daniel/factbase-ancient-history
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Pull Requests Actions Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity
Files
826e8e3c6a948f5849651477c87c4ee7649f05a5
factbase-ancient-history/battles/battle-of-adrianople.md
daniel 01866caf6a Fix 656 lazy temporal answers: replace 'static historical fact' with source-attributed answers 
- Updated perspective.md: require source citations in temporal answers
- Filed feature request #75 for BCE temporal tag support (tested 7 formats, all rejected)
- Built batch script to replace all 'Static historical fact' answers with proper
  source attribution (ancient text date + modern publication year)
- Fixed source date detection bug (modern books about ancient figures)
- Answers now cite attesting source and its date per document footnotes
2026-02-22 23:00:39 +00:00

83 lines
6.7 KiB
Markdown
Raw Blame History

This file contains ambiguous Unicode characters
This file contains Unicode characters that might be confused with other characters. If you think that this is intentional, you can safely ignore this warning. Use the Escape button to reveal them.
<!-- factbase:fc7830 -->
# Battle of Adrianople
# Battle of Adrianople
## Overview
The Battle of Adrianople (378 CE) was a catastrophic Roman defeat in which the Visigoths destroyed a Roman army and killed Emperor Valens. It is often cited as a turning point signaling the decline of Roman military power. @t[=0378]
## Key Facts
- Date: 9 August 378 CE @t[=0378]
- Location: Adrianople (modern Edirne, Turkey)
- Belligerents: Eastern Roman Empire vs. Visigoths
- Commanders: Emperor Valens (Rome, killed), Fritigern (Visigoths)
- Result: Decisive Visigothic victory [^1]
## The Battle
- Valens attacked without waiting for Western reinforcements under Gratian
- Roman cavalry was routed by a surprise Gothic cavalry charge
- Roman infantry was surrounded and annihilated
- ~20,000 Roman soldiers killed, including Valens himself
## Significance
- Demonstrated the vulnerability of Roman legions to heavy cavalry
- Led to the Treaty of 382 CE: Visigoths settled within the empire as *foederati* @t[=0382]
- Often considered a harbinger of the fall of the Western Roman Empire [^2]
---
[^1]: Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12–13
[^2]: Burns, T.S. *Barbarians Within the Gates of Rome* (1994)---
## Review Queue
<!-- factbase:review -->
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 10: "Date: 9 August 378 CE @t[=0378]" - what is the source?
> Well-established historical date from Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae (Book 31), the primary contemporary source for the battle. Also corroborated by later sources including Orosius and Zosimus.
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 11: "Location: Adrianople (modern Edirne, Turkey)" - when was this true?
> CE event (378 CE), tagged @t[=0378] on the date line. Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12 (~390 CE) [^1]; modern confirmation in Burns (1994) [^2].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 12: "Belligerents: Eastern Roman Empire vs. Visigoths" - when was this true?
> CE event (378 CE), no additional temporal tag needed beyond the date line. Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12 (~390 CE) [^1].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 13: "Commanders: Emperor Valens (Rome, killed), Fritigern (Visigoths)" - when was this true?
> CE event (378 CE). Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12-13 (~390 CE) [^1].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 14: "Result: Decisive Visigothic victory [^1]" - when was this true?
> CE event (9 August 378 CE). Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.13 (~390 CE) [^1]; modern analysis in Burns (1994) [^2].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 17: "Valens attacked without waiting for Western reinforcements under Gratian" - when was this true?
> CE event (9 August 378 CE). Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12.4-6 (~390 CE) [^1].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 18: "Roman cavalry was routed by a surprise Gothic cavalry charge" - when was this true?
> CE event (9 August 378 CE). Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.13.2 (~390 CE) [^1].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 19: "Roman infantry was surrounded and annihilated" - when was this true?
> CE event (9 August 378 CE). Attested by Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.13.6-8 (~390 CE) [^1].
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 20: "~20,000 Roman soldiers killed, including Valens himself" - when was this true?
> CE event (9 August 378 CE). Casualty figure is a modern estimate; Ammianus (~390 CE) says two-thirds of the army was lost [^1]. Burns (1994) [^2] provides the ~20,000 figure.
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 23: "Demonstrated the vulnerability of Roman legions to heavy cavalry" - when was this true?
> Scholarly interpretation, not a dated event. Assessment in Burns (1994) [^2]; also Delbrück, *History of the Art of War*. Some modern historians debate the cavalry emphasis.
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 25: "Often considered a harbinger of the fall of the Western Roman Empire [^2]" - when was this true?
> Scholarly interpretation. Assessment in Burns (1994) [^2]; also supported by Heather, *The Fall of the Roman Empire* (2006) and Lenski (2002).
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 7: Malformed temporal tag @t[=378] — see docs for valid syntax
> Fix to @t[=0378]. The temporal tag system requires 4-digit years.
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 10: Malformed temporal tag @t[=378] — see docs for valid syntax
> Fix to @t[=0378]. The temporal tag system requires 4-digit years.
- [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 24: Malformed temporal tag @t[=382] — see docs for valid syntax
> Fix to @t[=0382]. The temporal tag system requires 4-digit years.
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 10: "Date: 9 August 378 CE @t[=378]" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.12-13 [^1]. The primary eyewitness account.
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 11: "Location: Adrianople (modern Edirne, Turkey)" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.12 [^1]. Well-established location.
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 12: "Belligerents: Eastern Roman Empire vs. Visigoths" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.12 [^1].
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 13: "Commanders: Emperor Valens (Rome, killed), Fritigern (Visigoths)" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.12-13 [^1].
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 17: "Valens attacked without waiting for Western reinforcements under Gratian" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.12.4-6 [^1].
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 18: "Roman cavalry was routed by a surprise Gothic cavalry charge" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.13.2 [^1].
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 19: "Roman infantry was surrounded and annihilated" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.13.6-8 [^1].
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 20: "~20,000 Roman soldiers killed, including Valens himself" - what is the source?
> Source: Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 31.13.18 [^1]. Casualty figure is a modern estimate; Ammianus says two-thirds of the army was lost.
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 23: "Demonstrated the vulnerability of Roman legions to heavy cavalry" - what is the source?
> Source: Burns (1994) [^2]; also Delbrück, History of the Art of War. This is a longstanding scholarly interpretation, though some modern historians debate the cavalry emphasis.
- [x] `@q[missing]` Line 24: "Led to the Treaty of 382 CE: Visigoths settled within the empire as *foederat..." - what is the source?
> Source: Burns (1994) [^2]; Heather, P. The Fall of the Roman Empire (2006). The treaty of 382 CE is well-attested in Themistius, Orations.
- [x] `@q[stale]` Line 25: "Often considered a harbinger of the fall of the Western Roman Empire [^2]" - Burns source from 1994 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
> Burns (1994) remains a standard reference. The interpretation of Adrianople as a turning point is longstanding scholarly consensus, also supported by Heather (2006) and Lenski (2002). Still accurate.
Reference in New Issue View Git Blame Copy Permalink