Adrianople AD 378

Resumen del libro

'Never, except in the battle of Cannae, had there been so destructive a slaughter recorded in our annals.' Thus the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus recorded the battle of Adrianople, which spelled the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire. Such a crushing Roman defeat by Gothic cavalry proved to the Empire, as well as to the Goths themselves, that the migratory barbarians were a force to be reckoned with. This book tells the story of the misguided Roman plans and the surprise attack of Gothic cavalry, and puts forward the most recent theories as to the true location of the battlefield.

Contents

Origins of the Campaign

Opposing Commanders

Opposing Armies

Opposing Plans

The Campaign x{0026} Battle

Aftermath

Chronology

Bibliography

The battlefield today

Index