Mauri facts for kids
The Mauri were ancient people who lived in North Africa. Their name is where the English word "Moors" comes from. They were a group of Berber people. They lived in a region called Mauretania, which is now parts of Morocco and northwestern Algeria. This area was on the western side of North Africa, by the Mediterranean Sea.
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What's in a Name?
The name Mauri (pronounced Mau-ree) was used by ancient writers like Strabo around the 1st century. He said it was the local name for these people. The Romans also started using this name. The Mauri were similar to another group called the Numidians. Both names likely referred to early people who spoke Berber languages.
Mauri and the Roman Empire
In 44 AD, the Roman Empire took control of the Mauri's land. They made it a Roman province called Mauretania. Later, this province was split into two parts: Mauretania Caesariensis and Mauretania Tingitana. The Romans ruled this area well, and it became an important part of their empire.
Sometimes, the Mauri from the mountains would cross the Strait of Gibraltar. They would raid Roman areas in what is now southern Spain. These raids happened in the 170s and 180s AD. One time, they surrounded a town called Singilia Barba. Roman soldiers from Mauretania Tingitana came and helped free the town.
Many Mauri joined the Roman army. They were known as good cavalry (soldiers on horseback). Some Mauri even became part of the emperor's special army. For example, a grammarian named Victor said his family was of Mauri origin. His grandfather served in the emperor's army.
By the time of Emperor Diocletian (around 300 AD), Mauri cavalry were stationed at the borders. They helped guard the Roman Empire against other groups.
However, not all Mauri wanted to be part of the Roman Empire. Some groups fought against Roman rule. Around 296–297 AD, many parts of North Africa were in rebellion. Emperor Maximian fought against the Mauri for two years. He went into their mountain strongholds to show them Rome's power. This led to more Roman soldiers being sent to North Africa.
In the 370s, Mauri tribes raided Roman towns in Northwest Africa. A Roman general named Theodosius the Elder fought against them in 372. One Mauri tribe, the Austoriani, was known for these raids.
A Mauri leader named Firmus started a revolt in 372. He even convinced some Roman soldiers to join him. Theodosius defeated this rebellion.
Firmus's brother, Gildo, was also a Mauri chieftain. He helped the Romans defeat Firmus. As a reward, Gildo was put in charge of all Roman soldiers in Africa. But in 397, Gildo turned against the Western Roman Empire. He stopped sending grain ships to Rome. The Roman Senate declared Gildo an enemy.
Gildo had another brother, Mascezel. Gildo had killed Mascezel's children. So, Mascezel helped the Romans defeat Gildo's rebellion. A Roman force of 5,000 men, with Mascezel's help, won the battle. This brought Northwest Africa back under Roman control.
In the late 300s and early 400s, many Roman soldiers were kept in Africa. This was to keep order against the Mauri. These soldiers were needed to fight other invaders elsewhere, but they had to stay in Africa.
Around 411–412 AD, a Roman commander named Anysius fought against the Austuriani Mauri. He was praised for his courage and good leadership. In 412, the Roman border guards in Cyrenaica needed help against the Austuriani. The Eastern Roman Empire sent some barbarian soldiers to help.
Mauri and the Byzantine Empire
After the Western Roman Empire fell, a Germanic kingdom called the Vandals ruled much of North Africa. But neither the Vandals nor the later Byzantine Empire could fully control the Mauri. The Mauri kept control of the inland areas.
The Vandal army became weaker over time. They didn't have enough soldiers to protect against Mauri attacks. So, the Mauri started taking over more border areas.
In 533–534 AD, the Byzantine Empire, led by general Belisarius, reconquered Africa from the Vandals. Belisarius easily defeated the Vandals. But his successors had a very hard time controlling the Mauri. Some Byzantine leaders were even killed by them.
The Vandal king Huneric (477–484) was an Arian Christian. He sent many Catholic bishops and priests into Mauri territory. He wanted only Arian clergy in his kingdom.
Another Vandal king, Hilderic (523–530), could not stop Mauri attacks. He was removed from power and replaced by Gelimer. The Byzantine Emperor, Justinian, used this as an excuse to invade. Belisarius quickly took control of the former Roman province. King Gelimer hid with a Mauri chieftain in a mountain city. He was surrounded for three months until he surrendered.
Most Mauri did not fight Belisarius. They waited to see who would win and then supported the Byzantines. The Vandals had lost a lot of Roman land to the Mauri. As soon as Belisarius left Africa in 534, the Mauri started raiding again.
A Byzantine general named Solomon fought many campaigns against the Mauri. He stopped the raids for a while. But a Byzantine soldier rebellion in 536 allowed the Mauri to raid again. Solomon was called back to fight the Mauri again in 539.
The Byzantines had trouble collecting taxes because of the Mauri wars and soldier rebellions. Emperor Justinian was busy with other wars and couldn't send many resources to control the Mauri. This led to more Mauri rebellions in the 540s.
Solomon did manage to control the Mauri in Byzantine territory. However, his nephew Sergius invited Mauri chiefs to a meeting and killed them in 544. This caused a big Mauri uprising, and Solomon was killed.
Justinian sent other generals to Africa. One general, Gontharis, secretly supported the Mauri. He took over Carthage and killed another general, Areobindus. But Gontharis was then killed by a loyal Byzantine soldier. Finally, a general named John Troglita defeated the Mauri revolt in 546–547. After this, there were no major Mauri rebellions until 563, and that one was quickly stopped.
Historians say that the Byzantines had a hard time controlling the Mauri because they didn't send enough money and soldiers to Africa. Justinian was fighting many wars elsewhere. The Mauri had taken large areas of land from the Vandals, and the Byzantines never got these lands back. Many towns in Byzantine territory were fortified, meaning they had strong walls. This shows that there was a constant threat of war, mostly from the Mauri.
Another big Mauri revolt happened in 569, during the reign of Emperor Justin II. Important Byzantine officials were killed in this revolt. During the reign of Emperor Maurice (582–602), there were two more smaller Mauri rebellions.
Mauri and the Islamic Period
The Byzantine Empire kept control of North Africa until the late 600s. This is when the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb happened. Muslim armies took over North Africa. After this, the Mauri seemed to continue resisting for another 50 years.
Later, Christian writers started using the term Mauri or Moors to describe the Islamic people of North Africa and Spain in general.
The Name Lives On
The modern country of Mauritania got its name in 1903 when it was a French colony. It was named after the ancient Roman province of Mauretania. However, modern Mauritania is actually located much further south than the old Roman province.
See also
In Spanish: Mauros para niños
- Roman-Moorish kingdoms
