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==Introduction==__NOTOC__[[File: Manzikert Two.jpg|250px|thumbnail|left|A diorama of the aftermath of the battle of Manzikert]]The Byzantine Empire was the successor to the Roman Empire and ruled a large area in Europe and the Middle East. It was very important Byzantine played a major role in the history of the Balkans and Russia especially , and it successfully kept the Arabs and the Muslims out of Europe for centuries. In 1071 the Empire seemed invincible, it . It had reversed many years of decline under a series of energetic Emperors. It had recovered many territories that had been territory lost to its enemies and was had morphed into a powerful political and military force.  The Battle of Manzikert was to change fundamentally reversed this upward trend and this article will argue that it led to the decline in of the Byzantine Empire. As Byzantine collapsed, the beginning of Turkish Muslims gradually gained control in of Asia Minor and directly led to . As Muslims took control of the Christian holy lands, European countries responded by launching the Crusades. The Battle was undoubtedly of Manzikert is one of the most important in medieval history , and its repercussions can still be felt to this daytoday.  ==Why was the Byzantine Empire in trouble in 1071?==[[File: Manzikert Twosecond one.jpg|200px250px|thumb|left|A diorama of Alp Arslan placing his foot on the aftermath of the battle throat of Emperor Romanus, after Manzikert]]== Background==By 1050 the Byzantine Empire was a very strong state, with a highly professional army, sophisticated bureaucracy , and extensive territories from northern Iraq to the Danube. The Empire had enjoyed a renaissance under the Macedonian Dynasty and especially under the capable Basil II. A common Greek Christian Orthodox Culture unified the diverse peoples’of the realm, and this which was exported to the peoples Slavs of Eastern Europe. However, after the death of Basil II, the Macedonian dynasty came to an end , and the Empire was led by a series of ineffectual Emperors and was devastated by several civil wars.  In 1071 , the Emperor was Romanus IV Diogenes (1068–1071), a member of the Cappadocian military aristocracy. He was an experienced general, but he had alienated many in the Byzantine aristocracy who saw him as a usurper and resented his authoritarianism. The strategic situation facing the Byzantine Empire was very dangerousprecarious. By 1050 the The Empire had appeared secure , especially after its the destruction of the Bulgar Empire. However, but the Pencheng Turks, from the Eurasian Steppes , threatened the Empire’s Balkan and the Black Sea possessions. In Italy, the Normans were seizing the last remaining Byzantine possessions in Italy. The biggest threat to the Empire was posed by the Seljuk Turks. These  The Seljuk Turks had been nomads in Central Asia and had been converted to Islam about around 1000 AD. The Turks were led by the Seljuk family , and they invaded southwestern Asia in the 11th century.<ref> A.C.S. Peacock and Sara Nur Yildiz, <i>The Seljuks of Anatolia: Court and Society in the Medieval Middle East</i>, (I.B. Tauris, 2015), p. 29 </ref>. They were able to defeat the various Muslim dynasties that had seized power after the decline of the Abbasid Caliphate.  They founded an empire that included Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, and the majority of Iran. Their conquests were at the start of Turkish domination in the Middle East that was to last lasted for centuries. The Seljuks attacked the Christian allies of the Byzantines in the Caucasus and conquered Armenia. They also began to raid deep into Byzantine territory , which they regarded as a Jihad , and they even managed to seize key fortresses on in the Christian Empire’s territory. [[File: Manzikert second one.jpg|200px|thumb|left| Alp Arslan placing his foot on ==How did the Byzantine empire lose the throat Battle of Emperor Romanus, after Manzikert]]==Battle of Manzikert=?==The Byzantine Empire was concerned by the Seljuk raids into Anatolia was of great concern as this area was important for the Empire. Emperor Romanus needed its resources , and the Anatolian provinces were the source of most of its military manpower. The Seljuk raids had led to the near -collapse of the eastern frontier , and many Turkish nomads had entered the area. The Emperor assembled a large army to reestablish the security of the Byzantine Empire’s eastern frontierregions.  In 1071 , Romanus led his army into areas of Armenia that had been seized by the Turks, with the aim of regaining to regain key defensive fortresses .<ref> Runciman. Steve. <i>A History of the Crusades</i>. — (Cambridge University Press, 1987, vol. I) p. 62-63</ref>. Romanus’ army was mainly mounted heavy cavalry with some militia, and it was also accompanied by large contingents of mercenaries. The tactics of Romanus was were very unusual, as the Byzantine’s Byzantines were usually reluctant to engage in offensive actions. Near the town of Manzikert, he divided his army, sending a large contingent to besiege a fortress .<ref>Runciman, p. 70</ref>.  The Seljuk army was under the command of Sultan Alp Arslan. The Turks had excellent intelligence , and they were all mounted. When Alp Arslan heard that the Byzantines had divided his forces , he rapidly advanced to Manzikert, where he confronted the emperor’s army, which . Arslan knew that he outnumbered Romanus' forces.<ref> Haldon, John. <i>The Byzantine Wars: Battles and Campaigns of the Byzantine Era</i>. Stroud: Tempus, 2001), p. 245</ref>. The Byzantines were taken completely by surprise surprised, and Romanus abandoned Manzikert, to reunite his forces. However, Alp Arslan attacked  Romanus had failed to scout the Byzantine’s as they retreatedarea, and his mounted archers inflicted heavy casualties on the Christians. Romanus had failed to scout the area and he he had blundered into a trap. The Byzantines knights smashed into the lightly armored Turkish horsemen with great success. Romanus fought valiantly, and his men attacked the enemy with such ferocity that they seemed to be on the verge of victory. The However, Alp Arslan attacked the Byzantines knights smashed into as they retreated, and his mounted archers inflicted heavy casualties on the lightly armored Turkish horsemen with great successChristians.  However, many of his mercenaries were Uz Turks , and they defected to their kinsmen in the Seljuk army. One of the Romanus' key Byzantine generals saw this and decided retreated without warning. It is not entirely clear if the Uz Turks were defecting to retreat, but other sources claimed that he retreated because of his personal hatred of the emperor <refSeljuks or hated Romanus. The sources disagree on why the Byzantine general left the battle.<ref>Haldon p. 246</ref>. The general's defection led to the destruction of the Byzantine army was destroyed, and . Romanus was taken, prisoner and ritually humiliated. Alp Arslan who was regarded as a gallant soldier  After securing the submission of the Emperor, Alp Arslan treated Romanus very well and later released him. During the Emperor. The 's absence of the Emperor from Byzantium and the defeat at Manzikert resulted in , a usurper seizing seized power. Romanus returned and tried to regain his Empire realm but was defeated in battle, blinded , and killed in 10701072.<ref>Haldon, p. 247</ref>. ==Why did the Battle of Manzikert and lead to the decline of the Byzantine ArmyEmpire?==The defeat at Manzikert in 10701 1071 was a disaster for the Byzantines. The Turks in In the aftermath of their victory over Romanus , the Turks swept into Anatolia unopposed. They only faced local resistance from Byzantine lords in the Anatolian provinces. The Byzantine eastern frontier effectively collapsed , and Turkish nomads enter entered Anatoliaat will. Alp Arslan turned his attention to Fatimid Egypt , fortunately for the ByzantineByzantines. In the immediate aftermath of the defeat of Manzikert , there was no real effective Byzantine Emperor. This was a disaster as because the state was very much dependent on only functioned under the leadership of a strong Emperor . <ref>Norwich, John Julius. <i>Byzantium: The Apogee </i> (London: Viking, 1991), p. 267</ref>.  A series of civil wars devasted wrecked the Empire for a decade. Manzikert led to an unprecedented period of instability and this was perhaps . This instability dramatically weakened the most important consequence grip of the Turkish victoryEmperors. Indeed, the Byzantine Empire was could only able to stabilize the situation under the capable Emperor Alexius I Comnenos. The Still, the lack of an effective government and endemic civil wars allowed the Turks to overrun many Byzantine cities and towns. The Byzantine army had been decimated at Manzikert , and it had lost its elite forces. Many of these were impossible to replace as many had been highly trained and experienced cavalry.<ref> Norwich, p. 278</ref>.  To compound the disaster , the loss of the Anatolian Provinces meant that the Byzantines could not no longer recruit new soldiers. Provinces such as Cappadocia, which had long supplied the Christian Emperor with recruits , were lost to the Turks, forever. <ref>Haldon, p. 312</ref>. Then the The loss of the Anatolian provinces was also a significant blow to the economy as it dramatically reduced the Empire's tax base of the Empire. This meant that the The Byzantines were often in faced constant financial problems and this undermined their ability to defend themselves, especially as they were becoming more dependent on mercenaries after Manzikert. insecurities after Manzikert. It is generally agreed that the defeat in 1071 can be regarded as the beginning of the end of the Byzantine Empire.  <dh-ad/> ==The Why did the Battle of Manzikert and lead to the Crusades?==Byzantine [[File: Manzikert Three.jpg |250px|thumb|left| An illustration of the Crusaders taking Jerusalem]]Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos, concerned about the advances of the Turks in the aftermath of the defeat of Manzikert, sent envoys to the Pope in March 1095 to ask for aid against the Muslims. The Pope, Urban II , responded favorably to the request for help from the Byzantines despite the Great Schism which that had previously divided the Eastern and the Western Churches. The Pope may have hoped to reunify the Latin and the Greek Orthodox branches of Christianity.<ref>Runciman p. 101</ref>.  However, Urban II decided to urge Christian soldiers to travel to the Byzantine Lands and to fight the Turk and to regain the Hold Holy Lands. This was not what Alexios wanted intended, but soon a huge army of Crusaders was making its way made across his remaining territoriesByzantine. This army managed to defeat the Turks and eventually conquered Jerusalem. The Crusades , many argue , helped to push back the Turks and to preserve the remaining lands of the Byzantine Empire. However, the Crusades were was to take an unexpected turn. In 1204 the Fourth Crusade was diverted by the Venetians , and it captured the Byzantine capital and this . This betrayal was a devastating blow to the Eastern Christian Empire.<ref>Runciman, p. 213</ref>. [[File: Manzikert Three.jpg |200px|thumb|left| An illustration of the Crusaders taking Jerusalem]]==The Byzantine Empire and the West==Why did the Byzantine Empire depend on Western Europe for their survival?==Because of the loss of the provinces in Anatolia after 1071, the Byzantine Empire sought financial support from the west. The Empire needed to raise revenues and to increase its trade. To do this , they turned more and more to the West and especially to the rising maritime city-states in Italy, such as Amalfi, Genoa , and especially Venice. These republics gradually began to dominate the economy , and the trade of the Empire , and this led to the decline of the Byzantine navy, which had once been the most feared in the Mediterranean.<ref>Runciman, p. 234</ref>.  By 1200 , the Italians or ‘Latins’ had their own quarter in Byzantium and had many independent trading colonies in the Empire. Even after 1204 and the treachery of the Fourth Crusade , the Byzantines had no choice but to turn to the Italians and others for help. Manzikert and the resulting loss of the Anatolian provinces led to the Greek Orthodox Empire becoming to become economically dependent on the Latin West , which ultimately undermined its ability to defend itself from its many enemies. == The Birth How did the Battle of Manzikert create Modern Turkey?==Prior to Before the Battle of Manzikert, there had been no Turks in Anatolia. However, in the wake of the victory of Alp Arslan hordes of , Turks entered the eastern part of the Byzantine Empire. The defeat leads to dramatic demographic changes in Anatolia. Turkish raiders drove the Greek and other Christian populations westwards , and they virtually abandoned the Anatolian plateau to the interlopers. Individual Turkish tribes began to conquer lands after the Seljuk victory.  Members of noble Turkish families began to organize the various Muslim freebooters and raiders and established emirates in the former eastern provinces of Byzantium. They often had good relations with the Byzantine Empire , and eventually, a member of the Seljuk royal family established the Sultanate of Rum and broke from the Turkish Empire. During the Sultanate of Rum, many more Turkish nomads settled in Anatolia , and the area became increasingly Turkish and Muslim and lost it its old Greek and Christian character. Many locals even converted to Islam and adopted the customs of the invaders. The dissolution of the Rum Sultanate in the 14th century left behind many small Turkish principalities, among them that of the Ottoman dynasty. They, established an Empire in the Middle East and eventually capture captured Byzantium in 1453.<ref>Haldon, p. 292</ref>.  

The defeat of Emperor Romanus IV 's army at Manzikert was a disaster for the Byzantine Empire. Not only did it lead It led to the collapse of the Eastern Frontier but also and a ten-year period of civil war. This led to Turkish raids and eventually , which resulted in their settlement in of Anatolia. The loss of the Eastern provinces meant that the Byzantines Byzantine's military and economic resources were depleted, and this made making them vulnerable to their enemies in the east and the west.  As a result, the Empire began to lose even more lands and it became dependent on westerners. One consequence of the battle was that a request for help by an Emperor to the Pope and this led to the Crusades. The Seljuk victory effectively left the Byzantines as a second-rate- power and an Empire only in name. The loss of the eastern provinces led to a period of irreversible decline for the Christian Eastern Empire. The defeat of the Byzantines at Manzikert allowed the Turks to occupy Anatolia and this , which led to both the establishment of the Ottoman Empire and , ultimately , the modern Turkish state. ====Suggested Readings====* Kaldelis, Anthony, [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0190625945/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0190625945&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=8b8e1285dfa849ad5f453fa35d1f89f6 A Cabinet of Byzantine Curiosities: Strange Tale of Surprising Facts from History's Most Orthodox Empire] (Oxford University Press, 2017)* Hawting, G.R. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415240735/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0415240735&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=06d75c26844fff0201735e07b03465a7 The First Dynasty of Islam: The Umayyad Caliphate, AD 661–750]</i> (London, Rutledge, 2000)* Haldon, John F. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/052131917X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=052131917X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=6842a4ec7c5dd1b5d90fa5f0351fa77b Byzantium in the Seventh Century: The Transformation of a Culture]</i> (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1990)* Meyendorff, John. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0913836907/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0913836907&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=54b9a005dc6c444f0ade105baf1f1862 The Byzantine Legacy in the Orthodox Church]</i> (Yonkers: St Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1982)* Davis, Paul K. "Constantinople: August 717–15 August 718" <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195143663/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0195143663&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=af9472455d3cb5895f9d3b9f349c6f4a 100 Decisive Battles: From Ancient Times to the Present]</i> (Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 2001)* A.C.S. Peacock and Sara Nur Yildiz, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071ZZ8J4Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B071ZZ8J4Q&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=0831bbe634cf7d70b8f72e0711f71670 The Seljuks of Anatolia: Court and Society in the Medieval Middle East]'', (I.B. Tauris, 2015)* Runciman. Steve. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/052134770X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=052134770X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=f6a162fe78cf2988fab6745d6635fad7 A History of the Crusades]''. (Cambridge University Press, 1987, vol. I) * Haldon, John. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0752445650/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0752445650&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=d14f01cdb4c89993ee7baab0d5869b6a The Byzantine Wars: Battles and Campaigns of the Byzantine Era]''. (Stroud: Tempus, 2001)* Norwich, John Julius. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140114483/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0140114483&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b9e8581af9986dab8986df1d88258eea Byzantium: The Apogee]'' (London: Viking, 1991) ====References====<References/> [[Category:Wikis]][[Category:Byzantine History]][[Category: History of the Middle East]]