Siege of Manzikert (1054)
Part of the Byzantine–Seljuq wars

View of the city of Malazgirt and Mount Süphan from the north, 1901
Date1054
Location
Manzikert Anatolia, Theme of Iberia
39°08′41″N 42°32′21″E / 39.14472°N 42.53917°E / 39.14472; 42.53917
Result Byzantine victory
Belligerents
Byzantine Empire Seljuk Empire
Commanders and leaders
Basil Apokapes Tughril
Strength
Unknown Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown Unknown

The siege of Manzikert in 1054 was a successful defense of the city of Manzikert by Byzantine forces under Basil Apokapes against the Seljuk Turks led by Toğrül.

Siege

Toğrül besieged Manzikert for thirty days using all sorts of siege machines but the city held.[1] A historical account cited the successful defense against the Seljuks use of light type of tortoises, the mobile shelters that protected men and siege weapons from missile fire. Basil is said to have stored sharpened large beams, which were thrown at the advancing tortoises, overturning them in the process.[2] The city itself was able to withstand the onslaught due to its triple wall and access to spring water.[1]

Seventeen years later, the Turks would experience greater success against Romanus Diogenes under Alp Arslan at the same place, with the city falling alongside the famous Byzantine defeat in 1071.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 Skylitzes, John (2010). John Skylitzes: A Synopsis of Byzantine History, 811–1057: Translation and Notes. Translated by Wortley, John. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 432. ISBN 9780521767057.
  2. ↑ Chatzelis, Georgios (2019). Byzantine Military Manuals as Literary Works and Practical Handbooks: The Case of the Tenth-Century Sylloge Tacticorum. Oxon: Routledge. p. 2052. ISBN 9781138596016.
  3. ↑ McGeer, Eric; Nesbitt, John; Oikonomides, Nicolas, eds. (2001). Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 4: The East. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. p. 156. ISBN 0-88402-282-X.


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