when the horsemen of Belisarius, issuing from the
Pincian Gate, would have pursued them, they were fiercely repulsed, for
Earl Teja led the Gothic rearguard.

So the Gothic army, avoiding the strongholds occupied by the
enemy--Narnia, Spoletium and Perusia--marched with expedition from Rome
through Picenum to Ravenna, where they arrived in time to crush the
dangerous symptoms of rebellion among the population, some of whom,
upon hearing of the misfortunes of the barbarians, had already entered
into secret negotiations with Johannes.

As the Goths approached the latter withdrew into the fortress of
Ariminum, his last important conquest.

In Ancona lay Konon, the navarchus of Belisarius, with the Thracian
spearmen and many ships of war.

The King, however, had not taken to Ravenna the whole of the army which
had besieged Rome, but had, during the march, left several regiments to
garrison the fortresses which he passed.

One thousand men he had left under Gibimer in Clusium; another thousand
in Urbs Vetus, under Albila; five hundred men in Tudertum under
Wulfgis; in Auximum four thousand men under Earl Wisand, the brave
bandalarius; in Urbinum two thousand under Morra; and in Caesena and
Monsferetrus five hundred.

He sent Hildebrand to Verona, Totila to Tarvisium, and Teja to Ticinum,
for the north-eastern part of the peninsula was also endangered by
Byzantine troops, coming from Istria.

In acting thus he had been also influenced by other reasons. He wished
first of all to check Belisarius on his march to Ravenna. Secondly, he
was afraid, in case of a siege, that if all his troops were with him,
they would speedily be exposed to the evils of starvation, and, lastly,
he wished to attack the besiegers in their rear from various sides.

His plan was to occupy his stronghold of Ravenna, limiting himself to
defensive proceedings until the foreign troops which he expected,
Longobardians and Franks, should place him in a position to take the
open field.

But his hope of checking Belisarius on his way to Ravenna was
disappointed, for the Byzantine contented himself with investing all
the Gothic fortresses with a portion of his army, marching on with the
main army to the capital city and last important refuge of the Goths.

"If I have mortally wounded the heart," he said, "the clenched fists
will open of themselves."

And so, very soon, the tents of the Byzantines were seen stretching in
a wide semicircle round the