Battle of Ostia

Battle of Ostia
	; Raphael's fresco The Battle of Ostia, an indication of the battle's legendary fame
Date	Summer 849
Location	Ostia, Italy
Result	Christian victory
Belligerents
Christian League: Papal States; Byzantine Empire Duchy of Gaeta; Duchy of Amalfi; Duchy of Naples; Duchy of Sorrento; ;	Saracens
Commanders and leaders
Caesar of Naples	Unknown
Strength
Unknown	Unknown
Casualties and losses
minimal	heavy

The naval Battle of Ostia took place in 849 in the Tyrrhenian Sea between some Muslim pirates and an Italian league of Papal, Neapolitan, Amalfitan and Gaetan ships. The battle ended in favor of the Italian league, as they defeated the pirates. It is one of the few events to occur in southern Italy during the ninth century that is still remembered today, largely for the walls named after Leo and for the Renaissance painting Battaglia di Ostia by Raphael.

Background

Starting in 827, Muslim forces had begun to conquer Sicily. In 846, Saracens raided the outskirts of Rome, plundering various basilicas, including Old Saint Peter's which was outside the Aurelian walls , for their treasures.^[1]

Battle

News of a massing of Saracen ships off Sardinia reached Rome early in 849. A Christian armada, commanded by Caesar, son of Sergius I of Naples, was assembled off recently refortified Ostia, and Pope Leo IV came out to bless it and offer a mass to the troops. After the pirate ships appeared, battle was joined with the Neapolitan galleys in the lead. Midway through the engagement, a storm divided the Muslims and the Christian ships managed to return to port. The Saracens, however, were scattered far and wide, with many ships lost and others sent ashore. When the storm died down, the remnants of the Arab fleet were easily picked off, with many prisoners taken.

Aftermath

In the aftermath of the battle, much booty washed ashore and was pillaged by the locals, per ius naufragii. The prisoners taken in battle were forced to work in chain gangs building the Leonine Wall which was to encompass the Vatican Hill. Rome would never again be approached by an Arab army.^[1]

Notes

1 2 Barbara Kreutz (1996). Before the Normans: Southern Italy in the Ninth and Tenth Centuries. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 25–28.

Sources

Llewellyn, Peter. Rome in the Dark Ages. London: Faber and Faber, 1970.

Coordinates: 41°45′00″N 12°17′00″E / 41.75°N 12.2833°E / 41.75; 12.2833

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[Kreutz-1] 1 2 Barbara Kreutz (1996). Before the Normans: Southern Italy in the Ninth and Tenth Centuries. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 25–28.