Moslem forces abandon Seige of Constantinople after defeat by Byzantines

Category
War
Place
Turkey
Date
717
Reference
Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
"After wintering in the western coastlands of Asia Minor, the Arab army crossed into Thrace in early summer 717 and built siege lines to blockade the city, which was protected by the massive Theodosian Walls. The Arab fleet, which accompanied the land army and was meant to complete the city's blockade by sea, was neutralized soon after its arrival by the Byzantine navy through the use of Greek fire. This allowed Constantinople to be resupplied by sea, while the Arab army was crippled by famine and disease during the unusually hard winter that followed. In spring 718, two Arab fleets sent as reinforcements were destroyed by the Byzantines after their Christian crews defected, and an additional army sent overland through Asia Minor was ambushed and defeated. Coupled with attacks by the Bulgars on their rear, the Arabs were forced to lift the siege on 15 August 718. On its return journey, the Arab fleet was almost completely destroyed by natural disasters and Byzantine attacks." [Wikipedia] Leo III the Isaurian was the Byzantine emperor. Muslama was the commander of about 210,000 Moslem soldiers. [Davis: 100 Decisive Battles, p. 99]

This event is linked to the following periods

PeriodMiner
Begin
End
Category
Umayyad Caliphate
661
750
Caliphate
Byzantine Empire
476
1453
Roman Empire