Certainty: 2 Fresh campaign against Turks (&/or Roussel) under kaisar Ioannes. After the failed campaign of Isaakios Komnenos against the Turks and the rebellion of Roussel de Bailleul, the kaisar Ioannes Doukas was appointed strategos autokrator and sent by his nephew Michael VII at the instigation of the scheming Nikephoritzes to Asia Minor. The kaisar agreed rather reluctantly to head the campaign instead of his son Andronikos, camped at Dorylaion and reached the bridge of Zompos over the Sangarios
Certainty: 2 Kaisar Ioannes failed in humiliating peace negotiations with Roussel. Encamped by the Sangarios near the bridge of Zompos, the kaisar Ioannes Doukas learned that the rebel Roussel de Bailleul had also camped nearby, across the river, having arrived from a distance at speed. Ioannes sent him an embassy offering an amnesty, concentrating on how he would avoid harm rather than win gifts. Roussel rejected the proposal which he considered was insulting, treating him as a criminal. Nikephoros Botaneiates, who commanded Ioannes' rearguard, advised against making an attack
Certainty: 2 Defeat & capture of kaisar Ioannes & his son Andronikos by Roussel at bridge of Zompos. Following the rejection by Roussel de Bailleul of the embassy sent by the kaisar Ioannes Doukas, the latter marched across the slippery bridge of Zompos and attacked the rebel at dawn, despite the advice of Nikephoros (III) Botaneiates not to do so. The kaisar's son, Andronikos, led the right wing of his army, in conjunction with a Norman (?) mecenary named Papas. But Papas' men were approached by people of the same background in Roussel's army, and immediately defected. The beginning of the battle was favourable for Ioannes, who commanded the Varangians in the centre of the battle-line, and he thought he had won. But the intensity of the battle suddenly increased, and Roussel was able to disperse the imperial army. Andronikos had been badly wounded, but by almost superhuman efforts helped to save his father. Ioannes in turn was only able to save his son by revealing who he was, as the enemy were removing his helmet to behead him. The kaisar was defeated and captured together with Andronikos, as well as Basileios Maleses (recently released by the Turks after captivity at Mantzikert), and taken by Roussel with him in chains on his march on Constantinople. Botaneiates escaped, having supported without much enthusiasm a battle he had tried to prevent. News of the battle and the capture of Ioannes and Andronikos was received with dismay by Michael VII, who looked to the kaisar's other son, Konstantinos, to save them
Certainty: 3 Letter of pope Gregory VII to William of Burgundy, on an eastern expedition. Gregory VII wrote a letter to William, count of Burgundy, reminding him of his debt to the Roman church and the oath he had sworn before pope Alexander II and many distinguished witnesses, to defend papal interests. He called him to be ready to come if necessary to serve the papacy. He also asked William to remind Raymond of St-Gilles, together with the father-in-law of Richard, prince of Capua and Amadeo of Savoy, of their similar oaths. He told William to reply via Beatrice, countess of Tuscany, who, with her daughter Matilda and her son-in-law, was also involved in gathering forces. He added that he was not raising an army to shed Christian blood, but to intimidate the Normans into submission. Having dealt with them, he would then go to Constantinople to aid the Christians, who were hard-pressed by the Saracens and had asked for help. In fact, Gregory already had enough soldiers to deal with the Normans, and those who undertook the expedition would be doubly rewarded by Peter and Paul
Certainty: 3 Pope Gregory VII wrote a letter to all those willing to defend Christianity.
Certainty: 2 Michael VII began to feel responsible for Byzantine disasters, but still followed evil counsellors. After the rebellion of Roussel de Bailleul and the defeat of the kaisar Ioannes Doukas at the bridge of Zompos, Michael VII began to feel responsible for these disasters. In a speech he claimed to be desperately worried, and compared himself to Jonah, expecting to be thrown overboard. He nevertheless persisted in the policy which was causing the problems, continuing to rely on the advice of Nikephoritzes, who isolated the emperor from his entourage and concentrated more and more money and power in his own hands, extorting bribes from military and civil officials, especially tax collectors
Certainty: 2 Second marriage of Konstantinos, nephew of Keroularios: Psellos was not shocked by the ceremony. Konstantinos, nephew of Keroularios, invited Psellos to his (second) wedding, saying it would be solemn and appropriate for a monk. A wedding, Psellos replied, was a wedding, and rules forbad his attendance at some stages. He also reminded Konstantinos that another monk, Ioannes of Side, would have similar problems. Psellos wrote to Konstantinos again, regretting he could not attend all the wedding, fearing gossip. As a monk, he could speak at the beginning, but for feasting and music (despite his musical expertise) he could only be a distant spectator. He congratulated Konstantinos that his new wife seemed to him the prettiest woman in the palace (apart from Konstantinos' incomparable mother): he wished the splendid couple health and prosperity. Psellos attended the wedding and in a third letter admitted it had been a much more "philosophical" ceremony than he had feared (some details given). The wedding had brought Psellos and Konstantinos closer together, via Konstantinos' mother and brother Nikephoros
Certainty: 3 Chrysobull of Michael VII confirming earlier chrysobulls & exemptions for Lavra. The monks of Lavra requested from Michael VII confirmation of privileges and exemptions. The emperor granted a chrysobull forbidding the bishops of Kassandria and the local dioiketes from collecting taxes on certain properties and confirmed earlier chrysobulls issued by his predecessors (Konstantinos VII, Konstantinos IX Monomachos, Konstantinos X Doukas)
Certainty: 2 Roussel de Bailleul captured cities on the Sangarios, then marched on Constantinople. Emboldened by his victory over the Roman army, Roussel de Bailleul advanced against Constantinople taking with him his captives, the kaisar Ioannes Doukas and the latter's wounded son Andronikos. Along the way he captured several cities on the Sangarios until he reached Bithynia and encamped at the foot of Mount Sophon
Certainty: 2 Roussel held Basileios Maleses (just released by Turks) as prisoner & (probably) advocate of peace. Basileios Maleses, who had been captured during the battle of Mantzikert and was only recently released by the Turks, was captured again after the defeat of the kaisar Ioannes Doukas by Roussel de Bailleul. The latter treated Maleses very well, made him his advisor and took him along in his advance against Constantinople
Certainty: 2 Death of Konstantinos Doukas while preparing to rescue his captive father & brother. The terrible wounds received by Andronikos, son of the kaisar Ioannes, at the battle of the bridge of Zompos needed urgent treatment in Constantinople, and Ioannes persuaded Roussel, their captor, to let him go, leaving Andronikos' two eldest sons, Ioannes and Michael, as hostages. Andronikos made only a partial recovery. Meanwhile his brother, Konstantinos, was put in command of the defeated army by Michael VII. He accepted the role so as to save his father and brother. But on the night after his appointment in the capital, he was seized by unbearable pain and soon died. The two young hostages were held in a fort at the foot of Mt Sophon. Their tutors paid a peasant guide, stole the key to their prison, succeeded in escaping and on a moonless night climbed with them over the mountain to Nikomedia, carrying Michael, the younger child. The tutor of Ioannes Doukas revealed nothing under severe torture
Certainty: 2 Birth of Konstantinos, son of Michael VII & Maria of Alania. Maria of Alania bore a son to Michael VII Doukas, who was given by his father his grandfather's name, Konstantinos, and was crowned. Psellos saw him being breast-fed wearing a crown, often held him in his arms, and planned to serve him as advisor and historian when he grew up
Certainty: 2 Roussel, with an ever-increasing army of Franks, camped at Chrysopolis, & burned houses there. Roussel gathered some 3,000 Franks in a large army, reached the strait opposite Constantinople, pitched camp at Chrysopolis where he remained for a few days with the kaisar Ioannes still in chains, and then started to burn houses there. He also had as a prisoner Basileios Maleses, whom he treated most honourably, and made him his leading advisor and spokesman. The frightened emperor Michael VII sent Roussel his wife and children and offered him the dignity of kouropalates, in an unsuccessful attempt to tame him. Roussel retreated from Chrysopolis to Nikomedeia, intending to win Byzantine soldiers to his side to reinforce his army
Certainty: 3 Proposed marriage of Michael VII's son Konstantinos to Helena, daughter of Robert Guiscard. Soon after the birth of Konstantinos to Michael VII and Maria of Alania, Michael proposed to marry him to Helena-Olympias, one of the daughters of Robert Guiscard. He sent Romanos Straboromanos to Robert in Longibardia to arrange the details. The link was to be formalised by a chrysobull of alliance (prepared by Psellos), involving marriage between the children (both having the imperial title and acclamations) and also titles of honour and wealth for Robert and his men, in return for military aid. The dignities offered were; kouropalates (1, for one of his sons), proedros (1), magistros (2), vestarches (2), vestes (2), anthypatos (1), patrikios (4), hypatos (6 @ 2 litrai), protospatharios (15 @ 1 litra), and spatharokandidatos (10 @ 46 nomismata). This was to be the first step to a full defensive and offensive alliance. Towards the end of the chrysobull he spoke of the long diplomatic contact needed to agree the dignities offered to Robert and his men, and of arrangements to support the agreement by oaths, as it was to be permanent. The dignities offered totaled two kentenaria and 100 silk garments, plus Robert's nobelissimos salary. Michael signed the chrysobull, with his brothers Andronikos and Konstantios and the patriarch Ioannes Xiphilinos. Thus Michael did not reclaim territories captured by the Normans in Italy, but even hoped to use Norman help against the Turkish advance in the east. Mention of the proposed groom Konstantinos caused deep emotion to Anna Komnene as she wrote. The plan would be dropped at the accession of Nikephoros III
Certainty: 2 Michael VII bribed Turks against Roussel, who released kaisar Ioannes, proclaiming him emperor. Roussel refused attempts at appeasement by Michael VII, but released the kaisar Ioannes Doukas from his bonds and, despite his reluctance, proclaimed him emperor with acclamations and imperial insignia. Once the proclamation was made, Ioannes bacame more positive about the idea and contacted his friends in the capital. Michael VII and Nikephoritzes, despairing of using their own forces, persuaded the Seljuk general Artuk with large bribes to march against them. Artuk came from the east with huge forces to Metabole, then crossed passes to Mt. Maroxos and found his quarry camped near Trisea
Certainty: 2 Roussel rode against Turks, & defeated their vanguard near Metabole. Roussel de Bailleul resolved to attack the Turkish army sent against him at the instigation of Michael VII and Nikephoritzes, despite the advice of the kaisar Ioannes Doukas in favour of prudence. He was told to wait and find out how many the enemy were, but spurned this as insufferable delay. He managed to rout and disperse a small contingent of Turks near Metabole (a much larger army was to appear later)
Certainty: 2 Roussel & kaisar Ioannes, exhausted & isolated in pursuit, were captured by main Turkish army. After the initial success of Roussel de Bailleul against a small Turkish contingent near Metabole, a much larger army under Artuk appeared. Roussel and the kaisar Ioannes Doukas were far from their army and their horses exhausted in the pursuit of the first group, but they were compelled against their will to fight the newcomers. They were surrounded by huge numbers, lost their horses which were killed by arrows, and were captured. The Turks won the battle inflicting many casualties
Certainty: 2 Michael VII quickly ransomed kaisar Ioannes (to stop Turks proclaiming him emperor), but not Roussel. Artuk was delighted with his victory, and offered Ioannes the kaisar and Roussel for ransom. Michael VII, following the advice of Basileios Maleses, raised a large sum and ransomed the kaisar, whom he suspected of plotting. He acted quickly to stop the possibility of the Turks following Roussel's lead and proclaiming him emperor. But he failed to lay his hands on Roussel himself, who had already been ransomed by his wife. She was in the fort at Metabole at the right moment with enough money, and so forestalled the emperor's plans
Certainty: 2 Despite recent captivity & good advice, Basileios Maleses, exiled by Nikephoritzes, lost his property. Despite his captivity after Mantzikert and his sensible advice to Michael VII to hasten and pay the ransom for Roussel de Bailleul and the kaisar Ioannes Doukas, to stop the latter being proclaimed emperor by the Turks, he was banished and he and his family had their properties confiscated
Certainty: 3 Letter of Gregory VII to William of Aquitaine, with possible good news from the east. Gregory VII wrote a letter to William VIII of Aquitaine, in which, among other matters, he reported a positive rumour from the east: that the Christians had successfully driven back the pagans
Certainty: 2 Kaisar Ioannes was tonsured to avoid charge of rebellion: his story shows God's wrath & Roman decadence. Ransomed by Michael VII from the Turks, he decided to get tonsured at Tragonesion on the Sea of Marmora before reaching Constantinople so as to forestall accusations of rebellion. When he appeared before Michael in the clothes of a monk, the emperor had a sense of success, not at all diminished by the increasing power of the Turks. Once back to the palace he began to replace Nikephoritzes as the emperor's principal advisor
Certainty: 2 Roussel, after ransom, returned to his old base in Armeniakon. When the wife of Roussel de Bailleul secured his release from captivity by paying the ransom demanded by the Turks, he left Metabole for Armeniakon together with his family and remaining troops. There he reoccupied his old strongholds, from where he launched attacks on the Turks, keeping them out of the theme
Certainty: 2 Raids of Roussel de Bailleul on cities of Pontos. After his return to Armeniakon, Roussel de Bailleul captured strongholds in the Pontos and raided Amaseia and Neokaisareia. He also abused the inhabitants of the cities of Armeniakon. This provoked Nikephotitzes to suggest to Michael VII to allow the Turks into the area rather than have Roussel establish himself on Roman territory
Certainty: 3 Pope Gregory VII wrote to the emperor Henry IV about a military expedition to the east.
Certainty: 3 Pope Gregory VII wrote to Christians, especially north of the Alps, about an eastern expedition.
Certainty: 3 Letter of Gregory VII to Matilda of Tuscany, asking her advice on an eastern expedition. Gregory VII wrote to Matilda, duchess of Tuscany, telling her of his great desire to go on a military expedition to the east and seeking her advice and aid. He understood many knights wanted to join the expedition, as did Agnes of Poitou, Holy Roman empress, and Matilda, leaving Beatrice of Tuscany to look after things at home; Gregory welcomed this
Certainty: 1 Grigor Vkayaser travelled to Constantinople & Rome, then settled in Egypt.
Certainty: 1 Troubles at Antioch after death of Joseph Tarchaneiotes & rebellion of Philaretos Brachamios. The death of Joseph Tarchaneiotes, doux of Antioch, was followed by troubles in the city, while Philaretos Brachamios had risen in revolt at the same time. Katakalon, the son of Tarchaneiotes, was unable to check the situation. Philaretos fortified the passes in a mountainous area, making it impregnable and assembled many Armenian and other soldiers into a strong army. The emperor was unable to subdue him: in fact Philaretos subjugated many imperial cities and enlarged his dominions
Certainty: 1 Expulsion of patriarch Aimilianos from Antioch by doux Isaakios Komnenos. Isaakios Komnenos (brother of the future Alexios I) was appointed doux of Antioch with instructions from Michael VII and Nikephoritzes to expel from the city its patriarch Aimilianos, held responsible for the unrest that broke out there. Isaakios was received with much honour and initially pretended to be favourably disposed towards the patriarch in order to avoid trouble in the divided city. Later, pretending to be unwell, he was invited to the patriarch's country estate to hunt hare. But once there, he used the excuse of going hunting to return to the city, and sent the imperial order to the patriarch ordering him to leave at once. Aimilianos, though very angry, could only go to Laodikeia, spend a few days there until his luggage was brought from Antioch, and then sail to Constantinople
Certainty: 1 Death of a kouropalates who linked Psellos to his son-in-law's family; negotiations to replace him. Psellos wrote to a friend over the death of a kouropalates and the care of the children of his adoptive daughter and son-in-law. The death moved Psellos deeply, as it would his friend, who was unprepared and had other problems. The kouropalates died in his prime like Alexander, after becoming a monk. A major tie between Psellos and his friend was gone, so direct links must be tightened by an immediate meeting, especially over the children of the vestarches, Psellos' son-in-law. Only this friend and Michael VII still called Psellos hypertimos
Certainty: 1 A case of forgery in the signature of a report on the bishop of Korone. Psellos wrote to the krites of Katotika, asking for help for bishop of Korone, long absent from his see, to stop the theft of its estates. A notarios of the logothetes Nikephoritzes had forged the latter's signature to a report against the bishop. The forgery had been detected by Psellos, who had warned the then krites of Katotika and probably his successor, the current krites, to avoid deception. The forgery now seemed to have been admitted
Certainty: 2 Psellos made a compilation of texts referring to the Incarnation, to be sent to the sultan Malik-Shah. Psellos wrote a treatise based on texts referring to the Incarnation, directed from Michael VII to the sultan Malik-Shah. The latter, according to the text, had shown interest in Christian doctrine. Psellos' plan for the text contained two parts: Old Testament prophecies of the Incarnation and pagan prefigurings of Christ. Only a part of the first section has survived, through damage to the ms in which it is preserved
Certainty: 1 Psellos dedicated his De omnifari doctrina to Michael VII, warning him not all the sources were Christian. Psellos presented the De omnifari doctrina to Michael VII. He warned him that, while some of the sources of the book were Christian, others were not, and so contained a poisonous element. The emperor's knowledge and faith would be able to distinguish them
Certainty: 1 Dispute at court over proposed appointment of Nikephoros Bryennios as kaisar. Michael VII was very worried about events in the Balkans, and wanted to associate with himself a good and experienced military man, offering the position of kaisar (formally vacated by the tonsured Ioannes Doukas). He and Nikephoritzes agreed to make Nikephoros Bryennios kaisar and doux of all Bulgaria, with the task of subduing the whole people of the Slavs. Bryennios was summoned from Thrace to Constantinople, despite the disagreement of Konstantinos (nephew of Keroularios) with this decision: Konstantinos was said to covet the position for himself
Certainty: 1 Slavs in Bulgaria subjugated by Nikephoros Bryennios. Nikephoros Bryennios was appointed doux of Bulgaria in order to bring under control the local Slavs. He quickly accomplished his mission and reimposed Byzantine rule over the whole of Bulgaria
Certainty: 1 Successful campaign under Nikephoros Bryennios against Croatians & Diokleians. Michael VII transferred Nikephoros Bryennios from Bulgaria to Dyrrachion in order to deal with the troubles caused by the Croatians (Serbians?) and Diokleians in the region, as well as those connected with the Franks from Italy. Bryennios mounted a campaign, negotiated the mountain passes and attacked and defeated the enemy, bringing the cities of the area under Roman rule once more. As he went he left bodies of local men to clear and widen the passes, so that he was able to return safely to Dyrrachion
Certainty: 1 Norman attacks on merchant ships sailing to Dyrrachion checked by Nikephoros Bryennios. The attacks by Norman ships on commercial vessels sailing to Dyrrachion were stopped by Nikephoros Bryennios who sent warships against them, sinking and capturing many of them
Certainty: 1 Granary built near Raidestos by Nikephoritzes to establish wheat monopoly & brutally enforce it. With the permission of Michael VII, Nikephoritzes established a granary outside Raidestos, which was a very prosperous place as the local centre of grain sales. An order was issued to gather the region's entire harvest there, thus establishing a monopoly that led to a famine. The granary was rented out and Nikephoritzes enjoyed its considerable revenue
Certainty: 1 High price of grain gained Michael VII his nickname of Parapinakes. The nickname of Parapinakes was applied to Michael VII when he allowed Nikephoritzes to establish a monopoly on grain in the region of Raidestos. He made a decision to reduce the volume of wheat which could be bought with a nomisma by a pinakion (measure of volume). This naturally led to an increase in prices
Certainty: 1 The Danubian cities (including Dristra/Dorostolon) were infiltrated by Pechenegs & revolted. Following the suspension of payments to the multicultural cities of the Danube from Constantinople suggested by Nikephoritzes, the inhabitants of Dristra defected to the Pechenegs; they entrusted the control of their city's acropolis to the Pecheneg leader Tatous
Certainty: 1 Nestor, trusted lieutenant of Michael VII, sent to restore order on Danube, joined the rebels. Michael VII appointed his man Nestor katepano of Dristra and sent him to restore order in the city, whose inhabitants had defected to the Pechenegs. Meanwhile Nikephoritzes, who was hostile to Nestor, continued working against him. Once there Nestor realised that the task was impossible under these conditions, and subsequently joined the rebels under Tatous. It was speculated that his decision was based on common Pecheneg nationality with the rebels, or charges of financial maladministration
Certainty: 1 Pechenegs under renegade doux Nestor invaded Thrace, causing famine in Constantinople. Nestor, who had joined the rebels and the Pecheneg leader Tatous at Dristra, marched unopposed through the region of Adrianople and advanced on Constantinople with Tatous and his Pecheneg troops, camping near the city and pillaging. Constantinople, ill-prepared by Michael VII, suffered from food shortages and was badly defended
Certainty: 1 Nestor's demand for surrender of Nikephoritzes rejected: he finally retreated because he feared a plot. Nestor brought his troops up to Constantinople and refused to leave unless Nikephoritzes, who had confiscated his properties, was handed over to him. Facing a rebellion by his own troops and the refusal of Michael VII to satisfy his demand, he withrew, ravaging the regions of Thrace and Macedonia up to the Danube, until he reached Pecheneg territory
Certainty: 1 Soldiers complaining to the emperor were attacked & robbed by his men, adding to the grievance. When soldiers from Adrianople complained to Michael VII about their salaries and treatment he insulted them, ordering them to be driven away, never to return. Although he later regretted his actions he never made amends
Certainty: 1 Chrysobull of Michael VII for Nea Mone (Chios). Michael VII Doukas issued one or more chrysobulls (contents unknown) for the monastery of Nea Mone on Chios
Certainty: 1 Birth of 3-legged bird, & of child with 1 eye & goat's legs; soldiers struck by lightning; comet appeared. No identifiable persons, apart from the unfortunate child
Certainty: 1 Refugees fled from Anatolia to Constantinople, causing many deaths each day from famine. The wave of refugees from Anatolia to Constantinople resulting from the Turkish conquests caused a famine and plague in the city and many deaths. Michael VII failed to handle the situation in a satisfactory manner since he was unwilling to spend money and was engaged in writing poetry under the influence of Michael Psellos