Siege of Bari

Overview

The siege of Bari took place 1068–1071, during the Middle Ages, when Norman forces, under the command of Robert Guiscard, laid siege to the city of Bari, a major stronghold of the Byzantines in Italy and the capital of the Catepanate of Italy, starting from 5 August 1068. Bari was captured on 16 April 1071 when Robert Guiscard entered the city, ending not only more than five centuries of Byzantine presence in Southern Italy but also ancient Roman control since the Roman expansion in Italy in the 3rd century BCE.

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

Significance

The siege of Bari, conducted by Norman forces under Robert Guiscard beginning in August 1068 and concluding with the city's capture in April 1071, marked the end of Byzantine control over their last major stronghold in Italy. Bari had served as the capital of the Catepanate of Italy and was the anchor of Byzantine authority in the region. Its fall terminated more than five centuries of Byzantine presence in Southern Italy and, by extension, ended a line of Roman and post-Roman control over the city stretching back to the Roman expansion in Italy in the 3rd century BCE. Within the broader Byzantine–Norman Wars, the capture of Bari represented the decisive conclusion of the Norman conquest of southern Italy, consolidating Norman territorial dominance at the direct expense of Byzantine imperial power in the western Mediterranean.

Commanders (2)