Battle of Adrianople

Battle of Adrianople
	Part of the Gothic War of 376–382; and the Roman–Germanic Wars
	; Map of the battle, according to the History Department of the US Military Academy
Date	9 August 378
Location	Near Adrianople, Eastern Roman Empire; (modern-day Edirne, Turkey)41°49′N 26°30′E / 41.81°N 26.50°E
Result	Gothic–Alan victory
Belligerents
Goths Thervingi; Greuthungi; ; Alans	Eastern Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Fritigern (Thervingi); Alatheus (Greuthungi); Saphrax (Greuthungi);	Emperor Valens †; Sebastianus †; Traianus †; Victor; Ricomer;
Strength
12,000–15,000 (Delbrück); 20,000 (Williams and Friell;	15,000 (Heather); 30,000 (Williams and Friell);
Casualties and losses
Unknown	10,000–15,000 (Heather) or 20,000 (Williams & Friel) (roughly two-thirds of the Roman force)

The Battle of Adrianople, also known as Battle of Hadrianopolis, was fought between the Eastern Roman army led by the Roman emperor Valens and Gothic rebels (largely Thervings as well as Greutungs, non-Gothic Alans, and various local rebels), led by Fritigern. The battle took place on 9 August 378 in the vicinity of Adrianople, in the Roman province of Thracia (modern Edirne in European Turkey). It ended with an overwhelming victory for the Goths and the death of Emperor Valens.

As part of the Gothic War of 376–382, the battle is often considered the start of the events which led to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century.

A detailed contemporary account of the lead-up to the battle from the Roman perspective was written by Ammianus Marcellinus and forms the culminating point at the end of his history.