1071 CE

Battle of Cassel: Robert I ("the Frisian") defeats his sister-in-law Richilde (widow of Baldwin VI) and her nephew Arnulf III, in a succession struggle for the County of Flanders. Robert is appointed count by King Philip I of France. Battle of Manzikert: The Byzantine army (35,000 men) under Emperor Romanos IV meets the Seljuk Turk forces of Sultan Alp Arslan near the town of Manzikert. Although the armies are initially evenly matched, as the Byzantines advance, the Seljuk Turks withdraw before them, launching hit-and-run attacks on the Byzantine flanks. While attempting to withdraw, the Byzantine army falls apart, either through treachery or confusion; the battle ends in a decisive defeat for the Byzantine Empire. Romanos is captured (though released by Alp Arslan within a week) and much of the elite Varangian Guard is destroyed; this will prove catastrophic for the Byzantine Empire. Romanos IV is deposed by John Doukas (Caesar) and his political advisor Michael Psellos after his return to Constantinople. Michael VII Doukas is crowned co-emperor and his mother Eudokia is forced to retire to a monastery.

In the 1070s, the 11th century.