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		Manzikert
Manzikert was the site of a crushing and demoralizing defeat of Byzantine forces led by the Emperor Romanus IV by Seljuk Turks led by Alp Arslan in 1071. Its significance to the crusading movement stems from the fact that the defeat revealed the weakness of the Byzantine Empire to Muslim invasion and engendered a greater willingness on the part of the Byzantine Empire to consider and eventually request military aid from the West.This request for aid contributed to the calling of the First Crusade by Pope Urban II in 1095. Pope Urban II was not the first Pope to consider sending western forces to aid the Byzantines. In the wake of the Turkish victory at Manzikert, Pope Gregory VII considered raising a force as early as 1074 to head East and engage the Turks. [Continued...] Gregory VII- Crusades-Encyclopedia Byzantine Empire- Crusades-Encyclopedia Alp Arslan- Crusades-Encyclopedia Seljuk Turks- Crusades-Encyclopedia (c) Andrew Holt, October, 2005. Permission is granted for electronic copying and distribution in print for educational and personal use. No permission is granted for commercial use.