Belisarius Crushes the Vandals and Begins Justinian's Reconquest
A three-month campaign in North Africa launches Justinian's plan to restore the western empire
Quick facts
- General
- Belisarius
- Key battle
- Ad Decimum, September 533 CE
- Vandal king defeated
- Gelimer
- Outcome
- Africa restored to Byzantine rule
What happened
In 533 CE, Justinian I sent his rising general Belisarius across the Mediterranean to reclaim North Africa from the Vandal Kingdom, which had ruled the former Roman province since the 5th century. The Vandal king Gelimer, who had recently usurped the throne from Hilderic, met Belisarius's forces near Carthage at the Battle of Ad Decimum in September 533 CE. Belisarius won decisively, and within about three months of landing he had crushed Vandal resistance, captured Gelimer, and restored Africa to imperial rule as a Byzantine praetorian prefecture. Belisarius returned to Constantinople to celebrate a formal triumph with the Vandal royal treasure and the captive king.
Why it matters
The African campaign was the opening move in Justinian's broader project to restore the Western Roman Empire's former territory under Byzantine rule, a goal he pursued next in Italy against the Ostrogoths. It also established Belisarius as the empire's leading general for decades of subsequent campaigning.
How we know
The Battle of Ad Decimum and the swift Vandal collapse are covered in the World History Encyclopedia's dedicated article, drawing on Procopius's contemporary History of the Wars.
Sources
- World History Encyclopedia. Battle of Ad Decimum · Reputable sourceworldhistory.org · The domain "worldhistory.org" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- World History Encyclopedia. Justinian I · Reputable sourceworldhistory.org · The domain "worldhistory.org" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
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