Page:The Age Of Justinian And Theodora Vol II (1912).pdf/380

 Byzantines with varying success. His most notable effort was the siege of Archaeopolis, the capital, in 550, when, after many strenuous attempts, he tried to capture the town by bribing one of the natives to fire the granaries. He thought by this means to divert the attention of the small garrison from the walls, so that the attacking force should be unresisted while effecting an entry. Contrary to expectation, however, the Byzantines were just prepared for a sally; and, leaving a few of their number within to extinguish the flames, they burst out suddenly on the besiegers. The latter, taken by surprise, suffered such loss that Mermeroes forthwith raised the siege and retired to another part of the country.

Mermeroes died in 554, and was replaced by Nachoragan, whose career was short and unfortunate. In the following year he essayed the siege of Phasis, a town by the sea at the mouth of the river of the same name. He had an army of sixty thousand at his disposal, while the Roman forces, under Martin and Justin the son of Germanus, did not amount to a third of that number. As the town was built of wood the Persian general expected an easy conquest, and resolved to destroy the walls by fire. On the south, where not defended by river and sea, an external muniment had been improvised in the shape of a fosse, filled with water from an adjacent lake, and a palisade. On the water were stationed a number of vessels with baskets fixed to the mastheads; and from these, as from towers, darts and missiles were shot or hurled. The Orientals, who had rendered their line of blockade continuous by a bridge of boats across the Phasis, were provided with elephants, having