The Battle of Tzirallum was one of the Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy (306-324 AD)

Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy (306-324 AD)

The Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy were a series of conflicts between the co-emperors of the Roman Empire, starting in 306 AD with the usurpation of Maxentius and the defeat of Severus, and ending with the defeat of Licinius at the hands of Constantine I in 324 AD.-Background:The Tetrarchy refers to...

 fought in 313

313

Year 313 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus...

 near Heraclea

Heraclea Sintica

Heraclea Sintica was an ancient Greekcity in Thracian Macedonia, to the south of the Struma River, the site of which is marked by the village of Rupite, Bulgaria, and which was identified by the discovery of local coins....

 between the Roman armies of emperors Licinius

Licinius

Licinius I , was Roman Emperor from 308 to 324. Co-author of the Edict of Milan that granted official toleration to Christians in the Roman Empire, for the majority of his reign he was the rival of Constantine I...

 and Maximinus

Maximinus

Maximinus II , also known as Maximinus Daia or Maximinus Daza, was Roman Emperor from 308 to 313. He was born of Dacian peasant stock to the half sister of the emperor Galerius near their family lands around Felix Romuliana; a rural area then in the Danubian region of Moesia, now Eastern Serbia.He...

.

Background

The emperors Licinius and Maximinus were locked in a struggle for supremacy for the Eastern provinces of the Roman Empire

Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....

. Maximinus had crossed the Bosphorus in 313 AD, and taken Byzantium

Byzantium

Byzantium was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas . The name Byzantium is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...

. Possessing an army of around 70,000, he proceeded to lay siege to the town of Heraclea, which he captured after a siege of eight days. No sooner had he taken the city that news reached him that Licinius had pitched his camp at the distance of only eighteen miles. After a period of fruitless negotiations, in which both emperors attempted to win over the loyalty of the other’ armies, the emperors met in battle on April 30.

The battle

Maximinus had brought over with him a highly disciplined and veteran army from the Asiatic provinces. Licinius on the other hand had collected an army of 30,000 from the province of Illyria

Illyria

In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....

. As the battle commenced, Licinius initially found himself overwhelmed by Maximinus’ numerical superiority. However, his superior military skill and the firmness of his troops soon turned the odds to his favour. By the end of the day had completely routed the forces of Maximinus, thereby obtaining a decisive victory.

Aftermath

Maximinus did not hang around to enjoy his defeat. The incredible speed which Maximinus exerted in his flight is much more celebrated than his prowess in the battle. Twenty-four hours afterwards he was seen pale, trembling, and without his Imperial ornaments, at Nicomedia

Nicomedia

Nicomedia was an ancient city in what is now Turkey, founded in 712/11 BC as a Megarian colony and was originally known as Astacus . After being destroyed by Lysimachus, it was rebuilt by Nicomedes I of Bithynia in 264 BC under the name of Nicomedia, and has ever since been one of the most...

, one hundred and sixty miles from the place of his defeat. Licinius took his time and soon pursued Maximinus into the Asiatic provinces.