Battle of Anglon - Knowledge (XXG)

913:. The rest of the Romans joined, too. As the pursuing Romans passed through the narrow streets and rough terrain of the village under the fort, the Persians (presumably dismounted cavalrymen) launched their ambush from the village buildings outside the fortress, attacking the Heruls and killing their commander Narses in close combat. Other Roman cavalrymen that had followed Narses' forces were now trapped in the rough terrain in narrow alleys. Nabedes ordered a general counter-attack that included a sortie of the Persians who sallied out from the fortress and shot against the masses of the Romans, especially the lightly-armored Heruls in the open area and other Romans that were trapped in narrow alleys. The Romans and their commanders panicked and fled, leaving their heavy equipment (including arms, armor, draft animals, and baggage train) behind. The Persians did not pursue them beyond the rough terrain out of fear of an ambush by the much larger Romans, but the Romans continued to flee from the region. 940:) has exaggerated the incompetence of the Roman generals in this campaign and the severity of their defeat. Petersen, too, considers aspects of Procopius' description of the battle—including the division of the Roman army and their staggered deployment—to be a distorted description of what were actually intentional military strategies and tactics in face of logistical constraints and the need for mutually supportive columns. The soldiers "mixed in with the baggage train" were probably protecting valuable siege equipment and supplies. Despite Procopius' assessment that the force was poorly organized and led, the Romans in fact managed to swiftly deploy to face the Persian army in the field and defeat them in the first encounter. Sarantis et al. (2013) focuses on the meticulous ambush by the defenders, describing it as "heroic". 884: 872: 863:. Martin's forces formed the center, Peter's forces formed the right, and Valerian's forces (probably joined by Narses and his Heruls and Armenians) formed the left. The formation was imperfect due to roughness of the terrain and the fact that it was formed on the spur of the moment. The Persians were arranged in a small space. Nabedes had ordered them not to begin fighting unless after being attacked. 859:). One day's march from Anglon, a captured Persian spy told the Romans that Nabedes has fled. As the Roman forces proceeded into the rough terrain of Anglon, they probably assumed that Persians are hiding in the fortifications. Soon Roman scouts informed their commanders of the presence of a Persian army in the open. Upon receiving this news, the Roman army hastily formed a single-line 716: 852:. It probably numbered more than 20,000. Peter advanced first, probably as a vanguard. The Romans had been marching in strict formations, but as soon as they found out that the Persians are concentrated in Anglon, they spread out to plunder. According to Procopius, the Roman generals lacked a proper union among themselves ( 841:) The Anglon village featured a namesake fortress perched on top of the precipitous mountain and surrounded by village houses which crowded in a narrow space. Nabedes prepared a defensive position for an elaborate ambush by blocking the entrances to the village with stones and carts, digging "a sort of 807:

The target of the offensive was Dvin, the capital of Sasanian Armenia. The city was an important commercial center in the region, and it had ample supplies and was suitable for cavalry action. Besides, it was the place where the Christian envoys came from who were likely to switch to the Roman side.

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initiated a hasty invasion of Persarmenia. The outnumbered Persian forces in the region performed a meticulous ambush at the mountainous fortress of Anglon, decisively defeating the Byzantine forces in a siege-like confrontation.

889:(1) The Persians ambushed from houses. (2) Persian archers attacked the Heruls in the open area and the trapped Roman cavalry in the narrow alleys. (3) A hidden force sallied from the fortress, routing the Romans. 877:(1) The Romans attacked the Persians in the field. (2) The attacked Persians retreated (or feigned retreat) through the village toward the fortress. The lightly-armored Romans and Heruls chased them. 845:", and setting up ambushes in the houses of the village outside the fortress, while marshaling an army below. Some were stationed in the fortress itself, constituting the last element of the ambush. 932:

The force in the battle is considered an example of the "inadequacy" of many of the recruited soldiers. Others note the lack of coordination between the Roman generals. However, according to

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Anglon is an example of the less common form of defensive fortification in which settlements are outside the defensive structures; this is sometimes seen in the

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The late Roman Army in the near east from Diocletian to the Arab Conquest: proceedings of a colloquium held at Potenza, Acerenza and Matera, Italy

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retreated (or feigned retreat) toward the fortress via a narrow way. Their flight was followed by Narses and his men as

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The Seventh Great Oriental Monarchy: Or the Geography, History and Antiquities of the Sassanian Or New Persian Empire

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were the first to engage the Persians in close combat. Apparently, part of the Persian army was defeated, and the

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