The Battle of Manzikert 1071 and the Beginning of Seljuk Dominance

The Battle of Manzikert occurred on August 25-26, 1071, in the territory of the Byzantium Empire, near the city of Manzikert, between the Seljuk Turks and the Byzantine Empire. The Seljuk Turks, under the leadership of the Sultan of Alp-Arslan, defeated the Byzantines and captured Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes, who bought his freedom back at great expense for his country. The victory of the Turks accelerated the establishment of permanent population transfers of Seljuk Turks to Asia Minor. The battle of Manzikert is the decisive battle between the Byzantines and the Seljuks. After this battle, the Byzantine Empire did not recover its’ former strength. It managed to continue for four centuries, but it never regained the power it once had.

History

Like the great Emperors of the Macedonian dynasty, the Emperor Romanus decided to personally go on a campaign against the Seljuk Turks. But the inability of the Emperor diminished the army and demoralized it. With all diligence, Romanus could only collect a heterogeneous group of native and wage warriors, undisciplined and not accustomed to joint actions.

The bad news from Italy, where Robert Guiscard took Otranto and besieged Bari, the last stronghold of Greek domination, forced Romanus to return to Europe. In his absence, the Turks defeated Manuel Komnin, commander of the army, and Alp-Arslan himself controlled the most important border fortress in eastern Byzantium, Manzikert.

Preparation

Romanus IV was accompanied by Andronikos Dukas, co-leader and a direct competitor for the imperial throne. The army consisted of 10,000 Byzantine soldiers from the western and eastern regions of the empire, 500 Frankish and Norman mercenaries, hired troops of Oguzes and Pechenegs, detachments of Bulgarians, Georgians and Armenians, and part of the Varangian Guard. In total, the Byzantine army numbered 40,000.

The advance through Asia Minor was long and difficult. Romanus was displeased with his soldiers because of this massive convoy, and the local population was attacked by Frankish mercenaries, because of which the latter had to be removed from the army.

Considering that the Seljuks are still far away, the Byzantines moved to Lake Van, intending to attack Manzikert and the neighboring fortress, Ahlat. Meanwhile, Alp-Arslan had already arrived in Armenia with 30,000 Turkic horsemen, and with Muslim allies from Aleppo, Mosul, and other cities. Spies told him the exact location of the enemy, while the Byzantines did not know about his location.

Battle

Manzikert was captured by Diogenes, and the next day his soldiers discovered an army of Seljuk Turks. One of the generals was sent out with a detachment of cavalry for reconnaissance, since Romanus believed that this was not the whole army of Alp-Arslan. But the detachment was discovered and defeated; the commander captured.

On August 25, the Byzantine army launched an offensive against the Muslims. The left flank was commanded by Nikephoros Bryennios, the right flank by Theodore Alyates, and in the center was the Emperor. The reserve forces were under the command of Andronikos Doukas. The Turk Army was in a crescent formation, stretching four kilometers. Their archers attacked the Greeks, and the center of the crescent slowly retreated, and its’ wings moved to surround the Byzantines.

The Byzantines sustained their attack; and by the end of the second day, they captured the camp of Alp-Arslan. However, the right and left flanks, where the archers inflicted the greatest damage, lost their discipline due to attempts by individual soldiers to attack the Seljuk cavalry. Romanus ordered the right wing to cover the retreat of the main troops; but the order was miscommunicated. The commander of the Andronikos, instead of helping, spread rumors about the death of the Emperor. The right flank was almost immediately defeated, since the group consisting of the Turkic tribes Oguzes and Pechenegs, that moved to the side of the Seljuks, and some smaller Armenian contingents, fled. But most of the Armenian army of Byzantium did not flee. The main losses in the battle were suffered by the personal guard of the Emperor, consisting mainly of Armenians, and Armenian infantry detachments. The remains of the center, including the Emperor and the Varangian Guard, were surrounded. Romanus was wounded in the fight; and was taken prisoner to Alp-Arslan. He paid a ransom to Alp-Arslan of 1.5 million gold in advance, with an annual payment of another 360,000. Romanus married one of the daughters of the Sultan, who provided him with an escort to Constantinople.

Effects

Immediately after the defeat at Manzikert, the twenty-year-old stepson of the captive Romanus IV, Diogenes, Michael VII Duca, the son of Constantine X and Evdokia, was crowned as a child bearing the imperial title together with the brothers Andronicus and Constantine.

Having received news of the defeat of Romanus IV, who was deemed dead, the courtiers proclaimed the regency of Evdokia and the elder prince Mikhail Duka. When a personal letter was received from Romanus IV about his imminent arrival in the capital, the queen was ordered to declare her husband deprived of the throne. The queen refused, was expelled from the palace, and became a nun.

After several unsuccessful encounters with the troops sent from Constantinople, Romanus locked himself in the Cilician city of Adana, where he was besieged and forced to surrender to Andronicus Duca in 1072, under the condition of abdication. For this, he was promised personal security, confirmed on behalf of Michael VII. He was deceived and was blinded, and soon died of the inflicted wounds.

Territorial changes

The immediate result of the battle was the final loss of Armenia and East of Asia Minor; and the formation of the virtually independent Armenian state. The victory of the Seljuks opened the way to tribes of Turkmens into the interior of Asia Minor, and during the next 10 years, the Turks occupied almost the entire peninsula.

Despite the majority of Armenia had passed into the hands of the Seljuks, they nevertheless failed to conquer the entire country. A number of small Armenian states continued to exist during the XI and XII centuries.

Sources:

Vladimir Zaporozhets. Seljuks