Barbarian Gate: Adrianople—378, Pliska—811

Streaming video - 2015

Although waged 400 years apart, the battles of Adrianople and Pliska share a number of curious similarities. Explore how both defeats were triggered by the Romans’ mistreatment of immigrant “barbarian” groups from the north—who might otherwise have been converted into allies—and overconfidence on the part of the Roman emperors..