Moesia (/ˈmiːʃə,-siə,-ʒə/;[1][2]Latin:Moesia;Greek:Μοισία,romanized: Moisía)[3] was an ancientregion and laterRoman province situated in theBalkans south of theDanube River. As a Roman domain Moesia was administered at first by the governor ofNoricum as 'Civitates of Moesia and Triballia'.[4] It included most of the territory of modern easternSerbia,Kosovo, north-easternAlbania, northern parts ofNorth Macedonia (Moesia Superior),Northern Bulgaria,Romanian Dobruja and small parts ofSouthern Ukraine (Moesia Inferior).
In ancient geographical sources, Moesia was bounded to the south by theHaemus (Balkan Mountains) andScardus (Šar) mountains, to the west by theDrinus (Drina) river, on the north by theDonaris (Danube) and on the east by theEuxine (Black Sea).[5]
The region of Moesia was inhabited chiefly byThracian,Illyrian, andThraco-Illyrian peoples. The name of the region comes fromMoesi, the Latin name of a Thracian tribe who lived there before theRoman conquest.
Parts of Moesia belonged to thepolity ofBurebista, aGetae (Dacian) king who established his rule over a large part of the northern Balkans between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led raids for plunder and conquest across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes. After his assassination in apalace intrigue, the empire was divided into several smaller states.
In 74 BC,C. Scribonius Curio,proconsul ofMacedonia, took an army as far as the Danube and chased the Geto-Dacians to the border of their remote country.[6]
The expansion of the Dacians on the middle and lower reaches of the Danube worried the Romans and destruction of Dacian power became one ofJulius Caesar's key political objectives, who made plans to launch an offensive from Macedonia in about 44 BC.
OnceAugustus had established himself as sole ruler of the Roman state in 30 BC after the navalBattle of Actium in 31 BC, he took up Caesar's project and aimed to advance the empire's south-eastern European border from Macedonia to the line of the Danube. The main objective was to increase strategic depth between the border and Italy and also to provide a major river supply route between the Roman armies in the region.[7] The lower Danube was given priority over the upper Danube and required the annexation of Moesia. It was therefore necessary to conquer the tribes who dwelt south of the Danube namely (from west to east) theTriballi, Moesi, Getae and the Bastarnae who had recently subjugated the Triballi, and with their capital atOescus.[8] Augustus also wanted to avenge the defeat ofGaius Antonius Hybrida atHistria 32 years before and to recover the lost military standards held in the powerful fortress ofGenucla.[9]
Marcus Licinius Crassus, grandson ofCrassus thetriumvir was appointed for the task.[5] He was an experienced general at 33 years of age, and proconsul of Macedonia from 29 BC.[10] After a successful campaign against the Moesi, he drove the Bastarnae back toward the Danube and finally defeated them in pitched battle, killing their King Deldo in single combat.[11] Augustus formally proclaimed this victory in 27 BC in Rome but blocked Cassius' entitlement to theSpolia opima and use of the termimperator apparently in favour of his own prestige.
Moesia was split off as a separate military command some time before 10 BC.[12]
As a result of the Dacians constant looting that occurred whenever the Danube froze, Augustus decided to send against them some of his proven generals such asSextus Aelius Catus andGnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Augur (sometime between 1-11 AD[13]). Lentulus pushed them back across the Danube and placed numerous garrisons on the right bank of the river to defend against possible and future incursions.[14] These became theMoesian Limes frontier defensive system that was developed further later.
The region, however, was not organised as aprovince until the last years ofAugustus' reign; in 6 AD, mention is made of its governor,Caecina Severus.[15] As a province, Moesia was under an imperial consularlegate (who probably also had control ofAchaea andMacedonia).[5] In 15 AD complaints about the corruption of the governors of Macedonia and Achaia ledTiberius to put these provinces under the control of the governor of Moesia.[16]
In 86 AD theDacian kingDuras attacked Moesia after which theRoman emperorDomitian personally arrived in Moesia and reorganised it in 87 into two provinces, divided by the riverCebrus (Ciabrus):[5] to the westMoesia Superior (meaning upriver) and to the eastMoesia Inferior orRipa Thracia (from the Danube river's mouth and then upstream). Each was governed by an imperial consular legate and aprocurator.[5]
From Moesia Domitian began planning future campaigns intoDacia andDomitian's Dacian War started by ordering GeneralCornelius Fuscus to attack who, in the summer of 87, led five or six legions across the Danube. The war ended without a decisive outcome andDecebalus, theDacian King, later brazenly flouted the terms of the peace (89 AD) which had been agreed on.
Trajan's Dacian Wars (101–102 AD, 105–106 AD) were two military campaigns fought between the Roman Empire andDacia duringEmperorTrajan's rule. The conflicts were triggered by the constant Dacian threat on Moesia and also by the increasing need for resources of the economy of the Empire.
Starting with AD 85, Dacia was unified underKing Decebalus. Following an incursion into Moesia, which resulted in the death of its governor,Gaius Oppius Sabinus, a series of conflicts between the Romans and Dacians ensued. Although the Romans gained a major strategic victory atTapae in AD 88,Emperor Domitian offered the Dacians favourable terms, in exchange for which Roman suzerainty was recognised. However, Emperor Trajan restarted the conflicts in 101-102 and then again in 105–106, which ended with theannexation of most of Dacia and its reorganisation as a Roman Province.[17]
The first incursion in Moesia that can be attributed to Goths is by theCostoboci in 170 in theMarcomannic Wars when they destroyedTropaeum Traiani.[18]
In 238 theCarpi sackedHistria and Tropaeum Traiani.[19] Afterwards Moesia was frequently invaded or raided by the DacianCarpi, and theEast Germanic tribes of theGoths.
In theGothic War (248–253), the Gothic kingCniva captured the city ofPhilippopolis and then inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at theBattle of Abrittus, in which the Roman EmperorDecius was killed,[20] one of the most disastrous defeats in the history of the Roman army.[21]
After the abandonment ofRoman Dacia to theGoths byAurelian (270–275) and the transfer of the Roman citizens from the former province to the south of the Danube, the central portion of Moesia took the name ofDacia Aureliana (later divided intoDacia Ripensis[5] andDacia Mediterranea).
During administrative reforms of Emperor Diocletian (284–305), both of the Moesian provinces were reorganised. Moesia Superior was divided in two, northern part forming the province ofMoesia Prima including citiesViminacium andSingidunum, while the southern part was organised as the new province ofDardania with citiesScupi andUlpiana. At the same time, Moesia Inferior was divided intoMoesia Secunda andScythia Minor.
As a frontier province, Moesia was strengthened by stations andforts erected along the southern bank of the Danube, and a wall was built fromAxiopolis toTomis as a protection against theScythians andSarmatians.[5] The garrison of Moesia Secunda includedLegio I Italica andLegio XI Claudia, as well as auxiliary infantry units, cavalry units, and river flotillas.
Hard-pressed by theHuns, the Goths again crossed the Danube during the reign ofValens (376) and with his permission settled in Moesia.[5] After they settled, quarrels soon took place, and the Goths underFritigern defeated Valens in a greatbattle near Adrianople. These Goths are known asMoeso-Goths, for whomUlfilas made the Gothic translation of theBible.[5]
TheSlavs allied with theAvars invaded and destroyed much of Moesia in 583–587 in theAvar–Byzantine wars. Moesia was settled by Slavs during the 7th century.Bulgars, arriving fromOld Great Bulgaria, conquered Lower Moesia by the end of the 7th century. During the 8th century theByzantine Empire lost also Upper Moesian territory to theFirst Bulgarian Empire.[citation needed]. The region would return to Byzantine control underBasil II in 1018 and would last until the formation of theSecond Bulgarian Empire in 1185.
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