Atlas of Battles

battle, major, ancient

Battle of Adrianople (324)

Battle of Adrianople (324) was a battle fought on 3 July AD 324 at Edirne, in what is now Turkey. It was part of the Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy, which ran from AD 308 to AD 324. The recorded result: Constantinian victory. Recorded strength: 130,000 against 165,000.

See it on the globe Read the article

Map showing the situation of troops before the Battle of Adrianopole in 324. The work was created by Inkscape and is based on a map from the Italian Wikipedia
Map showing the situation of troops before the Battle of Adrianopole in 324. The work was created by Inkscape and is based on a map from the Italian Wikipedia. Memnon335bc, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought3 July AD 324
WhereEdirne, Turkey41.670N, 26.525E
OutcomeConstantinian victory
BelligerentsForces of Constantine; (Western Empire)againstForces of Licinius; (Eastern Empire)
Casualties and lossesUnknownand34,000 killed
Part ofCivil Wars of the TetrarchyAD 308 to AD 324

Where it sits in the Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy

Battle of the Milvian Bridge, AD 312Battle of Tzirallum, AD 313Battle of Adrianople (324), AD 324AD 312AD 324Battle of Adrianople (324), AD 324
3 placed engagements of the Civil Wars of the Tetrarchy in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date3 July AD 324
PlaceEdirne, Turkey
41.670N, 26.525E
KindBattle, ancient
Strength130,000165,000
Casualties and lossesUnknown34,000 killed
Commanders
Battle of Adrianople (324)Battle of Adrianople (324)Second Battle of AdrianopleSiege of Adrianople (813)Battle of AdrianopleBattle of VersinikiaBattle of AdrianopleBattle of VersinikiaBurgasStara ZagoraTekirdağKhaskovoXanthiPlovdivSlivenKavala100 km41.670N, 26.525E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Adrianople (324)
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 10 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Adrianople (324) today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-06-25. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 35 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 19 to 141 m, 121 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 54% cropland, 14% built-up, 12% tree cover.

cropland: 54%built-up: 14%tree cover: 12%grassland: 12%water: 6%cropland 54%built-up 14%tree cover 12%grassland 12%water 6%
west to east, 10.0 km31 to 67 mnorth to south, 10.0 km32 to 94 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 10 times between AD 324 and 1913.

In the same war

Elsewhere in AD 324

Battle of Adrianople (324) is one of 65 engagements of the 4th century in the atlas and one of 622 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q767848, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Adrianople (324), revision 1370105935, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.