Byzantine Battles: Battle of Mursa Major

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Battle of Mursa Major	year: 351 28 September 351
Victory of Constantius II over the army of the Western usurper Magnentius	★ ★ ★ ★ ★

enemy: Romans (Civil War)	location: In Mursa, Pannonia (modern Osijek, Croatia), along the valley of the Drava River, a Danube tributary.	accuracy: ●●●●●
battle type: Pitched Battle	war: Later Roman Military Civil Wars	modern country: Croatia

	▼ The Byzantines(emperor: Constantius II)	▼ The Enemies
Commander:	Emperor Constantius II	Magnentius, Augustus of the West
Forces:	60,000	35,000
Losses:	c. 30,000	Two thirds of the army

Background story:

Magnentius was the commander of the Herculians and Iovians, the Imperial guard units of Rome. When the army grew dissatisfied with the behavior of Western Roman Emperor Constans, Magnentius was elevated to the throne of the West on January 18, 350. Constans was abandoned by all and was killed shortly afterwards by a troop of light cavalry somewhere in the Pyrenees.
Magnentius gained quickly control of the territories of Western Europe, Italy and Africa and tried to extend his grasp to the east, moving towards the Danube.
The emperor of the East (and the brother of Constans), Constantius II, broke off his war in Syria with Persia, and marched west. The two contenders met in Mursa Major, in modern Kroatia.

The Battle:

Magnentius

Before the battle, Constantius tried to negotiate requiring that the usurper withdraw back to Gaul. After the failure of the talks, one of Magnentius' commanders, Claudius Silvanus, and most of his men deserted to Constantius, thus helping seal the outcome.
Magnentius led his troops into battle, while Constantius spent the day of battle praying.
Despite Magnentius' heroism, his troops were defeated and forced to retreat back to Gaul.
The losses were heavy for both sides.

Noteworthy:

There was also a religious side to the conflict. Magnentius had restored some rights to the pagans, while Constantius was a devote Christian and even left the battlefield to pray on the nearby tomb of a Christian martyr.

Aftermath:

One of the bloodiest battles of the Romans. The severe casualties weakened the army and this had been one of the reasons of the decline of the Empire.

Byzantine Battles

Battle of Mursa Major

351