Byzantine navy

E78800

The Byzantine navy was the maritime military force of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, renowned for its use of Greek fire and its crucial role in defending and projecting imperial power across the Mediterranean.

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Observed surface forms (2)

Surface form Occurrences
Imperial Byzantine fleet 1
Roman navy of the East 1

Statements (71)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Byzantine military unit
military branch
naval force
alsoKnownAs Byzantine navy
surface form: Imperial Byzantine fleet

Byzantine navy
surface form: Roman navy of the East
causeOfDecline financial weakness of the empire
loss of coastal territories
reliance on Italian mercantile fleets
commandStructure Office of the droungarios tou ploimou
Office of the megas doux
contributedTo maintenance of imperial trade routes
preservation of Byzantine control over the Aegean
survival of Constantinople
country Byzantine Empire
declinePeriod 11th century
12th century
endTime 15th century
followedBy Ottoman navy
garrisonedIn Byzantine maritime themes
headquarters Constantinople (probable)
surface form: Constantinople
influenced Arab naval forces
Italian maritime republics
medieval Mediterranean naval warfare
languageOfCommand Greek
notableBase Aegean Sea Theme
Cibyrrhaeot Theme
Constantinople (probable)
surface form: Constantinople

Samos Theme
notableOpponent Abbasid Caliphate
Arab fleets
Genoese navy
Ottoman navy
surface form: Ottoman fleet

Umayyad Caliphate
Venetian navy
partOf Byzantine armed forces
precededBy Roman navy
surface form: Roman imperial navy
primaryTheater Aegean Sea
Black Sea
Eastern Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
role amphibious operations
anti-piracy operations
defense of Constantinople
escort of merchant shipping
power projection
protection of sea lanes
support of land campaigns
significantEvent Battle of Kyzikos (c. 677)
Battle of Lalakaon (support role, 863)
Battle of Syllaeum (677)
Battle of the Masts (655)
Arab–Byzantine wars
surface form: First Arab siege of Constantinople (674–678)

Second Arab siege of Constantinople (717–718)
campaigns in southern Italy
defense of Constantinople during Arab sieges
reconquest of Crete (960–961)
startTime 4th century
timePeriod Late Antiquity
Middle Ages
used Greek fire
usedShipType chelandion
dromon
galea
usedTechnology lateen sails
oared galleys
siphon projectors for Greek fire
usedWeapon archers
ballistae
boarding tactics
catapults
ramming tactics

Referenced by (6)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Byzantine navy alsoKnownAs Byzantine navy
this entity surface form: Imperial Byzantine fleet
Byzantine navy alsoKnownAs Byzantine navy
this entity surface form: Roman navy of the East
Ionian Sea historicallyUsedBy Byzantine navy
Emperor Constantine IV strengthened Byzantine navy
subject surface form: Constantine IV
Greek fire usedBy Byzantine navy