sential part of the Byzantine Empire. One scholar goes so far as to say that after this battle all of the Byzantine state was in the hands of the Turks.103 Another historian considers this event "the death hour of the great Byzantine Empire," and goes on to say that "although its consequences, in all their horrible aspects, were not felt at once, the East of Asia Minor, Armenia, and Cappadocia-the provinces which were the homes of so many famous emperors and warriors and which constituted the main strength of the Empirewere lost forever, and the Turk set up his nomadic tents on the ruins of ancient Roman glory. The cradle of civilization fell prey to Islamic barbarism and to complete brutalization."104 During the years which elapsed from the catastrophy of 1071 until the accession of Alexius Comnenus in the year 1081 the Turks were taking advantage of the unprotected position of the Empire and the internal strife of its parties, which frequently appealed to the Turks for aid, and penetrated still deeper into the life of Byzantium. Separate detachments of Turks reached as far as the western provinces of Asia Minor. The Turkish troops which aided Nicephorus Botaniates in his seizure of the throne accompanied him as far as Nicaea and Chrysopolis (now Scutari). In addition to all this, after the death of Romanus Diogenes and Alp Arslan, the Turks and the Empire did not consider themselves bound by the treaty negotiated by these rulers. The Turks began to utilize every occasion for conquering Byzantine provinces in Asia Minor, and, according to a contemporary Byzantine chronicler, were now entering these provinces, not as temporary plunderers, but as true masters of the occupied districts.105 The successor of Alp Arslan intrusted the military leadership in Asia Minor to Suleiman-ibn-Qutalmish, who occupied the central part of Asia Minor, where was soon founded the sultanate of Rum, or Asia Minor,106 with the capital in the richest and most beautiful Byzan 103 Gfrörer, Byzantinische Geschichten (Graz, 1877), III, 791. 105 Joannis Scylitzae, Historia (ed. Bonn., p. 708), in the second volume of the chronicle of Cedrenus. 106 The word "Rum," which is nothing else than the word "Romans," was used by Muslim writers to denote the medieval Byzantine Greeks and their possessions; "Rum" was also used as a name for Asia Minor. tine city in Asia Minor, Iconium (now Konia); hence this state of the Seljuqs is often called the sultanate of Iconium. From its central position in Asia Minor the new sultanate spread out as far as the Black Sea in the north and the Mediterranean coast in the south, and became a dangerous rival of the Empire. The Turkish army continued to move farther to the west, and the forces of the Byzantine Empire were not strong enough to oppose this Seljuq menace. The onward movement of the Seljuqs and, perhaps, the menacing advances of the northern Uzes and Patzinaks toward the capital, of which we shall speak later, compelled Michael VII Ducas Parapinakes, in the early part of his reign, to appeal for Western aid by sending a message to Pope Gregory VII, promising to repay the Pope's assistance by bringing about a union of the churches. Gregory VII reacted favorably to this request of the Eastern Emperor, and sent a number of messages to the princes of Western Europe and to "all the Christians" (ad omnes christianos), in which he stated, among other things, that "the pagans were exerting great pressure upon the Christian Empire and had devastated with unheard-of cruelty everything almost as far as the walls of Constantinople."10" But Gregory's appeals did not bring about any material results, and at that time no aid was sent from the West to the rescue of the Byzantine Empire. Meanwhile, the Pope became involved in the long and severe struggle for investiture with the German King Henry IV. At the time of the accession of Alexius Comnenus it became 、 very evident that the westward movement of the Seljuqs was the deadliest menace to the Empire. The Patzinaks.-We saw that toward the end of the Macedo- ་ nian period the Patzinaks were the most dangerous northern enemies of the Byzantine Empire. The imperial government, as we know, gave them permission to settle in the districts north of the Balkans, and bestowed Byzantine court ranks upon several Patzinak princes. But all these measures did not provide a real solution of the Patzinak problem, first of all because the Patzinaks were unable to accustom themselves to settled life, and also because new 107 Migne, Patr. Lat., 148, col. 329. hordes of Patzinaks and their kinsmen, the Uzes, were continually arriving from beyond the Danube, directing their entire attention to the south, where they could raid Byzantine territory. Isaac Comnenus was very successful in opposing the advances of the Patzinaks, "who had crawled out of their caves.' "108 He restored Byzantine authority on the Danube, and was also able to offer a very strong opposition to the attacks of the Turks. In the time of Constantine Ducas the Uzes appeared on the Danube. According to V. G. Vasilievsky, "This was an actual migration; an entire tribe, numbering 600,000, with all its goods and chattels, was crowded on the left bank of the river. All efforts to prevent their crossing were in vain."109 The districts of Thessalonica, Macedonia, Thrace, and even Hellas became subject to terrible devastation. One contemporary Byzantine historian remarks even that "the entire population of Europe was considering (at that time) the question of emigration."110 This terrible menace was removed because of various circumstances, and the mass of people ascribed their relief to miraculous aid from above. Some of the Uzes even entered the Emperor's service and received certain government lands in Macedonia. We have already mentioned the fact that the Patzinaks and Uzes, who served in the Byzantine army, played an important part in the fatal battle at Manzikert. The new financial policy of Michael VII Ducas Parapinakes, who, by the advice of his prime minister, reduced the money gifts usually sent to the cities of the Danube, aroused unrest among the Patzinaks and Uzes of the Danubian districts. They formed an alliance with the nomads on the other side of the Danube, reached an agreement with one of the Byzantine generals who rebelled against the Emperor, and, together with other tribes, including perhaps the Slavs, moved on to the south, pillaged the province of Hadrianople, and besieged Constantinople, which suffered greatly from lack of provisions. This was the critical moment when Michael Parapinakes, under the pressure of the Seljuq and Patzinak attacks, sent the appeal for aid to Pope Gregory VII. 108 Ioannis Scylitzae, Historia (ed. Bonn., p. 645). 100 V. Vasilievsky, "Byzantium and the Patzinaks," Works, I, 26 (in Russian). The skilful plotting of Byzantine diplomacy succeeded, apparently, in sowing discord among the allied forces which surrounded the capital. They raised the siege and returned to the banks of the Danube with rich spoils. By the end of this period the Patzinaks were active participants in the struggle for the throne between Nicephorus Botaniates and Alexius Comnenus. The Uze and Patzinak problem was not settled in the time of troubles, which preceded the time of the Comneni dynasty. This northern Turkish menace, which at times threatened the capital itself, was handed down to the dynasty of the Comneni. The Normans.-Toward the end of the period of the Macedonian dynasty the Normans appeared in Italy, and, taking advantage of the internal difficulties in the Byzantine Empire and its breach with Rome, began to advance successfully into the Southern-Italian possessions of the Empire. The Eastern government could do nothing against the Western menace on the part of the Normans because its entire forces were thrown into the struggle with the Seljuq Turks, who, together with the Patzinaks and Uzes in the north, seemed to be the natural allies of the Normans. To use the words of Neumann, "the Empire defended itself in Italy only with its left arm.' "111 A strong weapon of the Normans in their struggle with the Byzantine Empire was their fleet, which in a later period was a great aid to the Norman land forces. Besides, in the middle of the eleventh century the Normans had a very capable leader in the person of Robert Guiscard, "who, from a chief of brigands, rose to the rank of a founder of an Empire."112 The main object of Robert Guiscard was the conquest of Byzantine Southern Italy. Although the Byzantine Empire was confronted with many grave difficulties, the struggle in Italy in the fifties and sixties of the eleventh century progressed with alternate success for the two sides. We know that Robert conquered Brindisi, Tarentum, and Reggio (Rhegium); yet a few years later the first two cities were reconquered by Byzantine troops sent to Bari. These detachments numbered Varangians among their soldiers. In 111 C. Neumann, Die Weltstellung ., p. 103 (French translation, p. 100). ... 112 Ibid., p. 102 (French translation, p. 99). a later period of this struggle success was on the side of the Nor mans. Robert Guiscard besieged Bari, which was at that time the main center of Byzantine domination in Southern Italy, and one of the most strongly fortified cities of the peninsula. It was only through cunning methods that, in the ninth century, the Muslims had succeeded in occupying Bari for a brief period of time. In the same century the city offered very stubborn resistance to the Western Emperor Lewis II. Robert's siege of Bari was a difficult military undertaking, greatly aided by the Norman fleet, which blockaded the port. The siege lasted about three years and ended in the spring of 1071, when Bari was compelled to yield to Robert. The fall of Bari signified the end of Byzantine domination in Southern Italy. From this very important point in Apulia Robert could quickly achieve the final conquest of the small remnants of Byzantine dominions in the inner parts of Italy. This conquest of Southern Italy also set Robert's forces free for the reconquest of Sicily from the Muslims. The subjection of Southern Italy by the Normans did not destroy all of Byzantine influence. The admiration for the Eastern Empire, its traditions, and its splendor was still felt very strongly throughout the west. The Western Empire of Charlemagne, or that of Otto of Germany, represented in many ways a reflection of the Eastern customs, ideas, and external living conditions sanctified by many centuries. The Norman conquerors of Southern Italy, as represented by Robert Guiscard, must have felt a still greater fascination in the Byzantine Empire. Robert, the duke of Apulia, who considered himself the legal successor of the Byzantine emperors, preserved the Byzantine administrative organization in the conquered districts. Thus we find that Norman documents speak of the theme of Calabria, and indicate that cities were governed by strategi or exarchs and that the Normans were striving to attain Byzantine titles. The Greek language was preserved in the church services of Calabria, while in some districts Greek was used as the official language in the time of the Normans. Generally speaking, the conquerors and the con |