Bellini family 101In the 11th century the ducal title came to the house
of Bouillon. Several provinces remained part of the
empire. When GODFREY OFBOUILLONwent on the CRU-
SADE, Lower Lorraine was split into several feudal units,
such as the counties of Namur, Louvain, Hainault, and
Luxemburg. Its northern part, the future NETHERLANDS,
remained tied directly to the emperors. By the 12th cen-
tury Hainault was attached to Flanders. These regions
early on possessed prosperous commercial centers.
BRABANT AND BURGUNDYIn the 14th century the house of Luxemburg gained the
imperial Crown and left the region to concentrate its
interests in BOHEMIA. About the same time the Duchy of
BRABANT was established; it included Louvain and the
southern territories of modern HOLLAND. Simultaneously
the cities of Antwerp and Brussels prospered, as Brussels
became the capital of the duchy. In 1364, Philip the Bold,
the duke of Burgundy, married Margaret of Flanders; the
union gave Philip the Flemish part of Belgium. In 1419
Brabant and Holland descended to Duke PHILIP THEGOOD
by his marriage with their heiress. The purchase of Namur
and Luxemburg by Philip soon united the whole region
under the house of BURGUNDY. The new combine of Bel-
gium and Burgundy became the richest and the most
powerful state in western Europe in the 15th century.
Antwerp was a principal port for western Europe, and
Brussels was sometimes the ducal capital, the center of the
textile industry, and the residence of the Burgundian court
in the late Middle Ages. The country was a rich and
important cultural, intellectual, and artistic center.
See alsoBRUGES;GHENT.
Further reading:Peter J. Arnade, Realms of Ritual:
Burgundian Ceremony and Civil Life in Late Medieval Ghent
(Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1996); Royal
Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, The Flemish Primitives:
Catalogue of Early Netherlandish Painting in the Royal
Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium(Brussels: Brepols, 1996).
Belisarius(Belisarios) (ca. 505–565)Byzantine general
Originally from Illyria or the Balkans and born about
505, Belisarius rose to prominence in the imperial body-
guard and was advanced to high military command
while still in his 20s. He won outstanding success in the
war fought with Persia early in JUSTINIAN’s reign. He fur-
ther gained the emperor’s confidence through his loyalty
during the “Nika riots” of 532, during which he com-
manded the massacre of the rioters. In addition, Belisar-
ius married Antonina, a friend of Empress THEODORA.
His wife, though unfaithful and often embarrassing to
him, had great influence at court, which was valuable
when Justinian grew suspicious of him. Although Belis-
arius seems never to have been disloyal, Justinian was
always fearful that so popular a commander might
attempt to seize the throne.
MILITARY SUCCESSES
During the first of Justinian’s campaigns of reconquest
against the Germanic kingdoms in the west in 533,
Belisarius led a small force against the VANDALS of
North AFRICA. Through two overwhelming victories he
destroyed the Vandal regime and recovered North
Africa for the empire. For this he was allowed to cele-
brate a triumph upon his return to CONSTANTINOPLE.In
535 Belisarius was sent to begin the conquest of ITA LY
from the OSTROGOTHS. Making rapid progress north-
ward from Byzantine SICILY, he took NAPLESand ROME.
The GOTHSbesieged him in Rome during 537–538, but
they failed to dislodge him. In 540 the Goths even
agreed to surrender, if Belisarius would become their
emperor. He secured their capitulation but then refused
the honor. Both the Ostrogoths and the emperor were
suspicious of him afterward. Recalled in temporary dis-
favor, he was sent in 541 to command imperial forces
in Mesopotamia in a renewed war with the Persians. He
did well again and restored the frontier on the
Euphrates.
A new Ostrogothic king, TOTILA, tried to end the
Byzantine occupation of Italy, and Belisarius returned to
Rome in 544. Justinian, suspicious, broke, and cheap,
refused, however, to give him adequate men and supplies
for the task. Belisarius found it impossible to deal with
Totila effectively. Theodora’s death in 548 deprived him of
his last strong ally at court. He requested recall and was
allowed to retire to CONSTANTINOPLE.RETIREMENT
Belisarius remained inactive until 559, when an attack
by a marauding force of HUNSthreatened the capital, and
the frightened Justinian called him out of retirement.
Using his household retinue as a small force, he drove
off the Huns. Three years later Belisarius was implicated,
probably falsely, in a plot against the emperor’s life. Jus-
tinian stripped him of his honors, great fortune, and ret-
inue and kept him in enforced confinement for some
time. This persecution gave rise to a false legend that
Justinian blinded Belisarius, who was forced to beg in
the streets. Somewhat restored to honor the following
year and probably always faithful, Belisarius died in
March 565, only a few months before the death of
Justinian himself.
See alsoPROCOPIUS OFCAESAREA.
Further reading:John W. Barker, Justinian and the
Later Roman Empire(Madison: University of Wisconsin
Press, 1996); Robert Browning, Justinian and Theodora
(London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1971).Bellini family The Bellini family was distinguished for
their exceptional contribution to Renaissance painting in
VENICE. Jacopo Bellini (ca. 1400–70) and two of his sons,
Gentile (ca. 1429–1507) and Giovanni (ca. 1431–1516),