Battle of Myriokephalon 1176
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 1176 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | Turkey | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Byzantine–Seljuq Wars | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 37.9107, 31.9466 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Myriokephalon (also known as the Battle of Myriocephalum, Greek: Μάχη του Μυριοκέφαλου, Turkish: Miryokefalon Savaşı or Düzbel Muharebesi) was a battle between the Byzantine Empire and the Seljuk Turks in the mountains west of Iconium (Konya) in west-central Anatolia on 17 September 1176. The battle was a strategic reverse for the Byzantine forces, who were ambushed when moving through a mountain pass.
In 1161, the Seljuk Sultan of Rum Kilij Arslan II and Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos concluded a peace agreement. Manuel wanted to achieve peace for his Anatolian provinces with the help of this treaty. Kilij Arslan needed to eliminate internal rivals and gather his strength. After the death of Nureddin Zangi in 1174, the Sultan conquered the Danishmend emirates and expelled his brother Shahinshah, the ruler of Ankara. The emirs fled to Manuel, who demanded the surrender of the captured territories of the Danishmendids to him, which the Sultan was obliged to do under the treaty. However, Kilij Arslan ignored Manuel's request.
In 1176, Manuel I Komnenos gathered a large army and set out on a campaign against Konya. The Seljuks, under the command of Kilij Arslan II, organised an ambush at the Tzivritze Pass and defeated the Byzantine Army.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Myriokephalon (revision 1378999555), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the Byzantine–Seljuq Wars
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All 11 battles of the Byzantine–Seljuq Wars →
Browse more: battles in Turkey · Asia · Medieval battles