Battle of Andrassos

Battle of Andrassos

Depiction of the battle in the Madrid illuminated manuscript of the Skylitz

date	November 8, 960
place	Andrassos
output	Byzantine victory

Parties to the conflict
Byzantine Empire	Emirate of Aleppo
Commander
Leo Phocas the Younger Constantine Maleinos	Saif ad-Daula

The Battle of Andrassos or Adrassos was a skirmish in 960 in an unidentifiable mountain pass in the Taurus Mountains , between the army of the Byzantine Empire , led by Leo Phokas the Younger , and the troops of the Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo under the Emir Ali Saif-ad- Daula . Taking advantage of the absence of many Byzantine troops because of a campaign against the emirate of Crete , the emir invaded Asia Minor and plundered many places. On his retreat, however, his army was surprised by the troops of Leo Phokas at the pass of Andrassos. Sayf al-Dawla narrowly escaped, but his army was destroyed. After a series of defeats in recent years, this battle has now completely broken the power of the Hamdanids.

literature

• Ioannis Stouraitis: Battle at the Straights of Andrasus, 960 . In: Encyclopedia of the Hellenic World. Foundation of the Hellenic World , 2003.
• Warren T. Treadgold: A History of the Byzantine State and Society . Stanford University Press, Stanford 1997, ISBN 0-8047-2630-2