Battle of Manzikert

The Byzantine army was personally commanded by Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes. He had recently taken the throne and was attempting to secure the eastern borders of the empire against aggressive Turkic raids. His defeat and subsequent capture by the Seljuk Turks would prove disastrous for his reign.

Following the battle, Emperor Romanos IV was captured by the Seljuk Sultan Alp Arslan. In a famously humiliating episode, Arslan placed his boot on the Emperor's neck and forced him to sign a devastating peace treaty. Although Romanos was eventually released, he was deposed, blinded, and left to die by his political rivals in Constantinople.

The battle is viewed as a massive turning point because it shattered the Byzantine Empire's military power in Anatolia. The resulting civil war and chaos allowed the Seljuk Turks to permanently occupy the Anatolian plateau, cutting the empire off from its primary source of grain and wealth. It eventually led to the calling of the First Crusade.

The Battle of Manzikert took place on August 26, 1071. The engagement occurred near the fortress of Manzikert in the Armenian highlands, located in modern-day eastern Turkey. The heavily fragmented nature of the Byzantine command structure contributed heavily to the catastrophic defeat.