Second Arab siege of Constantinople
A huge Umayyad army and fleet under Maslama besieged Constantinople by land and sea for thirteen months; Greek fire, a harsh winter, famine and the attacks of the Bulgars forced the Arabs to withdraw.
- Date
- between 15 July and 15 August 717 – 15 August 718start: exact date unknown: an interval is given; end: exact date · duration: ≈ 13 months
- Place
- Constantinopletoday: Istanbul, Turkey · Balkans and Anatolia
- Participants
- Umayyad Caliphate, Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik, Byzantine Empire, Leo III the Isaurian, First Bulgarian Empire, Tervel
- Threads
- Early medieval Europe (500–1000)
- Also known as
- Siege of Constantinople (717–718); Осада Константинополя (717—718)
In 716 Maslama, the caliph’s brother, invaded Asia Minor, hoping to exploit the Byzantine civil war; instead the general Leo the Isaurian seized the throne himself in March 717. In the summer the Arab army crossed into Thrace and built siege lines before the Theodosian Walls, while the fleet that arrived on 1 September lost part of its ships to Greek fire and failed to close the Bosporus. The winter of 717–718 was unusually hard, and famine and disease ravaged the besiegers.
In the spring of 718 the Christian Egyptian crews of the Arab relief fleets deserted, the fleets were destroyed, a relief army was ambushed in Bithynia, and the Bulgars of Tervel, allied with Leo, inflicted heavy losses on the Arab camp. On 15 August 718, the feast of the Dormition, the Arabs withdrew; most of their fleet was lost in storms on the way home. It was the last Arab attempt to take Constantinople.
Connections
Related events
- First Arab siege of Constantinople674–678 · Balkans and AnatoliaThe second and last great Arab attempt to take the city
- Battle of Tours10 October 732 · Western and Central EuropeBoth are often named as the victories that halted Muslim expansion into Europe
Same participants
- Founding of the First Bulgarian Empirebetween 680 and 681 · Balkans and Anatoliavia Byzantine Empire
- Umayyad conquest of Hispania711–718 · Western and Central Europevia Umayyad Caliphate
- Battle of Covadongabetween 718 and 722 · Western and Central Europevia Umayyad Caliphate
- Byzantine Iconoclasmbetween 726 and 730 – 11 March 843 · Balkans and Anatoliavia Byzantine Empire
- Christianization of Bulgaria864 · Balkans and Anatoliavia First Bulgarian Empire
Same place
- Founding of Constantinople11 May 330 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Council of Chalcedon8 October – 1 November 451 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Corpus Juris Civilis7 April 529 – 16 November 534 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Construction of Hagia Sophia23 February 532 – 27 December 537 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Plague of Justinian541–549 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Jordanes and Procopius describe the Sclaveni and the Antesbetween 550 and 554 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Avar–Persian siege of Constantinople29 June – 7 August 626 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Rus’ attack on Constantinople18 June – 4 August 860 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Oleg’s campaign against Constantinople907 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Rus’–Byzantine Treaty of 9112 September 911 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Igor’s campaigns against Byzantium11 June 941 – 944 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Rus’–Byzantine Treaty of 944between 944 and 945 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Olga’s visit to Constantinople and her baptism9 September – 18 October 957 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Sack of Constantinople12–13 April 1204 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Reconquest of Constantinople25 July 1261 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Fall of Constantinople29 May 1453 · Balkans and Anatolia
- Accession of Suleiman the Magnificent30 September 1520 · Balkans and Anatolia
Meanwhile in the world
Other regions, within 25 years of this event
Western and Central Europe
- Battle of Covadongabetween 718 and 722
- Umayyad conquest of Hispania711–718
- Battle of Tours10 October 732
Eastern Europe
- The Khazar rulers adopt Judaismbetween 740 and 861
- Kyi, Shchek and Khoryv: the legendary founding of Kyivbetween 500 and 700
- Early Slavic cultures: Prague-Korchak, Penkovka and Kolochinc. 450 – c. 700
The same period
Sources
- Wikipedia (English): Siege of Constantinople (717–718)
- Wikipedia (Russian): Осада Константинополя (717—718)
- Treadgold W. A History of the Byzantine State and Society. — Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997.
- Wikidata: Q27900