Manuel I of Byzantium (28 November 1118 – 24 September 1180) was the Emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 1143 to 1180, succeeding John II of Byzantium and preceding Alexius II of Byzantium.
Biography[]
A younger Manuel
Manuel Comnenus was born on 28 November 1118, the son of Emperor John II of Byzantium and Piroska of Hungary. He was married to Bertha of Sulzbach, and succeeded his father as the new Emperor of the Byzantine Empire in 1143. Manuel attempted to restore the Byzantine Empire to its past glory through military campaigning against the Muslims, and in 1148 he allowed Crusader armies to pass through his lands on the Second Crusade. When this failed, he launched a combined invasion of the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt in 1154 with the aid of the Crusader States. By 1169, they were forced out when the Ayyubid Caliphate took control of Egypt, and Manuel was forced to withdraw to his lands to prepare a new campaign.
After 1174, Emperor Manuel launched more campaigns against the Turks in Asia Minor, but on 17 September 1176 he was dealt a crushing defeat at the Battle of Myriocephalum by Kilij Arslan II. Manuel I was defeated in other attempts to take over Asia Minor, with Myriocephalum generally considered the last attempt at the reconquest of central Asia Minor.