Battle of Anzen

Overview

The Battle of Anzen or Dazimon was fought on 22 July 838 at Anzen or Dazimon between the Byzantine Empire and the forces of the Abbasid Caliphate. The Abbasids had launched a massive expedition with two separate armies in retaliation for the Byzantine emperor Theophilos's successes the previous year, and aimed to sack Amorion, one of Byzantium's largest cities. Theophilos with his army confronted the smaller Muslim army, under the Iranian vassal prince Afshin, at Dazimon.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Anzen (Dazimon) on 22 July 838 was fought in the context of a large-scale Abbasid retaliatory expedition launched in response to Byzantine emperor Theophilos's military successes the previous year. The Abbasid campaign was organized as two separate armies with the strategic objective of sacking Amorion, one of Byzantium's largest cities. Theophilos moved to confront one of those armies — the smaller force commanded by the Iranian vassal prince Afshin — at Dazimon, while the broader Abbasid operation continued to target the Byzantine heartland. The battle thus forms a critical episode within the wider Abbasid offensive of 838, which culminated in the assault on Amorion and represented one of the most significant Arab military thrusts into Byzantine Anatolia during the long Arab–Byzantine conflict.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (5)