In 717–718, Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, was besieged by the Muslim Arabs of the Umayyad Caliphate. The campaign marked the culmination of twenty years of attacks and progressi
The second Arab siege of Constantinople, as depicted in the 14th-century Bulgarian translation of the Manasses Chronicle
Gold solidus of Leo III
Photo of a restored section of the triple Theodosian Walls protecting Constantinople from its land side
Depiction of the use of Greek fire, miniature from the Madrid Skylitzes
First Bulgarian Empire
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The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval state that existed in Southeastern and southeastern Central Europe between the 7th and 11th centuries AD. It was founded in 680–681 after a group of Bulgars,
Siege of Constantinople (717–718)
…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…
Part of the Pliska fortress
Khan Krum defeats the Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus I in the battle of the Varbitsa Pass, Manasses Chronicle
Column fragment with inscription about the victorious campaigns of Khan Malamir
Emperor Simeon I: The Morning Star of Slavonic Literature, painting by Alfons Mucha