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Belisarius 505-65
Byzantine general

Born in Germania, Illyria, he served Emperor Justinian I. He defeated a great Persian army at Dara in 530, and in 532 suppressed a dangerous insurrection in Constantinople (Istanbul) by the destruction of 30,000 of the 'Green' faction. In Africa he twice defeated the Vandals (534-35), conquered the Ostrogoths in Italy (535), conquered Sicily (536), and occupied Rome, which he defended for a year (537-38). In 540 he captured the Ostrogothic capital, Ravenna, but in 542 he was campaigning against the Persians, and from 544 to 548 he was again sent to Italy to deal with the resurgent Ostrogoths. In 562 he was falsely accused of conspiracy against the emperor, but in 563 he was restored to honour.

Bibliography: Robert Graves, Count Belisarius (1938)