Neboulos

Neboulos (Greek: Νέβουλος) was a South Slavic military commander in the service of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian II (r. 685–695 and 705–711). Around 690, Neboulos was appointed commander a special military corps of about 30,000 men established by the Emperor. In 692/3, he and his corps joined in a major Byzantine campaign against the Umayyad Caliphate. However, in the Battle of Sebastopolis, Neboulos and about 20,000 of his men defected to the Arabs, allegedly bribed by the Arab commander Muhammad ibn Marwan. In retaliation, Justinian II disbanded the corps, executed or enslaved the remaining soldiers and their families. Neboulos and his followers were resettled in Syria to serve in future Arab campaigns.