DE BELLO DACICO - I DACIAN CAMPAIGN

The first images one can see on Trajan's column, depict the various safeguards arranged by the Romans along the Danube to defend the province of Pannonia (at the present time corresponding to part of Hungary, Austria, Croatia and Slovenia), and Moesia that included Serbia, Bulgaria, and part of Macedonia.
Decebal is a nickname, the meaning of which is: valiant as 10 men.

The Roman army crossed the Danube at two different points, one column moved from the fortresss of Singidunum (modern Belgrade), the other led by Trajan from Lederata (near Kostolac in Serbia).
The two columns were to be reunited at Berzobis.

Trajan mobilized for the Dacian war the Germanic legions, the Pannonian legions and those of Upper and Lower Moesia. To these legions were added vexillationes ( detachments of other legions, formed by veterans and legionnaires known for their value). The legions and the vexillationes joined the German and Numidian auxiliaries. In particular, the bulk of the cavalry was formed by Batavian, who lived in the current Netherlands, famous for their courage and vigour and Numidians, under the command of the Prince of Mauri, Lusio Quieto, faithful friend of Trajan and Roman senator.

Trajan overall troops added up to about 140,000 men, half of which was allocated in defence of the empire border along the Danube.
An important role had the Roman fleets: the Pannonian and Moesica fleets, which cruised along the upper and lower Danube.

Fleet task was to patrol the rivers to prevent sudden attacks and above all provide the necessary supplies.
The army of Decebal could number in addition to 200 thousand Dacian warriors, also about 20,000 horsemen, recruited among Bastarnae and Roxolani. The Bastarnae was a population of Germans and Sarmatians (the steppe people), who had settled close to north-east of Dacia. While Roxolani were Sarmatians who lived in the areas bordering on south-east of Dacia.

Both of these nomadic people were famous for the light and heavy cavalry. The light cavalry was made up of skilled archers, while the heavy cavalry was formed by cataphracts, recognizable for the chain mail that protected both men and horses. To Bastarnae and to Roxolani, Decebal flanked Buri, a Germanic people who had settled adjoining to the north west of Dacia.
In addition Decebal attempted on the life of Trajan repeatedly, but in vain.

The strategy of the Dacian king was to attract Trajan to the pass of the Iron Gates, which he considered insurmountable, and wear down the resistance of the Roman army, while advancing, by means of continuous attacks of Buri, Bastarnae and Roxolani. But Trajan proceeded with great caution, building fortifications at every stop and connecting them with roads that would allow fast and secure communications. In addition, each legion could count on 60 carrobaliste (the tanks of the Romans), which Trajan had used successfully in the Germanic-Sarmatic wars. The carrobaliste were able to cast lead bullets weighing a pound and dozens of arrows, up to 200 meters, compared to the range of 50 meters that could cover the best archers. With carrobaliste the cavalry was kept at a safe distance.

Inside Dacia there were two places called Iron Gates, one consisted of a series of rapid along the Danube, the other was the pass of the Iron Gates, in the Carpathian Mountains, near the town of Tapae. Once gone over this pass one  could see the Orastie mountains (a branch of the Carpathians), where at an altitude of more than a thousand meters the Dacians had built six fortified towns, including the capital Sarmizegetusa.

The strategy of Decebal turned loser because the Bastarnae and Roxolani horsemen found themselves in great difficulty having to fight in a wooded and mountainous terrain, so the archers on horseback were impeded by dense woods and cataphracts, embarrassed by the heavy armor, were unable to make those charges for which they were dreaded.
Overtaken the enemy cavalry, Roman legionnaires went to hand to hand struggle in which they were insurmountable. After a ferocious battle Trajan conquered the Iron Gates, rejecting any attempt to counterattack by Decebal. However the battle of Tapae (after the city next to the Iron Gates), was fought when the summer was declining and approaching the winter season. For this reason, the emperor conquered and garissoned the Iron Gates, ended the first campaign.

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