Siege of Naples
542 CE.
Shown on the map at 40.833°, 14.250°.
The Siege of Naples, also known as the siege of Neapolis, took place in 542–543 AD during the Gothic War (535–554) when the Ostrogoths (Goths) captured it from the Byzantine Empire. After the fall of Ravenna in 540 AD, Belisarius restored much of Italy to Byzantine rule but was recalled by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who distrusted his actions and needed him on the eastern front. Justinian replaced him with three commanders on equal authority whose rivalry and corruption, together with the emperor's harsh fiscal policies, alienated the Italian population and weakened Byzantine control. These failures enabled the Gothic king Ildibad to regain territory in northern Italy before his assassination, after which his successor Eraric briefly ruled and was himself murdered in 541. Eraric's death brought Totila, the nephew of Ildibad, to the Gothic throne, and Byzantine inaction and poor leadership allowed him to seize the initiative. Totila defeated Byzantine forces at Faventia and Mucellium, then advanced rapidly into southern Italy while bypassing the heavily fortified cities of the central regions.
Text from the Wikipedia article Siege of Naples (542–543), licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.