Battle of Taginae

Totila, King of the Ostrogoths
At Taginae, Totila was slain by the Gepid Lancer Asbad

Date	July 552
Location	Taginae, Etruria (Gualdo Tadino, Umbria)
Result	Decisive Byzantine victory

Belligerents

Byzantine Empire
Mercenaries and Foederati
Lombards, Heruli, Gepids

Ostrogothic Kingdom

Commanders and leaders

Narses

King Totila †

Strength

20,000 men
5,000 Lombards
3,000 Heruli
400 Gepids

15,000 men

Casualties and losses

Unknown, Minimal

6,000 Killed

At the Battle of Taginae (also known as the Battle of Busta Gallorum) in June/July 552, the forces of the Byzantine Empire under Narses broke the power of the Ostrogoths in Italy, and paved the way for the temporary Byzantine reconquest of the Italian Peninsula.

From as early as 549 the Emperor Justinian I had planned to dispatch a major army to Italy to conclude the protracted war with the Ostrogoths initiated in 535. During 550-51 a large expeditionary force totaling 20,000 or possibly 25,000 men was gradually assembled at Salona on the Adriatic, comprising regular Byzantine units and a large contingent of foreign allies, notably Lombards, Heruls and Bulgars. The imperial chamberlain (cubicularius) Narses was appointed to command in mid 551. The following spring Narses led this Byzantine army around the coast of the Adriatic as far as Ancona, and then turned inland aiming to march down the Via Flaminia to Rome.

Near the village of Taginae (traditionally located somewhere to the north of modern Gualdo Tadino), the Byzantines encountered the Ostrogothic army commanded by King Totila, who had been advancing to intercept him. Finding himself considerably outnumbered, Totila ostensibly entered into negotiations while planning a surprise attack, but Narses was not fooled by this stratagem.

Although he enjoyed superiority in numbers, Narses deployed his army in a strong defensive position. In the centre he massed the large body of Germanic mercenaries dismounted in a dense formation. and placed the Byzantine troops to either side. On each wing he stationed 4,000 foot-archers.

Totila initially attempted to outflank his opponent by seizing a small hill on the Byzantine left which dominated the only route to the rear of the Byzantine line, but some of the Byzantine infantry deployed in a compact well-shielded formation managed to beat off successive attacks of the Ostrogothic cavalry.

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Wikipedia