Remnants of Hiraqla, a victory monument erected by Harun al-Rashid

The Abbasid invasion of Asia Minor in 806 CE was an attack by the Abbasid Caliphate against the Byzantine Empire in southeastern and central Asia Minor. Soon after his accession in 802, the Byzantine emperor Nikephoros I ceased paying tribute to the Caliphate and attacked it. In retaliation, Harun al-Rashid, the Abbasid caliph, invaded Byzantium with a force far larger than any seen before. The Abbasid army met no opposition and raided at will, capturing several towns and fortresses, including Herakleia, whose fall was celebrated by the Caliph's propaganda. Nikephoros was forced to seek peace and resume paying tribute. Harun exacted a personal tax on the Emperor and his heir, Staurakios, as a token of their submission and withdrew. Almost immediately Nikephoros violated the peace terms, but Harun's preoccupation with a rebellion prevented reprisal. Harun's death, the Abbasid civil war, and Nikephoros' Bulgarian wars prevented the resumption of large-scale warfare for two decades. (Full article...)