Battle of Antioch

The Battle of Antioch is the name shared by a number of battles in ancient and medieval history in or near the Syrian city of Antioch. Due to its strategic location in Syria, Antioch has been the site of a number of battles. The two best-known battles marked the beginning and end of the Principality of Antioch, one of the Crusader states existing between 1098 and 1268.

The battle of Antioch in 145 BC saw the defeat and overthrow of Seleucid king Alexander Balas by Ptolemy VI Philometor of Egypt, but the Egyptian pharaoh died in the battle. This battle is also known as the Battle of the Oenoparus.

In 218, Elagabalus would defeat Macrinus near Antioch and become a Roman emperor. The Battle of Antioch is also the name of a major event in the fictional StarCraft universe.

Battle of Antioch (also known as the Battle of the Oenoparus) 145 BC

Alexander Balas became king of Syria and Pergamum containing the remnant of the Seleucid empire in 150 BC by defeating Demetrius Soter. Alexander Balas initially had the strong support of Ptolemy VI and was married to Ptolemy's daughter Cleopatra Thea. After obtaining the throne, Alexander abandoned himself to a life of debauchery, losing the support of his subjects.

Demetrius Nicator, the son of Demetrius Soter, took advantage of this by returning to Syria from Crete. Demetrius had won support from Ptolemy VI who had abandoned his son-in-law with Cleopatra Thea marrying Demetrius in 148. At a pitched battle near Antioch, the forces of Demetrius and Ptolemy were successful but Ptolemy suffered a fatal wound. Balas fled to Nabataea but was killed by a prince seeking favour from Demetrius and Ptolemy. Demetrius II became King of Syria.

Battle of Antioch 218 AD

Macrinus became emperor in 217 after Caracalla was murdered by Justin Martialus while fighting the Parthians, which many people believe Macrinus was involved in. Macrinus was proclaimed emperor three days later by the troops in Parthia.

Caracalla's mother Julia Domna and his aunt Julia Maesa were suspicious of Macrinus' role in the death of Caracalla and returned home to Syria. They championed the cause of Elagabalus or Heliogabalus, then aged 14, who was Caracalla's cousin and who they passed off as his illegimate son.

Macrinus had fought an indecisive battle with the Parthians and signed an agreement with the Parthians that many people thought was unfavourable to Rome. Macrinus then made the mistake of cutting pay for the legionnaires.

This prompted Legio III of Gallica to hail Elagabalus as Emperor on 16 May 218. Other legionnaires soon joined Elagabalus ranks prompted by discontent over pay. Macrinus sent a cavalry force led by Ulpinis Julianus, but the cavalry killed Ulpinus and joined Elagabalus.

Macrinus finally realised his mistake, abandoning his paycuts and delivering a bonus. His efforts were in vain as a whole legion defected to the challenger and desertions and mutinies made his situation so bad that he had to retire to Antioch. General Gannys, the Commander of Elagabalus's forces, marched against him and Macrinus was decisively defeated just outside Antioch on 8 June 218, with most of his forces abandoning him. Elagabalus became emperor while Macrinus fled, having shaved off his beard and hair to disguise himself as a member of the military police. Macrinus was recognised by a centurion at Chalcedon on the Bospurus, taken back to Antioch and killed.

Battle of Antioch 1097-1098

main article: Siege of Antioch

The First Crusade arrived near Antioch and commenced their siege in October 1097. The crusaders maintained their siege for seven months with conditions often worse for the Crusaders than the Seljuks within. There were two attempts by the Seljuk Turks to relieve the city. After a battle at Harenc on December 31, 1097, Turkish prisoners were beheaded within sight of the walls of Antioch. A second relief attempt at Harenc on February 9, 1098 also failed.

Emir Kerbogha was due to lead an army in June from Mosul to relieve the city with an army of 75,000 as compared with Crusader forces of 100,000. Alexius I Comnenus, the Byzantine Emperor, was due to send forces to augment the Crusaders. However, many reports state Alexius I met Stephen, Count of Blois and his French Crusaders who had fled the siege on 1 June 1098 and they persuaded Alexius that the Crusader cause was hopeless.

Bohemund of Taranto had persuaded Firuz Beni-Zarra to let the Christians in on 3 June 1098 and the city was quickly captured with the Muslim inhabitants murdered. The majority of city was captured by Bohemund with Raymond IV of Toulouse also having some claim over the city and surrounding area. The capture of Antioch came just in time for the Crusaders as Kerbogha arrived on June 5 and commenced a siege.

The discovery of the so-called Holy Lance, which had supposedly pierced Jesus' side at the Crucifixion, by Peter Bartholomew on June 14 lifted the morale of the Crusaders dramatically. On June 28, 1098, they would force Kerbogha to lift his siege after a battle on the Orontes river outside the city.

The Crusaders would remain in Antioch for some months trying to resolve its future. Bohemund argued that Antioch should become a Principality with him as the first Prince. Raymond IV supported Antioch returning to Byzantine control as it had been part of the Byzantine Empire until 1085 and he reminded Bohemund that he had sworn an oath to do this. Raymond was also mindful that the Pope wanted to retain good relations with the Byzantines. These discussions delayed the Crusaders for some months with the Crusaders not leaving for Jerusalem until November 1098, with the fall of Antioch being a crucial part of the success of the first Crusade.

Bohemund and his forces returned to Antioch after Christmas and established full control over it establishing the second Frankish state in the East. This widened the breach between the Byzantine Emperor and the west which the Pope had hoped to heal. It also led to the establishment of Crusader kingdoms rather than the restoration of Byzantine control of areas conquered by the First Crusade. Future crusades would cause further damage to the Byzantine empire.

Baibars capture of Antioch 1268

In 1260 Baibars, the Sultan of Egypt and Syria, began to threaten the crusader state of Antioch, which (as a vassal of the Armenians) had supported the Mongols, the traditional enemies of the Turks. In 1265, Baibars took Caesarea, Haifa and Arsuf and massacred the inhabitants. A year later, Baibars conquered Galilee and devastated Cilician Armenia.

In 1268 Baibars besieged the city of Antioch, capturing it on 18 May. He razed the city and killed or enslaved the population. Antioch had been weakened by its previous struggles with Armenia and internal power struggles. With the fall of Antioch, the rest of Syria quickly fell and the influence of the Franks in Syria was at an end.

The Hospitaller fortress Krak des Chevaliers fell three years later. While Louis IX of France launched the Eighth Crusade ostensibly to reverse these setbacks, it went to Tunis instead of the Middle East due to the machinations of Charles of Anjou and Louis IX lost his life to disease.

By the time of his death in 1277, Baibars had forced the Crusaders to a few strongholds along the coast and the Crusaders were forced out of the Middle East by the beginning of the fourteenth century. The fall of Antioch was to prove as detrimental to the crusaders cause as its capture was instrumental to the initial success of the first Crusade.

StarCraft reference

In the Starcraft fictional universe, Fenix the Templar is overcome by the Zerg in the Battle of Antioch. These references illustrate the lingering effect of the Crusades on popular imagination.

Further reference

• History of the Seleucid Kingdom

• Roman Empire Net article on Macrinus

• Article on the Battle of Antioch 1097-1098

• About timeline on the First Crusade

• Online Reference Book on the Principality of Antioch