Battle of Manzikert
Near Manzikert, Iberia / Byzantine Armenia (present-day Malazgirt, Turkey)
What happened
Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes fought Alp Arslan, sultan of the Seljuk Turks, while the Byzantine noble Andronikos Doukas commanded Romanos's rear guard. Romanos marched east to take back fortresses in Armenia, but he split his army and lost touch with part of it. Near Manzikert, in today's eastern Turkey, Seljuk horse archers wore down the Byzantines, and when Romanos ordered a withdrawal, Andronikos Doukas led the rear guard away instead of helping. The Byzantine army broke up in confusion and Romanos was captured.
Why it matters
Why it matters: The defeat led to civil war in the Byzantine Empire and opened Anatolia to Turkish settlement. Byzantine calls for help from the West later helped lead to the First Crusade.
What came next
Alp Arslan treated Romanos kindly and released him after about a week in return for a peace treaty and ransom. Back home, the Doukas family removed Romanos from power and sent him into exile, where he died.
Did you know?
Romanos, the captured emperor, was held by the sultan for only about a week before being set free.
Timeline
- 1063Alp Arslan becomes sultan of the Seljuks.
- 26 August 1071The Seljuks defeat the Byzantines near Manzikert, and Romanos is captured.
- September 1071Romanos is released after about a week.
- 1072Alp Arslan dies.
- 1095The First Crusade is launched, partly in answer to Byzantine appeals for help.