Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations and Tables
- 1 Military Games and the Training of the Infantry
- 2 The Battle of Civitate: A Plausible Account
- 3 The Square “Fighting March” of the Crusaders at the battle of Ascalon (1099)
- 4 How the Crusades Could Have Been Won: King Baldwin II of Jerusalem's Campaigns against Aleppo (1124–5) and Damascus (1129)
- 5 Saint Catherine's Day Miracle – the Battle of Montgisard
- 6 The Military Effectiveness of Alan Mercenaries in Byzantium, 1301–1306
- 7 Winning and Recalling Honor in Spain: Pro-English Poetry in Celebration of the Battle of Nájera (1367)
- 8 The Wars and the Army of the Duke of Cephalonia Carlo I Tocco (c. 1375–1429)
- 9 Sir John Radcliffe, K.G. (d. 1441): Miles Famossissimus
- 10 Defense Schemes of Southampton in the Late Medieval Period, 1300–1500
- 11 French and English Acceptance of Medieval Gunpowder Weaponry
- Journal of Medieval Military History 1477–545X
6 - The Military Effectiveness of Alan Mercenaries in Byzantium, 1301–1306
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 October 2013
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations and Tables
- 1 Military Games and the Training of the Infantry
- 2 The Battle of Civitate: A Plausible Account
- 3 The Square “Fighting March” of the Crusaders at the battle of Ascalon (1099)
- 4 How the Crusades Could Have Been Won: King Baldwin II of Jerusalem's Campaigns against Aleppo (1124–5) and Damascus (1129)
- 5 Saint Catherine's Day Miracle – the Battle of Montgisard
- 6 The Military Effectiveness of Alan Mercenaries in Byzantium, 1301–1306
- 7 Winning and Recalling Honor in Spain: Pro-English Poetry in Celebration of the Battle of Nájera (1367)
- 8 The Wars and the Army of the Duke of Cephalonia Carlo I Tocco (c. 1375–1429)
- 9 Sir John Radcliffe, K.G. (d. 1441): Miles Famossissimus
- 10 Defense Schemes of Southampton in the Late Medieval Period, 1300–1500
- 11 French and English Acceptance of Medieval Gunpowder Weaponry
- Journal of Medieval Military History 1477–545X
Summary
Byzantine military events in the early fourteenth century have captured the imagination of Western scholars for well over a century, thanks to the participation of Spanish mercenaries in the Catalan Company led by the flamboyant Roger de Flor. The important contribution to this military adventure made by another company of mercenaries composed entirely of Alans has been grossly underestimated when not totally ignored by both Western and Russian historians. Since the Alans were implicated in the disastrous defeat of the Byzantines in Anatolia as well as the first historical success of the Turkish leader Osman, eponymous founder of the Ottoman state, examining the specific role of these warriors may shed light on the military debacle that the Byzantines suffered at the hands of the Turks and Catalans in the first decade of the fourteenth century. Despite its importance, the military effectiveness of this company while contributing to the defense of the empire has never been examined in detail, so that the question remains: why did a Mongol-trained division of considerable military potential fail so spectacularly?
The appearance of the Alans in Byzantine service first attracted attention because scholars in Western Europe, especially Spain, have long been fascinated by the adventures of the Catalan Company, comparing its exploits in the East with those of Cortez and Pizarro in the Americas. Although composed of Aragonese, Calabrians, and Sicilians, it is usually referred to as the Catalan Company since most of the officers and men were from Catalonia.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Journal of Medieval Military HistoryVolume XI, pp. 107 - 132Publisher: Boydell & BrewerPrint publication year: 2013