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Conquest of Crete |
year: 824 |
| The Arabs invaded Crete and gradually captured the whole island | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ |
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enemy: Arabs (Andalusian)
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location: Island of Crete
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accuracy:
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battle type: Invasion |
war: Byzantine-Muslim Wars |
modern country:
Greece |
| ▼ The Byzantines(emperor: Michael II the Stammerer) | ▼ The Enemies | |
| Commander: | Unknown | Abu Hafs |
| Forces: | Unknown | 40 ships, c. 3000 warriors, 12,000 total |
| Losses: |
| Background story: |
| Crete had been the target of Muslim attacks since the first wave of the Muslim conquests in the mid-7th century. There had been many raids but the island was never conquered. At some point in the 820s, a group of Arab Andalusian sailed eastwards. They were the survivors of a failed revolt against the emir of Córdoba in 818. In the aftermath of its suppression, the citizens of the Cordovan suburb of al-Rabad were exiled en masse. Some settled in Morocco, but others, numbering over 10,000, took to piracy, probably joined by other Andalusians. Some of the latter group, under the leadership of Umar ibn Hafs ibn Shuayb ibn Isa al Balluti, commonly known as Abu Hafs, landed in Alexandria and took control of the city until they were expelled by the Abbasids. Ousted from Egypt, the exiles decided to visit Crete. |
The Battle: |
 Abu Hafs orders the torching of his ships after reaching Crete The Andalusians were already familiar with Crete, having raided it in the past. The Muslim landing was initially intended as a raid, and was transformed into a kind of conquest when Abu Hafs himself set fire to their ships (although this story could be an invention). The Arabs' landing-place is unknown; some scholars think that it was at the north coast, at Suda Bay or near where their main city and fortress Chandax (modern Heraklion) was later built, but others think that they most likely landed on the south coast of the island, and then moved to the northern coast. Emperor Michael II reacted in 827 and sent an expedition under Photeinos, strategos of the Anatolic Theme, and protospatharios Damian was defeated in open battle, where Damian was killed. |
Aftermath: |
| The Arab conquest of Crete was a severe loss for Byzantium. The Arabs founded the Emirate of Crete, which was formally part of the Abbasid caliphate but was actually independent. Soon they moved the capital from Gortyna, to the new city, Khandak (Heraklion). The Byzantines made more attempts to retake the island in the following years, but Crete remained in the hands of the Saracens for 136 years. |
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