"Road to Manzikert is the type of medieval military history veteran readers will add to their collection and undergrads will use as a reference for years to come. The notes and bibliography sections will be familiar to Byzantine historians, with names like John Haldon, David Nicolle, and Warren Treadgold....there’s little to complain of in Road to Manzikert. It’s a welcome addition to early Byzantine and Islamic military history, a pleasant read, and at its best covers ground that many military histories don’t, such as the Battle of Dorostolon or the Seljuk campaigns preceding Manzikert.

De Re Militari - The Society For Medieval Military History

“The numerous maps and battle plans (expertly drawn by Joshua B. Allfree and John Cairns) are excellent. Readers with an interest in medieval military history will enjoy it.”

Read the review here

NYMAS

“…the book is generally well edited and highly readable. Readers with an interest in medieval military history will enjoy it.”

The NYMAS Review

Military history publishing house Pen & Sword has recently published a new historical analysis of the Battle of Manzikert by medieval expert Brian Todd Carey. It firmly grounds the battle in the context of the history of the five centuries that led up to that fateful day in 1071. Entitled Road to Manzikert, Carey explains not only what happened in a small Anatolian town in the modern-day province of Muş, but also why it was inevitable and what its consequences were. The narrative of this history is unusual because, focusing on the military aspects, it is told in a neutral fashion.

Professor Carey neither seeks to portray the forces of Islam as jihadists with an agenda to take over the world, nor does he extol them as martyrs. In our modern world protagonists on each side of the war on terror tell the story of early Islamic battles and the later crusades in a manner that either aims to invoke Muslim phobia or that can be used to inspire and recruit for al-Qaeda. Carey treads the clear middle ground between these two ideologies, giving the military and tactical facts, well supported by superb maps and charts drawn by Joshua Allfree and John Cairns.

Carey tells a gripping story of desertion, defection and betrayal amongst the Byzantine troops and of the fleet and ferocious Seljuk steppe warriors that were the greatest light cavalry troops of their age. The Alparslan he describes is neither the blood-drinking demon as styled by Byzantine historians from nearby Edessa (modern Urfa) nor a saintly Joan-of-Arc style hero, but a real military man with real military concerns. His account is thoughtful, measured and believable. The illustrations and maps make his academic research accessible, and the useful tables of chronology of events and leaders on both sides and glossaries of military and historical terms are excellent summaries of the facts make for a clear and concise overview of why Muş really can claim to be 'the gateway to Anatolia.

Marion James, Today's Zaman

Manzikert is of course one of the decisive battles in medieval history. The defeat of the Byzantine Empire, including the capture of the Emperor, by the Seljuk Turks resulted in the loss of Anatolia to the Empire. While there was something of a recovery, the Byzantine Empire lost key revenue, manpower and horse breeding areas to the Turks. This book is about much more than the battle. The authors take us through 500 years of conflict from Justinian through the rise of Islam to the coming of the Turks. Usefully, not just a focus on the Byzantine Empire but good chapters on Islamic warfare as well. The narrative is well written, but the strength of the book is in the maps and diagrams of the key battles. This really brings the text alive.

Balkan Military History

Carey's book is not limited to discussing direct action between the Byzantines and the Muslims; it also considers Byzantine wars on other fronts. This is important for understanding how Byzantine warfare changed in the stated period. Chapters are well-supported with relevant maps...In addition 20 black and white illustrations and a chronology support the text.

Medieval Warfare