1071 CE
A catastrophic year for the Byzantine Empire as the Seljuk Turks crushed the imperial army at Manzikert, opening Anatolia to Turkish settlement and fundamentally altering the political landscape of the eastern Mediterranean.
Conflict & Power
- The Battle of Manzikert on August 26 saw the Seljuk Turkish sultan Alp Arslan defeat and capture the Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes in eastern Anatolia, one of the most consequential military disasters in Byzantine history.
- The defeat at Manzikert was caused partly by treachery within the Byzantine ranks, as the general Andronikos Doukas withdrew his forces during the battle, leaving the emperor exposed.
- The loss at Manzikert opened the Anatolian heartland to Turkic settlement and migration, beginning the transformation of Asia Minor from a Greek-speaking Christian region into a predominantly Turkish and Muslim one.
- The Norman adventurer Robert Guiscard completed his conquest of the last Byzantine stronghold in southern Italy with the fall of Bari in April, ending centuries of Greek imperial presence in the Italian peninsula.
Climate & Environment
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was approximately 275 parts per million, as later confirmed by ice core analysis.
Population & Demographics
- World population is estimated to have been approximately 316 million.