Martin or Martinus was a

Byzantine 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 ...

general of

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

origin who served the Byzantine army during the reign of 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 ''renovat ...

on various fronts. He is first recorded to be active in Mesopotamia in 531 during the

Iberian War Iberian refers to Iberia (disambiguation), 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 anyt ...

. In 533 he took part in the successful

Battle of Tricamarum The Battle of Tricamarum took place on December 15, 533 between the armies of the Byzantine Empire, under Belisarius, and the Vandal Kingdom, commanded by King Gelimer, and his brother Tzazon. It followed the Byzantine victory at the Battle of ...

in North Africa during the

Vandalic War The Vandalic War was a conflict fought in North Africa between the forces of the Byzantine Empire and the Vandalic Kingdom of Carthage in 533–534. It was the first of Justinian I's wars of reconquest of the Western Roman Empire. The Vandal ...

and remained active there until 536. From 536 to 540 he was active in Italy during the

Gothic War (535–554) The Gothic War between the Eastern Roman Empire during the reign of Emperor Justinian I and the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy took place from 535 to 554 in the Italian Peninsula, Dalmatia, Sardinia, Sicily and Corsica. It was one of the last o ...

. In 543-544 he briefly replaced

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 ...

as the ''

magister militum per Orientem Magister is Latin for "master" or "teacher". It may refer to: Positions and titles * Magister degree, an academic degree * Magister equitum, or Master of the Horse * Magister militum, a master of the soldiers * Magister officiorum (''master of of ...

'', leading the disastrous invasion of Persarmenia during the

Lazic War The Lazic War, also known as the Colchidian War or in Georgian historiography as the Great War of Egrisi was fought between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanian Empire for control of the ancient Georgian region of Lazica. The Lazic War lasted f ...

. In 544, he relieved Edessa of a Persian siege in exchange for gold. His last military activities was in 551–556 in the Caucasus during the Lazic War, including the assault on his stronghold at Telephis, his

siege of Onoguris The siege of Onoguris occurred in 554 or 555 AD during the Lazic War between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanian Empire. The Byzantine generals led by Martin needed to score a quick victory on the battlefield to redress their assassination of ...

, and the Persian

siege of Phasis The siege of Phasis took place in 555–556 during the Lazic War between the Byzantine and Sasanian Empires. Expecting an easy victory, the Persians besieged the town of Phasis in Lazica, held by the Byzantines, but were defeated in the ensuing ir ...

. In 555, he had replaced Bessas as the ''

magister militum per Armeniam (Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...

''.

References

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Martin (''magister militum per Armeniam'') Generals of Justinian I Iberian War Lazic War Martin (Armeniam) People of the Gothic War (535–554) People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars Roman-era Thracians Vandalic War