"The Battle of Abritus was an engagement fought between the armies of Rome under Emperor Decius (reign 249-251) and a coalition of Goths under the leadership of Cniva (circa 250 to circa 270?) in 251, resulting in a victory for Cniva and the death of Decius and his son in a total defeat of the Roman army."
"Had Cniva capitalized on this victory and returned for another attack, he could have destroyed whatever forces Rome had left in the region to mount against him; he did not, however, and chose to take his substantial booty home to fight against Rome another day."
"There is no doubt that Cniva's victory in 251 was a severe blow to Rome and the first time a sitting Roman emperor - as well as his son and successor - was killed in battle."
The Battle of Abritus occurred in 251 near the Beli Lom River in modern Bulgaria between Roman forces under Emperor Decius and Gothic forces led by Cniva. Cniva had previously attacked Novae and besieged Nicopolis ad Istrum before the decisive engagement. The battle resulted in a total Roman defeat, with Decius and his son killed. Cniva withdrew with substantial booty and captives rather than pursuing further military advantage. This victory represented a severe blow to Rome during the Crisis of the Third Century, a period of imperial instability that began with Emperor Alexander Severus's assassination by his troops in 235.
#battle-of-abritus #roman-gothic-conflict #crisis-of-the-third-century #emperor-decius #military-history
Read at World History Encyclopedia
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]