The Battle of Thysdrus was fought in January 533 at the start of the Vandalic War. Belisarius' Roman expedition captured the North African town of Thysdrus from its small Vandal garrison, the first town in North Africa to be reclaimed for the Byzantine Empire.
Background[]
In 530, following the Vandal noble Gelimer's coup against the Byzantine ally, King Hilderic, Emperor Justinian I demanded that Hilderic either be restored to the throne, or be allowed to go into exile at his court in Constantinople. However, Gelimer refused to be swayed by Justinian's threats of force. In 533, however, Justinian saw an opportunity to punish the Vandals when they sent most of their army on a naval expedition against Godas, the rebellious Vandal governor of Sardinia. In January 533, the "Roman expedition" landed in North Africa; it was divided into two armies, led by Belisarius and John the Armenian.
Belisarius' army marched along the poorly-defended coast and decided to capture the town of Thysdrus from its small Vandal garrison. Belisarius' 1,560 troops attacked the unfortified town, which was held by just 360 troops under Theodemir.
Battle[]
The Byzantines advanced on the town through a central street, as the street on the western end of the town was barricaded and fortified with stakes. The Vandals defended the central street, but they were overwhelmed by the superior Byzantine forces; at the same time, Byzantine cavalry rode around the western side of the city and attacked the Vandals from behind. As soon as one Vandal unit faltered, the others began to panic as well, and the Vandalic garrison surrendered after a brief, yet intense fight.
Aftermath[]
Thysdrus fell to the Byzantines with 123 losses. During his campaigns, Belisarius had to choose either restoring the town to Byzantine control or declaring independence and re-creating the Western Roman Empire; the former would mean that his forces could never settle, recruit new units, or receive tax revenue, but Justinian occasionally provided the Roman expedition with reinforcements and upkeep. Declaring independence would incur Justinian's wrath, and would end the expedition's financial support. Ultimately, Belisarius left the town under Byzantine control, moving on with his expedition.
In response to the Byzantine invasion, King Gelimer had Hilderic executed. His death plunged the conflict into even greater depths of ferocity, as there was now no possibility of peaceful resolution. The rest of the world looked on with bated breath; Justinian did not wish for Gelimer's actions to show that his empire could be insulted, and instead took this opportunity to punish the act of brazen defiance with trademark unflinching brutality.