In the 10th c. A.D. jihadists were not just a local threat, but a tangible reality from today's bloody Turkey-Syria border to the entire Mediterranean. The fanatical Arabs had also expanded into Italy, threatening Rome as well, supported by opportunistic Christians.
In the second half of the 9th century the Saracens, beyond Sicily, had also settled in central Italy in the region of Midurno, near Lazio on the river Gariliano, allied with the Duchy of Gaeta. At the beginning of the 10th century but the Arabs became particularly threatening planning the conquest of the entire region.
In the face of this threat, Pope John X tried and succeeded in uniting the local Christian rulers and hegemons while asking for the help of the Byzantine Empire. The empire responded and sent to reinforce the Christian alliance the general above the subject of Varius (Bari) Nikolaos Epigiglis who was known in Italy by the Latin surname Pickingli.
In addition to the Byzantines, who made up the bulk of the army, various Lombard (Longovadrian) rulers participated in the alliance. The allied army reached 50,000 men , according to the chroniclers. Accordingly, the Muslims had about 75,000 men under the emir Alikos.
The campaign
The Christians took the initiative and attacked in June 915 AD. against the Saracens, with the Byzantine fleet blocking them from the sea. The pope led, honor eneken , the Christian troops. The first battle was fought near today's Lazio and was a painful defeat for the Arabs. However, the Christians were not satisfied with this success but continued the attack and defeated the Arabs twice more in the battles of Campo Bacano and Tivoli.
After the defeats the Saracens retreated to the line of Gariliano where they had created a fortified camp. The Christians soon routed the Saracens and closely besieged them in it. In this phase, the experience of Epigiglis must have played a catalytic role.
The siege lasted until August 915 AD. whereupon the Saracens, seeing that they could hold out no longer, withdrew, setting fire to their fortified camp. The Christians pursued them and the Saracens took defensive positions on nearby hills. However, the deprivation from the siege and the constant defeats had shattered their morale.
Nevertheless, they managed to repel many uncoordinated attacks launched against them by the Lombard rulers with their disorderly divisions. Finally the Christians preferred to exclude the Saracens from their positions in order to force them to surrender , instead of wanton and bloody attacks.
The Saracens, at the end of August, attempted to leave with the aim of reaching the sea and from there to Sicily where part of the island was controlled by their co-religionists. But the attempt failed because of the Byzantine fleet and all were killed. Many fell in the desperate clashes that followed. But most were executed after the battle. According to the chroniclers of the time, all 75,000 men of Alikos perished.
General Nikolaos Epigiglis
Nikolaos Epigiglis is a relatively unknown figure of the middle Byzantine years with an important activity both in Italy and in the Balkans. He was placed on top of the Theme of Longobardia either in 911 or 913 AD. with the second date being considered more probable as it is documented by his correspondence with the Patriarch of Constantinople Nikolaos Mystikos.
In one of the letters Epigiglis refers to the tragic situation of the Byzantine fortresses in Italy, while in his reply the patriarch urges him to fight the Arabs in the area of Gariliano! After the campaign and the victory, the patriarch congratulated the general with a new letter. Nothing else is known about the savior general of Italy except that he was killed in AD 917 . fighting the Bulgarians, this time, near Anchialos in Thrace.