Nicaea

ancient city of Bithynia in modern-day Turkey

13 dated entries naming Nicaea, drawn from 13 separate years between 35 BCE and 2025 CE. Nothing here is written by us: each line is the sentence a Wikipedia year article used, and the link beside it opens the exact revision.

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1st century BC

35 BCESextus Pompeius defeats the governor of Asia, Gaius Furnius, with three legions and seizes Nicaea and Nicomedia (modern Izmit).source

4th century

364February 26 – Valentinian I is proclaimed Emperor by officers of the Roman army at Nicaea in Bithynia. He addresses the soldiers (who threaten to riot) in a speech. He founds the Valentinianic dynasty and rules the Western portion of the Roman Empire, from Caledonia (Scotland) to the Rhine frontier, ensuring it a few years of relative security. He settles in Lutetia (Paris) and establishes a militia to defend the region.source

8th century

727Siege of Nicaea: Muslim forces under Mu'awiya ibn Hisham (son of Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik) penetrate deep into Asia Minor, and sack the fortress city of Gangra, but unsuccessfully lay siege to Nicaea (northwestern Anatolia).source

11th century

1035c. July 3 – 8-year-old William I becomes duke of Normandy after his father Robert I ("the Magnificent") dies on a pilgrimage at Nicaea (modern Turkey). Robert's death leads to a period of instability in Normandy, as William is too young to take his father's place. The Norman nobles in the region take the opportunity to settle old feuds and to increase their private wealth.source
1057August 20 – Battle of Hades: Rebel forces under Isaac Komnenos defeat the Byzantines on the plains of Hades (near Nicaea). General Katakalon Kekaumenos routs the imperial right flank, and reaches the enemy's camp. He destroys the tents and supplies, which leaves the way open to Constantinople.source
1096September – French forces (7,000 infantry and 300 knights) led by Geoffrey Burel raid around Nicaea (the capital of the Rum Seljuk Turks), plundering livestock and villages in the suburbs. They commit atrocities against local Christian peasants. Children are tortured and dismembered by the crusaders.source
1097May 14 – Siege of Nicaea: The Crusaders begin their campaign with the siege of Nicaea (the capital of the Sultanate of Rum), assigning their forces to different sections of the walls, which are well-defended with 200 towers. Towards the end, an advance party of the Seljuk Turks is defeated by troops of Raymond IV of Toulouse ("Saint-Gilles") and Robert II.source

12th century

1113Spring – Siege of Nicaea: Malik Shah, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, sends an expedition through Bithynia to the very walls of Nicaea. Seljuk forces raid Abydos on the Hellespont, with its rich custom-houses. Malik Shah attacks and captures Pergamum. Emperor Alexios I Komnenos sets out to meet the Seljuk invaders. He lifts the siege at Nicaea and wins a complete victory near Cotyaeum (modern Turkey).source

13th century

1204Theodore I Laskaris flees to Nicaea after the capture of Constantinople, and establishes the Empire of Nicaea; Byzantine successor states are also established in Epirus and Trebizond.source
1223January 4 – Germanus II takes office as Patriarch of Constantinople, leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church, after moving the patriarchate's capital 56 mi from Constantinople (now Istanbul) to Nicaea (now Iznik in Turkey), as the guest of John III Doukas Vatatzes, Emperor of Nicaea.source

14th century

1301Spring – Sultan Osman I calls for a military campaign to strike deep into Byzantine Bithynia. During the campaign, Ottoman forces capture the towns of İnegöl and Yenişehir. The later town will be transformed into a capital city, as Osman moves his administration and personal household within its walls. By the end of the year, Ottoman forces begin blockading the major Byzantine city of Nicaea.source
1303Autumn – Battle of Dimbos: The Byzantine governors (tekfurs) of Prusa, Adranos, Kestel, and Ulubat begin a military campaign against the Ottoman-Turkish forces of Sultan Osman I. They attack the Ottoman capital city of Yenişehir and proceed to relieve Nicaea, which is under an Ottoman blockade. Osman musters a 5,000-strong army and defeats the Byzantine forces at a mountain pass near Yenişehir.source

21st century

2025November 27–30 – An ecumenical meeting of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Catholic Church at Nicaea is held to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea.source