Battle of Taginae
552 CE.
Shown on the map at 43.233°, 12.783°.
The Battle of Taginae or Battle of Busta Gallorum took place in July 552 AD, where Byzantines led by Narses defeated the Ostrogoths (Goths) under King Totila in the late stages of the Gothic War (535–554). The Byzantine victory paved the way for the Byzantine reconquest of the Italian Peninsula and the dissolution of the Gothic Kingdom. After Totila restored Gothic control over much of the Italian Peninsula, Emperor Justinian appointed his chamberlain, Narses, to assemble an army to bring the war to an end. Narses assembled his army at Salona, Dalmatia and from there marched along the coast of Adriatic Sea to Italy. Despite obstacles laid by the Goths, the Byzantines were able to cross the river Po and reach Ravenna. After a nine-day break, Narses continued south along the Via Flaminia road towards Rome. Totila, realizing that a defensive strategy was not viable, marched to intercept the Byzantines at Taginae. Despite his numerical superiority, Narses placed his troops in a defensive position on the battlefield with archers at the flanks protected by natural terrain. Totila used delaying tactics until reinforcements under Teia arrived.
Text from the Wikipedia article Battle of Taginae, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.