The Byzantine navy comprised the naval forces of the Byzantine Empire. Like the empire it served, it developed directly from its earlier imperial Roman counterpart, but in comparison with it, its role in the defense and survival of the state was far greater. While the Roman fleets faced no great naval threats and operated as an adjunct to the more powerful and prestigious legions, the sea was vital to the very existence of Byzantium, which several historians have called a "maritime empire".^[2] Throughout its history, the Empire had to defend a long coastline, often with little hinterland, shipping was always the quickest and cheapest way of transport, and in addition, the Empire's major urban and commercial centers, as well as its most fertile areas, lay close to the sea.^[3] This article is about the Roman emperor. ... Combatants Byzantine Empire,[1] Arab Ghassanids, Bulgarian Empire (later) Muslim Arabs (Rashidun, Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates) Syria was just the start of Arab expansion. ... Rus-Byzantine War may refer to one of the following conflicts: Rus-Byzantine War (830s) Rus-Byzantine War (860) Rus-Byzantine War (907) Rus-Byzantine War (941) Rus-Byzantine War (968-971) Rus-Byzantine War (987) Rus-Byzantine War (1024) Rus-Byzantine War (1043) Category: ... This article is about the medieval crusades. ... Combatants Byzantine Empire Ottoman Turks The Byzantine Ottoman wars was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Turks and the Byzantines that led to the final destruction of the Byzantine empire and the rise of the Ottoman empire. ... This is a list of Byzantine Emperors. ... The Megas Doux (Gr. ... This article is about the city before the Fall of Constantinople (1453). ... Mediterranean redirects here. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ... Byzantine redirects here. ... Roman trireme, a warship, 31 BC. Note the bank of oars (two on the hidden side), the square-rigged sails, the steering oars, the tower on deck, the ram at the prow, the ballistae and the Greek fire. ... Borders of the Republic of Venice in 1796 Capital Venice Language(s) Venetian, Latin, Italian Religion Roman Catholic Government Republic Doge  - 1789–97 Ludovico Manin History  - Established 697  - Treaty of Zara June 27, 1358  - Treaty of Leoben April 17, 1797 * Traditionally, the establishment of the Republic is dated to 697. ... The Republic of Genoa, in full the Most Serene Republic of Genoa (known as the Ligurian Republic from 1798 to 1805) was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. ... Pisa is a city in Tuscany, central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. ... The Near East in 1135, with the Crusader states in green hues. ... Anatolian beyliks (also Turkmen beyliks, Tevâif-i mülûk (in Ottoman Turkish) were small Turkish emirates or muslim principalities (beylik) governed by tribal beys, which were founded in several locations of Anatolia as of the end of the 13th century. ... Vandal and Vandali redirect here. ... The Ostrogothic Kingdom was the kingdom built by the Ostrogoths. ... A caliphate (from the Arabic خلافة or khilāfah), is the Islamic form of government representing the political unity and leadership of the Muslim world. ... Saracens was a term used in the Middle Ages for those who professed the religion of Islam. ... The Slavic peoples are the most numerous ethnic and linguistic body of peoples in Europe. ... Rus’ (????, ) was a medieval East Slavic nation, which, according to the most popular (but by no means only) theory, may have taken its name from a ruling warrior class, possibly with Scandinavian roots. ... Norman conquests in red. ... The Republic of Genoa, in full the Most Serene Republic of Genoa (known as the Ligurian Republic from 1798 to 1805) was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. ... Borders of the Republic of Venice in 1796 Capital Venice Language(s) Venetian, Latin, Italian Religion Roman Catholic Government Republic Doge  - 1789–97 Ludovico Manin History  - Established 697  - Treaty of Zara June 27, 1358  - Treaty of Leoben April 17, 1797 * Traditionally, the establishment of the Republic is dated to 697. ... Pisa is a city in Tuscany, central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. ... The Near East in 1135, with the Crusader states in green hues. ... Sultanate controlling virtually all of Anatolia Capital Ä°znik Konya Political structure Empire Sultans  - 1060-1077 Kutalmish  - 1303-1308 Mesud II History  - Division from the Great Seljuq Empire 1077  - Internal struggles 1307 The Seljuk Sultanate of Rum was the Seljuk Turkish sultanate that ruled in direct lineage from 1077 to 1307... Anatolian beyliks (also Turkmen beyliks, Tevâif-i mülûk (in Ottoman Turkish) were small Turkish emirates or muslim principalities (beylik) governed by tribal beys, which were founded in several locations of Anatolia as of the end of the 13th century. ... This article details the military of the Ottoman Empire. ... Naval redirects here. ... Byzantine redirects here. ... Roman trireme, a warship, 31 BC. Note the bank of oars (two on the hidden side), the square-rigged sails, the steering oars, the tower on deck, the ram at the prow, the ballistae and the Greek fire. ... Legion redirects here. ... The meaning of hinterland and its history. ...

With the Muslim conquests from the 7th century onwards, the Mediterranean Sea ceased being a "Roman lake" and became a battleground between Byzantines and Arabs. Not only were the Byzantine fleets critical in the defense of the Empire's far-flung possessions around the Mediterranean basin, but they also played a major role in the defense of the imperial capital of Constantinople, from seaborne attacks. Through the use of "Greek fire", the Byzantine navy's best-known and feared secret weapon, Constantinople was saved from several sieges and numerous naval engagements were won for the Byzantines. Thus, by the early 9th century, the Byzantine navy, a well-organized and maintained force, was again the dominant maritime power in the Mediterranean. The antagonism with the Muslim navies continued until the 11th century, during which the navy, like the Empire itself, began to decline. Age of the Caliphs  Expansion under the Prophet Muhammad, 622-632  Expansion during the Patriarchal Caliphate, 632-661  Expansion during the Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750 The initial Muslim conquests (632–732), also referred to as the Islamic conquests or Arab conquests,[1] began after the death of the Islamic prophet... Mediterranean redirects here. ... This article is about the city before the Fall of Constantinople (1453). ... Greek fire was a burning-liquid weapon used by the Byzantine Greeks, typically in naval battles to great effect as it could continue burning even on water. ... The 1453 Siege of Constantinople (painted 1499) There were at least 24 sieges of Constantinople during the history of the Byzantine Empire. ...

The Byzantines were forced more and more to rely on the navies of allied Italian city-states like Venice and Genoa, with disastrous effects on their economy and sovereignty. Several emperors tried to revive the navy, but their efforts had only a temporary effect. By the 14th century, the Byzantine fleet, that once could field thousands of warships, was limited to a few dozen at best.^[4] Nevertheless, the diminished Byzantine navy survived and continued to be active, until the fall of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans in 1453. Borders of the Republic of Venice in 1796 Capital Venice Language(s) Venetian, Latin, Italian Religion Roman Catholic Government Republic Doge  - 1789–97 Ludovico Manin History  - Established 697  - Treaty of Zara June 27, 1358  - Treaty of Leoben April 17, 1797 * Traditionally, the establishment of the Republic is dated to 697. ... The Republic of Genoa, in full the Most Serene Republic of Genoa (known as the Ligurian Republic from 1798 to 1805) was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. ... Combatants  Byzantine Empire Ottoman Sultanate Commanders Constantine XI †, Loukas Notaras, Giovanni Giustiniani †[1] Mehmed II, ZaÄŸanos Pasha Strength 80,000[2] 80,000[1]-200,000[1][3] Casualties 4,000 dead[4] [5][6] unknown The Fall of Constantinople refers to the capture of the Byzantine Empires... Ottoman redirects here. ...

History

Early period

4th-5th centuries

The Byzantine navy, like the East Roman or Byzantine Empire itself, was a continuation of the Roman Empire and its institutions. Ever since the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, and in the absence of any external threat, the Roman navy in the Mediterranean performed mostly policing and escort duties. The Roman fleets were therefore composed of relatively small vessels, best suited to these tasks. Massive sea battles, as those fought in the Punic Wars, did not occur, with the exception of periods of civil war: in 323 AD, the Emperor Constantine defeated a fleet of 350 triremes of the Eastern Emperor Licinius with a fleet of 200 liburnians.^[5] The subsequent transfer of the praetorian fleets from Italy to Constantinople by Constantine I can be regarded as the birth of the Byzantine navy. Byzantine redirects here. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... Combatants Octavian Mark Antony, Cleopatra VII of Egypt Commanders Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Mark Antony Strength 260 warships, mostly liburnian vessels 220 warships, mostly quinqueremes and 60 egyptian warships Casualties Unknown Almost all of Antonys fleet The Battle of Actium was a naval battle of the Roman Civil War between... The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage between 264 and 146 BC.[1] They are known as the Punic Wars because Latin term for Carthaginian was Punici (older Poenici, from their Phoenician ancestry). ... The Battle of the Hellespont was fought in 324 between a Constantinian fleet led by Flavius Julius Crispus and a larger fleet loyal to Licinius. ... A Greek trireme. ... Liburnians (or Liburni, Gk. ...

During the 5th century, Rome's naval hegemony in the Mediterranean was threatened by the powerful navy of the Vandalic Kingdom of Carthage (428-534). Under the capable king Geiseric, the Vandals carried out devastating raids against the coasts of Italy and Greece, and the eastern emperors were compelled to attend to their fleet. A huge expedition under Basiliscus in 468, reputedly numbering 1,113 ships and 100,000 men, failed disastrously. 600 ships were lost, and the financial cost of 130,000 pounds of gold and 700 pounds of silver nearly bankrupted the Empire.^[6] This forced the Empire to come to terms with Geiseric, signing a peace treaty. After Geiseric's death in 477 however, the Vandal threat receded. For other uses, see Carthage (disambiguation). ... Geiseric the Lame (circa 389 – January 25, 477), also spelled as Gaiseric or Genseric the Lame, was the King of the Vandals and Alans (428–477) and was one of the key players in the troubles of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century. ... For the genus of lizards, see Basiliscus (genus). ...

6th century

In 513, the magister militum per Thracias, Vitalian, revolted against Emperor Anastasius I. The rebels assembled a fleet of some 200 ships, but after a few successes, they were destroyed by admiral Marinus, who employed an incendiary substance (possibly an early form of Greek fire) to defeat them.^[7] In 533, an army of 15,000 under Belisarius was transported to Africa by an invasion fleet of 92 dromons and 500 transports,^[8] beginning the Vandalic War (533-534), the first of Justinian's Wars of Reconquest. These were largely made possible by the control of the Mediterranean waterways, and the fleet played a vital role in carrying supplies and reinforcements to the widely dispersed Byzantine expeditionary forces and garrisons. This fact was not lost on the Byzantines' enemies, and the Ostrogoth king Totila created a fleet with which to deny the seas around Italy, then in the throes of the Gothic War (535–554), to the Empire. In 545, General Belisarius personally commanded 200 ships against the Gothic fleet that blockaded the mouths of the Tiber, in order save Rome.^[9] In 551, Totila captured Sardinia and Corsica, but his fleet was subsequently destroyed at Sena Gallica.^[7] With the final conquest of Italy and southern Spain under Justinian, the Mediterranean became again a Roman lake.^[7] Magister militum (Latin for Master of the Soldiers) was a top-level command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine. ... The Diocese of Thrace ca. ... Flavius Anastasius. ... // Flavius Belisarius (505(?) – 565) was one of the greatest generals of the Byzantine Empire and one of the most acclaimed generals in history. ... Combatants Eastern Roman Empire Vandals Commanders Belisarius Gelimer Strength 10,000 infantry 6,000 cavalry ca. ... Justinian may refer to: Justinian I, a Roman Emperor; Justinian II, a Byzantine Emperor; Justinian, a storeship sent to the convict settlement at New South Wales in 1790. ... The Ostrogothic Kingdom was the kingdom built by the Ostrogoths. ... Totila, born in Treviso, was king of the Ostrogoths, chosen after the death of his uncle Ildibad, having engineered the assassination of Ildibads short-lived successor his cousin Eraric in 541. ... See Gothic War (376-382) for the war on the Danube. ... Tiber River in Rome. ... For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). ... For the place in the United States, see Sardinia, Ohio. ... For other uses, see Corsica (disambiguation). ... The Byzantine Empire at its greatest extent under Justinian I. Justinians inherited empire in pink with his conquests, including Spania, in orange. ...

The only major naval action fought for the next 80 years was during the Siege of Constantinople by the Sassanid Persians and Avars/Slavs in 626. The Slavs' fleet of monoxyla was intercepted by the Byzantine fleet and destroyed, denying the Persian army passage across the Bosporus and eventually forcing the Avars to retreat.^[10] Combatants Byzantine Empire Sassanid Empire Avar Khaganate Commanders Patriarch Sergius Shahrbaraz Strength 12,000 dismounted Cavalry 80,000 Avars Persian Allies The Siege of Constantinople in 626 AD by the Sassanid Empire ended in a decisive victory for the Byzantines which, with other victories achieved by Heraclius the previous year... The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: []) is the name used for the third Iranian dynasty and the second Persian Empire (226–651). ... Late Avar period Map showing the location of Avar Khaganate, c. ... A dugout is a boat which is basically a hollowed tree trunk. ... I LOVE BORAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Two bridges cross the Bosporus. ...

The struggle against the Arabs

The emergence of the Arab naval threat

During the 640s, the Muslim conquest of Syria and Egypt created a new threat, as the Arabs not only conquered significant recruiting and revenue-producing areas, but, after the utility of a strong navy was demonstrated by the short-lived Byzantine recapture of Alexandria in 644, they took to creating a navy of their own. In this effort, the Arabs used the manpower of the conquered Levant, which until a few years ago had provided ships and crews for the Byzantines.^[11] As a result, and because of a shared Mediterranean maritime tradition and mutual interactions in the subsequent centuries, the Arab ships were very similar to their Byzantine counterparts.^[12] This similarity also extended to tactics and general fleet organization, with translations of Byzantine military manuals being available to the Arab admirals.^[13] Age of the Caliphs The initial Muslim conquests (632-732) began after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and were marked by a century of rapid Arab expansion beyond the Arabian peninsula under the Rashidun and Umayyad caliphs, ending with the Battle of Tours— resulting in a vast Muslim... This article is about the city in Egypt. ...

After seizing Cyprus in 651, the young Arab navy decisively defeated the Byzantines in the Battle of the Masts of 655, destroying 500 Byzantine ships, and began a centuries-long series of naval conflicts over the control of the Mediterranean waterways.^[14] During this period, the Byzantine fleet proved instrumental to the survival of the Empire: through the use of its feared secret weapon, the "Greek fire", the first Arab Siege of Constantinople ended in failure when the Byzantines defeated the Arab navy in the Battle of Syllaeum, saving the Empire and halting the Muslim advance. In the 680s, under Justinian II, great care was shown to the navy, which was strengthened by the resettlement of over 18,500 Mardaites in the Empire, where they were employed as marines and rowers.^[15] Greek fire was a burning-liquid weapon used by the Byzantine Greeks, typically in naval battles to great effect as it could continue burning even on water. ... Combatants Roman (Byzantine) Empire Umayyad Caliphate Commanders Constantine IV Muawiyah I Strength Unknown Unknown Casualties Unknown Unknown The First Arab Siege of Constantinople in 674 was a major conflict of the Byzantine-Arab Wars, and only the second time Constantinoples defences were tested. ... Combatants Roman (Byzantine) Empire Umayyad Caliphate Commanders Unknown Unknown Strength Unknown Unknown Casualties Unknown Unknown The naval Battle of Syllaeum took place in 677 near Syllaeum and was fought between the Arabs and the Byzantine Empire in coordination with a series of land battles in Anatolia and Syria. ... Justinian II, known as Rhinotmetus (the Split-nosed) (669-711) was a Byzantine emperor of the Heraclian Dynasty, reigned from 685 to 695 and again from 704 to 711. ... An Aramaic-speaking group, inhabiting the highland regions of southern Anatolia, Isauria, Syria, and Lebanon. ...

Nevertheless, the Arab naval threat intensified as they gradually took control of North Africa.^[16] The last Byzantine stronghold, Carthage, fell in 698, despite the dispatch of a fleet to defend it, and Byzantine control of the western Mediterranean was challenged by a new Arab fleet operating from Tunisia.^[17] Combatants Byzantine Empire Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad conquest of North Africa continued the century of rapid Arab Muslim expansion following the death of Mohammed in 632 CE. By 640 the Arabs controlled Mesopotamia, had invaded Armenia, and were concluding their conquest of Byzantine Syria. ... // Introduction Exarch is from the Latin; Exarchus, Greek; Exarchon; Meaning Leader, from the word exarchein to lead, to begin, to rule. ... For other uses, see Carthage (disambiguation). ...

The Byzantine counter-offensive

In 718, the second and last Arab siege of Constantinople failed, again through the use of Greek fire, which caused great losses and fear to the besiegers. In its aftermath, the retreating Arab fleet was decimated in a storm, after which Byzantine forces launched a counteroffensive.^[18] For the next half-century, naval warfare featured constant raids from both sides. A revolt of the thematic fleets in 727 was put down by the imperial fleet through use of Greek fire.^[19] Despite the losses this entailed, in 747, aided for the first time by ships from the Italian city-states, the Byzantines decisively defeated the combined Syrian and Alexandrian fleets, breaking the naval power of the Umayyad Caliphate. Together with the collapse of the Ummayyad state shortly thereafter, this victory ushered the second period of complete Byzantine naval superiority in the Mediterranean.^[11] This supremacy was ensured by the destruction of the North African flotillas, and coupled with severe trading limitations imposed on Muslim traders, which, given the Empire's ability to control the waterways, strangled Muslim maritime trade.^[20] These successes enabled Emperor Constantine V to shift the fleet from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea during his campaigns against the Bulgars in the 760s. In 763, a fleet of 800 ships carrying 9,600 cavalry and some infantry sailed to Anchialus, where he scored a significant victory, but in 766, a second fleet of 2,600 ships, again bound for to Anchialus, sunk en route.^[21] Combatants Umayyad Caliphate Byzantine Empire, First Bulgarian Empire Commanders Maslama, Admiral Suleiman Leo III, Kanasubigi Tervel Strength 200,000 men, 1,800 ships 30,000 Byzantines, 50,000 Bulgarians Casualties 130,000-170,000 men, 1,795 ships Unknown The Second Arab Siege of Constantinople (717-718), was a combined... The Umayyad Dynasty (Arabic الأمويون / بنو أمية umawiyy; in Turkish, Emevi) was the first dynasty of caliphs of the Prophet Muhammad who were not closely related to Muhammad himself, though they were of the same Meccan tribe, the Quraish. ... Constantine V with his father Leo III the Isaurian. ... Imperial Emblem Bulgarian Empire at its greatest extent c. ... Coin of Roman Emperor Caracalla minted in Anchialos (Pomorie) Pomorie (Bulgarian: ; formerly known as Anchialos in Greek, Anchialus in Latin, Tuthom in Bulgar and Анхиало, Anhialo, a Bulgarianized Greek form) is a town in southeastern Bulgaria, located on a narrow rocky peninsula in Burgas Bay on the southern Bulgarian Black Sea... Combatants Bulgaria Byzantine Empire Commanders Telets Constantine V Strength Unknown 9,600 cavalrymen and unknown number of infantry Casualties Heavy Heavy The battle of Anchialus (Bulgarian: ) occurred in 763, near the town of Pomorie on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. ...

Renewed Muslim ascendancy

The Byzantine naval dominance of the Mediterranean was to last until the 820s, when a succession of disasters spelled its end. The first disaster was the revolt of Thomas the Slav in 821, which carried along a large part of the Byzantine armed forces, and which severely weakened the Empire. Crete fell in 824 and became a base for Muslim piratical activity in the Aegean, while under the new Abbassid Caliphate, Arab naval power was revived, and a series of reverses were inflicted on the Empire in the West.^[22] There, in 827, the Aghlabid dynasty began the slow conquest of Sicily, which was critically aided by the defection of the Byzantine commander Euphemius, together with the island's thematic fleet.^[22] By the 840s, Arabs were raiding Italy and the Adriatic. Two Byzantine attempts at reconquest of Sicily were heavily defeated in 840 and 859, and the Muslim fleets, together with large numbers of independent raiders, emerged as the major power of the Mediterranean, putting the Byzantines on the defensive.^[22] In 867 for instance, a Byzantine fleet of 45 ships (some sources state 139 ships) was forced to engage the Arabs off Sicily in order to halt their attacks on Dalmatia.^[23] In 878, Syracuse, the main Byzantine stronghold in Sicily, was lost, largely because the Imperial Fleet was occupied with transporting marble for the construction of the Nea Ekklesia, the new church of Emperor Basil I.^[24] While a short-lived Byzantine counter-offensive in the 880s managed to regain Bari and a foothold in Apulia, which would later evolve into the Catepanate of Italy, a renewed defeat off Sicily in 888 signaled the virtual disappearance of significant Byzantine naval activity from Italy for the next century.^[22] Ibn KhaldÅ«n or Ibn Khaldoun (full name, Arabic: , ) (May 27, 1332 AD/732 AH – March 19, 1406 AD/808 AH), was a famous Berber Muslim polymath: a historian, historiographer, demographer, economist, philosopher, political theorist, sociologist and social scientist born in present-day Tunisia. ... The Muqaddimah, or the Muqaddimah of Ibn Khaldun (Arabic: مقدّمة ابن خلدون), records an early Muslim view of universal history. Many modern thinkers view it as one of the first works of sociology. ... Thomas the Slav was originally a Byzantine military commander entrusted with a high command during the reign of Emperor Leo V the Armenian. ... For other uses, see Crete (disambiguation). ... Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid was the dynastic name generally given to the caliphs of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Muslim empire. ... An Aghlabid cistern in Kairuan The Aghlabid dynasty of emirs, members of the Arab tribe of Bani Tamim, ruled Ifriqiya (northern Africa), nominally on behalf of the Abbasid Caliph, for about a century, until overthrown by the new power of the Fatimids. ... The Islamic conquest and domination of Sicily (as well as parts of southern Italy) is a process whose origin must be traced back in the general expansion of Islam from the 7th century onwards (see Muslim conquests for more details). ... Languages Arabic other minority languages Religions Predominantly Sunni Islam, as well as Shia Islam, Greek Orthodoxy, Greek Catholicism, Roman Catholicism, Alawite Islam, Druzism, Ibadi Islam, and Judaism Footnotes a Mainly in Antakya. ... Sicily ( in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ... Dalmatia, highlighted, on a map of Croatia. ... Syracuse (Italian Siracusa, Sicilian Sarausa, Greek , Latin Syracusae) is an Italian city on the eastern coast of Sicily and the capital of the province of Syracuse. ... For other uses, see Marble (disambiguation). ... Basil, his son Constantine, and his second wife, emperess Eudoxia Ingerina. ... For other uses, see Bari (disambiguation). ... This article is bad because of the Italian region. ...

In the East, despite some successes, such as the razing of Damietta by a Byzantine fleet of 85 ships in 853, the Byzantines were engaged in many operations around the Aegean and off the Syrian coast with at least three more fleets, numbering 300 ships in total.^[25] A victory over the Cretan pirates in 879 stabilized the situation somewhat, even allowing the temporary recapture of Cyprus.^[22] During the first two decades of the 10th century, the Byzantines faced the renegade Leo of Tripoli, whose raids devastated the Aegean coasts, even sacking the Empire's second city, Salonica.^[22] The most distinguished Byzantine admiral of the time was Himerios, the Logothete of the Dromos, who led a successful attack on Laodicea in 910. The city was sacked and its hinterland plundered and ravaged without the loss any ships.^[26] A year later however, a huge expedition under Himerios against the Emirate of Crete, comprising a fleet of 112 dromons and 75 pamphyloi with 43,000 men, failed,^[27] followed by a catastrophic defeat at the hands of Leo of Tripoli off Samos in 912. The year 920 witnessed for the first and only time the ascension of an admiral, Romanus Lecapenus, to the imperial throne, and in 924, the decisive defeat of Leo of Tripoli off Lemnos marked the beginning of the Byzantine resurgence.^[28] Damietta is a port in Dumyat, Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea at the Nile delta, about 200 kilometres north of Cairo. ... Leo of Tripoli was a Greek pirate serving Saracen interests in the early tenth century. ... Thessaloniki or Salonica (Greek: ) is Greeces second-largest city and the capital of Macedonia, the largest Region of Greece. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Logothetes. ... Lemnos (mod. ...

The same period, when a battered Byzantium defended itself against enemies on all fronts, also saw the emergence of a new threat from an unforeseen direction: the Rus' made their first appearance in Byzantine history with a raid against Paphlagonia in the 830s, followed by a major expedition in 860.^[29] Due to the absence of the fleet from the Black Sea, these raids were unhindered; in 941 however, a hastily assembled fleet of 15 old ships equipped with Greek fire managed to defeat a new Rus' fleet that was threatening Constantinople. Rus’ (????, ) was a medieval East Slavic nation, which, according to the most popular (but by no means only) theory, may have taken its name from a ruling warrior class, possibly with Scandinavian roots. ... The Paphlagonian expedition of the Rus is documented in the Life of St. ... Combatants Roman (Byzantine) Empire Rus Commanders Michael III Askold and Dir? Strength Unknown Unknown Casualties Unknown Unknown The Rus raid against Constantinople in 860 is the only major military expedition of the Khaganate of Rus recorded in Greek and Western European sources. ... Combatants Byzantine Empire Kievan Rus Commanders Romanus I Lecapenus Igor I of Kiev The Rus-Byzantine War of 941 took place during the reign of Igor of Kiev. ...

The "Byzantine Reconquest" of the 10th century

During the course of the 10th century, as Arab power weakened, the Byzantines launched a series of successful campaigns against the weakened Caliphate and its successor states. This "Byzantine Reconquest" was overseen by the able sovereigns of the Macedonian dynasty (867-1056), and marked the high water-mark of the Byzantine state. An expedition of about 100 Byzantine ships (20 dromons, 64 chelandia, and 10 galeai) against the Emirate of Crete in 949 failed,^[30] but in 960, Nicephorus Phocas set out with a fleet of 1,000 dromons, 2,000 chelandia, and 308 transports carrying 50,000 men to subdue the island.^[31] The conquest of Crete removed the direct threat to the Aegean, Byzantium's naval heartland, while the conquest of Cilicia, Cyprus (in 968),^[32] and the northern Syrian coast (under John I Tzimiskes) removed the threat of the once-mighty Muslim Syrian fleets and effectively re-established Byzantine dominance in the Eastern Mediterranean.^[28] Basil I the Macedonian (Βασίλειος Α) (811 - 886, ruled 867 - 886) - married Michael IIIs widow; died in hunting accident Leo VI the Wise (Λέων ΣΤ ο Σοφός) (866 - 912, ruled 886 - 912) – likely either son of Basil I or Michael III; Alexander III (Αλέξανδρος Γ του Βυζαντίου) (870 - 913, ruled 912 - 913) – son of Basil I, regent for nephew... Emperor Nicephoros Phocas Nicephorus II Phocas was one of the most brilliant generals in the history of Byzantium who rose to become a mediocre emperor from 963 until his assassination in 969. ... The Kingdom of Cilician Armenia, 1199-1375. ... Ioannes, protected by God and the Virgin Mary. ...

In the West however, a heavy Byzantine defeat by the Fatimids in 965 resulted in the absence of significant naval activity until after 1025, when Byzantium again actively intervened in southern Italy and Sicily. Nevertheless, during the 11th century, both the Byzantine and Muslim navies gradually declined, a phenomenon parallel to the rise of the naval power of the Italian city-states.^[28]

Komnenian period

For more details on this topic, see Byzantium under the Komnenoi.

By the end of the 11th century the Byzantine navy was a shadow of its former self, having declined through neglect, the incompetence of its officers, and lack of funds.^[33] Kekaumenos, writing in ca. 1078, laments that the Byzantine ships "on the pretext of reasonable patrols, they are doing nothing else but ferrying wheat, barley, pulse, cheese, wine, meat, olive oil, a great deal of money, and anything else" from the islands and coasts of the Aegean, while they "flee [the enemy] before they have even caught sight of them, and thus become an embarrassment to the Romans."^[34] By that time, the Muslim naval threat had vanished, but a new and powerful adversary had risen: the Norman Kingdom of Sicily, which had designs on the Byzantine Adriatic coasts and beyond. The sorry state of the Byzantine fleet had dire consequences: The Norman invasion could not be forestalled, leading to a decade of war, which consumed the scant resources of the embattled Empire.^[35] Furthermore, Emperor Alexios I Komnenos (1081-1118) was forced to call upon the assistance of the Venetian fleet against the Normans. In exchange for their help, in 1082, he granted them major trading concessions. This, and subsequent extensions of these privileges, practically rendered the Byzantines hostage to the Venetians: "Byzantium's lack of a navy [...] meant that Venice could regularly extort economic privileges, determine whether invaders [...] entered the Empire, and parry any Byzantine attempts to restrict Venetian commercial or naval activity."^[35] The Byzantine Empire or Byzantium is the term conventionally used by historians to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire of the Middle Ages, centered around its capital of Constantinople. ... Painting of Emperor Basil II, exemplifying the Imperial Crown handed down by Angels. ... Kekaumenos is the family name of the otherwise anonymous Byzantine author of a Strategikon composed c. ... Norman conquests in red. ... Flag The Kingdom of Sicily as it existed at the death of its founder, Roger II of Sicily, in 1154. ... Emperor Alexios I Komnenos Alexios I Komnenos or Alexius I Comnenus (Greek: ; Latin: ; 1048 – August 15, 1118), Byzantine emperor (1081–1118), was the son of John Komnenos and Anna Dalassena and the nephew of Isaac I Komnenos (emperor 1057–1059). ... Borders of the Republic of Venice in 1796 Capital Venice Language(s) Venetian, Latin, Italian Religion Roman Catholic Government Republic Doge  - 1789–97 Ludovico Manin History  - Established 697  - Treaty of Zara June 27, 1358  - Treaty of Leoben April 17, 1797 * Traditionally, the establishment of the Republic is dated to 697. ...

Alexios realized the importance of having his own fleet, and despite his preoccupation with land operations, he took steps to re-establish the navy. His efforts bore some success, and in 1104, a Byzantine fleet of 10 ships captured Laodicea and other coastal towns as far as Tripoli.^[36] By 1118 he was able to pass on a modest navy to his successor, John II Komnenos (1118-1143). Like his father, John II concentrated on the army and regular land-based campaigns, but he took care to maintain the navy's strength and provisioning system intact.^[37] This did not avert an embarrassment when John refused to renew the trading privileges that Alexios had granted to the Venetians; after they had plundered several Byzantine islands in retaliation, John was forced to renew the treaty. Evidently the Byzantine navy at this point was not sufficiently powerful for John to successfully confront Venice, especially as there were other pressing demands on the Empire's resources. Roundabout in Latakia Latakia (Arabic: اللاذقية Al-Ladhiqiyah, Greek:Λαοδικεία) is the principal port city of Syria. ... This page refers to Tripoli, the city in Lebanon. ... “John Komnenus” redirects here. ...

The navy enjoyed a major comeback after 1143 under the emperor Manuel I Komnenos (1143-1180), who was determined that Byzantine naval power should be re-established. The Byzantine navy under Manuel quickly became formidable and was used by this ambitious emperor as a powerful tool of foreign policy in the relations with the Latin and Muslim states of the Eastern Mediterranean. In 1148, Manuel sent a fleet of 500 galleys and 1,000 transports along with an army of 20-30,000 men that succeeded in recapturing Corfu and the Ionian Islands from the Norman Kingdom of Sicily,^[38] and in 1155, a Byzantine fleet of 10 ships in support of Norman rebel Robert III of Loritello landed at Ancona, launching the last Byzantine bid to regain Southern Italy. Despite initial successes, the expedition was ultimately defeated in 1156, 4 Byzantine ships were captured.^[39] In 1169, a large fleet of about 200 ships (12 large warships, 150 galleys, and 60 transports) under megas doux Andronikos Kontostephanos was sent to invade Egypt in cooperation with the ruler of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.^[4] Historian William of Tyre was impressed by the spectacle it provided, noting the swift dromons and the large horse transports used by the navy to transport the Byzantine cavalry. The invasion failed and the Byzantines lost half (about 100 ships) in a storm on the way back.^[40] In 1171, Kontostephanos with 150 ships chased off a Venetian fleet off Chios,^[41] and in 1177, another fleet of 150 ships under Kontostephanos, destined for Egypt, returned home after appearing off Acre due to the refusal of Count Philip of Flanders and many important nobles of the Kingdom of Jerusalem to help.^[40] However, by the end of Manuel's reign, the strains of constant warfare on all fronts and the Emperor's various grandiose projects had become evident: the historian Nicetas Choniates attributes the rise of piracy to the diversion of the funds, provided by the Aegean islands for the maintenance of the fleet, to cover the needs of the imperial treasury.^[42] For the eldest son of Andronikos I Komnenos and father of Alexios I of Trebizond, see Manuel Komnenos (born 1145). ... This article is about the Greek island Kerkyra known in English as Corfu or Corcyra. ... The Ionian Islands (Modern Greek: Ιόνια νησιά, Ionia nisia; Ancient Greek: , Ionioi Nēsoi) are a group of islands in Greece. ... Norman conquests in red. ... Flag The Kingdom of Sicily as it existed at the death of its founder, Roger II of Sicily, in 1154. ... Norman conquests in red. ... Rebel may mean: A participant in a rebellion, see Rebellion. ... Robert II of Bassunvilla (also Basunvilla and Bassonville) (died in 1182) was the count of Conversano (from 1138) and Loritello (from 1154). ... Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche, a region of central Italy, population 101,909 (2005). ... The Megas Doux (Gr. ... This article is about historical Crusades . ... The kingdom of Jerusalem and the other Crusader states (in shades of green) in the context of the Near East in 1135. ... William of Tyre (c. ... Trade-cogs were the main transport vessels of Northern Europe. ... Chios (Greek: , alternative transliterations Khios and Hios), is the fifth largest of the Greek islands, situated in the Aegean Sea seven kilometres (five miles) off the Turkish coast. ... An acre is the name of a unit of area in a number of different systems, including Imperial units and United States customary units. ... Philip of Alsace was count of Flanders from 1168 to 1191. ... The kingdom of Jerusalem and the other Crusader states (in shades of green) in the context of the Near East in 1135. ... Nicetas Choniates (c. ...

With the Normans invading the Balkans in 1185, Emperor Andronikos I prepared 100 ships in the Sea of Marmara to prevent the Norman fleet from reaching Constantinople.^[43] With his brother Alexios III being held captive in Acre, Emperor Isaac II Angelus sent 80 galleys to liberate him, but the fleet was destroyed by the Norman pirate Margaritus of Brindisi. Later, another Byzantine fleet of 70 ships was sent by Isaac II Angelos to recapture Cyprus from Isaac Komnenos, but was also defeated by Margaritus.^[44] In an attempt to regain some lost territories in the Holy Land, the Byzantine Emperor agreed to send 100 galleys to aid Saladin in capturing Antioch.^[45] Map of the Sea of Marmara Satellite view of the Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara (Turkish: Marmara Denizi, Modern Greek: Θάλασσα του Μαρμαρά or Προποντίδα) (also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea) is an inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating the... Alexios III Angelos or Alexius III Angelus (Greek: Αλέξιος Γ Άγγελος) (c. ... An acre is the name of a unit of area in a number of different systems, including Imperial units and United States customary units. ... Isaac II Angelus (or Isaakios Angelos) (September 1156-1204), was the Byzantine emperor from 1185-1195, and again 1203-1204. ... Norman conquests in red. ... Margaritus of Brindisi (also Margarito; Italian Margaritone or Greek Megareites), called the new Neptune, was the last great ammiratus ammiratorum of Sicily. ... Isaac II Angelos or Angelus (Greek: Ισαάκιος Β’ Άγγελος, Isaakios II Angelos) (September 1156 – January 1204) was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204. ... Isaac Komnenos or Comnenus (Greek: Ισαάκιος Κομνηνός, Isaakios Komnēnos), (c. ... For other uses, see Holy Land (disambiguation). ... Saladin, properly known as Salah al-Dīn Yusuf ibn Ayyub (Arabic: , Kurdish: ) (c. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Antakya. ...

Decline

For more details on this topic, see Byzantium under the Palaiologoi.

After the demise of the Komnenian dynasty in 1185 however, the navy deteriorated hopelessly. While in the 1180s, expeditions of 70-100 ships are still recorded in contemporary sources,^[46] by 1196 there were only about 30 galleys left.^[4] The emperors were driven to rely on the help of the Venetians, and later the Genoese: in 1187, an agreement was made by Isaac II Angelos with Venice, in which the Republic would provide 40-100 galleys at six months' notice in exchange for favorable trading concessions. Thus, when the Fourth Crusade arrived at Constantinople in 1203, there were only 20 ships, so decayed that during the siege, 17 of those ships were used as fireships in a failed attempt against the Venetian fleet.^[4] Image File history File links Window_St_Nicholas. ... The most famous of the surviving Byzantine mosaics of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople - the image of Christ Pantocrator on the walls of the upper southern gallery. ... Painting of Emperor Basil II, exemplifying the Imperial Crown handed down by Angels. ... The Byzantine Army was the primary military body of the Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine Navy. ... Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire. ... Anastasius 40 nummi (M) and 5 nummi (E) Byzantine currency, money used in the Eastern Roman Empire after the fall of the West, consisted of mainly two types of coins: the gold solidus and a variety of clearly valued bronze coins. ... Byzantine cuisine was marked by a merger of Greek and Roman gastronomy. ... // History Greek Dance in Antiquity was originally held to have some kind of educational value, as evidenced in Platos dialogues on this point in The Laws. ... Olga, ruler of Kievan Rus, along with her escort in Constantinople (Madrid Skylitzes, Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid) Byzantine diplomacy concerns the principles and methods, the mechanisms the ideals and techniques that the Byzantine empire espoused and used in order to negotiate with the other states and to promote... // Overview Byzantine Dress changed vastly over the centuries. ... Byzantium undoubtedly occupies an important place in the history of garden design. ... Justinian I depicted on a mosaic in the church of San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy The Corpus Juris Civilis (Body of Civil Law) is a fundamental work in jurisprudence, issued from 529 to 534 by order of Justinian I, Byzantine Emperor. ... Byzantine literature refers to literature written in the Greek language during the Middle Ages, although certain works written in Latin, like the Corpus Juris Civilis may also be included. ... Byzantine music is the music of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire) and by extension the music of its culture(s) as they continued in the Orthodox Christian parts of the population after the fall of the empire to the rule of the Ottoman Empire. ... A gallery of birds from the Vienna Dioscurides Byzantine manuscript. ... The frontispiece of the Vienna Dioscurides shows a set of seven famous physicians. ... The Byzantine Empire or Byzantium is the term conventionally used since the 19th century to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire of the Middle Ages, centered around its capital of Constantinople. ... Isaac II Angelos or Angelus (Greek: Ισαάκιος Β’ Άγγελος, Isaakios II Angelos) (September 1156 – January 1204) was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204. ... Belligerents Crusaders Holy Roman Empire Republic of Venice Montferret Champagne Blois Amiens Île-de-France Saint-Pol Burgundy Flanders Balkans Byzantine Empire Kingdom of Hungary Croatia Dalmatia Commanders Otto IV Boniface I Theobald I Lois I Alexios V Doukas Isaac II Angelos Alexios III Angelos Emeric I The Fourth Crusade... Defeat of the Spanish Armada, 1588-08-08 by Philippe-Jacques de Loutherbourg, painted 1796, depicts Drakes fire ship attack on the Spanish Armada This article is about a unit of warfare. ...

After the Fourth Crusade, there was a temporary naval revival under the Nicaean Emperors: in 1225, the Nicaean fleet was able to occupy the islands of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, and Icaria. Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos laid special emphasis on the fleet. In the 1260s, the Byzantine navy was still weak, as can be seen by how a combined Byzantine-Genoese fleet of 48 ships was defeated by a much smaller Venetian fleet in 1263.^[47] By 1270 however, Michael could count on a strong navy of 80 ships, with several Latin privateers sailing under imperial colours. In the 1270s, the reorganized Byzantine navy succeeded in recapturing many islands in the Aegean, including Euboea and successfully harassed the Latin states in Greece.^[48] Belligerents Crusaders Holy Roman Empire Republic of Venice Montferret Champagne Blois Amiens Île-de-France Saint-Pol Burgundy Flanders Balkans Byzantine Empire Kingdom of Hungary Croatia Dalmatia Commanders Otto IV Boniface I Theobald I Lois I Alexios V Doukas Isaac II Angelos Alexios III Angelos Emeric I The Fourth Crusade... The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the states founded by refugees from the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople was conquered during the Fourth Crusade. ... Lesbos (Modern Greek: Lesvos (Λέσβος), Turkish: Midilli), is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. ... Chios (Greek: , alternative transliterations Khios and Hios), is the fifth largest of the Greek islands, situated in the Aegean Sea seven kilometres (five miles) off the Turkish coast. ... Samos (Greek: Σάμος) is a Greek island in the Eastern Aegean sea, located between the island of Chios to the North and the archipelagic complex of the Dodecanese to the South and in particular the island of Patmos and off the coast of Turkey, on what was formerly known as Ionia. ... Icaria, also spelled Ikaria (Greek: ), locally Nikaria or Nicaria (Νικαριά), ancient name: Doliche (Δολίχη), is a Greek island 10 nautical miles (19 km) south-west of Samos. ... The Byzantine Empire in 1265 (William R. Shepherd, Historical Atlas, 1911) Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus (Greek: Μιχαήλ Η΄ Παλαιολόγος, Mikhaēl VIII Palaiologos) (1224/1225 – December 11, 1282) reigned as Byzantine emperor 1259–1282. ... For the Greek mythological figures see Euboea Euboea, or Negropont or Negroponte (Modern Greek: Εύβοια Évia, Ancient Greek Eúboia), is the second largest of the Greek Aegean Islands and the second largest Greek island overall in area and population (after Crete). ... The Near East in 1135, with the Crusader states in green hues. ...

This revival did not last long; Andronikos II Palaiologos, who succeeded Michael in 1282, wrongly assumed that by relying on the naval strength of their Genoese allies he could completely do without the maintenance of a fleet, with its particularly heavy expenditure. He therefore disbanded the navy and hired 50-60 Genoese galleys in 1291. In ca. 1320, he tried to rebuild the navy by constructing 20 ships, but this effort came to naught.^[4] His grandson and heir Andronikos III Palaiologos (1328-1341) was the last emperor to actively try and rebuild the navy's strength, personally leading it to expeditions against Latin holdings in the Aegean, but his policies failed to stem the overall decline. After his reign, the highest number of warships ever mentioned to be in the Byzantine navy rarely exceeded 10 warships, but with impressment of merchant vessels, the Byzantine navy could occasionally increase to about 100-200 ships.^[4] In 1349 for instance, the Emperor sent a newly-built fleet of 9 fair-sized ships and about 100 smaller ships against the Genoese, but it was captured in its entirety.^[49] In 1351, Emperor John VI sent 12 ships to help Venice and Aragon against Genoa.^[50] 40 years later, Manuel II was able to gather only 5 galleys and 4 smaller vessels to rescue his father John V from captivity,^[51] and in 1396, Manuel armed 10 ships to assist the Crusade of Nicopolis. Later he personally commanded 4 galleys and 2 other vessels carrying some infantry and cavalry, and saved the island of Thasos from an invasion.^[52] The last appearance of the Byzantine fleet was in 1453, when a fleet of 10 Byzantine and 16 foreign ships defended Constantinople against the Ottoman fleet.^[53] During the siege, 3 Genoese galleys and 1 Byzantine transport fought their way into Constantinople.^[54] Andronikos II Palaiologos or Andronicus II Palaeologus (Greek: ) (1259/1260 – February 13, 1332), reigned as Byzantine emperor 1282–1328. ... Andronikos III Palaiologos or Andronicus III Palaeologus (Greek: Ανδρόνικος Γ Παλαιολόγος) (March 25, 1297 - June 15, 1341) reigned as Byzantine emperor 1328–1341, after being rival emperor since 1321. ... John VI was the name of a number of rulers: John VI Cantacuzenus John VI of Portugal Pope John VI Patriarch John VI of Constantinople This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Borders of the Republic of Venice in 1796 Capital Venice Language(s) Venetian, Latin, Italian Religion Roman Catholic Government Republic Doge  - 1789–97 Ludovico Manin History  - Established 697  - Treaty of Zara June 27, 1358  - Treaty of Leoben April 17, 1797 * Traditionally, the establishment of the Republic is dated to 697. ... Coat of arms The Kingdom of Aragon at its greatest extent, c. ... The Republic of Genoa, in full the Most Serene Republic of Genoa (known as the Ligurian Republic from 1798 to 1805) was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. ... Emperor Manuel II Manuel II Palaiologos or Palaeologus (Greek: Μανουήλ Β΄ Παλαιολόγος, ManouÄ“l II Palaiologos) (June 27, 1350 – July 21, 1425) was Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425. ... John V Palaiologos or Palaeologus (Greek: , IōannÄ“s V Palaiologos), (1332 – February 16, 1391) was the son of Emperor Andronikos III Palaiologos and Anna of Savoy. ... The Battle of Nicopolis took place on September 25, 1396, between a French-Hungarian alliance and the Ottoman Empire. ... Thasos or Thassos (Greek: Θάσος, Ottoman Turkish: طاشوز Taşöz, Bulgarian: ) is an island in the northern Aegean Sea, close to the coast of Thrace and the plain of the river Nestos (during the Ottoman times Kara-Su). ...

Organization

Early period (4th-7th centuries)

The organization of the Roman fleets in the 4th and 5th centuries is unclear. The large, permanent fleets of the early Empire had been progressively broken up in smaller squadrons, and fleets appear to have been assembled on an ad hoc basis for individual operations and then disbanded. The first permanent Byzantine fleet can be traced to the revolt of Vitalian in 513-515, when Anastasius I created a fleet to counter the rebels' own.^[7] This fleet was retained, and under Justinian I and his successors it developed again into a professional and well-maintained force.^[11] Due to the absence of any naval threat however, the fleet of the late 6th century was relatively small, with several small flotillas in the Danube and two main fleets maintained at Ravenna and Constantinople.^[55] Additional flotillas must have been stationed at the other great maritime and commercial centers of the Empire: at Alexandria, providing the escort to the annual grain fleet to Constantinople, and at Carthage, controlling the western Mediterranean.^[56] Not only did the fleet profit from the long-established naval tradition and infrastructure of those areas, but also, in the event of a naval expedition, a large fleet could be quickly and inexpensively assembled by impressing the numerous merchant vessels.^[57] This article is about the Danube River. ...

Middle period (8th-11th centuries)

The naval themes

The Byzantine Empire in 717. The scattered and isolated imperial possessions around the Mediterranean were defended and reinforced by the Byzantine fleets.

In response to the Arab conquests during the 7th century, the whole administrative and military system of the Empire was reformed, and the thematic system established. According to this, the Empire was divided into several themata, which were regional civil and military administrations. Under the command of a stratēgos, each thema maintained its own, locally levied forces, while on campaign they would supplement the central imperial army stationed at Constantinople. The fleet was established along similar lines, with a central Imperial Fleet (βασιλικόν πλώιμον) at Constantinople and separate provincial or thematic squadrons provided by the maritime themes, each commanded by a droungarios (the most important were later raised to the rank of stratēgos).^[28] Unlike the earlier Roman navy, where the provincial fleets were decidedly inferior in numbers and included only lighter vessels than the central fleets, the Byzantine thematic fleets were formidable formations in their own right. The only major difference appears to have been the exclusive use of Greek fire by the Imperial Fleet.^[58] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The themata circa 950. ... Bust of an unidentified strategos with Corinthian helmet; Hadrianic Roman copy of a Greek sculpture of c. ...

During the course of the middle Byzantine period, the large original themes were subdivided into smaller ones, and new ones were created by conquest in the 9th and 10th centuries. Although most themes that had a shoreline maintained some ships, the naval themes (θέματα ναυτικᾶ) proper in the 8th-10th centuries were three:

• the Theme of the Carabisiani (θέμα τῶν Καραβησιάνων, "Theme of the Ships' Men", from the word κάραβις, meaning "ship"), which was the first and initially only naval theme to be established. It was created by Constantine V in the 680s, possibly from the remainders of the old quaestura exercitus^[59] or the Army of the Illyricum.^[60] It was headed by a stratēgos, and included the southern coast of Asia Minor from Miletus to Seleucia in Cilicia, the Aegean islands and the imperial holdings in southern Greece. Its capital was initially at Samos, with a subordinate command under a droungarios at Cibyrra in Pamphylia. After the separation of the Theme of Hellas, and a failed revolt in 727, the seat was moved to Cibyrra (and later Attaleia), being renamed into the Theme of the Cibyrrhaeots (θέμα Κιβυρραιωτῶν), under a droungarios.^[61] As it faced the Arab fleets of Egypt and Syria, it was the most important and powerful of the naval themes.^[28]
• the Theme of the Aegean (θέμα Αἰγαίου), separated from the Cibyrrhaeots in 843, included the Aegean islands except for the Dodecanese.^[62]
• the Theme of Samos (θέμα Σάμου), separated from the Theme of the Aegean Sea ca. 882.^[62] It included the Ionian coast, with capital at Smyrna.

Other themata with a significant naval force were: Constantine V with his father Leo III the Isaurian. ... This article is about an ancient civilization in southeastern Europe; see also Illyria (software), Illyria (character in the TV series Angel). ... The lower half of the benches and the remnants of the scene building of the theater of Miletus (August 2005) Miletus (Carian: Anactoria Hittite: Milawata or Millawanda, Greek: Μίλητος transliterated Miletos, Turkish: Milet) was an ancient city on the western coast of Anatolia (in what is now Aydin Province, Turkey), near... Silifke (Selefke) is a town in south-central Adana Province, Turkey, on the banks of the (Göksu) River near the Taurus Mountains, geographically located at 36°22′N 33°56′E. // Economy Silifke is a successful industrial town, producing beverages, chemicals, clothes, footwear, glass, plastics, pottery, and textiles. ... The Kingdom of Cilician Armenia, 1199-1375. ... Samos (Greek Σάμος; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is an island in southeastern Greece in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of Turkey. ... Pamphylia, in ancient geography, was the region in the south of Asia Minor, between Lycia and Cilicia, extending from the Mediterranean to Mount Taurus. ... This article is mostly about the Antalya City; for the province, see Antalya Province. ... Samos (Greek Σάμος; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is an island in southeastern Greece in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of Turkey. ... Location of Ionia Ionia (Greek Ιωνία; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was an ancient region of southwestern coastal Anatolia (in present-day Turkey, the region nearest İzmir,) on the Aegean Sea. ... Smyrna (Greek: Σμύρνη) is an ancient city (today İzmir in Turkey) that was founded by ancient Greeks at a central and strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. ...

• the Theme of Hellas (θέμα Ἑλλάδος), founded in ca. 686-689 by Justinian II, encompassing the imperial possessions of southern Greece with capital at Corinth. Justinian settled 6,500 Mardaites there, who provided oarsmen and garrisons.^[63] While not exclusively a naval theme, it maintained its own fleet. It was split in 809 into the Theme of the Peloponnese and the new Theme of Hellas, covering Central Greece and Thessaly.^[64]
• the Theme of Sicily (θέμα Σικελίας), responsible for Sicily and the imperial possessions in southwestern Italy (Calabria). Once the bastion of Byzantine naval strength in the West, by the late 9th century it had greatly diminished in strength, and disappeared after the final loss of Taormina in 902.^[28]
• the Theme of Ravenna, in essence the Exarchate of Ravenna, until its fall in 751.
• the Theme of Cephallonia (θέμα Κεφαλληνίας), controlling the Ionian Islands, promoted from an archontate in 809.^[64] The new imperial possessions in Apulia were added to it in the 870s, before they were made into a separate thema (that of Langobardia) in about 910.^[65]

The manpower of the Byzantine navy in 899 during the reign of Leo VI the Wise reached 34,200 oarsmen and perhaps as many as 8,000 marines.^[1] The central Imperial Fleet totaled some 19,600 oarsmen and 4,000 marines under the command of the droungarios of the basilikon plōïmon (δρουγγάριος τοῦ βασιλικοῦ πλωίμου). These four thousand marines were professional soldiers, recruited by Basil I in the 870s, and greatly strengthened the Imperial Fleet. Whereas previously the fleet had depended on thematic and tagmatic soldiers for its marines, the new force provided a more reliable, better trained and immediately available force at the Emperor's disposal.^[66] The Aegean Themal Fleet numbered 2,610 oarsmen and 400 marines, the Cibyrrhaeotic Fleet stood at 5,710 oarsmen and 1,000 marines, the Samian Fleet at 3,980 oarsmen and 600 marines, and finally, the Theme of Hellas furnished 2,300 oarsmen with a portion of its 2,000 thematic soldiers doubling as marines.^[1] Justinian II, known as Rhinotmetus (the Split-nosed) (669-711) was a Byzantine emperor of the Heraclian Dynasty, reigned from 685 to 695 and again from 704 to 711. ... Corinth, or Korinth (Greek: Κόρινθος, Kórinthos; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city-state, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... An Aramaic-speaking group, inhabiting the highland regions of southern Anatolia, Isauria, Syria, and Lebanon. ... Greece and the Peloponnese The Peloponnese or Peloponnesus (Greek: Πελοπόννησος Peloponnesos; see also List of Greek place names) is a large peninsula in southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth. ... Central Greece (Greek: Στερεά Ελλάδα - Stereá Elláda) is one of the thirteen peripheries of Greece. ... Map showing Thessaly periphery in Greece Thessaly (Θεσσαλια; modern Greek Thessalía; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. ... Sicily ( in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ... For other uses, see Calabria (disambiguation). ... Province of Ravenna Ravenna is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. ... The Exarchate of Ravenna was a center of Byzantine power in Italy, from the end of the 6th century to 751 A.D., when the last Exarch was put to death by the Emperors enemies in Italy, the Lombards. ... Kefalonia also known as Cephalonia, Kefallinia, or Cefalonia (Ancient Greek: Κεφαλλήνια Modern Greek: Κεφαλλονιά), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece. ... The Ionian Islands (Modern Greek: Ιόνια νησιά, Ionia nisia; Ancient Greek: , Ionioi NÄ“soi) are a group of islands in Greece. ... This article is bad because of the Italian region. ... Langobardia was the name of the Byzantine thema which covered the Southern Italy from 874 to the eleventh century. ... This follis by Leo VI bears the Byzantine Emperors official title, BASILEVS ROMEON, Emperor of the Romans; translation of text: Leo, by the grace of God, King of Romans Leo VI the Wise or the Philosopher (Greek: Λέων ΣΤ΄, Leōn VI, Armenian: [1]), (September 19, 866 – May 11, 912) was Byzantine... Basil, his son Constantine, and his second wife, emperess Eudoxia Ingerina. ... Samos (Greek: Σάμος) is a Greek island in the Eastern Aegean sea, located between the island of Chios to the North and the archipelagic complex of the Dodecanese to the South and in particular the island of Patmos and off the coast of Turkey, on what was formerly known as Ionia. ...

In 950, the Imperial Fleet stationed at Constantinople consisted of 100-150 ships, or even, according to some estimates, up to 250 ships.^[67]

Rank structure

Naval themes were organized much the same way as their land bound counterparts: the droungarios stood at the head, assisted by a deputy called topotērētēs and the prōtonotarios, who headed the civilian administration of the theme. Further staff officers were the chartoularios in charge of the fleet administration, the prōtomandatōr ("head messenger"), who acted as chief of staff, and a number of staff komētes ("counts"). Squadrons of ships were commanded by a komēs or droungarokomēs, and each ship's captain was called kentarchos ("centurion"), nauarchos, or, more archaically, triērarchos or kybernētēs.^[68] The marine infantry ranks followed those of the army. Navarch is a Greek word meaning leader of the ships, which in some states became the title of an office equivalent to that of a modern admiral. ... A Greek trireme Triremes were ancient war galleys with three rows of oars on each side. ... The Byzantine Army was the primary military body of the Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine Navy. ...

Each ship's crew, depending on its size, was composed of one to three ousiai (ούσίαι, sing. ούσία) of ca. 110 men each. The rowers of the upper level were also expected to fight in a boarding action, and were therefore specially picked and equipped with light armor.^[68] Under the captain, there was the bandophoros, who acted as executive officer, two helmsmen called prōtokaraboi ("heads of the ship") and a bow officer, the prōreus.^[68] There were also a number of specialists on board, such as the two bow oarsmen and the siphonatores, who worked the siphons used for discharging the Greek fire.^[68] Greek fire was a burning-liquid weapon used by the Byzantine Greeks, typically in naval battles to great effect as it could continue burning even on water. ...

Late period (11th century - 1453)

The reforms of the Komnenoi

After the decline of the navy in the 11th century, Alexios I rebuilt it on different lines. The thematic fleets vanished, and their remnants were amalgamated into a unified imperial fleet, under the new office of the megas doux.^[37] The megas droungarios of the fleet, once the overall naval commander, was subordinated to him, acting now as his principal aide.^[69] The megas doux was also appointed as governor of southern Greece (the old themata of Hellas and the Peloponnese), which was divided into districts (oria) that supplied the fleet.^[70] Later, in the 13th century, another high rank, that of amiralios (ἀμιράλιος or ἀμιράλης) was introduced, being third in the hierarchy after the megas doux and the megas domestikos.^[71] The Megas Doux (Gr. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... For other uses, see Admiral (disambiguation). ...

Under John II, along with Greece, the Aegean islands became responsible for the maintenance, crewing and provision of warships, and contemporary sources took pride in the fact that the great fleets of Manuel's time were crewed by "native Romans", although use was made of mercenaries and allied squadrons.^[37]

The navy of Michael VIII Palaiologos

With the decline of the Byzantine fleet after 1185, the Empire increasingly relied on the fleets of Venice and Genoa. Alongside the mistrusted Italian city-states, with whom alliances shifted regularly, mercenaries were increasingly employed in the last centuries of the Empire. Under Michael VIII, for the first time a foreigner, the Italian privateer Licario, became megas doux; another, the Genoese Giovanni de lo Cavo, was employed as an admiral and given Rhodes as a quasi-fief.^[72] This article is about the Greek island of Rhodes. ...

After regaining Constantinople in 1261, Michael VIII initiated a great effort to rebuild a "national" navy, forming a number of new corps to this purpose: the Gasmouloi (Γασμοῦλοι), who were men of mixed Greek-Latin descent living around the capital; and colonists from Laconia, called Lakōnes (Λάκωνες, "Laconians") or Tzakōnes (Τζάκωνες), were used as marines, and formed the bulk of Byzantine naval manpower in the 1260s and 1270s.^[73] Michael also set the rowers, called Prosalentai or Prosēlontes, apart as a separate category.^[74] All these groups received small grants of land to cultivate in exchange for their service, and were settled together in small colonies.^[75] The Prosalentai were settled near the sea throughout the northern Aegean,^[76] while the Gasmouloi and Tzakōnes were settled mostly around Constantinople and in Thrace. These corps remained extant, albeit in a diminished form, throughout the 14th century (the last mention of the Gasmouloi is in 1422, and the Prosalentai in 1361).^[4] Laconia (; see also List of traditional Greek place names), also known as Lacedaemonia, is a prefecture in Greece. ... A Tsakonian (Greek: Τσάκωνας Tsákonas) is a speaker of Tsakonian, or more broadly, one who lives in a traditionally Tsakonian-speaking area and follows certain Tsakonian cultural traditions, such as the Tsakonian dance, even if that person is no longer able to speak Tsakonian fluently. ... Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak  Thrace (Bulgarian: , Greek: , Attic Greek: ThrāíkÄ“ or ThrēíkÄ“, Latin: , Turkish: ) is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. ...

Ships

For more details on this topic, see Dromon.

A light Byzantine galley (galea) of the 10th century.

The main warship of the Byzantine navy was the dromon (δρόμων). A derivation of the light liburnian galleys of the imperial Roman fleets, the term first appeared in the 6th century, during the wars of Justinian, to describe fast ships with a single row of oars. During the next few centuries, as the naval struggle with the Arabs intensified, heavier versions with two or even three banks of oars evolved.^[77] Eventually, the term was used as a general reference for "warship", and in a specific sense as an alternative name for the heaviest class of warships, the chelandion.^[78] A Byzantine fresco showing a dromon Byzantine dromon. ... Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... A Byzantine fresco showing a dromon Byzantine dromon. ... The 6th century is the period from 501 - 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ...

By the 10th century, there were three main classes of two-banked ("bireme") warships: the ousiakos, so named because it was manned by an ousia of 108 men, the pamphylos, which was crewed with up to 120-160 men, and the chelandion, with a crew of up to three ousiai.^[79] The largest known crew comprised 230 rowers and 70 marines.^[80] A smaller, single-bank ship (the monērēs or galea, from which the term "galley" derives), with ca. 60 men as crew, was used for scouting missions.^[81] Three-banked ("trireme") dromons are described in a 9th century work dedicated to the parakoimōmenos Basil Lekapenos, however this treatise, which survives only in fragments, draws heavily upon references on the appearance and construction of a Classical trireme, and must therefore be used with care when trying to apply it to the warships of the middle Byzantine period.^[77] Nevertheless, it is likely that three-tiered versions of the bireme dromons existed. A Greek trireme. ...

Dromons were generally fully decked ships, had one to two masts (histos or katartion), and used lateen sails. Each oar bank generally had about 25 oars, which extended directly from the hull (unlike ancient Greek and Hellenistic vessels, which used an outrigger), in addition to the two large steering oars in the stern. Overall length must have been between 35 and 40 m.^[82] The larger ones had elevated wooden castles (xylokastra) between the masts, and carried one to three siphons, located on the bow or amidships, for the discharge of Greek fire.^[83] A deck is a permanent covering over a compartment or a hull[1] of a ship. ... A vessel (xebec) with three lateens Dhow with lateen sail in bad tack with the sail pressing against the mast, in Mozambique. ... In a canoe or bangca, an outrigger is a thin, long, solid, hull used to stabilise an inherently unstable main hull. ...

For cargo transport, the Byzantines commandeered ordinary merchantmen and cargo ships, but there existed also a number of specialized vessels such as horse-transports (confusingly also called "chelandion" in some sources).^[77] Trade-cogs were the main transport vessels of Northern Europe. ...

Tactics and weapons

Naval tactics

As with the land army, the Byzantines took care to codify, preserve and pass on the past lessons of warfare through the use of military manuals. The main surviving texts are the chapters on sea combat (peri naumachias) in the Tactica of Leo the Wise and Nikephoros Ouranos, and relevant passages in the De administrando imperio of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.^[13] Nikephoros Ouranos (Gr. ... Constantine VII Porphyrogenitos (the Purple-born) ( 905 – November 9, 959) was the son of Byzantine emperor Leo VI and nephew of Alexander III. He earned his nickname as the legitimate (or more accurately legitimized) son of Leo, as opposed to the others who claimed the throne during his lifetime. ...

The manuals emphasized training of the crews, the acquisition of accurate intelligence, and the maintenance of a disciplined and well-ordered formation. Advice is provided on drawing up a battle plan, but they also emphasized the need for initiative and improvisation on the part of the admiral during the actual battle.^[13] On open seas, a crescent formation seems to have been the norm, with heavier ships, including the admiral's vessel, in the center and the lighter and faster ones at the horns of the formation, while a range of other tactics and counter-tactics was available.^[13]

Weapons

Unlike the earlier warships, Byzantine and Arab ships did not feature rams, and the primary means of ship-to-ship combat were boarding actions and missile fire, as well as the use of inflammable materials such as Greek fire.^[58] Byzantine ships were equipped with small catapults and ballistae (toxoballistrai) that launched stones, arrows, pots of Greek fire or other incendiary liquids, or even caltrops and containers of scorpions and snakes, according to some sources.^[58] Marines were also armed with bows and crossbows, alongside close-combat arms such as lances and swords. Cannons were rarely used by the Byzantines, who only had a few pieces for the defense of the land walls of Constantinople. Unlike the Venetians and Genoese, there is no indication that any were ever mounted on ships.^[84] In warfare, ramming is a technique that was used in the air, sea and tank combat. ... Replica catapult at Château des Baux, France For the handheld Y-shaped weapon, see slingshot. ... The ballista (Latin, from Greek ballistēs, from ballein to throw, plural ballistae) was a powerful ancient crossbow, although employing several loops of twisted skeins to power it, it used torsion (instead of a prod). ... Caltrop used by the Office of Strategic Services. ... For other uses, see Cannon (disambiguation). ... Sections of the Theodosian walls of Constantinople as they appear today in suburban Istanbul The Walls of Constantinople surrounded the Roman and Byzantine city of Constantinople (today Istanbul in Turkey). ...

Greek fire

For more details on this topic, see Greek fire.

The term "Greek fire" was attributed to the concoction by the Latins (Westeners), as they viewed the Byzantines simply as Greeks. The native Greek name was "liquid fire" (ὑγρόν πῦρ). Although the use of incendiary chemicals by the Byzantines has been attested since the early 6th century, the actual substance known as Greek fire is believed to have been created in the seventh century (673 AD) and attributed to an engineer from Syria, named Kallinikos. The weapon was first used by the Byzantines, and the most common method of deployment was to emit the formula through a large bronze tube (siphōn) onto enemy ships.^[58] Usually the mixture would be stored in heated, pressurized barrels and projected through the tube by some sort of pump while the operators were sheltered behind large iron shields. Alternatively, it could be launched by catapults. A portable version (cheirosiphōn) also existed, reputedly invented by Leo VI, making it the direct analogue to a modern flamethrower.^[81] Greek fire was a burning-liquid weapon used by the Byzantine Greeks, typically in naval battles to great effect as it could continue burning even on water. ... Greek fire in use, from http://www. ... Leaning Tower of Pisa. ... The Alexiad (original Greek title : Αλεξιάς) is a medieval biographical text written around the year 1148 by the Byzantine historian Anna Comnena, daughter of Emperor Alexius I. Within the Alexiad, she describes the political and military history of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of her father (1081-1118), making it... Anna Comnena or better Komnene (Greek: Άννα Κομνηνή, Anna KomnÄ“nÄ“) (December 1, 1083 – 1153). ... Riverboat of the U.S. Brownwater Navy shooting ignited napalm from its mounted flamethrower during the Vietnam war. ...

The means of its production in the harbour of Galata was kept a state secret, and its components are only roughly guessed or described through secondary sources like Anna Comnena, so that its exact composition remains unknown to this day. In its effect, the Greek fire must have been rather similar to napalm.^[58] Burning fiercely, it could stay ablaze even underwater for a short period. Despite its great destructive ability and psychological impact, Greek fire was never used on land, except during the last siege of Constantinople in 1453. The Arabs eventually also fielded "liquid fire" after 835, but it is unknown whether they used the Byzantine formula, possibly obtained through espionage or through the defection of stratēgos Euphemios in 827, or whether they independently created a version of their own.^[58] Galata or Galatae is a district in Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey. ... Anna Comnena or better Komnene (Greek: Άννα Κομνηνή, Anna KomnÄ“nÄ“) (December 1, 1083 – 1153). ...

Citations

References

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Navy of the Byzantine Empire

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