History of Wars Summary 21 - Arab-Eastern Roman War 1: A New Threat Emerges After the Persian Wars

In the early 7th century, the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) had significantly depleted its strength through fierce wars with the Sasanian dynasty. Starting in 602, Persian forces occupied Syria and Egypt, and Byzantium struggled to defend its capital, Constantinople. Emperor Heraclius, who ascended the throne in 610, reorganized the military and finances and launched a counteroffensive. He boldly attacked the Persian heartland and achieved victory at the Battle of Nineveh in 627. However, immediately after the war concluded, the Islamic forces rapidly grew in Arabia. From 634 onwards, Arab armies invaded Syria and Palestine, plunging Byzantium into another large-scale conflict. Exhausted from the prolonged Persian wars, the empire found it difficult to secure sufficient troops and finances, and the new war began to unfold in a completely different manner than before.