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The Battle of Manzikert, or Malazgirt (Turkish: Malazgirt Savaşı) was fought between the Byzantine Empire and Seljuq forces led by Alp Arslan on August 26, 1071 near Manzikert, Armenia (modern Malazgirt, Turkey) in the Basprakania theme (province) of the Empire. It resulted in one of the most decisive defeats of the Byzantine Empire and the capture of the Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes.
The Battle of Manzikert played an important role in breaking the
Byzantine resistance and preparing the way for the Turkish settlement
in Anatolia.
The battle marked the high point of the initial Turkish incursions and
was followed up two years later with a large influx of Turkish settlers
and soldiers, many at the request of the crumbling Byzantine Empire.
However, the battle was not the slaughter that many historians,
including contemporary writers, have stressed it to be — large numbers
of mercenaries and Anatolian levies fled and survived the battle,
thanks in part to Alp Arslan's refusal to pursue them.All the Byzantine
commanders, including Romanus, survived to participate in the numerous
civil conflicts that wrecked Anatolia.Nonetheless, the Byzantine Empire
would never be able to muster a force as large, nor as distantly
projected as that which took part in the fateful battle.
Background
Although the Byzantine Empire had remained a strong and powerful entity
in the Middle Ages,the Kingdom began to decline under the reign of the
militarily incompetent Constantine IX and again under Constantine X — a
brief two year rule of reform under Isaac I Komnenos only delaying the
decay of the Byzantine military.It was under Constantine IX's reign
that the Byzantines first came into contact with the Seljuk Turks, the
latter attempting to annex Ani in Armenia. Rather than deal with the
problem by force of arms, Constantine IX signed a truce. The truce did
not last; in 1063 the Great Seljuk Sultan Alp Arslan came to power and
thus the invasion of Armenia, halted in 1045, began again.
Byzantine counter from Syria ended in victory.In 1070, Romanus led a
second expedition towards Malazgirt (then known as Manzikert) in the
eastern end of Anatolia (in today's Muş Province), where a Byzantine
fortress had been captured by the Seljuks, and offered a treaty with
Alp Arslan; Romanos would give back Hierapolis if Arslan gave up the
siege of Edessa (Urfa). Romanos threatened war if Alp Arslan did not
comply, and prepared his troops anyway, expecting the sultan to decline
his offer, which he did.
Preparations
Accompanying Romanos was Andronikos Doukas, the co-regent and a direct
rival. The army consisted of about 5,000 Byzantine troops from the
western provinces and probably about the same number from the eastern
provinces; 500 Frankish and Norman mercenaries under Roussel de
Bailleul; some Turkish (Uz and Pecheneg) and Bulgarian mercenaries;
infantry under the duke of Antioch; a contingent of Armenian troops;
and some (but not all) of the Varangian Guard, to total around
60-70,000 troops.[2] The quality of the Byzantine Thematic (provincial)
troops had declined in the years prior to the succession of Romanus as
the central government diverted resources to the recruitment of
mercenaries who were considered less likely to become involved in coups
or factional fighting within the Empire. Even when mercenaries were
used, they were disbanded after to save money.
The march across Asia Minor was long and difficult, and Romanos did not
endear himself to his troops by bringing a luxurious baggage train
along with him; the Byzantine population also suffered some plundering
by Romanos' Frankish mercenaries, whom he was forced to dismiss. The
expedition first rested at Sebasteia on the Halys, and reached
Theodosiopolis in June 1071. There, some of his generals suggested
continuing the march into Seljuk territory and catching Arslan before
he was ready. Some of the other generals, including Nikephoros
Bryennios, suggested they wait there and fortify their position.
Eventually it was decided to continue the march.
Thinking that Alp Arslan was either further away or not coming at all,
Romanos marched towards Lake Van expecting to retake Manzikert rather
quickly, as well as the nearby fortress of Khliat if possible. However,
Arslan was actually in Armenia, with 30,000 cavalry from Aleppo, Mosul,
and his other allies. Alp Arslan's spies knew exactly where Romanos
was, while Romanos was completely unaware of his opponent's movements.
Romanos ordered his general Joseph Tarchaneiotes to take some of the
Byzantine troops and Varangians and accompany the Pechenegs and Franks
to Khliat, while Romanos and the rest of the army marched to Manzikert.
This split the forces in half, each taking about 30,000 men.[2] It is
unknown what happened to the army sent off with Joseph Tarchaneiotes -
according to Islamic sources, Alp Arslan smashed his army; however
Byzantine sources remain quiet of any such encounter,[2] whilst
Attaleiates suggests that Tarchaneiotes fled at the sight of the Seljuk
Sultan - an unlikely event considering the reputation of the Byzantine
general. Either way, Romanus' army was reduced to less than half his
planned 60-70,000 men.
The battle
omanus was unaware of the loss of Tarchaneiotes and continued to
Manzikert, which he easily captured on August 23; the Seljuks responded
with heavy incursions by bowmen.The next day some foraging parties
under Bryennios discovered the Seljuk army and were forced to retreat
back to Manzikert. The Armenian general Basilaces was sent out with
some cavalry, as Romanos did not believe this was Arslan's full army;
the cavalry was destroyed and Basilaces taken prisoner. Romanos drew up
his troops into formation and sent the left wing out under Bryennios,
who was almost surrounded by the quickly approaching Turks and was
forced to retreat once more. The Turks hid among the nearby hills for
the night, making it nearly impossible for Romanus to send a
counterattack.
On August 25, some of Romanos' Turkish mercenaries came into contact
with their Seljuk relatives and deserted. Romanos then rejected a
Seljuk peace embassyas he wanted to settle the Turkish problem with a
decisive military victory and understood that raising another army
would be both difficult and expensive. The Emperor attempted to recall
Tarchaneiotes, who was no longer in the area. There were no engagements
that day, but on August 26 the Byzantine army gathered itself into a
proper battle formation and began to march on the Turkish positions,
with the left wing under Bryennios, the right wing under Theodore
Alyates, and the centre under the emperor. Andronikos Doukas led the
reserve forces in the rear - a foolish mistake, considering the
loyalties of the Doukids. The Seljuks were organized into a crescent
formation about four kilometres away,with Arslan observing events from
a safe distance. Seljuk archers attacked the Byzantines as they drew
closer; the centre of their crescent continually moved backwards while
the wings moved to surround the Byzantine troops.
The Byzantines held off the arrow attacks and captured Arslan's camp by
the end of the afternoon. However, the right and left wings, where the
arrows did most of their damage, almost broke up when individual units
tried to force the Seljuks into a pitched battle; the Seljuk cavalry
simply fled when challenged, the classic hit and run tactics of steppe
warriors. With the Seljuks avoiding battle,Romanos was forced to order
a withdrawal by the time night fell.However, the right wing
misunderstood the order, and Doukas, as an enemy of Romanos,
deliberately ignored the emperor and marched back to the camp outside
Manzikert, rather than covering the emperor's retreat. Now that the
Byzantines were thoroughly confused, the Seljuks seized the opportunity
and attacked.The Byzantine right wing was routed; the left under
Bryennios held out a little longer but was soon routed as well.The
remnants of the Byzantine centre, including the Emperor and the
Varangian Guard, were encircled by the Seljuks. Romanus was injured,
and taken prisoner by the Seljuks. The survivors were the many who fled
the field and were pursued throughout the night, but not beyond that;
by dawn, the professional core of the Byzantine army had been destroyed
whilst many of the Peasant troops and levies who had been under the
command of Andronikus fled.
Captivity of Romanus Diogenes
When the Emperor Romanos IV was conducted into the presence of Alp
Arslan, he refused to believe that the bloodied and tattered man
covered in dirt was the mighty Emperor of the Romans.[6] After
discovering the identity of the Emperor, a famous conversation is
reported to have taken place:
Alp Arslan: "What would you do if I were brought before you as a prisoner?"
Romanus: "Perhaps I'd kill you, or exhibit you in the streets of Constantinople."
Alp Arslan: "My punishment is far heavier. I forgive you, and set you free."
After the Seljuk Sultan had placed his boot on the Emperor's neck and
forced him to kiss the ground,he treated him with considerable kindness
and again offered the terms of peace which he had offered previous to
the battle.
Romanus remained a captive of the Sultan for a week. During this time,
the Sultan allowed Romanus to eat at his table whilst concessions were
agreed upon; Antioch, Edessa, Hierapolis and Manzikert were to be
surrendered.This would have left the vital core of Anatolia untouched.
A payment of 10 million gold pieces demanded by the Sultan as a ransom
for Romanus was deemed as too high by the latter so the Sultan reduced
its short-term expense by instead asking for 1.5 million gold pieces as
an initial payment followed by an annual sum of 360,000 gold
pieces.Finally, Romanus would marry one of his daughters to the Sultan.
The Sultan then gave Romanus many presents and an escort of two emirs
& one hundred Mamelukes to Constantinople. Shortly after his return
to his subjects, Romanos found his rule in serious trouble. Despite
attempts to raise loyal troops, he was defeated three times in battle
against the Doukas family and was deposed, blinded and exiled to the
island of Proti; soon after, he died as a result of an infection caused
by an injury during his brutal blinding. Romanus' last moments in the
Anatolian heartland that he worked so hard to defend was a public
humiliation on a donkey with a rotten face.
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