Maurice's Balkan Campaigns - Retrospective

Retrospective

In the end, the successes of Maurice's campaigns were foregone by Phocas. Maurice's hopes for rebuilding Balkans and resettling Armenian militia peasants to the depopulated areas were not realized. Heraclius would do even less for the Balkans. Therefore, the only immediate consequence was the mentioned delay in Slavic landfall on the Balkans. For this reason, it is often falsely and superficially assumed that Maurice's Balkan campaigns were a failure.

Probably, Avar defeats in the late part of the campaigns from 599 on had a long term impact. The Avars had been bloodily defeated in their own country and had proven to be unable to protect themselves, let alone their subjects. Until the battle of Viminacium in 599, they were held to be invincible, allowing them to thoroughly exploit their subjects. After this had been proven wrong, the first rebellions occurred, to be crushed after 603. The Avars were able to score further successes against the Lombards, Franks and Romans; however, they were unable to restore their old reputation. This can explain the Slavic uprising under the leadership of Samo in 623, three years before the abortive Siege of Constantinople.

Maurice's campaigns put an end to Avar dreams of hegemony on the Balkans and paved the way for an end of the Avar threat. The Khagan's power collapsed only after the abortive siege of Constantinople in 626 and; the Avar Khaganate would be eventually destroyed much later by Charlemagne in (791–803). The Muslim conquests, beginning in the 630s, led to the loss of all the Oriental provinces of the Roman Empire. The constant Arab threat over strategically important Asia Minor had a great impact on Balkans. Several decades were to pass before Constantinople could regain the initiative and reconquer parts of Slav-controlled areas (Sklavinia). Several centuries were to pass before Basil II was to bring, by fire and sword, the entire the Balkans under Byzantine control again.