Romanos IV Diogenes ruled the Byzantine Empire from 1068 to 1071 CE. He was a military emperor, and his policies and campaigns served to shore up Byzantine defenses against the Seljuk Turks. However, in the aftermath of the Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 CE, the civil war that emerged between the treacherous Doukas family and Romanos distracted and greatly weakened the Byzantine army and allowed the Turks to invade and conquer the key Byzantine territory of Anatolia.
More about: Romanos IV DiogenesDefinition
Timeline
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1068 - 1069Romanos IV Diogenes skirmishes with Seljuk Turkish raiders in Anatolia and Armenia.
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1 Jan 1068Romanos IV Diogenes marries the widowed Empress Eudokia and becomes Byzantine emperor.
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1071 - 1072Byzantine civil war between Romanos IV Diogenes and Michael VII Doukas.
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1071Romanos IV Diogenes is dethroned by the Doukas Dynasty after the Battle of Manzikert, resulting in a civil war between the two factions.
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26 Aug 1071Battle of Manzikert.
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4 Aug 1072Romanos IV Diogenes dies from being blinded by soldiers under the ruling Doukas Dynasty.
