Siege of Nicaea

Siege of Nicaea
Part of the First Crusade and Byzantine-Seljuk wars

13th-century miniature (BNF Fr. 779)
Date14 May – 19 June 1097
Location
Nicaea (present-day İznik, Turkey)
Result Christian victory
Territorial
changes
Nicaea restored to the Byzantine Empire
Belligerents
Crusaders
Byzantine
Sultanate of Rûm
Commanders and leaders
Bohemond of Taranto
Raymond IV of Toulouse
Adhemar of Le Puy
Godfrey of Bouillon
Robert II of Normandy
Robert II of Flanders
Stephen of Blois
Tancred of Hauteville
Hugh of Vermandois
Eustace III of Boulogne
Baldwin of Boulogne
Manuel Boutoumites
Tatikios
Kilij Arslan
Strength

Crusaders:
~30,000 infantry
~4,200–4,500 cavalry [1]

Byzantines:
2,000 light infantry and naval support[2]

Nicaean garrison:
Unknown, but sizeable

Kilij Arslan's relief force:
~10,000, mostly mounted archers [3]
Casualties and losses
Unknown ~4,000

The siege of Nicaea was the first major battle of the First Crusade, taking place from 14 May to 19 June 1097. The city was under the control of the Seljuk Turks who opted to surrender to the Byzantines in fear of the crusaders breaking into the city. The siege was followed by the Battle of Dorylaeum and the Siege of Antioch, all taking place in modern Turkey.[4][5]

  1. ^ Nicolle, The First Crusade 1096-1099: Conquest of the Holy Land, p. 32 "Eventually the Crusader forces outside Nicaea numbered around 4,200–4,500 cavalry and 30,000 infantry, excluding non-combattants."
  2. ^ Crusades: The Illustrated History, by Thomas F. Madden
  3. ^ Pryor, Logistics of Warfare in the Age of the Crusades, pp. 49–50 "In addition, the besiegers made several efforts to storm the walls and they won a victory in pitched battle over the relieving army of Qilij Arslan, a force some 10,000 troops, mostly mounted archers."
  4. ^ Runciman, Steven (1969). "Chapter IX. The First Crusade: Constantinople to Antioch." In Setton, Kenneth M.; Baldwin, Marshall W. (eds.). A History of the Crusades: I. The First Hundred Years. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 288–290.
  5. ^ The Siege of Nicene. In Asbridge, Thomas (2004). The First Crusade: A New History. Oxford University Press. pp. 118–131.