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« 2026. # 2 (188)

The Ethnology Notebooks. 2026. № 2 (188), 393—404

UDK 94:[355.01:623.4](=512.1-057.66:37-44)”05/06″

DOI https://doi.org/10.15407/

  • Received: 01.02.2026
  • Accepted: 09.03.2026
  • Published: ??.??.2026

THE EVOLUTION OF ROMAN MILITARY AFFAIRS DURING THE STRUGGLE AGAINST THE AVARS IN 587—595: THE STRATEGIC DIMENSION

LAHODYCH Volodymyr

  • ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0677-4408
  • PhD student, Faculty of History, 
  • Assistant of the Department of Medieval 
  • and Byzantine History, 
  • Faculty of History, Ivan Franko National University of Lviv,
  • 1, Universytetska str., 79000, Lviv, Ukraine,
  • Contacts: e-mail: lagodicvolodimir@gmail.com

Abstract. Introduction. The adoption of strategic approaches during prolonged armed confrontations remains a key factor in the development of military affairs, regardless of the historical period. The era of Late Antiquity is no exception in this regard. As a result of the extended campaigns waged by the Asian nomadic Avars against Constantinople in the Balkans from the 560s to the 620s, both sides in the conflict absorbed military innovations from their adversary, particularly in the strategic dimension. Through persistent warfare against the nomads, the Romans developed specific strategic methods aimed at exhausting the enemy and making efficient use of human resources. Overall, this process reflected the dynamics of military engagements between the nomads and the Empire, with a particular emphasis on strategic adaptations.

Aim. The purpose of the article is to examine innovations in the strategic dimension of the military affairs of the Roman (Byzantine) Empire during the years 586—595, which emerged under the influence of campaigns against the Avars in the territory of the Praetorian Prefecture of Illyricum. The main focus is on identifying the impact of the nomads on Roman strategic practices, such as the reorganization of field armies, logistical planning, and troop preparation, illustrated with examples from the campaigns led by the magistri militum Commentiolus, Priscus, and Peter.

The research methodology is based on the analysis of narrative sources from the 6th—9th centuries, including the «History» of Theophylact Simocatta, the «Chronographia» of Theophanes the Confessor, and the military-theoretical treatise «Strategikon». 

Results. The article demonstrates that the key strategic adaptations of the Romans took shape precisely during the period 586—595 and are reflected both in the practical actions of the magistri militum of Thracia (Commentiolus, Priscus, and Petrus) and in the theoretical generalizations of the «Strategikon». Among the principal methods applied by the Romans at that time are the following: careful selection of soldiers based on combat qualities; division of the army corps into autonomous units for encircling and blocking the enemy in difficult terrain; relocation of logistical bases southward to preserve recruitment potential and replenish forces; pre-campaign review and enumeration of troops; maintenance of discipline through payments, rotations, morale-boosting addresses, and punishments; and the formation of vanguard detachments to disorganize the opponent. 

Keywords: Nomads, Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine), Avars, Emperor Maurice, military strategy, diplomacy.

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