The Siege of Niskayuna

On July 1st the legions arrived in sight of the capital, Niskayuna. The city consisted of 5 neighborhoods, surrounded by stone walls and towers, and was near a river. The Emperor, as soon as he arrived in sight of the city immediately gave the orders. While the bulk of the troops would surround the city a part would have gone into the surrounding woods, in order to procure the wood necessary for the siege works. Thus began the work. However, the siege revealed itself from the beginning complex, both for the continuous sortie by the besieged, and for the presence in the woods of small groups of enemies that disturbed the procurement operations. This is why the Emperor decided to create a wall that surrounded the city like a ring, so as to be able to easily repel the sorties. At the beginning of August some Iroquois warned the Romans that a great army was being prepared, 10 times larger than the one they had faced, and that it would be commanded by the sovereign himself, Thayendanagea. When the news was known, both the soldiers and the Roman commanders fell into despair, and even the Emperor wavered, undecided whether to risk being annihilated or to stop the siege; however, a traitor informed the Emperor that it could not be true, since the Romans had already destroyed the bulk of the Iroquois troops. So the Emperor, feeling encouraged, decided to maintain the siege, giving orders to the troops to build a second bastion on the outside of the camp, so that the city would be closed by an invincible ring. At the end of August, the enemy troops appeared, which were about 15,000, and they besieged the Romans. At the sight of the reinforcements, the citizens also cheered up, and increased their efforts to break the siege. The Iroquois army concentrated their efforts on a point of the bastion, so that once it had broken through, it was possible to attack the Roman camp with ease. The siege lasted until the beginning of winter, when the Romans, exhausted and hungry, threatened to rebel. Then the Emperor, consulting with his generals, decided to personally conduct a sortie against the troops of the Iroquois king, so that his men saw that he shared their risks. The same night the troops, after wrapping their weapons and armor in clothes, in addition to the hooves of the horses, came out of the camp, and only the VII legion, charged with maintaining the fiction that the entire Roman army was still inside the camp, did not participate in the action. The Roman soldiers positioned themselves in the combat array, approaching as quietly as possible in order not to arouse suspicion, until they reached a few tens of meters from the enemy camp, when, with a terrifying cry and making the earth rumble beneath their feet they threw themselves on the Iroquois, seizing them with surprise and massacring a large number, including Thayendanagea himself. So the enemy army broke and, although the siege continued until January, the Romans could begin to forage outside, albeit always in large groups due to the continuous assaults by the local populations.

The Conflict

Prelude

The march of the legions towards the Iroquois capital.

Deployment

The Legions besieged the city, each one given a quadrant: the second was on the North-West side, the seventh was on the South-West side, the tenth was on the South-East side and the twentyfirst was on the North-East side.

Battlefield

The city of Niskayuna and the surroundings.

Outcome

With the fall of the enemy capital the legions got a solid base for the winter.

Aftermath

After the fall of the city and the elimination of the ruling family the enemy morale was at the lowest, allowing a quick destruction of the remaining Iroquois forces.

Historical Significance

Legacy

The conquest of the northeastern part of the continent.

In Literature

It has inspired various dramas during the centuries, and at least a couple of videogames.

Included under Conflict

Roman-Iroquois war

Conflict Type

Siege

Battlefield Type

Urban

Start Date

July, 1

Ending Date

December, 23

Conflict Result

The city fell.