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Moesia (/ˈmiːʃə, -siə, -ʒə/;^[1]^[2] Latin: Moesia; Greek: Μοισία, romanized: Moisía)^[3] was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River. As a Roman domain Moesia was administered at first by the governor of Noricum as 'Civitates of Moesia and Triballia'.^[4] It included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Albania, northern parts of North Macedonia (Moesia Superior), Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobruja and small parts of Southern Ukraine (Moesia Inferior).

Geography

In ancient geographical sources, Moesia was bounded to the south by the Haemus (Balkan Mountains) and Scardus (Šar) mountains, to the west by the Drinus (Drina) river, on the north by the Donaris (Danube) and on the east by the Euxine (Black Sea).^[5]

History

The region was inhabited chiefly by Thracian, Illyrian, and Thraco-Illyrian peoples. The name of the region comes from Moesi, the Latin name of a Thracian tribe who lived there before the Roman conquest.

Parts of Moesia belonged to the polity of Burebista, a Getae (Dacian) king who established his rule over a large part of the northern Balkans between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led raids for plunder and conquest across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes. After his assassination in a palace intrigue, the empire was divided into several smaller states.

In 74 BC, C. Scribonius Curio, proconsul of Macedonia, took an army as far as the Danube and chased the Geto-Dacians to the border of their remote country.^[6]

The expansion of the Dacians on the middle and lower reaches of the Danube worried the Romans and destruction of Dacian power became one of Julius Caesar's key political objectives, who made plans to launch an offensive from Macedonia in about 44 BC.

Once Augustus had established himself as sole ruler of the Roman state in 30 BC after the battle of Actium, he took up Caesar's project and aimed to advance the empire's south-eastern European border from Macedonia to the line of the Danube. The main objective was to increase strategic depth between the border and Italy and also to provide a major river supply route between the Roman armies in the region.^[7] The lower Danube was given priority over the upper Danube and required the annexation of Moesia. It was therefore necessary to conquer the tribes who dwelt south of the Danube namely (from west to east) the Triballi, Moesi, Getae and the Bastarnae who had recently subjugated the Triballi, and with their capital at Oescus.^[8] Augustus also wanted to avenge the defeat of Gaius Antonius Hybrida at Histria 32 years before and to recover the lost military standards held in the powerful fortress of Genucla.^[9]

Marcus Licinius Crassus, grandson of Crassus the triumvir was appointed for the task.^[5] He was an experienced general at 33 years of age, and proconsul of Macedonia from 29 BC.^[10] After a successful campaign against the Moesi, he drove the Bastarnae back toward the Danube and finally defeated them in pitched battle, killing their King Deldo in single combat.^[11] Augustus formally proclaimed this victory in 27 BC in Rome but blocked Cassius' entitlement to the Spolia opima and use of the term imperator apparently in favour of his own prestige.

Moesia was split off as a separate military command some time before 10 BC.^[12]

As a result of the Dacians constant looting that occurred whenever the Danube froze, Augustus decided to send against them some of his proven generals such as Sextus Aelius Catus and Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Augur (sometime between 1-11 AD^[13]). Lentulus pushed them back across the Danube and placed numerous garrisons on the right bank of the river to defend against possible and future incursions.^[14] These became the Moesian Limes frontier defensive system that was developed further later.

Roman Province

The region, however, was not organised as a province until the last years of Augustus' reign; in 6 AD, mention is made of its governor, Caecina Severus.^[15] As a province, Moesia was under an imperial consular legate (who probably also had control of Achaea and Macedonia).^[5] In 15 AD complaints about the corruption of the governors of Macedonia and Achaia led Tiberius to put these provinces under the control of the governor of Moesia.^[16]

In 86 AD the Dacian king Duras attacked Moesia after which the Roman emperor Domitian personally arrived in Moesia and reorganised it in 87 into two provinces, divided by the river Cebrus (Ciabrus):^[5] to the west Moesia Superior (meaning upriver) and to the east Moesia Inferior or Ripa Thracia (from the Danube river's mouth and then upstream). Each was governed by an imperial consular legate and a procurator.^[5]

From Moesia Domitian began planning future campaigns into Dacia and Domitian's Dacian War started by ordering General Cornelius Fuscus to attack who, in the summer of 87, led five or six legions across the Danube. The war ended without a decisive outcome and Decebalus, the Dacian King, later brazenly flouted the terms of the peace (89 AD) which had been agreed on.

Dacian Wars

Gothic raids

The first incursion in Moesia that can be attributed to Goths is by the Costoboci in 170 in the Marcomannic Wars when they destroyed Tropaeum Traiani.^[17]

In 238 the Carpi sacked Histria and Tropaeum Traiani.^[18] Afterwards Moesia was frequently invaded or raided by the Dacian Carpi, and the East Germanic tribes of the Goths.

In the Gothic War (248–253), the Gothic king Cniva captured the city of Philippopolis and then inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the Battle of Abrittus, in which the Roman Emperor Decius was killed,^[19] one of the most disastrous defeats in the history of the Roman army.^[20]

Retreat from Dacia

After the abandonment of Roman Dacia to the Goths by Aurelian (270–275) and the transfer of the Roman citizens from the former province to the south of the Danube, the central portion of Moesia took the name of Dacia Aureliana (later divided into Dacia Ripensis^[5] and Dacia Mediterranea).

During administrative reforms of Emperor Diocletian (284–305), both of the Moesian provinces were reorganised. Moesia Superior was divided in two, northern part forming the province of Moesia Prima including cities Viminacium and Singidunum, while the southern part was organised as the new province of Dardania with cities Scupi and Ulpiana. At the same time, Moesia Inferior was divided into Moesia Secunda and Scythia Minor.

The Moesian provinces and the northern Balkans in Late Antiquity

As a frontier province, Moesia was strengthened by stations and forts erected along the southern bank of the Danube, and a wall was built from Axiopolis to Tomis as a protection against the Scythians and Sarmatians.^[5] The garrison of Moesia Secunda included Legio I Italica and Legio XI Claudia, as well as auxiliary infantry units, cavalry units, and river flotillas.

Hard-pressed by the Huns, the Goths again crossed the Danube during the reign of Valens (376) and with his permission settled in Moesia.^[5] After they settled, quarrels soon took place, and the Goths under Fritigern defeated Valens in a great battle near Adrianople. These Goths are known as Moeso-Goths, for whom Ulfilas made the Gothic translation of the Bible.^[5]

Late Empire

The Slavs allied with the Avars invaded and destroyed much of Moesia in 583–587 in the Avar–Byzantine wars. Moesia was settled by Slavs during the 7th century. Bulgars, arriving from Old Great Bulgaria, conquered Lower Moesia by the end of the 7th century. During the 8th century the Byzantine Empire lost also Upper Moesian territory to the First Bulgarian Empire.^{[citation needed]}. The region would return to Byzantine control under Basil II in 1018 and would last until the formation of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1185.

References

^ Lena Olausson; Catherine Sangster, eds. (2006). Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation. Oxford University Press.
^ Daniel Jones (2006). Peter Roach; James Hartman; Jane Setter (eds.). Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary. Cambridge University Press.
^ "C. Suetonius Tranquillus, Vitellius Maximilian Ihm, Ed". perseus.tufts.eud.
^ (p. 581) ISBN 9780521264303 Bowman, Alan K.; Champlin, Edward; Lintott, Andrew (8 February 1996). The Cambridge Ancient History, Том 10. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-26430-3.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Freese, John Henry (1911). "Moesia" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 643–644.
^ Georgescu, Vlad (1991). Călinescu, Matei (ed.). The Romanians: a history. Romanian literature and thought in translation series. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8142-0511-2 p. 4.
^ Res gestae divi Augusti (Monumentum Ancyranum) 30 = Dobó, Inscriptiones... 769
^ Ptolemy
^ Dio LI.26.5
^ Dio LI.23.2
^ Cassius Dio 51.23.3 ff. [1]
^ Vanderspoel, John (2010). "Provincia Macedonia". In Roisman, Joseph; Worthington, Ian (eds.). A companion to ancient Macedonia. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing. pp. 269–270. ISBN 978-1-405-17936-2.
^ R. Syme, Danubian Papers, London 1971, p. 40 and Addenda p. 69 ff
^ Florus, Epitome of Roman History, II, 28, 18-19.
^ Cassius Dio, lv.29
^ Tacitus, Annales 1.76.4
^ Kovács, Péter (2009). Marcus Aurelius' rain miracle and the Marcomannic wars. Brill. p 198
^ Bennett, Matthew (2004). "Goths". In Holmes, Richard; Singleton, Charles; Jones, Spencer (eds.). The Oxford Companion to Military History. Oxford University Press. p. 367. ISBN 978-0191727467
^ Wolfram, Herwig (1990). History of the Goths. Translated by Dunlap, Thomas J. University of California Press. ISBN 0520069838 p=128
^ Heather, Peter (2010). Empires and Barbarians: The Fall of Rome and the Birth of Europe. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199892266 pp=109–20

External links

[1] Lena Olausson; Catherine Sangster, eds. (2006). Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation. Oxford University Press.

[2] Daniel Jones (2006). Peter Roach; James Hartman; Jane Setter (eds.). Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary. Cambridge University Press.

[3] "C. Suetonius Tranquillus, Vitellius Maximilian Ihm, Ed". perseus.tufts.eud.

[4] (p. 581) ISBN 9780521264303 Bowman, Alan K.; Champlin, Edward; Lintott, Andrew (8 February 1996). The Cambridge Ancient History, Том 10. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-26430-3.

[EB1911-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Freese, John Henry (1911). "Moesia" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 643–644.

[6] Georgescu, Vlad (1991). Călinescu, Matei (ed.). The Romanians: a history. Romanian literature and thought in translation series. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8142-0511-2 p. 4.

[7] Res gestae divi Augusti (Monumentum Ancyranum) 30 = Dobó, Inscriptiones... 769

[8] Ptolemy

[Dio_LI.26.5-9] Dio LI.26.5

[10] Dio LI.23.2

[11] Cassius Dio 51.23.3 ff. [1]

[12] Vanderspoel, John (2010). "Provincia Macedonia". In Roisman, Joseph; Worthington, Ian (eds.). A companion to ancient Macedonia. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing. pp. 269–270. ISBN 978-1-405-17936-2.

[13] R. Syme, Danubian Papers, London 1971, p. 40 and Addenda p. 69 ff

[14] Florus, Epitome of Roman History, II, 28, 18-19.

[15] Cassius Dio, lv.29

[16] Tacitus, Annales 1.76.4

[17] Kovács, Péter (2009). Marcus Aurelius' rain miracle and the Marcomannic wars. Brill. p 198

[18] Bennett, Matthew (2004). "Goths". In Holmes, Richard; Singleton, Charles; Jones, Spencer (eds.). The Oxford Companion to Military History. Oxford University Press. p. 367. ISBN 978-0191727467

[19] Wolfram, Herwig (1990). History of the Goths. Translated by Dunlap, Thomas J. University of California Press. ISBN 0520069838 p=128

[20] Heather, Peter (2010). Empires and Barbarians: The Fall of Rome and the Birth of Europe. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199892266 pp=109–20

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@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 [[File:Thracia Outcut from Roman provinces of Illyricum, Macedonia, Dacia, Moesia, Pannonia and Thracia.jpg|thumb|350px|Moesia after 87 AD]]
-'''Moesia''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|iː|ʃ|ə|,_|-|s|i|ə|,_|-|ʒ|ə}};<ref>{{cite book|title=Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation|year=2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor1=Lena Olausson |editor2=Catherine Sangster }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary|author=Daniel Jones|editor1=Peter Roach |editor2=James Hartman |editor3=Jane Setter |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2006}}</ref> [[Latin]]: ''Moesia''; {{lang-el|Μοισία|Moisía}})<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0061:life=vit.:chapter=15|title=C. Suetonius Tranquillus, Vitellius Maximilian Ihm, Ed.|publisher=perseus.tufts.eud}}</ref> was an ancient [[region]] and later [[Roman province]] situated in the [[Balkans]] south of the [[Danube River]]. Moesian Province was first administered by governor of [[Noricum]] as 'Civitates of Moesia and Triballia'.  It included most of the territory of modern eastern [[Serbia]], [[Kosovo]], north-eastern [[Albania]], northern parts of [[North Macedonia]] ('''Moesia Superior'''), [[Northern Bulgaria]], [[Northern Dobruja|Romanian Dobruja]] and small parts of [[Southern Ukraine]] ('''Moesia Inferior''').
+'''Moesia''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|iː|ʃ|ə|,_|-|s|i|ə|,_|-|ʒ|ə}};<ref>{{cite book|title=Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation|year=2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor1=Lena Olausson |editor2=Catherine Sangster }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary|author=Daniel Jones|editor1=Peter Roach |editor2=James Hartman |editor3=Jane Setter |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2006}}</ref> [[Latin]]: ''Moesia''; {{lang-el|Μοισία|Moisía}})<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0061:life=vit.:chapter=15|title=C. Suetonius Tranquillus, Vitellius Maximilian Ihm, Ed.|publisher=perseus.tufts.eud}}</ref> was an ancient [[region]] and later [[Roman province]] situated in the [[Balkans]] south of the [[Danube River]]. As a Roman domain Moesia was administered at first by the governor of [[Noricum]] as 'Civitates of Moesia and Triballia'.<ref>(p. 581) {{ISBN|9780521264303}} {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZLW4-wba7UC
+|title=The Cambridge Ancient History, Том 10|isbn=978-0-521-26430-3 |last1=Bowman |first1=Alan K. |last2=Champlin |first2=Edward |last3=Lintott |first3=Andrew |date=8 February 1996 |publisher=Cambridge University Press }}</ref>  It included most of the territory of modern eastern [[Serbia]], [[Kosovo]], north-eastern [[Albania]], northern parts of [[North Macedonia]] ('''Moesia Superior'''), [[Northern Bulgaria]], [[Northern Dobruja|Romanian Dobruja]] and small parts of [[Southern Ukraine]] ('''Moesia Inferior''').
 ==Geography==
@@ Line 10: / Line 11: @@
 ==History==
+{{See also|Moesian Limes}}
-{{moresources|section|date=September 2022}}
-The region was inhabited chiefly by [[Thracians]], [[Illyrians|Illyrian]] and [[Thraco-Illyrian]] peoples. The name of the region comes from [[Moesi]], a Thracian tribe who lived there before the [[Roman conquest of Dacia|Roman conquest]].
+The region was inhabited chiefly by [[Thracians|Thracian]], [[Illyrians|Illyrian]], and [[Thraco-Illyrian]] peoples. The name of the region comes from [[Moesi]], the Latin name of a Thracian tribe who lived there before the [[Roman conquest of Dacia|Roman conquest]].
-Parts of Moesia belonged to the [[polity]] of [[Burebista]], a [[Getae]] king who established his rule over a large part of the northern Balkans between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led plunder and conquest raids across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes. After his assassination in an inside plot, the empire was divided into several smaller states.
+Parts of Moesia belonged to the [[polity]] of [[Burebista]], a [[Getae]] (Dacian) king who established his rule over a large part of the northern Balkans between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led raids for plunder and conquest across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes. After his assassination in a [[palace intrigue]], the empire was divided into several smaller states.
-In 75 BC, [[Gaius Scribonius Curio (consul 76 BC)|C. Scribonius Curio]], [[proconsul]] of [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]], took an army as far as the Danube and gained a victory over the inhabitants.
+In 74 BC, [[Gaius Scribonius Curio (consul 76 BC)|C. Scribonius Curio]], [[proconsul]] of [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]], took an army as far as the Danube and chased the Geto-Dacians to the border of their remote country.<ref>Georgescu, Vlad (1991). Călinescu, Matei (ed.). The Romanians: a history. Romanian literature and thought in translation series. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University Press. {{ISBN|978-0-8142-0511-2}} p. 4.</ref>
-Once [[Augustus]] had established himself as sole ruler of the Roman state in 30 BC after the [[battle of Actium]], his strategy was to advance the empire's south-eastern European border from Macedonia to the line of the Danube. The main objective was to increase strategic depth between the border and Italy and also to provide a major river supply route between the Roman armies in the region.<ref>''Res Gestae'' 30</ref> The lower Danube was given priority over the upper Danube and required the annexation of Moesia. It was therefore necessary to conquer the tribes who dwelt south of the Danube namely (from west to east) the [[Triballi]], Moesi, Getae and the Bastarnae who had recently subjugated the Triballi, and with their capital at [[Oescus]].<ref>Ptolemy</ref> Augustus also wanted to avenge the defeat of [[Gaius Antonius Hybrida|Gaius Antonius]] at [[Histria (ancient city)|Histria]] 32 years before and to recover the lost military standards held in the powerful fortress of [[Genucla]].<ref name="Dio LI.26.5">Dio LI.26.5</ref>
+The expansion of the Dacians on the middle and lower reaches of the Danube worried the Romans and destruction of Dacian power became one of [[Julius Caesar]]'s key political objectives, who made plans to launch an offensive from Macedonia in about 44 BC.
+Once [[Augustus]] had established himself as sole ruler of the Roman state in 30 BC after the [[battle of Actium]], he took up Caesar's project and aimed to advance the empire's south-eastern European border from Macedonia to the line of the Danube. The main objective was to increase strategic depth between the border and Italy and also to provide a major river supply route between the Roman armies in the region.<ref>[[Res gestae]] divi Augusti (Monumentum Ancyranum) 30 = Dobó, Inscriptiones... 769</ref> The lower Danube was given priority over the upper Danube and required the annexation of Moesia. It was therefore necessary to conquer the tribes who dwelt south of the Danube namely (from west to east) the [[Triballi]], Moesi, Getae and the Bastarnae who had recently subjugated the Triballi, and with their capital at [[Oescus]].<ref>Ptolemy</ref> Augustus also wanted to avenge the defeat of [[Gaius Antonius Hybrida]] at [[Histria (ancient city)|Histria]] 32 years before and to recover the lost military standards held in the powerful fortress of [[Genucla]].<ref name="Dio LI.26.5">Dio LI.26.5</ref>
 [[Marcus Licinius Crassus (consul 30 BC)|Marcus Licinius Crassus]], grandson of [[Marcus Licinius Crassus|Crassus]] the [[triumvir]] was appointed for the task.<ref name=EB1911>{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Moesia|volume=18|pages=643–644 |first=John Henry |last=Freese}}</ref>  He was an experienced general at 33 years of age, and proconsul of Macedonia from 29 BC.<ref>Dio LI.23.2</ref> After a successful campaign against the Moesi, he drove the Bastarnae back toward the Danube and finally defeated them in pitched battle, killing their King Deldo in single combat.<ref>[[Cassius Dio]] 51.23.3 ff. [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/51*.html]</ref> Augustus formally proclaimed this victory in 27 BC in Rome but blocked Cassius' entitlement to the [[Spolia opima]] and use of the term ''imperator'' apparently in favour of his own prestige.
+Moesia was split off as a separate military command some time before 10 BC.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vanderspoel |first1=John |editor1-last=Roisman |editor1-first=Joseph |editor2-last=Worthington |editor2-first=Ian |title=A companion to ancient Macedonia |date=2010 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |location=Chichester |isbn=978-1-405-17936-2 |chapter=''Provincia Macedonia'' |pages=269–270}}</ref>
-The region, however, was not organised as a [[Roman province|province]] until the last years of [[Augustus]]' reign; in 6 AD, mention is made of its governor, [[Aulus Caecina Severus (suffect consul 1 BC)|Caecina Severus]].<ref>[[Cassius Dio]], lv.29</ref> As a province, Moesia was under an imperial consular [[legatus|legate]] (who probably also had control of [[Achaea (Roman province)|Achaea]] and [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]]).<ref name=EB1911/>
+As a result of the Dacians constant looting that occurred whenever the Danube froze, Augustus decided to send against them some of his proven generals such as [[Sextus Aelius Catus]] and [[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Augur]] (sometime between 1-11 AD<ref>R. Syme, ''Danubian Papers'', London 1971, p. 40 and ''Addenda'' p. 69 ff</ref>). Lentulus pushed them back across the Danube and placed numerous garrisons on the right bank of the river to defend against possible and future incursions.<ref>[[Works attributed to Florus|Florus]], ''Epitome of Roman History'', II, 28, 18-19.</ref> These became the [[Moesian Limes]] frontier defensive system that was developed further later.
-In AD 86, the [[List of Dacian kings|Dacian king]] [[Duras (Dacian king)|Duras]] ordered his troops to attack [[Roman Empire|Roman]] Moesia. After this attack, the [[Roman emperor]] [[Domitian]] personally arrived in Moesia and reorganized it in 87 AD into two provinces, divided by the river [[Tsibritsa|Cebrus]] (Ciabrus):<ref name=EB1911/> to the west '''Moesia Superior''' or '''Upper Moesia''' (meaning upriver) and to the east '''Moesia Inferior''' or '''Lower Moesia''' or  '''Ripa Thracia''' (from the Danube river's mouth and then upstream). Each was governed by an imperial consular legate and a [[procurator (Roman)|procurator]].<ref name=EB1911/>
+===Roman Province===
-The chief towns of Upper Moesia in the Principate were: [[Singidunum]] ([[Belgrade]]), [[Viminacium]] (sometimes called municipium Aelium; modern [[Kostolac]]), [[Remesiana]] ([[Bela Palanka]]), Bononia ([[Vidin]]), [[Ratiaria]] ([[Archar (village)|Archar]]) and [[Skupi]] (modern [[Skopje]]); of Lower Moesia: [[Oescus]] (colonia Ulpia, [[Gigen]]), [[Novae (fortress)|Novae]] (near [[Svishtov]], the chief seat of [[Theodoric the Great]]), [[Nicopolis ad Istrum]] (Nikup; really near the river [[Yantra River|Yantra]]), [[Marcianopolis]] ([[Devnya]]), [[Tyras]] ([[Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi]]), [[Pontic Olbia|Olvia]], Odessus ([[Varna, Bulgaria|Varna]]) and Tomis ([[Constanţa]]; to which the poet [[Ovid]] was banished). The last two were Greek towns which formed a [[pentapolis]] with [[Histria (Sinoe)|Istros]], [[Mesembria]] (Nessebar) and [[Apollonia, Thrace|Apollonia]] (Sozopol).<ref name=EB1911/>
+The region, however, was not organised as a [[Roman province|province]] until the last years of [[Augustus]]' reign; in 6 AD, mention is made of its governor, [[Aulus Caecina Severus (suffect consul 1 BC)|Caecina Severus]].<ref>[[Cassius Dio]], lv.29</ref> As a province, Moesia was under an imperial consular [[legatus|legate]] (who probably also had control of [[Achaea (Roman province)|Achaea]] and [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]]).<ref name=EB1911/> In 15 AD complaints about the corruption of the governors of Macedonia and Achaia led [[Tiberius]] to put these provinces under the control of the governor of Moesia.<ref>[[Tacitus]], ''[[Annales (Tacitus)|Annales]]'' 1.76.4</ref>
-From Moesia, Domitian began planning future campaigns into [[Dacia]] and by 87 he started a [[Domitian's Dacian War|strong offensive against Dacia]], ordering General [[Cornelius Fuscus]] to attack. Therefore, in the summer of 87, Fuscus led five or six legions across the Danube. The campaign against the Dacians ended without a decisive outcome, and [[Decebalus]], the [[Dacia|Dacian King]], had brazenly flouted the terms of the peace (89 AD) which had been agreed on at the war's end.
+In 86 AD the [[List of Dacian kings|Dacian king]] [[Duras (Dacian king)|Duras]] attacked Moesia after which the [[Roman emperor]] [[Domitian]] personally arrived in Moesia and reorganised it in 87 into two provinces, divided by the river [[Tsibritsa|Cebrus]] (Ciabrus):<ref name=EB1911/> to the west ''Moesia Superior'' (meaning upriver) and to the east ''Moesia Inferior'' or  ''Ripa Thracia'' (from the Danube river's mouth and then upstream). Each was governed by an imperial consular legate and a [[procurator (Roman)|procurator]].<ref name=EB1911/>
-Emperor [[Trajan]] later arrived in Moesia, and he launched his first military campaign into the Dacian Kingdom<ref name="Romanis REquote05">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.roman-emperors.org/assobd.htm#s-inx|encyclopedia=De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors|title=Assorted Imperial Battle Descriptions: Battle of Sarmizegetusa (Sarmizegetuza), A.D. 105|quote=Because the Dacians represented an obstacle against Roman expansion in the east, in the year 101 the emperor Trajan decided to begin a new campaign against them. The first war began on 25 March 101 and the Roman troops, consisting of four principal legions (X Gemina, XI Claudia, II Traiana Fortis, and XXX Ulpia Victrix), defeated the Dacians.}}</ref> c. March–May 101, crossing to the northern bank of the [[Danube River]] and defeating the Dacian army near Tapae, a mountain pass in the [[Carpathians]] (see [[Second Battle of Tapae]]). Trajan's troops were mauled in the encounter, however, and he put off further campaigning for the year to heal troops, reinforce, and regroup.<ref name="Romanis REquote03">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.roman-emperors.org/assobd.htm#s-inx|encyclopedia=De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors|title=Assorted Imperial Battle Descriptions: Battle of Sarmizegetusa (Sarmizegetuza), A.D. 105|quote=Although the Dacians had been defeated, the emperor postponed the final siege for the conquering of Sarmizegetuza because his armies needed reorganization. Trajan imposed on the Dacians very hard peace conditions: Decebalus had to renounce claim to some regions of his kingdom, including Banat, Tara Hategului, Oltenia, and Muntenia in the area southwest of Transylvania. He had also to surrender all the Roman deserters and all his war machines. At Rome, Trajan was received as a winner and he took the name of Dacicus, a title that appears on his coinage of this period. At the beginning of the year 103 A.D., there were minted coins with the inscription: IMP NERVA TRAIANVS AVG GER DACICVS.}}</ref> During the following winter, King [[Decebalus]] launched a counter-attack across the [[Danube]] further downstream, but this was repulsed. Trajan's army advanced further into Dacian territory and forced King Decebalus to submit to him a year later.{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}
+From Moesia Domitian began planning future campaigns into [[Dacia]] and [[Domitian's Dacian War]] started by ordering General [[Cornelius Fuscus]] to attack who, in the summer of 87, led five or six legions across the Danube. The war ended without a decisive outcome and [[Decebalus]], the [[Dacia|Dacian King]], later brazenly flouted the terms of the peace (89 AD) which had been agreed on.
-Trajan returned to Rome in triumph and was granted the title ''Dacicus''. The victory was celebrated by the [[Tropaeum Traiani]]. However, Decebalus in 105 undertook an invasion against Roman territory by attempting to stir up some of the tribes north of the river against the empire.<ref name="Romanis REquote04">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.roman-emperors.org/assobd.htm#s-inx|encyclopedia=De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors|title=Assorted Imperial Battle Descriptions: Battle of Sarmizegetusa (Sarmizegetuza), A.D. 105|quote=However, during the years 103–105, Decebalus did not respect the peace conditions imposed by Trajan and the emperor then decided to destroy completely the Dacian kingdom and to conquer Sarmizegetuza.}}</ref> Trajan took to the field again and after building with the design of [[Apollodorus of Damascus]] his [[Trajan's bridge|massive bridge over the Danube]], he conquered part of Dacia in 106 (see also [[Second Dacian War]]).{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}
+===Dacian Wars===
-Sometime around 272, at the Moesian city of [[Naissus]] or Nissa (modern [[Niš]] in Serbia), future emperor [[Constantine I]] was born.
+{{Main|Trajan's Dacian Wars}}
+===Gothic raids===
+[[File:GothicInvasions250-251-en.svg|thumb|Gothic invasions of 250-251]]
+The first incursion in Moesia that can be attributed to Goths is by the [[Costoboci]] in 170 in the [[Marcomannic Wars]] when they destroyed [[Civitas Tropaensium|Tropaeum Traiani]].<ref>Kovács, Péter (2009). Marcus Aurelius' rain miracle and the Marcomannic wars. Brill. p 198</ref>
+In 238 the [[Carpi (people)|Carpi]] sacked [[Histria (Sinoe)|Histria]] and Tropaeum Traiani.<ref>Bennett, Matthew (2004). "Goths". In Holmes, Richard; Singleton, Charles; Jones, Spencer (eds.). The Oxford Companion to Military History. Oxford University Press. p. 367. {{ISBN|978-0191727467}}</ref> Afterwards Moesia was frequently invaded or raided by the Dacian [[Carpians|Carpi]], and the [[Germanic peoples|East Germanic tribes]] of the [[Goths]].
+In the [[Gothic War (248–253)]], the Gothic king [[Cniva]] captured the city of [[Siege of Philippopolis (250)|Philippopolis]] and then inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the [[Battle of Abrittus]], in which the Roman Emperor [[Decius]] was killed,<ref>Wolfram, Herwig (1990). History of the Goths. Translated by Dunlap, Thomas J. University of California Press. {{ISBN|0520069838}} p=128</ref> one of the most disastrous defeats in the history of the Roman army.<ref>Heather, Peter (2010). Empires and Barbarians: The Fall of Rome and the Birth of Europe. Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|978-0199892266}} pp=109–20</ref>
+===Retreat from Dacia===
 [[File:Dioecesis Thraciae 400 AD.png|thumb|300px|Provinces in 400 AD]]
 After the abandonment of [[Dacia (Roman province)|Roman Dacia]] to the [[Goths]] by [[Aurelian]] (270–275) and the transfer of the Roman citizens from the former province to the south of the Danube, the central portion of Moesia took the name of ''[[Dacia Aureliana]]'' (later divided into ''[[Dacia Ripensis]]''<ref name=EB1911/> and ''[[Dacia Mediterranea]]'').
-During administrative reforms of Emperor Diocletian (284–305), both of the Moesian provinces were reorganized. Moesia Superior was divided in two, northern part forming the province of '''[[Moesia Prima]]''' including cities [[Viminacium]] and [[Singidunum]], while the southern part was organised as the new province of [[Dardania (Roman province)|Dardania]] with cities [[Scupi]] and [[Ulpiana]]. At the same time, Moesia Inferior was divided into '''Moesia Secunda''' and [[Scythia Minor (Roman province)|Scythia Minor]]. Moesia Secunda's main cities included [[Marcianopolis]] ([[Devnya]]), Odessus ([[Varna, Bulgaria|Varna]]), Nicopolis ([[Nikopol, Bulgaria|Nikopol]]), Abrittus ([[Razgrad]]), Durostorum ([[Silistra]]), Transmarisca ([[Tutrakan]]), Sexaginta Prista ([[Ruse, Bulgaria|Ruse]]) and Novae ([[Svishtov]]), all in Bulgaria today.{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}
+During administrative reforms of Emperor Diocletian (284–305), both of the Moesian provinces were reorganised. Moesia Superior was divided in two, northern part forming the province of '''[[Moesia Prima]]''' including cities [[Viminacium]] and [[Singidunum]], while the southern part was organised as the new province of [[Dardania (Roman province)|Dardania]] with cities [[Scupi]] and [[Ulpiana]]. At the same time, Moesia Inferior was divided into '''Moesia Secunda''' and [[Scythia Minor (Roman province)|Scythia Minor]].
 [[File:Balkans 6th century.svg|thumb|300px|The Moesian provinces and the northern Balkans in [[Late Antiquity]]]]
-As a frontier province, Moesia was strengthened by stations and [[fortress]]es erected along the southern bank of the Danube, and a wall was built from [[Axiopolis]] to [[Constanța|Tomi]] as a protection against the [[Scythian]]s and [[Sarmatians]].<ref name=EB1911/> The garrison of Moesia Secunda included [[Legio I Italica]] and [[Legio XI Claudia]], as well as independent infantry units, cavalry units, and river flotillas. The [[Notitia Dignitatum]] lists its units and their bases as of the 390s CE. Units in Scythia Minor included [[Legio I Iovia]] and [[Legio II Herculia]].{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}
+As a frontier province, Moesia was strengthened by stations and [[castra|fort]]s erected along the southern bank of the Danube, and a wall was built from [[Axiopolis]] to [[Constanța|Tomis]] as a protection against the [[Scythian]]s and [[Sarmatians]].<ref name=EB1911/> The garrison of Moesia Secunda included [[Legio I Italica]] and [[Legio XI Claudia]], as well as auxiliary infantry units, cavalry units, and river flotillas.
+Hard-pressed by the [[Huns]], the Goths again crossed the Danube during the reign of [[Valens]] (376) and with his permission settled in Moesia.<ref name=EB1911/> After they settled, quarrels soon took place, and the Goths under [[Fritigern]] defeated Valens in a great [[Battle of Adrianople (378)|battle near Adrianople]]. These Goths are known as [[Moeso-Goths]], for whom [[Ulfilas]] made the Gothic translation of the [[Bible]].<ref name=EB1911/>
+===Late Empire===
-After 238 AD, Moesia was frequently invaded or raided by the Dacian [[Carpians|Carpi]], and the [[Germanic peoples|East Germanic tribe]] of the [[Goths]], who invaded Moesia in 250. Hard-pressed by the [[Huns]], the Goths again crossed the Danube during the reign of [[Valens]] (376) and with his permission settled in Moesia.<ref name=EB1911/> After they settled, quarrels soon took place, and the Goths under [[Fritigern]] defeated Valens in a great [[Battle of Adrianople (378)|battle near Adrianople]]. These Goths are known as [[Moeso-Goths]], for whom [[Ulfilas]] made the Gothic translation of the [[Bible]].<ref name=EB1911/>
 The [[Slavs]] allied with the [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]] invaded and destroyed much of Moesia in 583–587 in the [[Avar–Byzantine wars]]. Moesia was settled by Slavs during the 7th century. [[Bulgars]], arriving from [[Old Great Bulgaria]], conquered Lower Moesia by the end of the 7th century. During the 8th century the [[Byzantine Empire]] lost also Upper Moesian territory to the [[First Bulgarian Empire]].{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}. The region would  return to Byzantine control under [[Basil II]] in 1018 and would last until the formation of the [[Second Bulgarian Empire]] in 1185.
@@ Line 67: / Line 85: @@
 * András Mócsy, ''Pannonia and Upper Moesia: A History of the Middle Danube Provinces of the Roman Empire, Routledge Revivals Series'', 2014. {{ISBN|9781317754251}}
 * Conor Whately, ''Exercitus Moesiae: The Roman Army in Moesia from Augustus to Severus Alexander. BAR international series, S2825''. Oxford: 2016. {{ISBN|9781407314754}}
+*{{Cite book
+|title = The Cambridge Ancient History, Том 10
+|year = 1996
+|isbn = 9780521264303
+|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JZLW4-wba7UC
+|last1 = Bowman
+|first1 = Alan K.
+|last2 = Champlin
+|first2 = Edward
+|last3 = Lintott
+|first3 = Andrew
+|publisher = Cambridge University Press
+}}
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