Siege of Attaleia

Siege of Attaleia
Part of the Byzantine–Seljuk wars
DateMarch 1207
Location
Attaleia (modern-day Antalya, Turkey), Asia Minor
Result Seljuk victory
Belligerents
Empire of Nicaea Sultanate of Rûm
Commanders and leaders
Aldobrandini Kaykhusraw I

The siege of Attaleia in March 1207 was the successful Seljuk capture of the city of Attaleia (today Antalya, Turkey), a port in southwestern Asia Minor. The capture of the port gave the Turkomans a path into the Mediterranean, although it would be another century before they made any serious attempts into the sea.

The port had come under the control of a Tuscan adventurer by the name of Aldobrandini, who had been in the service of the Byzantine Empire. When the Seljuks attacked, the inhabitants appealed to the regent of Cyprus, Gautier de Montbeliard, but he was unable to prevent the Seljuks from ravaging the adjacent countryside. Sultan Kaykhusraw I took the city by storm in March 1207, and put his lieutenant Mubariz al-Din Ertokush ibn 'Abd Allah in charge as the governor.[1]

References

  1. ↑ Claude Cahen, Pre-Ottoman Turkey: A General Survey of the Material and Spiritual Culture and History c. 1071-1330, 1968 (New York: American Council of Learned Societies, 2014), pp. 119f