Battle of Alexandretta 971
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 971 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | Turkey | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Arab–Byzantine wars | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Byzantine Empire, Fatimid Caliphate | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 36.5817, 36.1650 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Alexandretta was the first clash between the forces of the Byzantine Empire and the Fatimid Caliphate in Syria. It was fought in early 971 near Alexandretta, while the main Fatimid army was besieging Antioch, which the Byzantines had captured two years previously. The Byzantines, led by one of Emperor John I Tzimiskes' household eunuchs, lured a 4,000-strong Fatimid detachment to attack their empty encampment and then attacked them from all sides, destroying the Fatimid force. The defeat at Alexandretta, coupled with the invasion of southern Syria by the Qarmatians, forced the Fatimids to lift the siege and secured Byzantine control of Antioch and northern Syria.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Alexandretta (revision 1370106267), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of Amanus Pass 39 BC · 13 km
- Battle of Mari 1266 · 19 km
- Battle of Issus (194) 194 · 29 km
- Battle of Issus 333 BC · 29 km
- Battle of the Iron Bridge 637 · 41 km
- Siege of Antioch (51 BC) 51 BC · 42 km
Other battles of the Arab–Byzantine wars
- Siege of Hadath 955
- Battle of Raban 958
- Sack of Aleppo (962) 962
- Siege of Rometta 963
- Siege of Antioch (968–969) 968
- Battle of the Orontes 994
- Siege of Aleppo (994–995) 994
- Battle of Apamea 998
- Battle of Azaz (1030) 1030
- Siege of Messina (1041) 1041
All 34 battles of the Arab–Byzantine wars →
Browse more: battles in Turkey · Asia · Medieval battles