Byzantine Battles: Battle of Veróï

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4 th century

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Battle of Veróï (Beróia, Vereya, Beroya)	year: 1122
Byzantine decisive victory and vanishing of the Pechenegs	★ ★ ★ ★ ★

enemy: Pechenegs	location: Near Stara Zagora, Bulgaria	accuracy: ●●●●●
battle type: Pitched Battle	war: Pecheneg Wars	modern country: Bulgaria

	▼ The Byzantines(emperor: John II Komnenos)	▼ The Enemies
Commander:	Emperor John II Komnenos	Unknown
Forces:	Unknown	Unknown
Losses:		Annihilated

Background story:

In 1091, the Pechenegs had invaded the Byzantine Empire, and had been crushingly defeated by Emperor Alexios I Komnenos at the Battle of Levounion. This defeat meant the almost total extinction of all the Pechenegs who had taken part in the expedition; however, some Pechenegs had remained behind.
In 1122, Pechenegs from the Russian steppes invaded the Byzantine Empire again, by crossing the Danube frontier. The invasion was a threat to Byzantine control over the northern Balkans. Emperor John II Komnenos of Byzantium determined to meet the invaders in the field and drive them back, and therefore transferred his field army from Asia Minor (where it had been engaged against the Turks) to Europe, and prepared to march north.

The Battle:

Pecheneg warrior

The Pechenegs had set up a camp defended by a circular formation of wagons near the city of Beroia in Bulgaria. The emperor at first offered the Pecheneg chiefs presents, offering to grant them a favorable treaty. The Pechenegs were taken in by this deception, and were as a result taken by surprise when the Byzantines suddenly launched a major attack on their laager. The battle was hard fought, but when John ordered in the Varangian Guard, the elite Palace Guard of the Byzantine Emperors, the Pechenegs were forced back. The Varangians hacked their way through the Pecheneg circle of wagons, collapsing the Pecheneg position and causing a general rout in their camp. The Byzantine victory was complete, and the Pecheneg survivors were rounded up and enlisted into the Byzantine army.

Aftermath:

The Pechenegs virtual disappeared from history after that. They ceased to be a distinct people and were assimilated by neighboring peoples such as the Bulgarians and Magyars.