Battle of Marcianople

Battle of Marcianople
Part of the Gothic War of 376–382
and Roman–Germanic Wars
Date376
Location
Marcianople
Result Gothic victory
Belligerents
Goths Eastern Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Fritigern Lupicinus
Strength
7,000–8,000[1] 5,000[2]
Casualties and losses
Unknown Over half the army killed[3]

The Battle of Marcianople or Marcianopolis took place in 376 following the Goths' migration over the Danube. It was the first notable battle of the Gothic War of 376–382.[4]

After a failed Roman attempt to assassinate the Gothic leadership at a banquet in Marcianople, the Roman commander Lupicinius gathered all available troops, some 5,000 men, and attacked the 7,000–8,000 Thervingi Goths under Fritigern nine miles to the west of the town. While the Romans adopted a defensive posture on the battlefield, the Goths launched an immediate, all-out assault and bashed and slew the Romans with their shields, swords, and spears. Lupicinius fled as more than half of his army was killed on the spot. The Goths then re-armed themselves with Roman weaponry.

  1. ^ MacDowall 2001, p. 42.
  2. ^ MacDowall 2001, p. 43.
  3. ^ MacDowall 2001, p. 44.
  4. ^ "Cascading Failure: The Roman Disaster at Adrianople AD 378 - Part 2 of 3" by Jeffrey R. Cox Military History Online accessed 13 August 2013