A siege of Martyropolis occurred in Autumn of 531 during the

Iberian War Iberian refers to Iberia. Most commonly Iberian refers to: *Someone or something originating in the Iberian Peninsula, namely from Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. The term ''Iberian'' is also used to refer to anything pertaining to the fo ...

between the

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...

under

Kavadh I Kavad I ( pal, 𐭪𐭥𐭠𐭲 ; 473 – 13 September 531) was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 488 to 531, with a two or three-year interruption. A son of Peroz I (), he was crowned by the nobles to replace his deposed and unpopular u ...

and

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

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 ''renovat ...

. A Roman raid from Martyropolis triggered the Sasanians to launch a siege on the newly fortified frontier city. Initially, the Sasanians had the upper hand, but a series of political events and logistical issues led them to withdraw. It was the last conflict of the Iberian War.

Background

Earlier, the Sasanian king

had ordered a campaign which resulted in a battle at Callinicum. Although the Persians were victorious, the victory was narrow, and no fortress was captured, thus making the campaign inconclusive. Both

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 terri ...

and

Azarethes Azarethes ( el, ), also recorded as Exarath () and Zuraq, was a Sassanid Persian military commander during the Byzantine–Sassanid Wars. His Greek name is possibly a misunderstanding of the honorific title ''hazaraft''. Biography According ...

, the Byzantine and Sasanian generals at Callinicum, respectively, were dismissed due to the high casualties of this battle. Emperor Justinian I then appointed

Sittas Sittas ( el, Σίττας; died 538) was a Byzantine military commander during the reign of Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). During the Iberian War against the Sassanid Empire, Sittas was given command of forces in Armenia, similar to the statu ...

strategos ''Strategos'', plural ''strategoi'', Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized ''strategus'', ( el, στρατηγός, pl. στρατηγοί; Doric Greek: στραταγός, ''stratagos''; meaning "army leader") is used in Greek language, Greek to ...

in charge of the east. At this time, Justinian's policy was to bolster the Roman position and at the same time trying to make a truce with the Persians. In

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

Bessas Bessas is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes cooperate in t ...

had recently been appointed as ''dux Mesopotamiae'' with the frontier city of Martyropolis as his base, which was recently fortified by emperor Justinian I. From there, he performed a successful raid into the Sasanian border land of

Arzanene Arzanene ( el, Ἀρζανηνή) or Aghdznik () was a historical region in the southwest of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. It was ruled by one of the four ''bdeashkhs'' (''bidakhsh'', ''vitaxa'') of Armenia, the highest ranking nobles below t ...

, killing hundreds.

The siege

This led the Sasanians to lay siege on Martyropolis with a capable force under three veteran generals,

Adergoudounbades Adergoudounbadēs ( grc, Ἀδεργουδουνβάδης, before 488 – 541), was a prominent Sasanian nobleman, general, and ''kanarang'' during the reigns of Kavadh I (r. 488–531) and Khosrow I (r. 531–579). His life is known only through ...

(" Chanaranges"),

Bawi Bawi was a Sasanian military officer from the Ispahbudhan family who was involved in the Anastasian War and the Iberian War between the Sasanian and Byzantine Empire. He is also known as Aspebedes, which is a corruption of the title ''spahbed''. ...

("Aspebedes"), and

Mihr-Mihroe Mihr-Mihroe (died 555), in Middle Persian either ''Mihr-Mihrōē''Encyclopaedia Iranica, edited by Ehsan Yar-Shater, Routledge & Kegan Paul Volume 6, Parts 1-3, page 281a or ''Mihrmāh-rōy''; in Byzantine sources Mermeroes ( el, Μερμερόη� ...

. Roman garrison force was commanded by Bessas and Bouzes. Sittas and his Ghassanid ally

Al-Harith ibn Jabalah Al-Ḥārith ibn Jabalah ( ar, الحارث بن جبلة; ''FlaviosArethas () in Greek sources; Khālid ibn Jabalah () in later Islamic sources), was a king of the Ghassanids, a pre- Islamic Arab Christian tribe who lived on the eastern frontie ...

were stationed near the city, but avoided engagement since the Persians had the upper hand in the conflict. However, a series of political events, including the death of

and the perceived threat of Huns, as well as the arrival of winter and the presence of Roman reinforcements at Amida all led the Sasanian field commanders to abandon the siege and agree on an armistice.

Aftermath

Justinian I and the new Sasanian king

Khosrow I Khosrow I (also spelled Khosrau, Khusro or Chosroes; pal, 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩; New Persian: []), traditionally known by his epithet of Anushirvan ( [] "the Immortal Soul"), was the Sasanian Empire, Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from ...

signed a peace treaty dubbed Perpetual Peace (532), Perpetual Peace a year later, ending the Iberian War.

References

* Greatrex, Geoffrey; Lieu, Samuel N. C. (2002). The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars (Part II, 363–630 AD). London: Routledge.
p. 95
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martyropolis 531 Iberian War 530s in the Byzantine Empire 6th century in Iran Battles of the Roman–Sasanian Wars 530s conflicts Sieges involving the Sasanian Empire Sieges involving the Byzantine Empire Martyropolis Sieges of the Roman–Persian Wars