Editing Count Belisarius (section)

{{Use British English|date=April 2025}}
{{short description|1938 historical novel by Robert Graves}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2009}}
{{Infobox book
| name          = Count Belisarius
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| image         = Count Belisarius Cover.jpg
| image_size    = 
| caption       = First edition (UK)
| author        = [[Robert Graves]]
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| country       = United Kingdom
| language      = English
| series        =
| genre         = [[Historical novel]]
| publisher     = [[Random House]] (US)<br />[[Cassell (publisher)|Cassell]] (UK)
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}}

'''''Count Belisarius''''' is a [[historical novel]] by [[Robert Graves]], first published in 1938, recounting the life of the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] general [[Belisarius]] (AD 500–565).

Just as Graves's Claudius novels (''[[I, Claudius]]'' and ''Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina'') were based on ''[[The Twelve Caesars]]'' of [[Suetonius]] and other Roman sources, ''Count Belisarius'' is largely based on [[Procopius]]'s ''History of Justinian's Wars'' and ''Secret History''. However, Graves's treatment of his sources has been criticised by the historian Anthony Kaldellis, who writes that "There are many historical novels set in the early sixth century, but none can be recommended that are both historically accurate and well-written.  R. Graves's ''Count Belisarius''... is at least well-written."<ref>Kaldellis's translation of Procopius, ''The Secret History, with Related Texts'', 2010, {{ISBN|1-60384-180-6}}, p. lxxix.</ref>

''Count Belisarius'' purports to be a biography written by Eugenius, a [[eunuch]] who is a servant of Belisarius' wife [[Antonina (wife of Belisarius)|Antonina]]. The novel covers the entire life of Belisarius, with the bulk of the text being devoted to accounts of his life while on campaign in North Africa and Italy. Antonina was often with him during these years, and Graves uses stories about her connections to the court of the Emperor [[Justinian I|Justinian]] and his Empress [[Theodora (6th century)|Theodora]] to incorporate political intrigue and other information into the story of Belisarius' military exploits.