| Ardagast(us) | |
|---|---|
| Years active | 593/594 |
Ardagast or Radogost (Ancient Greek: Ἀρδάγαστος Ardagastos; Cyrillic: Ардагаст; fl. 584–597) was a 6th-century Sclaveni brigadier (chieftain), alongside Peiragastus/Peragastus (594), under rex Musokios, mentioned by Theophylact Simocatta.
Etymology
The name may derive from Slavic rada – "council" or "rad" – "eager" and gostiti or hostit – "to host", meaning "the one who hosts the council" or "eager to host – hospitable". It could have been a personal name, or an acquired title designating the leader or chieftain of a council, assembly, or veche. Ardagast is an old Slavic unmetathised form.
Military campaigns
The raid in Thrace in 585 prompted Emperor Maurice to deal with the Slavs – sending an army under commander-in-chief Priscus and infantry commander Gentzon to cross the Danube at Dorostolon (present-day Silistra) and to carry out a surprise attack on the Slavs in their own territory (as the Slavs had long been pillaging the Byzantine Empire). The Byzantine army arrived at the Slavic camp at midnight, surprising the Slavs, who fled in confusion; Ardagast fell on a tree stump and was almost captured, but luckily he was near a river and eluded the attackers. Ardagast may have used a primitive snorkel, fashioned from a reed, to hide in the river for an extended period of time; this technique is mentioned in the Strategikon of Maurice.
Priscus sent his lieutenant Alexander across the Helibakion (Ialomiţa River) to find Slavs who were hiding in the woods and swamps, they failed to burn out the people hiding there, but a Gepid Christian who was associated with the Slavs deserted and revealed a secret passage. The Byzantine army then easily captured the Slavs, who according to the Gepid, were subjects of rex Musokios.
References
- Živković 2008, p. 47.
- Curta 2001, p. 100–102, 318.
- Živković 2008, p. 56.
- DERKSEN, RICK. "NOTES ON THE SLAVIC METATHESIS OF LIQUIDS". In: Studies in Slavic and General Linguistics 34 (2008): 41 (footnote nr. 5). Accessed June 1, 2021. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40997581.
- Relations between the autochthonous population and the migratory populations on the territory of Romania: a collection of studies, p. 198
- History of the Later Roman Empire from Arcadius to Irene, p. 144
- Curta 2001, p. 323.
- Curta 2001, p. 58.
- Živković 2008, pp. 47–49.
- Kardaras 2017, pp. 252–253.
- Balkan studies: biannual publication of the Institute for Balkan Studies, Volume 37, p. 48
- ^ History of the Later Roman Empire from Arcadius to Irene, p. 128
- Curta 2001, p. 100.
- Vernadsky, George (1943). Ancient Russia. A History of Russia. Vol. 1. Yale University Press (published 1964). p. 186. ISBN 9780300010060. Retrieved 2023-12-28.
Ardagast himself barely escaped captivity by plunging into the water. Possibly he saved himself by a device described in Mauricius' Strategicon. According to this treatise the Slavs could spend hours in water, keeping reeds in their mouths through which they breathed.
- Curta 2001, p. 101.
- Živković 2008, p. 49–50.
- History of the Later Roman Empire from Arcadius to Irene, p. 129
- History of the Later Roman Empire from Arcadius to Irene, Vol 2
- Curta, Florin (2001). The Making of the Slavs: History and Archaeology of the Lower Danube Region, c.500–700. Cembridge University. ISBN 9781139428880.
- Kardaras, Georgios (2017). "A re-approach of Procopius' ethnographic account on the early Slavs". Byzantina Symmeikta. 27: 239–257. doi:10.12681/byzsym.10407.
- Simocatta, Theophylact (1997) . Michael Whitby, Mary Whitby (ed.). The History of Theophylact Simocatta: An English Translation with Introduction and Notes (PDF). New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-822799-X.
- Živković, Tibor (2008). Forging unity: The South Slavs between East and West 550-1150. Belgrade: The Institute of History, Čigoja štampa. ISBN 9788675585732.