Northern Africa 448: Maximinus’ Nubian War

Perhaps encouraged by Hunnic successes against the Eastern Roman Empire in 441–442 and 447, the Blemmyes and Nobatians broke their alliance with Constantinople in around 448 and invaded southern Egypt. They were eventually defeated by a Roman force led by the general Maximinus in 451–452 but the ensuing peace only lasted until Maximinus’ death from illness a few months later.

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Main Events

445 Vandal raid on Turonium ▲

In 445 the Vandals mounted a raid against the Suebi in Gallaecia, suddenly landing their ships at Turonium (near Vigo) and capturing many families. It is uncertain whether this attack had been encouraged by the Romans or was simply a result of tribal disputes between the Vandals and Suebi. in wikipedia

447 Attila’s invasion of Thrace ▲

By 447 relations between the Huns and Eastern Romans had broken down again, with the Hunnic king Attila complaining that the Romans had stopped their tribute payments and were refusing to hand over Hunnic fugitives. When, in January of that year, an earthquake damaged the walls of Constantinople, Attila seized the opportunity to march across the Danube with his Hunnic army, ravaging the countryside as he advanced on the Eastern capital. However, by the time he arrived, in late March or early April, the walls had been repaired, prompting him to turn his attention to destroying “seventy cities” in Thrace before returning north. in wikipedia

448?–450 Isaurian revolt ▲

By 448 the Taurus Mountains region of Isauria had broken into unrest and Isaurian bandits were once again causing considerable troubles to the Eastern Roman Empire. The revolt was crushed in early 450 when Emperor Theodosius II dispatched the general Maximinus to overpower the lands around Isauropolis, apparently as part of a plan to stop Zeno—a powerful general of Isaurian origin—from mounting a coup. in wikipedia

Aug–?? 448 Accession of Rechiar ▲

In August 448 the Suebian king Rechila died a pagan in Augusta Emerita and was soon succeeded by his son Rechiar, a Catholic Christian. Rechiar began his reign by immediately invading farther Gallaecia in search of plunder, the first of a series of wars he would initiate to extend Suebian rule in Hispaniae. However, having been born in Gallaecia and received a Roman education, he was more classically cultured than his father and became the first Germanic king to issue his own coins. in wikipedia

448?–451 Roman–Saracen War ▲

In around 448 “Saracens”—probably in this case referring to the Salihids—invaded the eastern parts of the Eastern Roman Empire and overran the region around Damascus. As the Romans were preoccupied with the threat of Attila’s Huns, they made no significant response until c. 450, when Ardabur, son of the magister militum Aspar, was sent to deal with the situation. Ardabur soon restored order and in 451 he negotiated a peace treaty with the raiders. in wikipedia

448? Restoration of Western Illyricum ▲

From 437 to at least 448 the Diocese of Illyricum was under the rule of the Eastern Roman Empire. By 449, however, Noricum, a province of the diocese, was under a Western Roman governor, and at some point before 454 so was the important coastal province of Dalmatia. This suggests that the entire diocese—with the possible exception of Pannonia—may have been restored to the Western Empire in late 448 or early 449, possibly in response to the Eastern Empire’s abandonment of large parts of the Danubian frontier following the Hunnic invasion of 447. in wikipedia

448?–452 Maximinus’ Nubian War ▲

In around 448 the Blemmyes and the Nobatians put aside their differences and launched a united invasion of the province of Thebais, in the south of the Eastern Roman Diocese of Aegyptus. The invaders remained at large until 452, when they were defeated by the Roman general Maximinus and compelled to sign a hundred-year peace treaty with the Romans at Philae, as well as agreeing to surrender royal children and grandchildren as hostages. However, Maximinus died of illness shortly afterwards, encouraging the two tribes to revoke the treaty and forcibly retake the hostages. in wikipedia