V. Thus did the Emperor Justinian fortify the whole Illyrian continent. I shall now set forth the manner in which he strengthened the bank of the river Ister, which men also call the Danube, with fortifications and garrisons of soldiers. The Roman Emperors in ancient times, wishing to prevent the barbarians who dwelt beyond the Danube from crossing it, occupied the whole shore of this river with fortresses, which they built not only on the right bank, but in some places also on the further bank of the river. These fortresses were not constructed so as to be inaccessible to assailants, but just sufficient not to leave that bank of the river without defenders; for the barbarians in that region did not understand siege operations. Most of these strong places consisted only of one tower, and were consequently called towers, and very few men were stationed in them. This was at that time sufficient to overawe the barbarian tribes, so that they made no attacks upon the Romans; but in later times Attila invaded the country with a great army, razed all these fortresses to the ground without difficulty, and laid waste the greater part of the Roman territory, without meeting with any resistance. The Emperor Justinian rebuilt the demolished forts, not in their original form, but in the most powerful manner of fortification, and in addition to them built many others. In this manner he entirely restored the security of the Roman Empire, which had been altogether lost. I shall now set forth the manner in which all this was effected.

The river Danube, flowing from the mountains of the Celts, who are now known as the Gauls, encloses a great tract of country, for the most part entirely desert, but in some places inhabited by barbarians, who dwell like savages, without any intercourse with the rest of mankind. On reaching Dacia, it first begins to divide the barbarians who dwell on its left bank from the Roman territory on the right bank. For this reason the Romans call this part of Dacia ‘Ripensis’; for in the Latin language a bank is called ripa. The first city which they built on this bank was named Singedon, which in process of time the barbarians captured, razed to the ground, and rendered entirely desolate. Most of the other fortresses were reduced to the same condition; but the Emperor Justinian rebuilt it entirely, surrounded it with a strong wall, and again made it a noble and admirable city. He built a new fort of great strength, distant eight miles from the city of Singedon,[75] which from that circumstance is called Octavum. Beyond it there was an ancient city named Viminacium, which the Emperor entirely rebuilt; for it had long before been razed to the ground.

VI. Proceeding onward from the city of Viminacium, three fortresses stand on the bank of the Danube, named Picnus, Cupus, and Novæ, which formerly derived their name from a single tower built in each place; now, however, the Emperor Justinian added so many houses and fortifications to each of these, that they came to be regarded as considerable cities. On the further bank, opposite Novæ, stood in ancient times a ruinous tower named Litorata, which the ancients called Lederata. This place was made by our Emperor into a large and very strong fort. After Novæ are the forts of Cantabazates, Smornes, Campses, Tanatas, Vernes, and Ducepratum, and many more on the further bank, all of which he rebuilt from the foundations. After this comes Caput-bovis, the work of the Roman Emperor Trajan, and beyond it an ancient fort named Zanes, all of which he enclosed with strong fortifications, and rendered them impregnable bulwarks of the empire. Not far from Zanes is a fort named Pontes, where a stream leaves the river, encloses a small portion of the bank, and then rejoining its true channel, unites itself to the main river. It does this not by nature, but compelled by human art. I will now describe why it was that the place was named Pontes, and that the Danube was forced to flow round this place.

The Roman Emperor Trajan, a spirited and energetic man, appears to have been irritated at the thought that the boundary of his empire was fixed by the river Danube.[76] He was anxious, therefore, to throw a bridge across it, in order that he might pass it without its offering any obstacle when he marched against the barbarians beyond it. How he built this bridge I shall take no pains to describe, but shall let that be told by Apollodorus of Damascus, the chief architect of the entire work. No advantage accrued from it to the Romans, and the bridge subsequently was destroyed by the stream of the Danube and by age. Trajan built two forts on either bank of the river, and called that on the further side Theodora and that on the Dacian bank Pontem, from the name of the bridge; for the Romans call a bridge pons in Latin. Since after this the river became impassable for ships at this place, owing to the ruins and foundations of the bridge, they forced the river to adopt a new channel and perform a circuit in order to afford them a passage beyond it. Both these forts fell into ruins through age and the assaults of the barbarians; but the Emperor Justinian rebuilt the fort Pontem, on the right bank of the river, with new and powerful fortifications, and thus secured Illyria. As for that on the opposite bank, named Theodora, he thought it unnecessary to bestow any care upon it, since it was exposed to the attacks of the barbarians in that region; but he built all the new fortifications which stand on the bank below Pontem at this day, which are named Mareburgus, Susiana, Armata, Timena, Theodoropolis, Stiliburgus, and Halicaniburgus. There is a small city near this place, named Ad Aquas, some small part of whose fortifications, which had become unsafe, were restored by the Emperor. Beyond it he built Bergonovore, and Laccobergus, and the fort named Dorticum, which he made into the existing strong fortification. He altered the solitary tower named Judæus into what may be called, and really is, a most beautiful fort. He rebuilt Bergus Altus, which formerly was deserted and altogether uninhabited, and also enclosed with a wall another place named Gombes. He rebuilt the fortifications of Crispas, which had become ruinous from age, and built Longiniana and Ponteserium in an admirable manner. At Bononia and Novum he rebuilt the bastions which had become ruinous. He rebuilt all the ruinous parts of the city of Ratiaria; and in many other places he either enlarged small fortifications or reduced over-large ones to a convenient form, in order that neither their smallness nor their excessive size might expose them to the attacks of the enemy; as, for example, he turned Mocatiana from a single tower into the more complete fort which it is at this day, whilst at Almus he reduced the space enclosed by the walls, which formerly was very great, thus enabling it to defy the attacks of the enemy. In many places he altered a solitary tower, an object of contempt to an invader, into a strong fort, as at Tricesa and Putedis. He magnificently restored the ruinous walls of Cebrus. He built a new fort in Bigrane, and another one near to it, in a place where formerly stood a single tower named Onos. Not far from this there remained only the foundations of a city, which in former times had been named Augusta, but which now, possessing its ancient name, but having been altogether rebuilt by the Emperor Justinian, is well peopled. He rebuilt the ruined fortifications of Aëdabe, restored the city of Variana, which had long been in ruins, and fortified Valeriana, which before had possessed no defences.

Besides these, he paid attention to and enclosed with strong fortifications other places not on the bank of the river, but standing at a distance from it, named Castramartis, Zetnocortum, and Iscum. He took great pains to enclose with a wall and otherwise fortify an old fort on the bank of the river, named the Fort of the Huns. Not far from the Fort of the Huns is a place where a fort stands on each bank of the Danube, the one in Illyria named Palatiolum, while that on the opposite bank was named Sicibida. These, which had become ruinous through age, were restored by the Emperor Justinian, who thereby checked the inroads of the barbarians in that quarter, and beyond them rebuilt an ancient fort, now known as Utos. On the extreme frontier of Illyria he built a fort named Lapidaria, and altered a solitary tower, named Lucernariaburgum, into a fort worthy of admiration. The above were the works of the Emperor Justinian in Illyria; he did not, however, merely strengthen this country with fortifications, but placed in each of them garrisons of regular soldiers, and thus checked the incursions of the barbarians.

VII. Hitherto I have described the fortifications of Illyria along the river Danube. We must now pass into those which the Emperor Justinian built along its shores in Thrace; for it appears convenient to me first to describe the whole of this bank, and then to proceed to the description of his works in the inland country. Let us then first proceed to the country of the Mysians,[77] whom the poets speak of as fighting hand to hand; for their country is conterminous with that of Illyria. After Lucernariaburgum, the Emperor Justinian built the new fort of Securisca, and beyond it restored the ruinous part of Cyntodemus. Beyond this he built an entirely new city, which, after the name of the Empress, he called Theodoropolis. He renewed the ruinous part of the forts which are named Iatron and Tigas, and added a tower to that of Maxentius, of which he thought it stood in need. He built the new fort of Cynton. Beyond this is the fortification of Transmarisca, opposite to which, on the further side of the river, the Roman Emperor Constantine once built with great care a fort named Daphne, thinking it advisable that at this place the river should be guarded on both sides. This in process of time was entirely destroyed by the barbarians, but was rebuilt from its foundations by the Emperor Justinian. Beyond Transmarisca, he took suitable pains to restore the fortresses of Altinum and that called Candidiana, which long ago had been destroyed by the same enemies. There are three forts in succession along the bank of the Danube, named Saltopyrgus, Dorostolus, and Sycidaba, in each of which the Emperor repaired with great care such parts as had become ruinous. He bestowed similar pains upon Quesoris, which lies beyond the bank of the river, and enlarged and greatly extended Palmatis, which stands in a narrow pass, although it was not near the bank of the river. Close to this he built a new fort, named Adina, because the Sclavonian barbarians were wont to conceal themselves there and lie in ambush, so as to render it impossible for travellers to proceed through that country. He also built the fort of Tilicion and the outwork on the left of it.

Thus was the bank of the Danube and its neighbourhood fortified in Mysia.[78] I shall now proceed to Scythia, where the first fort is that named after St. Cyrillus, the ruinous parts of which were most carefully rebuilt by the Emperor Justinian. Beyond this was an ancient fortress named Ulmiton, but as the Sclavonian barbarians had for a long time infested that region, and made their habitation there, it had become quite deserted, and nothing remained of it except its name. He therefore rebuilt it from its foundations, and rendered that part of the country safe from the attacks of the Sclavonians. Next to this is the city of Ibida, whose walls had become very ruinous, but which he, without any delay, rebuilt and rendered very strong. He built a new fort beyond it named Ægistum, and restored another fort in the furthest part of Scythia named Almyris, whose walls had for the greater part fallen into decay, as he did to all the other fortifications in this part of Europe.

VIII. I have described above the buildings constructed by the Emperor Justinian among the Dardanians, Epirotes, Macedonians, and the other tribes of the Illyrians, as well as those in Greece and along the river Ister.