By 1057, a significant part of Calabria and a number of cities along the coast of Apulia remained under Byzantium rule. The expulsion of the Byzantines from Italy took another thirteen years and ended on April 16, 1071 with the capture of the last stronghold of Byzantium in Italy, the city of Bari.
The conquest of Calabria
Normans fought in Calabria since 1044. The population of Calabria was predominantly Greek by language and religion and was hostile to conquerors. During the life of the elder brothers Drogo and Humphrey, Robert was governor of Calabria, in the process he engaged in looting the local population.
By the time of Robert’s accession, the cities of Cariati, Rossano, Gerace and Reggio remained in the hands of the Byzantines. Cariati was taken in 1057, Rossano and Gerace in 1059. Since Robert’s attention was constantly distracted by the riots in Apulia, his younger brother Roger played a crucial role in the conquest of Calabria. As a result, Guiscard was forced to divide the conquered lands of Calabria between himself and his brother, although the artificially created cross section interfered with the formation of Roger as a whole domain.
The last stronghold of Byzantium in Calabria remained the city of Reggio. During his siege in the winter of 1059-1060, Roger was the first of the Normans to use siege engines. Robert, who fought with the Byzantines in Puglia at that time, arrived at Reggio only in the spring of 1060. As a result of a long siege, the Reggio garrison capitulated and the triumphant Robert allowed the Greek soldiers to sail freely to Constantinople. In the summer of 1060, Calabria completely passed into the hands of the Normans.
The conquest of Puglia
The war with Byzantium in Puglia continued with mixed success. Back in 1055, Humphrey and Robert conquered the Salentin peninsula. After the resignation of Argir, the Byzantines kept only a few cities on the coast. In 1060, the new emperor Constantine X, while Robert was completing the conquest of Calabria, sent an army to Italy, which managed to regain most of Apulia under control of Byzantium and even to besiege the Norman capital Melfi. In the first six months of 1061, Robert Guiscard hastily called up from Calabria, along with Roger were able to lift the siege from Melfi and again take Brindisi and Oriya. In the years 1064-1068, disgruntled vassals led by his nephews, the sons of Humphrey Hauteville, came out against Robert. Combined with the rebels, the Byzantines again occupied Brindisi, Oriya and Taranto.
The situation in Puglia changed dramatically in 1068: the Seljuk Turks’ attack in Asia Minor forced the emperor Roman IV to leave Italy to fend for themselves. During the first months of 1068, Robert easily occupied all those remaining in the hands of the Byzantines and insurgents of the city. In June 1068, Robert Guiscard took the last rebel fort, Montepeloso. The Byzantine army locked itself in Bari.
Taking Bari
The siege by Robert Guiscard of Bari lasted for almost three years – from August 5, 1068 to April 16, 1071. For the blockade of the city from the sea, the Normans used the fleet for the first time in their wars in southern Italy: Norman ships connected by an iron chain completely blocked the port of Bari. At the beginning of the siege, the city commander managed to escape from Bari to ask for help in Constantinople.
At the beginning of 1069, the Byzantine fleet under the command of the catapan Stephen Pateran tried to break through the Norman blockade, but the Normans sank most of the enemy ships and only part of the Greek ships broke through into Bari, delivering food and weapons. Stephen Pateran successfully defended Bari during 1069-1070. At the beginning of 1071, Patan was able to get out of the besieged city and again go to Constantinople for help. At the request of Pateran, Emperor Roman IV sent a fleet to Bari. Robert Guiscard, in turn, summoned his brother Roger from Sicily, who arrived at the head of a large flotilla. The Normans managed to smash the Byzantines in a naval battle in the sight of the city, and not a single Greek ship was able to break into the city this time. Having lost hope for help from Byzantium, the inhabitants of Bari opened the gates to the Normans. On April 16, 1071, Robert Guiscard and his brother Roger of Sicily solemnly entered Bari. This day was the last day of the Byzantine presence in southern Italy.
The conquests of Naples
As a result of skillful maneuvering, the Neapolitan dukes retained their independence from the Normans longer than all their neighbors. Only in 1137, Sergius VII recognized as his overlord Roger II and, as his vassal, took part in the battle of Rignano against Raynulf Alifansky, in which he died on October 30, 1137. After the death of the duke in Naples, republican rule was established, but in 1139 the Neapolitans recognized the authority of Roger II. The title of Duke of Naples, Roger II, was granted to his son Alfonso, but the latter ruled Naples only as a royal vassal. After the death of Alfonso in 1144, Naples finally came under the direct control of the crown.
In 1127 , the duke of Puglia of Norman origin William II died, and Apulia and Sicily united under the rule of his cousin, Count of Sicily Roger II. Roger supported the antipope Anaclete II and was last crowned king of Sicily at Christmas 1130.
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Loud, Graham Alexander. . . “Coinage, Wealth and Plunder in the Age of Robert Guiscard.
Gay Jules. L’Italie meridionale et l’empire Byzantin: Livre II
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