Romanus IV

Romanus IV (Diogenes), Byzantine emperor from 1068 to 1071, was a member of a distinguished Cappadocian family, and had risen to distinction in the army, until he was convicted of treason against the sons of Constantine X. While waiting for his execution he was summoned into the presence of the empress regent, Eudocia Macrembolitissa, whom he so fascinated that she granted him a free pardon and shortly afterwards married him.

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After his coronation he carried on three successful campaigns against the Saracens and Seljuk Turks, whom he drove beyond the Euphrates, but in a fourth he was disastrously defeated by Alp Arslan in 1071 on the banks of the Araxes at the Battle of Manzikert and taken prisoner.

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After releasing himself by the promise of a large ransom and the conclusion of a peace, he turned his arms against the pretender Michael VII. He was defeated and forced to resign the empire, while his deal with Alp Arlsan was rejected by Michael. Accused of treason and incompetence, he was condemned to be blinded and to retire in exile to the island of Prote. His blinding was carried out so brutally that he soon died because of the injury and the subsequent infection.

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It was during his reign that, when the Normans captured Bari in 1071, the Byzantine Empire lost its last hold upon Italy.

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Byzantine emperor: REDIRECT List of Byzantine emperors...

Cappadocia: In ancient geography, Cappadocia (spelled Kapadokya in Turkish) (Greek: ??????????; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was an extensive inland district of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). In the time of Herodotus the Cappadocians occupied the whole region from Mount Taurus to the Euxine (Bla...

Treason: In law, treason is the crime of disloyalty to one's nation. A person who betrays the nation of their citizenship and/or reneges on an oath of loyalty and in some way willfully cooperates with an enemy, is considered to be a traitor. Oran's Dictionary of the Law (1983) defines treason as: "......citi...

Romanus IV related Images and Photos (experimental)

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Papillons I V	Saw IV	Saw IV	Dine IV
Iris IV	Town IV	Vase IV	Axes IV