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The Battle of Tricamarum took place on December 15, 533 between the armies of the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, under
Belisarius Belisarius (; el, Βελισάριος; The exact date of his birth is unknown. – 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under the emperor Justinian I. He was instrumental in the reconquest of much of the Mediterranean terr ...
, and the Vandal Kingdom, commanded by King
Gelimer Gelimer (original form possibly Geilamir, 480–553), King of the Vandals and Alans (530–534), was the last Germanic ruler of the North African Kingdom of the Vandals. He became ruler on 15 June 530 after deposing his first cousin twice rem ...
, and his brother
Tzazon Tzazo (also known as Tzazon or Zano) was the brother to King Gelimer (530–534), the last Vandal ruler of the North Africa. Tzazo died on 15 December 533 during the Battle of Tricamarum, which finally brought to an end the Vandal Kingdom in North ...
. It followed the Byzantine victory at the
Battle of Ad Decimum The Battle of Ad Decimum took place on September 13, 533 between the armies of the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, and the Byzantine Empire, under the command of General Belisarius. This event and events in the following year are sometimes ...
, and eliminated the power of the Vandals for good, completing the reconquest of
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
under the Byzantine Emperor
Justinian I Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renova ...
. The main contemporary source for the battle is
Procopius Procopius of Caesarea ( grc-gre, Προκόπιος ὁ Καισαρεύς ''Prokópios ho Kaisareús''; la, Procopius Caesariensis; – after 565) was a prominent late antique Greek scholar from Caesarea Maritima. Accompanying the Roman gen ...
, ''De Bello Vandalico'', which occupies Books III and IV of his magisterial ''Wars of Justinian''.


Prelude

After the great Byzantine victory at the
Battle of Ad Decimum The Battle of Ad Decimum took place on September 13, 533 between the armies of the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, and the Byzantine Empire, under the command of General Belisarius. This event and events in the following year are sometimes ...
, Belisarius and his army captured Carthage. Vandal king Gelimer set up at
Bulla Regia Bulla Regia was a Berber, Punic, and Roman town near present-day Jendouba, Tunisia. Its surviving ruins and archaeological site are noted for their Hadrianic-era semi-subterranean housing, a protection from the fierce heat and effects of the sun ...
in Numidia, about to the west of Carthage (at what is now the western border of modern
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
). He knew that in his current state he would not be able to face Belisarius's forces, so he sent messengers to his brother Tzazon who was then campaigning in
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
. When he received the message, Tzazon set about returning to Africa to join Gelimer. Meanwhile, Gelimer also attempted to divide the forces helping Belisarius. He offered rewards to the local
Punic The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of t ...
and Berber tribes for every Byzantine head they could bring, and sent agents to Carthage to attempt to have the Byzantine Hun mercenaries—vital to his success at Ad Decimum—betray him. Tzazon and his army joined Gelimer early in December, at which point Gelimer felt his forces were strong enough to take the offensive. With the two brothers at the head of the army, the Vandal force paused on the way to Carthage to destroy the great aqueduct which supplied the city with most of its water. Belisarius had fortified the city in the twelve weeks since Ad Decimum, but knew about Gelimer's agents and could no longer trust the Huns in his forces. Instead of waiting for a possible treachery during a siege, he formed up his army and marched out with the cavalry at the front, the Byzantines in the center, and the Huns at the rear of the column.


Battle

The two forces met at Tricamarum, some west of Carthage, and the Byzantine cavalry immediately charged the Vandal lines, reforming and attacking two more times. The Byzantine infantry then furiously attacked the Vandal infantry, and the Byzantines gained the advantage. During the third Byzantine cavalry charge Tzazon was killed within sight of Gelimer. As had happened at Ad Decimum, Gelimer lost heart. The Vandal lines began to retreat, and soon were in rout. Gelimer fled back into Numidia with what remained of his army, having lost 800 men. Belisarius then marched on the city of Hippo Regius, which opened its gates to him.


Aftermath

Gelimer realized that his kingdom was lost, and attempted to flee to
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
where some Vandals still remained, not having followed the main forces when they crossed into North Africa years earlier. However, the Byzantines heard of his plans and intercepted him. He was forced to abandon his belongings and take refuge in the mountains of Tunis with the Berbers. The next year he was found and surrounded by Roman forces led by
Pharas the Herulian Pharas the Herulian (also known as "Varus") was a sixth-century commander of Herulian forces loyal to Byzantium, who figures briefly in Procopius’ narrative of Justinian's wars. Edward Gibbon notes, in his '' History of the Decline and Fall o ...
. At first he refused to surrender, even after promises of being allowed to rule. After a particularly nasty winter, he eventually gave up and surrendered to Belisarius. The Vandal Kingdom ended, and their provinces in
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
, Corsica, and the Balearic Islands came under the control of Justinian.


Importance

Paul K. Davis writes, "With this victory, the Byzantines regained control of North Africa for the Eastern Roman Empire. This position became a springboard for the Byzantine invasion of Italy, and that invasion reincorporated, temporarily, the Eastern and Western Roman Empire.".


References


Sources

*{{cite book, last=Hughes, first=Ian, title=Belisarius: The Last Roman General, url=https://archive.org/details/belisariuslastro00ianh, url-access=registration, publisher=Westholme Publishing, LLC, location=Yardley, PA, year=2009, isbn=978-1-59416-528-3 533 Tricamarum Tricamarum Tricamarum 530s in the Byzantine Empire Tricamarum Tricamarum