Fourth Crusade Storms Constantinople: Alexios IV Restored by Force
The Crusaders weren't supposed to be there at all. They'd borrowed 85,000 silver marks from Venice to reach Egypt, couldn't pay, and got rerouted to Constantinople instead. On July 17, 1203, they breached the sea walls with just twenty ships. Emperor Alexios III grabbed a thousand pounds of gold and ran that night, abandoning a city that had stood unconquered for nine centuries. The Christians had sacked the Christian capital. A year later, they'd return to finish the job, splitting the Byzantine Empire into pieces it never fully reassembled. Sometimes your allies do more damage than your enemies ever could.
July 17, 1203
823 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Byzantine Emperor
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Constantinople
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Fourth Crusade
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List of Byzantine Emperors
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Alexius III Angelus
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Alexios III Angelos
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Edirne
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Byzantine Empire
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List of Byzantine emperors
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Constantinople
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Republic of Venice
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Fourth Crusade
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Thrace
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Alexios III Angelos
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Siège de Constantinople (1203)
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