The Byzantine victory marked the beginning of the end for the Vandals and began the reconquest of the west under the Emperor Justinian I.

It consisted of 5,000 Byzantine cavalry and twice as many infantry and some additional units but their number and composition is not named by the primary sources.

[1] He divided his forces, sending 2,000 men under his nephew Gibamund to block one of the three roads to Carthage, the other two converging at Ad Decimum.

[1][5][6][3] At the time when Ammatus was scouting the location of the battle, Belisarius found a good spot for a fortified camp roughly four miles from Ad Decimum,[1][7] leaving his infantry there while he advanced with his cavalry.

[1][9] Ammatus was scouting the battlefield with just a few men when he encountered the much stronger Byzantine vanguard under John, and was killed in the ensuing combat.

[1][7] By now a Byzantine contingent under a man called Solomon, sent to contact John, reached the scene where battle had taken place.

[1] Seeing the importance of a nearby hill, an ideal location for a camp, some of Gelimer's and Solomon's troops began to skirmish.

[1][5][7] Reforming these troops and listening to their reports, Belisarius noticed that many Vandals had already been routed while the rest had halted.

[1] In the clear space around Carthage the Vandals would not have had surprise on their side and the outcome of engagement would be more in doubt,[1] and as such he did not try to pursue the “overwhelming” Byzantine force.

[1] Instead, Gelimer elected to set up camp at the favorable position he had captured, gather intelligence, and wait for reinforcements from Sardinia to arrive rather than engage Belisarius (at this point still extremely vulnerable), who moved towards Carthage.

The next day he marched on the city, with his wife Antonina at his side, ordering his men not to kill or enslave the population (as was normal practice at the time) because he stated the people were actually Roman citizens under Vandal rule.

He then set about rebuilding the fortifications of the city, and his fleet sought shelter in the Lake of Tunis, five miles (8 km) south of Carthage.