Of the Buildings of Justinian

by Procopius

In Citharizon, which is in the province called Asthianene, he built a new fort on a hilly spot, of great size, and completely impregnable. This place he furnished with a sufficient supply of water, and all other conveniences for its inhabitants, and placed in command of it, as I said before, the other Duke of Armenia with a sufficient garrison of soldiers, thus rendering the tribes of Armenia secure in this quarter also.

As one goes from Citharizon[59] towards Theodosiopolis and Greater Armenia is the country of Corzane, which extends for a distance of about three days’ journey, without any lake, river or mountain to divide it from the country of the Persians, whose frontier is confused with it; so that the inhabitants of this region, whether they be Roman or Persian subjects, have no fear of one another, and never expect any attack, but intermarry with one another, have common markets for their produce, and cultivate the country together. When the rulers of either nation make an expedition against the other at the command of their prince, they always find their neighbours unprotected; for each of them has extremely populous places close to one another, while in former times there was no fortification whatever; so that it was possible for the King of Persia to invade the Roman territory in this quarter more easily than anywhere else, until the Emperor Justinian prevented his doing so, in the following manner. In the midst of this country there was a place named Artaleson, which he surrounded with a very strong wall, and made into an impregnable fortress; he placed a garrison of regular soldiers in it, and appointed a general over them, whom the Romans in the Latin language style ‘a Duke.’ Thus did he fortify the whole of that frontier.

IV. These were the works of the Emperor Justinian in that quarter. I now come to what he did in the rest of Armenia. The city of Satala was formerly in a perilous position, because it is not far distant from the enemy’s country, and is built upon low ground, surrounded by many hills, so that it ought in consequence of its position to possess impregnable fortifications. However, its defences were even more untrustworthy than its position, the works having been badly and carelessly constructed, and by lapse of time having fallen into ruin. The whole of these were demolished by the Emperor, who built a new wall round it of sufficient height to appear to overtop the neighbouring hills, and of sufficient thickness to support such an unusual height with safety. He built round it an outwork of an admirable character, and struck despair into the heart of the enemy. He also built a very strong fort not far from Satala, in the province of Osrhoene.

In this province there was an old fort built by the ancients upon the ridge of a precipitous hill, which was once taken by Pompeius, the Roman general, who, when he became master of the country, fortified it with great care, and named it Colonia. The Emperor Justinian exerted all his power in restoring this fort, which had fallen into decay after so long a time; moreover, he distributed enormous sums of money among the inhabitants of this region, and thus persuaded them to build new fortifications on their own ground, and to restore those which had fallen into ruin; so that nearly all the works situated in that country were built by the Emperor Justinian. There also he built the forts of Baiberdon and Arcon; he restored Lysiormum and Lutararizon;[60] he also built a new fort in the place which is called the Ditch of Germanus. Moreover, he restored the walls of Sebastia[61] and Nicopolis, which are cities of Armenia, which were on the point of falling, having become decayed through age. In them he built churches and monasteries. At Theodosiopolis he built a church dedicated to the Virgin, and restored the monasteries in the places named Petrius and Cucarizon. At Nicopolis[62] he built the monastery of the Forty-five saints, and a church of St. George the Martyr at Bizana. Near Theodosiopolis he restored the monastery named after the Forty Martyrs.

There was a place in what used to be called Lesser Armenia, not far from the river Euphrates, where formerly a regiment of Roman soldiers was stationed. The place was named Melitene, and the regiment was named Legion. Here the Romans in former times had built a square fortification on low ground, which was convenient for soldiers’ quarters and for the reception of their standards. Afterwards, by the orders of Trajan, the Roman Emperor, the place was raised to the dignity of a city, and became the capital of that nation. In the course of time the city of Melitene became large and populous; and since it was no longer possible for the inhabitants to dwell within the fortification, which, as I have said, enclosed but a small space of ground, they built their city in the plain near it, erecting thereon their churches, the dwellings of their magistrates, the market-place, and the shops of their merchants, the streets, porticos, baths, theatres, and all the other ornaments of a large city. In this manner Melitene became for the most part composed of suburbs. The Emperor Anastasius attempted to enclose the whole of it with a wall, but died before he had carried out his intention; however, the Emperor Justinian built a wall all round it, and rendered Melitene[63] a great defence and ornament to the Armenians.

V. These are the works of our Emperor in that part of Armenia which lies on the right bank of the Euphrates; I will now speak of what he did in Greater Armenia. When the Roman Emperor Theodosius obtained the kingdom of Arsaces, as I explained before, he built a castle on one of its hills, very liable to capture, which he called Theodosiopolis. This was taken by Cabades, the king of Persia, when he passed it as he was marching straight upon Amida. Not long afterwards the Roman Emperor Anastasius built a city there, enclosing within its walls the hill upon which Theodosius had placed his castle. Although he named the city after himself, yet he was not able to abolish the name of Theodosius, its former founder; for though the things in common use among mankind are constantly changing, yet it is not easy to alter their former names. The wall of Theodosiopolis was of a sufficient width, but was not raised to a proportional height, for it was only about thirty feet high, and therefore was very liable to capture by an enemy skilled in sieges, such as the Persians. It was weak in other respects also, for it was not defended by any outwork or ditch; moreover, some high ground close to the city overhung the wall. These defects the Emperor Justinian remedied in the following manner; in the first place he dug a very deep trench all round it, like the bed of a torrent among precipitous mountains: next, he cut up the overhanging hill into a mass of inaccessible precipices and pathless ravines; moreover, in order to make the wall very high, and unassailable by an enemy, he employed the same device as at the city of Dara. He contracted the battlements to the smallest size through which it was possible to shoot at the besiegers, laid stones over them so as to make another story round the entire circuit, and skilfully placed a second set of battlements upon it, enclosing the whole place within an outwork like that of the city of Dara, and making each tower into a strong castle. He established in this place all the forces of Armenia, with their general, and rendered the Armenians so strong that they no longer feared the attacks of the Persians.

At Bizana the Emperor did nothing of this sort; for this place is situated upon flat country, surrounded by wide plains fit for the manœuvres of cavalry, and full of putrid pools of stagnant water; so that it was very easily stormed by an enemy, and was very unhealthy for its inhabitants; for these reasons, he neglected this place, and built a city elsewhere to which he gave his own name. It is a fine city and altogether impregnable, and stands in a place called Tzumina, distant three miles from Bizana, in a very healthy and airy position on high ground.

VI. These were the acts of the Emperor Justinian in Armenia. At this point of my narrative it appears convenient to describe what he did among the tribes of the Tzani, since they dwell next to the Armenians. In ancient times the Tzani were independent and without any rulers, living after the manner of wild beasts, regarding and worshipping as gods the woods and birds and other animals. They spent all their lives in lofty and thickly wooded mountains, and never cultivated the ground, but supported themselves by plundering and brigandage; for they themselves were unacquainted with agriculture, and their country, when it is not covered with precipitous mountains, is hilly: and the surface of these hills is not earthy, or capable of growing crops even if it were cultivated, but rough and hard, and altogether sterile. It is not possible to irrigate the ground, to reap a crop, or to find a meadow anywhere; and even the trees, with which the land of the Tzani is covered, bear no fruit, because for the most part there is no regular succession of seasons, and the land is not at one time subjected to cold and wet, and at another made fertile by the warmth of the sun, but is desolated by perpetual winter and covered by eternal snows. For this reason the Tzani, in ancient times, remained independent; but during the reign of our Emperor Justinian they were conquered by the Romans, under the command of Tzita; and, perceiving that resistance was impossible, at once submitted in a body, preferring an easy servitude to a dangerous freedom. They at once all changed their religion to the true faith, became Christians, and embraced a more civilized mode of life, renouncing brigandage, and serving in the Roman army, which was constantly at war with their enemies. However, the Emperor Justinian, fearing that the Tzani might at some time revert to their former wild mode of life, devised the following expedients.

The whole country of the Tzani is difficult, and quite impassable for horsemen, being everywhere surrounded with precipices and woods, as I said before; so that it was impossible for the Tzani to mix with their neighbours, but they lived by themselves in a savage manner, like wild beasts. He therefore cut down all the trees which hindered the making of roads, and levelled the rough ground, rendering it easily passable for horsemen, and thus made it possible for them to mix with the rest of mankind, and hold intercourse with their neighbours. Next he built a church for them in a place called Schamalinichon, in order that they might perform divine service, partake of the holy mysteries, gain the favour of God by prayers, perform the other duties of religion, and feel themselves to be human beings. He built forts in every part of the country, garrisoned them with regular Roman soldiers, and thus enabled the Tzani to mix without restraint with the rest of mankind. I shall now describe the parts of Tzania in which he built these forts.

There is there a place where the three frontiers of the Roman Empire, of Persian Armenia, and of the Tzani join; here he constructed a new and very powerful fort, named Oronon, which he made the chief guarantee of peace to the country; for at that point the Romans first entered Tzania. Here he established a garrison under a general with the title of Duke. At a place distant two days’ journey from Oronon, on the frontier of the Ocenite Tzani—for the Tzani are divided into many tribes—there was a fortress built in ancient times, which long before this had fallen into ruin by neglect, and was named Charton. The Emperor Justinian restored this, and placed in it a large garrison to keep the province in order. On the east of this place is a precipitous ravine stretching towards the north. Here he built a new fort named Barchon. Beyond this, at the skirts of the mountain, are stables where the Ocenite Tzani used to keep their cattle, not in order to plough the land,—for the Tzani, as I said before, are altogether idle, and know nothing of husbandry, and have no ploughed land, or other operations of farming,—but for a constant supply of milk and meat. Beyond the skirts of the mountain, to the westward of the place upon the plain, which is called Cena, stands the fort of Sisilisson, which was of ancient construction, but by length of time had fallen into ruin, and was restored by the Emperor Justinian, who established in it, as in all the others, a sufficient garrison of Roman soldiers. On the left, as one goes from thence in a northerly direction, is a place which the natives call the Ditch of Longinus; for in ancient times Longinus, a Roman general of the Isaurian nation, pitched his camp there during a campaign against the Tzani. Here our Emperor built a fort, named Burgum Noes, a day’s journey distant from Sisilisson, which, like the fort at Sisilisson described above, our Emperor very strongly fortified. Beyond this is the frontier of the Coxylini Tzani, where he placed two forts named Schimalinichon and Tzanzakon. Here he placed another officer with a garrison.