Battle of Lalakaon

Battle of Lalakaon
Part of the Arab–Byzantine Wars
The Battle of Lalakaon, as depicted in the Madrid Skylitzes
Date September 3, 863 Location Lalakaon River, Paphlagonia, Asia Minor Result Decisive Byzantine victory
Belligerents
Emirate of Melitene	Byzantine Empire
Commanders and leaders
Umar al-Aqta † Karbeas † (?)	Michael III (?) Petronas Nasar

The Battle of Lalakaon (Greek: Μάχη τοῦ Λαλακάοντος) or the Battle of Poson (or Porson) (Greek: Μάχη τοῦ Πό(ρ)σωνος) was fought in 863 between the Byzantine Empire and an invading Arab army in Paphlagonia (modern northern Turkey). The Byzantine army was led by Petronas, the uncle of Emperor Michael III (r. 842–867), although Arab sources also mention the presence of Emperor Michael himself, while the Arabs were led by the emir of Melitene (Malatya), Umar al-Aqta (r. 830s–863).

Umar al-Aqta was able to overcome the initial Byzantine resistance against his invasion and reach the shores of the Black Sea. The Byzantines then mobilized all their forces, and the Arab army was encircled near the River Lalakaon. The subsequent battle ended in a complete Byzantine victory and the death of the Emir on the field, and was followed by a successful Byzantine counteroffensive across the border. The Byzantine victories proved decisive: the main threats to the Byzantine borderlands were eliminated, and the era of Byzantine ascendancy in the East, which would culminate in the great conquests of the 10th century, had begun.

The Byzantine success had another corollary: deliverance from constant Arab pressure on the eastern frontier allowed the Byzantine government to concentrate on affairs in Europe, and, in particular, neighboring Bulgaria. The Bulgarians were pressured into accepting the Byzantine form of Christianity, thus beginning this nation's absorption into the Byzantine cultural sphere.

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