzuvity (now Gurzuf). Archaeological excavations show that by the 6th century. also includes the construction of fortress walls on the Eski-Kermen plateau, Mangup and the Surensky fortification, which dominated the mountain pass from the Taurica steppes to Kherson. The Byzantines fortified strategically important points in mountainous Taurica, which protected passages to the coast, especially to Kherson. The construction of fortresses was aimed not only at protecting the local population from barbarian raids, but also at subordinating the local population to Byzantine rule.

Under Justinian, the empire established political and ecclesiastical relations with the Goths who lived in the Crimea. By agreement with the empire, the Goths supplied soldiers to the army of the Byzantine emperor and protected Kherson from the attacks of the nomadic Huns. The Goths professed Christianity in its Arian form, but around 548, at their request, an Orthodox bishop from Byzantium was sent to them. Although during the reign of Justinian there was an energetic Christianization of the local population of Taurica, a significant part of it still remained committed to paganism.

In the cities and regions of Taurica subject to the empire, the Byzantine tax and administrative system was introduced. Most often, both military and civil control were concentrated in the hands of the commander of the Byzantine troops stationed in Kherson or Bosporus. Customs and tax officials played a major role.

So, the power of Byzantium in Taurica in the 6th century. was expanded and strengthened. It seemed that Taurica had firmly entered the circle of Byzantine possessions in the Northern Black Sea region. However, just as in Armenia, Lazika, North Africa, Italy and Spain, the Byzantines here did not enjoy the sympathy of the local population. The muted discontent of the popular masses with tax oppression and the arbitrariness of the military, which invariably accompanied the establishment of Byzantine power, grew everywhere.