May –
September –
Rus'–Byzantine War: The
Rus' and their allies, the
Pechenegs, under the
Varangian prince
Igor I of Kiev, cross the
Black Sea with an invasion fleet of 1,000 ships[1] (40,000 men) and disembark on the northern coast of
Asia Minor. While the
Byzantine fleet is engaged against the
Arabs in the
Mediterranean, the Rus' forces reach the gates of
Constantinople. Emperor
Romanos I organizes the defense of the capital and assembles 15 old ships (equipped with throwers of
Greek fire) under the chamberlain (protovestiarios)
Theophanes. The Byzantines repel the Rus' fleet (nearly annihilating the entire fleet) but can not prevent the invaders from pillaging the hinterland of Constantinople, venturing as far south as
Nicomedia (modern-day
İzmit). In September,
John Kourkouas and
Bardas Phokas ("the Elder"), two leading generals, destroy the Rus' forces in
Thrace. Igor manages, with only a handful of boats, to escape to the
Caspian Sea.
Fall –
Hugh of Provence, king of
Italy, leads a fourth expedition to
Rome to dislodge
Alberic II. He proceeds to
Lazio, preparing a campaign to capture the papal capital. Again the attacks fail and Hugh retreats to
Milan.
^Sources give varying figures for the size of the Russian fleet. The number 10,000 ships appears in the
Primary Chronicle and in Greek sources, some of which put the figure as high as 15,000 ships.
Liutprand of Cremona wrote that the fleet numbered only 1,000 ships; Liutprand's report is based on the account of his step-father who witnessed the attack while serving as envoy in Constantinople. Modern historians find the latter estimate to be the most credible. Runciman (1988), p. 111.
^Lynch, Michael, ed. (February 24, 2011). The Oxford companion to Scottish history. Oxford University Press. p. 106.
ISBN9780199693054.