Battle of Andrassos

Battle of Andrassos Part of the Arab–Byzantine wars Depiction of the battle in the Madrid Skylitzes Date 8 November 960 Location Andrassos or Adrassos, pass of Kylindros Result Decisive Byzantine victory Belligerents Byzantine Empire Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo Commanders and leaders Leo Phokas the Younger Constantine Maleinos Sayf al-Dawla Casualties and losses Light Very heavy

Arab–Byzantine wars Early conflicts Mu'tah Dathin Firaz Muslim conquest of the Levant al-Qaryatayn Bosra Ajnadayn Marj Rahit Fahl Damascus Maraj-al-Debaj Emesa Yarmouk Jerusalem Hazir Aleppo Iron Bridge Germanicia Muslim conquest of Egypt Heliopolis Alexandria Nikiou Muslim conquest of North Africa Sufetula Vescera Carthage Umayyad invasions of Anatolia and Constantinople 1st Constantinople Sebastopolis Tyana 2nd Constantinople Nicaea Akroinon Arab–Byzantine border warfare Kamacha Abbasid invasion of 782 Kopidnadon Krasos Abbasid invasion of 806 Anzen and Amorium Mauropotamos Faruriyyah Lalakaon Bathys Ryax Sicily and Southern Italy 1st Syracuse 2nd Syracuse 1st Malta 3rd Syracuse Campaigns of Leo Apostyppes and Nikephoros Phokas the Elder 1st Taormina Garigliano Campaigns of Marianos Argyros 2nd Taormina Rometta Straits of Messina George Maniakes in Sicily 2nd Malta Naval warfare and raids Phoenix Muslim conquest of Crete Thasos Damietta Ragusa Kardia Gulf of Corinth Cephalonia Stelai Euripos Thessalonica Byzantine Reconquest Campaigns of John Kourkouas Campaigns of Sayf al-Dawla Marash Raban Andrassos Campaigns of Nikephoros Phokas Crete Antioch & Alexandretta Campaigns of John Tzimiskes Orontes Apamea Campaigns of Basil II Azaz

The Battle of Andrassos or Adrassos was an engagement fought in autumn 960 in an unidentified mountain pass on the Taurus Mountains, between the Byzantines, led by Leo Phokas the Younger, and the forces of the Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo under the emir Sayf al-Dawla. Taking advantage of the absence of much of the Byzantine army on campaign against the Emirate of Crete, the Hamdanid prince invaded Asia Minor and raided widely. On his return, however, his army was ambushed by Leo Phokas at the pass of Andrassos. Sayf al-Dawla himself barely escaped, but his army was annihilated. Coming after a series of costly defeats in the previous years, this battle broke the power of the Hamdanid emirate for good.

Background

In the middle of the 10th century, after a period of expansion on its eastern frontier at the expense of the Muslim border emirates,^[1] the Byzantine Empire was confronted by the power of the Hamdanid prince Sayf al-Dawla, who in 945 made Aleppo his capital and soon established his authority across northern Syria, much of the Jazira and the surviving frontier districts (Thughur).^[2] Committed to the spirit of jihad, Sayf al-Dawla, known simply as the "impious Hamdan" to the Byzantine chroniclers, established himself as the Byzantines' main enemy for two decades: until is death in 967, he was said to have fought against them in over forty battles.^[3][4]

In winter 945/946, Sayf al-Dawla recommenced the old Muslim custom of launching annual raids into Byzantine territory. This first operation was of limited scope, however, and was followed by a prisoner exchange.^[5][6] Warfare on the frontiers then died down for a couple of years, and recommenced only in 948. Initially, Bardas Phokas the Elder led the Byzantines as Domestic of the Schools, but although a capable enough subordinate, his tenure as commander-in-chief proved a failure.^[7] In 948–950 the Byzantines scored a few successes, sacking the border fortresses of Hadath and Marash. Bardas' second son, Leo, distinguished himself in these years, especially in November 950, when he ambushed Sayf al-Dawla, who had previously defeated his father in battle, in a mountain pass; Sayf al-Dawla lost 8,000 men and barely escaped himself.^[6][8][9]

Sayf al-Dawla nevertheless rejected offers of peace from the Byzantines, and continued to launch raids. More importantly, he set about restoring his frontier fortresses in Cilicia and northern Syria, including Marash and Hadath. Bardas Phokas repeatedly tried to hinder him, but was defeated each time, even losing his youngest son, Constantine, to Hamdanid captivity. In 955, Bardas' failures led to his replacement by his eldest son, Nikephoros Phokas.^[6][10][11] Under the capable leadership of Nikeporos, Leo and their nephew John Tzimiskes, the tide began to turn again. In 956, Tzimiskes ambushed Sayf al-Dawla but the Hamdanid army, fighting amidst torrential rain, managed to drive the Byzantines back; at the same time, however, Leo Phokas defeated and took prisoner Abu'l-Asha'ir, a cousin of Sayf al-Dawla, near Duluk. Hadath was sacked in 957, and Samosata in 958, after which Tzimiskes scored a major victory over Sayf al-Dawla himself, and in 959, Leo Phokas raided through Cilicia to Diyar Bakr and back to Syria, leaving a trail of destruction behind him.^[6][12][13]

Invasion and ambush

In early summer 960, Sayf al-Dawla saw an opportunity to reverse his recent setbacks and re-establish his position: the best troops of of the Byzantine army, and the Domestic Nikephoros Phokas in person, departed the eastern front for an expedition against the Emirate of Crete.^[14] The task of confronting the Hamdanid emir fell on Leo Phokas, who had been appointed as Domestic of the West following the accession of Romanos II in November 959 (with Nikephoros being named Domestic of the East) and had just defeated a Magyar raid into Thrace in a daring night attack on their camp.^[15][16][17] The 11th-century Christian Arab chronicler Yahya of Antioch, however, reports that Leo had been appointed Domestic of the East, and that he had remained on the eastern front throughout 959–960, leading raids into the Hamdanid domains up until the invasion of Sayf al-Dawla.^[17]

At the head of a strong cavalry force—the numbers reported in the sources vary from as few as 3,000 to as many as 30,000^[18][19]—Sayf al-Dawla invaded Byzantine territory, and advanced unopposed as far as the fortress of Charsianon, capital of the theme of the same name. The fortress was sacked and its garrison was massacred. The surrounding region was pillaged and settlements torched, and many prisoners were made.^[20] Towards the end of autumn, Sayf al-Dawla finally began the journey home, carrying his booty and prisoners along. The contemporary Byzantine historian Leo the Deacon gives a vivid portrait of the Hamdanid prince, who, elated at the success of his raid and full of self-confidence, was riding on his horse, a mare "of extraordinary size an speed", speeding alongside his troops, throwing his spear in the air and catching it again with remarkable dexterity.^[21][22]

In the meantime Leo Phokas, heavily outnumbered by the Arab army, decided to rely once more on his proven ambuscade tactics, and occupied a position in the Arabs' rear, awaiting their return.^[23][24] Leo had been joined by the remaining forces of the adjoining provinces, including the theme of Cappadocia under its strategos, Constantine Maleinos, and occupied the narrow pass of Kylindros on the eastern Taurus Mountains. The Byzantine troops occupied the local fort, and hid themselves along the steep sides of the pass.^[25] According to the Arab chronicler Abu'l-Fida, this was the same pass that Sayf al-Dawla had crossed to begin his expedition, and many of his commanders advised against using it for the return as well; nevertheless, the Hamdanid prince, confident of his ability and judgment, had grown haughty, and refused to heed any advice, seeking to reap the glory for this expedition alone.^[26]

On 8 November 960, the Hamdanid army entered the pass, where, according to Leo the Deacon, they "had to crowd together in the very narrow and rough places, breaking their formations, and had to cross the steep section each one as best he could". Once the entire Arab force, including their train and their captives, was in the pass, with the vanguard already nearing the southern exit, Leo Phokas gave the signal for the attack. With the trumpets blaring, the Byzantine soldiers raised cries and charged the Arab columns, or threw rocks and tree trunks down the slopes on them. The ensuing battle was a complete rout. Many Arabs were killed—Leo the Deacon claims that their bones were still visible at the site years later—and even more where taken captive—John Skylitzes writes that so many prisoners were taken that the cities and farmsteads were filled with slaves. All Christian captives were liberated and the booty taken recovered, while the treasure and baggage of Sayf al-Dawla himself were captured.^[26][27][28] The Hamdanid prince himself barely managed to escape; Theophanes Continuatus claims that he was saved when a Byzantine renegade, named John, gave him his own horse to escape,^[29] while Leo the Deacon reports that he threw gold and silver coins behind him to slow his pursuers.^[30]

Out of the great expedition he had mustered, Sayf al-Dawla returned to Aleppo with only 300 horsemen according to the 13th-century Syriac chronicler Bar Hebraeus.^[31][32] Several of the most distinguished Hamdanid leaders fell or became captive at this battle. Some Arab sources mention the capture of Sayf al-Dawla's cousins Abu'l-Asha'ir and Abu Firas al-Hamdani, but most chroniclers and modern scholars place these events on different occasions (in 956 for Abu-l-Asha'ir, and 962 for Abu Firas).^[33][34] The qadi of Aleppo, Abu'l-Husayn al-Raqqi, was taken prisoner or fell in battle according to different accounts, while Bar Hebraues also records the deaths of the commanders "Hamid ibn Namus" and "Musa-Saya Khan".^[35][32] Leo Phokas, in the meantime, released the Byzantine prisoners after providing them with provisions, and took the booty and Arab prisoners back to Constantinople, where he celebrated a triumph at the Hippodrome.^[36][37] Indeed, the battle of Andrassos made a deep impression among contemporaries, provoking outbursts of celebration in the Empire, and grief and lamentation in the Syrian cities; it is mentioned by all historical sources of the time, and upheld in the contemporary Byzantine treatise De velitatione bellica as one of the chief examples of a successful ambsuh.^[38]

Aftermath

Following this disaster, Sayf al-Dawla needed time to recover his strength, but as soon as Nikephoros Phokas returned victorious from Crete in summer 961, he resumed the offensive in the east. The Byzantines captured Anazarbus in Cilicia, and followed a deliberate policy of devastation and massacre to drive the Muslim population away. Sayf al-Dawla's attempts to halt the Byzantine advance in Cilicia failed, and Nikephoros Phokas, with an army reportedly 70,000 strong, proceeded to take Marash, Sisium, Duluk and Manbij, thereby securing the western passes over the Anti-Taurus Mountains. Sayf al-Dawla sent his army north under Nadja to meet the Byzantines, but Nikephoros ignored them. Instead, the Byzantine general led his troops south and in mid-December, they suddenly appeared before Aleppo. After defeating an improvised army before the city walls, the Byzantines stormed the city and plundered it, except for the citadel, which continued to hold out. The Byzantines departed in early 963, taking much of the populace along with them as captives.^[39][40]

In 963, following the death of Emperor Romanos II, the Byzantines remained quiet as Nikephoros turned his attention to the power struggle that saw him ascend the imperial throne.^[41] The defeats of the previous years, and particularly the occupation of Aleppo, had dealt a heavy blow on Sayf al-Dawla's power and authority, however,. At the same time, the Hamdanid prince also suffered from physical decline, with the onset of hemiplegia as well as worsening intestinal and urinary disorders, that henceforth confined him to a litter. The disease limited Sayf al-Dawla's ability to intervene personally in the affairs of his state; he soon abandoned Aleppo to the charge of his chamberlain, Qarquya, and spent most of his final years in Mayyafariqin, leaving his senior lieutenants to carry the burden of warfare against the Byzantines and the various rebellions that increasingly sprung up in his domains.^[40][42] In autumn 964, Nikephoros, now emperor, again campaigned in the East. Mopsuestia was besieged but held out, but Nikephoros returned in the next year, stormed the city and deported its inhabitants. On 16 August 965, Tarsus was surrendered by its inhabitants. Cilicia became a Byzantine province, and Nikephoros proceeded to re-Christianize it.^[39][43] Amidst rebellions and Byzantine raids as far as the Jazira, Sayf al-Dawla died at Aleppo in February 967.^[44][45][46] His son and successor, Sa'd al-Dawla, faced constant internal turmoil, and it was not until 977 that he was able to secure control of his own capital. By this time, the rump Emirate of Aleppo was almost powerless and became a bone of contention between the Byzantines and the new power of the Middle East, the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt.^[47]

References

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