Political Events

Byzantine rule in Italy ends April 16 after 5 centuries as Bari falls to Robert Guiscard following a 3-year Norman siege.

The Battle of Manzikert (Malaz Kard) August 26 virtually ends Byzantine power in Asia Minor. The emperor Romanus IV Diogenes has led a Christian army of 60,000 to recover some Armenian fortresses from the Seljuk Turks in the spring, but he has divided his forces, failed to send out scouts, and he is far outnumbered by a 100,000-man army under the command of the sultan Alp-Arslan, who conquered Armenia 7 years ago. Romanus's Turkish mercenaries go over to the other side, and Byzantine noblemen who include Andronicus Dukas desert Romanus, who falls into enemy hands. He is ransomed, but when he tries to regain his throne his enemies put out his eyes, and he soon dies. The bureaucrats at Constantinople elevate the son of the late Constantine X to the throne, and he will reign until 1078 as Michael VII Parapinakes, sharing power with his mother, Romanus's highly intelligent widow, Eudocia Macrembolitissa, 50, but she will soon be deposed and the scholar Michael Psellus will serve as chief adviser.

The Byzantine defeat at Manzikert opens the way for the Seljuk Turks to occupy much of Asia Minor.

The Abbasid sultan of Seville Muhammad Ii al-Mutamid conquers and annexes the principality of Córdoba, although total control will not be secured until 1078, by which time al-Mutamid's vizier (and fellow poet) Ibn Ammar will also have gained control of Murcia (see 1168; 1192).

Architecture, Real Estate

Venice completes the Cathedral of San Marco after 95 years of construction on the Piazza San Marco (the chapel will be consecrated in 1094). Designed in Byzantine style as an annex to the Doge's Palace, it will be used for civil and religious ceremonies.

Food And Drink

Use of a two-pronged fork introduced by a Greek princess who marries the doge gains popularity among rich Venetians (see 1518; 1570).

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