Delphi Complete Works of Procopius

by Procopius of Caesarea

Meriopontede

  Tredetetilious

  Braeola

  Motreses

  Vicanovo

  Quartiana

  Julioballae

  Pontzas

  Zanes

  [5] [1] Thus did the Emperor Justinian fortify the whole interior of Illyricum. I shall also explain in what manner he fortified the bank of the Ister River, which they also call the Danube, by means of strongholds and garrisons of troops. [2] The Roman Emperors of former times, by way of preventing the crossing of the Danube by the barbarians who live on the other side, occupied the entire bank of this river with strongholds, and not the right bank of the stream alone, for in some parts of it they built towns and fortresses on its other bank. [3] However, they did not so build these strongholds that they were impossible to attack, if anyone should come against them, but they only provided that the bank of the river was not left destitute of men, since the barbarians there had no knowledge of storming walls. [4] In fact the majority of these strongholds consisted only of a single tower, and they were called appropriately “lone towers,” and very few men were stationed in them. [5] At that time this alone was quite sufficient to frighten off the barbarian clans, so that they would not undertake to attack the Romans. [6] But at a later time Attila invaded with a great army, and with no difficulty razed the fortresses; then, with no one standing against him, he plundered the greater part of the Roman Empire. [7] But the Emperor Justinian rebuilt the defences which had been torn down, not simply as they had been before, but so as to give the fortifications the greatest possible strength; and he added many more which he built himself. [8] In this way he completely restored the safety of the Roman Empire, which by then had been lost. And I shall explain how all this was accomplished.

  [9] The River Ister flows down from the mountains in the country of the Celts, who are now called Gauls; and it passes through a great extent of country which for the most part is altogether barren, though in some places it is inhabited by barbarians who live a kind of brutish life and have no dealings with other men. [10] When it gets close to Dacia, for the first time it clearly forms the boundary between the barbarians, who hold its left bank, and the territory of the Romans, which is on the right. [11] Consequently the Romans apply the term Ripesia to this part of Dacia, for ripa signifies bank in the Latin tongue. [12] Accordingly they had made a beginning by building on the bank there in ancient times a city, by name Singidunum. [13] This the barbarians captured in time, and they immediately razed it, leaving the place quite destitute of inhabitants. [14] They did precisely the same thing to most of the other strongholds. [15] But the Emperor Justinian restored the entire city and surrounded it with a very strong fortification, and thus made it once more a famous and important city. [16] And he set up another new fortress of exceptional strength •about eight miles distant from Singidunum, which they call by the appropriate name of Octavus. [17] Beyond it was the ancient city of Viminacium, which the Emperor rebuilt entire and made new, for it had long before been ruined down to its uttermost foundations.

  [6] [1] As one goes on from Viminacium there chance to be three strongholds on the bank of the Ister, Pinci and Cupi and Novae. [2] These were formerly both single in construction and when named were single towers. But now the Emperor Justinian has greatly increased the number of the houses and enlarged the defences at these places, and thereby has properly given them the rank of cities. [3] And opposite Novae in the mainland on the other side of the river, had stood from ancient times a neglected tower, by name Literata; the men of former times used to call this Lederata. This the present Emperor transformed into a great fortress of exceptional strength. [5] After Novae are the forts of Cantabaza, Smornês, Campsês, Tanata, Zernês, and Ducepratum. And on the opposite side he built a number of other forts from their lowest foundations. [6] Farther on is the so-called Caput Bovis, the work of the Roman Emperor Trajan, and beyond this is an ancient town named Zanes. [7] And he placed very strong defences around all these and so made them impregnable bulwarks of the State. [8] And not far from this Zanes there is a fort, Pontes by name. The river throws out a sort of branch there, and after thus passing around a certain small portion of the bank, it turns again to its own stream and is reunited with itself. [9] It does this, not of its own accord, but compelled by human devices. [10] The reason why the place was called Pontes, and why they made this forced diversion of the Ister at this point, I shall now make clear.

  [11] The Roman Emperor Trajan, being of an impetuous and active temperament, seemed to be filled with resentment that his realm was not unlimited, but was bounded by the Ister River. [12] So he was eager to span it with a bridge that he might be able to cross it and that there might be no obstacle to his going against the barbarians beyond it. [13] How he built this bridge I shall not be at pains to relate, but shall let Apollodorus of Damascus, who was the master-builder of the whole work, describe the operation. [14] However, the Romans derived no profit from it subsequently, because later on the bridge was completely destroyed by the floods of the Ister and by the passage of time. [15] At the same time Trajan built two forts, one on either side of the river; the one on the opposite bank they named Theodora, while the one in Dacia was called Pontes from the work — [16] for the Romans call a bridge pontem in the Latin tongue. But when boats reached that point, the river was no longer navigable, since the ruins and the foundations of the bridge lay in the way; and it is for this reason that they compel the river to change its course and to go about in a detour, so that they may keep it navigable even beyond that point. [17] Both these forts had suffered so much from the passage of time, and more still from the assaults of the barbarians, that they had come to be utterly destroyed. [18] And the Emperor Justinian restored Pontes, which is on the right of the river, providing it with new and thorough impregnable defences, and thus re-established the safety of Illyricum. However, the fort on the other side of the river, the one which they call Theodora, he considered in no way worthy of his attention, exposed as it was to the barbarians there. But the strongholds which now stand beyond Pontes he himself built new; these are named Mareburgou and Susiana, Harmata and Timena, and Theodoropolis, Stiliburgou and Halicaniburgou.

  [19] There was a certain small town near by, Acues by name, which had fallen partly into decay; this the Emperor put in order. [20] Beyond that lay Burgonobore and Laccoburgo, and the fortress called Dorticum, utterly effaced by time, which he made into a fort now very strong. [21] And he remodelled a stronghold called Judaeus, which had consisted of a single tower, and made it a splendid fortress in name and in fact. [22] Nor did he neglect the fort named Burgualtu, which previously was desolate and wholly without inhabitants, but also surrounded with a new circuit-wall another place which they call Gombes. [23] Also he rebuilt the defences of Crispas, which had suffered with the passage of time, likewise Longiniana and Ponteserium, an exceptionally fine piece of work. [24] In Bononia and Novus he restored the parapets which had crumbled. And all the parts of the city Ratiara which had collapsed he re-erected. [25] He improved many other places in accordance with their particular needs, either making very small places large, or curtailing their size where it was excessive, so that they might not be easy for an enemy to attack either because of excessive smallness or because of too great size; thus, for example, Mocatiana, which previously was a single tower standing alone, he converted into the more complete fortress which it now is. [26] On the other hand, the fortress of Almou, which used to cover a large area, he brought into small compass and thus made it safe and able to defy the assaults of the enemy. [27] In many places, finding a single tower standing by itself and therefore an easy prey for assailants, he converted it into a very strong fortress; [28] this he did, for example, with Tricesa and Putedis. Furthermore, he restored in a marvellous way the damaged defences at Cebrus. At Bigranaê he constructed a fortress which had not existed before, and very close to it a second one, Onus by name, where a single tower had previously stood. [29] And not far away there were the bar
e foundations of a city which in early times used to bear the name of Augustes. [30] But now, still bearing its ancient name, though all made over new by the Emperor Justinian and quite complete, it knows a rather numerous population. [31] Also he restored the damaged portion of the defences of Aëdabê, and put in order the city of Varianaa which had long lain in ruins. In addition, he built a wall around Valeriana, which previously had no defences.

  [32] Furthermore, he gave his attention to towns which do not lie upon the bank of the river but stand at a great distance from it — towns which were about to fall in ruins for the most part — and he encircled them with walls which are practically impregnable. [33] These places are named Castra Martis and Zetnucortou and Iscus. And an ancient fort named Hunnôn, on the bank of the river, he treated as worthy of attention in all respects and particularly in the matter of its circuit-wall. [34] There is a certain place not far removed from this fort of Hunnôn where there are two fortresses, one on either side of the Ister River, the one in Illyricum named Palatiolum, and the one on the other side, Sycibida. [35] These, which had been ruined by time, the Emperor Justinian restored and thereby checked the incursions of the barbarians of that region; and beyond them he built a fort at an ancient stronghold which was named Utôs. [36] And at the extremity of the Illyrian territory he built a fort named Lapidarias, and he transformed into a notable fortress a single tower which had stood alone, called Lucernariaburgou. [37] These then were the works executed by the Emperor Justinian in Illyricum. Yet it was not with buildings alone that he fortified this land, but he also established very considerable garrisons of troops in all the strongholds and thereby warded off the assaults of the barbarians.

  [7] [1] Such, then, are the strongholds of Illyricum along the Ister River. But we must now go on to the fortified towns of Thrace, those namely which were built by the Emperor Justinian along the river-bank there. [2] For it has seemed to me not improper, after first describing the coast of that region, then to take up also the record of what he did in the interior. [3] First, then, let us proceed to Mysia, the home of men whom the poets call hand-to-hand fighters, for their country borders upon Illyricum. [5] So beyond that place which they call Lucernariaburgou the Emperor Justinian built the fortress Securisca, a new work of his own. Beyond this he restored the parts of Cyntodemus which had suffered. And still further on he built a city which had not existed previously, and this he named Theodoropolis, after the Empress. [6] Furthermore, he preserved the fortresses called Iatrôn and Tigas by building anew the parts which had suffered, and to the fort of Maxentius he added a tower, which he thought it needed. [7] And he built the fort of Cyntôn which had not existed before. Beyond this is the stronghold Trasmariscas. Just opposite this, on the other bank of the river, Constantine, Emperor of the Romans, once built with no small care a fort, Daphnê by name, thinking it not inexpedient that the river should be guarded on both sides at this point. [8] As time went on, the barbarians destroyed this entirely; but the Emperor Justinian rebuilt it, beginning at the foundations. [9] And beyond Trasmariscas is the stronghold Altenôn and one which they call Candidiana, destroyed long before by the same enemy, which he repaired with all the care that they deserved. [10] And there are three forts, Saltupyrgus, Dorostolus and Sycidaba, one after the other along the bank of the Ister, which the Emperor put in order by carefully repairing such parts of each one as had suffered. [12] He displayed a similar care in the case of Questris, which lies back from the river. And Palmatis, which was cramped for space, he enlarged and made very much broader, though it is not on the bank of the river. [13] Close to this he built also a new fort named Adina, because the barbarian Sclaveni were constantly laying concealed ambuscades there against travellers, thus making the whole district impassable. [14] He likewise built the fortress of Tiliciôn and a stronghold which lies to its left.

  [15] Such was the condition of the fortresses of Mysia on the bank of the Ister River, as well as those near it. [16] Next I shall proceed to Scythia; there the first fortress is the one named for St. Cyril, of which the Emperor Justinian rebuilt with care those portions which had suffered with time. [17] Beyond this from ancient times there was a stronghold, Ulmitôn by name, but since the barbarian Sclaveni had been making their ambuscades there for a great length of time and had been tarrying there very long, it had come to be wholly deserted and nothing of it was left except the name. [18] So he built it all up from the foundations and thus freed that region from the menace and the attacks of the Sclaveni. [19] Beyond this is the city of Ibida, whose circuit-wall had suffered in many places; these he renewed without delay and made the city very strong. [20] And beyond it he built a new fortress, a work of his own, which they call Aegissus. At the extremity of Scythia lies another fortress, Halmyris by name, a great part of which had become manifestly insecure, and this he saved by rebuilding it. [21] All the other strongholds also within the bounds of Europe are worthy of mention.

  [8] [1] All the building that was done by the Emperor Justinian in Dardania, Epirus, Macedonia and the other parts of Illyricum, also in Greece and along the Ister River has already been described by me. [2] Next let us go to Thrace, laying down as the fairest foundation, as it were, for our narrative the environs of Byzantium, since this city is preëminent in Thrace not only because of its power, but also by reason of its natural site, planted as it is on Europe like a kind of acropolis and finally setting a guard over the sea which divides it from Asia. [3] I have already described in the preceding narrative all the buildings of the city itself, including the work which was done for the shrines, both inside and outside the walls of Constantinople. I shall now proceed from that point.

  [4] In a suburb of the city there is a fortress which they call Strongylum from the form in which it is built. [5] The road which leads from that point to Rhegium was for the most part uneven; and if rain chanced to fall it became a bog and was difficult for travellers to get through. [6] But now this Emperor has paved it with blocks of stone each large enough to load a waggon and so has made it altogether practicable and easy. [7] In length, this road extends all the way to Rhegium and its breadth is such that two waggons, going in opposite directions, have no lack of room. [8] The paving-stones are exceptionally coarse, so that you would expect them to be mill-stones; and they are of goodly size. Consequently each one covers much ground and stands very high. [9] They are very carefully worked so as to form a smooth and even surface, and they give the appearance not simply of being laid together at the joints, or even of being exactly fitted, but they seem actually to have grown together. So much, then, for this.

  [10] There chances to be a kind of lake very close to this place called Rhegium, into which pour streams that flow from the adjacent uplands. [11] This lake extends as far as the sea so that in the very narrow tongue of land between them they have a common shore. [12] Both sea and lake wash against this shore as their waters roll against its opposite sides, and they bellow against each other as they constantly rush straight on towards one another, sharing a common beach. But when they come very close, they check their flow and turn upon themselves, just as if they had fixed their limits there. [13] However, there is a place where the waters mingle, having a sort of strait between them, and it is uncertain to which of them belongs the water of the strait. [14] Neither does the current of the sea always flow into the lake nor does the lake continuously empty into the sea; but when heavy rains have fallen, and when the south wind has been blowing, the water of the channel seems to flow out from the lake, [15] but if the wind comes from the north, the sea seems to be flooding into the lake. At this point, moreover, the sea is shallow for a considerable distance, with the exception of a very small space where the depth is great. [16] Indeed this is so narrow that it is called Myrmex. The strait which joins the sea and the lake, as I have said, was crossed in ancient times by a wooden bridge, with great danger for those passing that way, because they were often destroyed together with the bridge-timbers if they happened to collapse. [17] But now the
Emperor Justinian has carried the bridge on a huge arch built of picked stones, and thus he has made the crossing there free from danger.

  [18] Beyond Rhegium is a certain city named Athyras, whose inhabitants he found suffering from extreme scarcity of water; this difficulty he remedied for them by building a reservoir there, in which by storing at just the right time the unnecessary excess of water, he dispensed it as needed to the inhabitants. He also rebuilt such parts of the circuit-wall as had suffered.

  [19] Beyond Athyras is a certain place which the inhabitants call Episcopia. [20] The Emperor Justinian, perceiving that this lay exposed to the assaults of the enemy, and that a large expanse of country here was altogether unguarded, since no stronghold at all existed, built a fortress in that place; and he built the towers there, not in the customary manner, but as follows. [21] At regular intervals a structure is built out from the circuit-wall, very narrow at first, but finally spreading out to a great breadth; on this in each case a tower was erected. [22] Thus it is impossible for the enemy to get close to the wall anywhere, because when they get into a precarious position between the towers they are easily shot at from both sides and from above by the guards there and are destroyed. [23] The gates too he did not place in the customary position between the towers, but at an angle, in the narrow part of the projection which runs out from the wall, where they could not be seen by the enemy but were masked behind the towers. [24] In that place Theodore, a very clever man who held the office of silentiarius, was of service to the Emperor. [25] Thus were these fortifications built. And it is proper, proceeding thence to the long walls, to explain them briefly.

  [9] [1] The Sea, commencing from the Ocean and from Spain, goes on in a single direction, approximately eastward, keeping Europe on its left as far as Thrace, but at that point it divides itself and while one portion goes towards the East, another part of it turns gradually, at an oblique angle, and forms the Euxine Sea, as it is called. [2] When it reaches Byzantium, it makes a bend about the eastern portion of the city, as if rounding a turning-post, and bending much more obliquely, it runs in the form of a strait, turning the front and back portions of Thrace into an isthmus, as one would expect. [3] This does not mean that the sea is divided here into two separate bays, as is wont to happen at other isthmuses, but it circles round in a marvellous way, from two sides surrounding Thrace and especially all the suburbs of Byzantium. [4] The people there build and adorn their suburbs, not only to meet the actual needs of life, but they display an insolent and boundless luxury and all the other vices that the power of wealth brings when it comes to men. [5] And they accumulate much furniture in their houses and make it a point to keep costly objects in them. Thus, when it comes about that any of the enemy overrun the land of the Romans suddenly, the damage caused there is much greater than in other places, and the region is then overwhelmed with irreparable calamities. [6] The Emperor Anastasius had determined to put a stop to this and so built long walls at a distance of not less than •forty miles from Byzantium, uniting the two shores of the sea on a line where they are separated by about a two-days’ journey. [7] By this means he thought that everything inside was placed in security. But in fact this was the cause of greater calamities. For neither was it possible to make safe a structure of such great length nor could it be guarded rigorously. [8] And whenever the enemy descended on any portion of these long walls, they both overpowered all the guards with no difficulty, and falling unexpectedly upon the other people they inflicted loss not easy to describe.