Fortifications and siege warfare Byzantine army (Palaiologan era)

ruined fortifications of theodosia, in crimea. occupied genoa before mid-14th century, of existing fortifications later modified.

byzantine military strategy relied heavily on fortifying towns , cities. walls consisted of stonework layers of thick bricks in between, perhaps allowing absorption of attack. later, artillery became increasingly more effective, sloped walls came play. walls augmented towers, evenly spaced out , running length of walls. walled towers designed cover entire town.

supplying towns , forts became byzantium s worst problem and, though turks lacked expertise take walled towns, not defeated on land nor blockade broken. cities such nicaea , nicomedia fell after few years or more. so, longer period of time crusaders in levant able hold out impressive forts such krak des chevaliers surrendered relatively quickly. worse still crusader forts in aegean, surrendered byzantines , turks without fight.

the byzantine army regained increasingly offensive role against crusaders in mid late 13th century many fortifications regained byzantines fell out of use; lack of manpower , multiple pressing fronts relegated these castles abandonment. of castles captured in greece used control local hostile greek, albanian, vlach or other tribal peoples opposed frankish rule , since byzantines both greek , orthodox, threat crusaders had contend existed on lesser scale byzantines, giving them reason not repair them. constantinople s fortifications remained formidable, repairing them proved impossible after 1370 due destructive nature of ongoing civil war. time byzantines emerged it, forced acknowledge suzerainty of ottoman sultan, threatened military action if repairs made millennium-old walls of constantinople. heavily outnumbered, walls of capital provided defenders in 1453 6 weeks of defense.