Byzantine Battles: Battle of Cephalonia

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Battle of Cephalonia	year: 880
A Byzantine fleet surprised and scattered a Saracen fleet in a night attack	★ ★ ★ ★ ★

enemy: Arabs (Aghlabids)	location: Cephalonia, Greece	accuracy: ●●●●●
battle type: Naval Battle	war: Muslim conquest of Sicily	modern country: Greece

	▼ The Byzantines(emperor: Basil I the Macedonian)	▼ The Enemies
Commander:	Admiral Nasar	Unknown
Forces:	45 ships	60 ships
Losses:

Background story:

In 880, a large fleet from the Emirate of Kairuan in North Africa raided the west coast of Greece. According to the historian Ioannes Skylitzes, the fleet of the Saracens numbered 60 “extremely large” ships that were pillaging the islands of Cephalonia and Zakynthos

A Byzantine fleet with 45 ships was sent from Constantinople to confront them, led by the newly promoted droungarios Nasar (of Syrian origin).
Thanks to the favorable wind, the fleet arrived quickly at the port of Methoni, at the southwestern tip of the Peloponnese. There, however, a mutiny of the fleet's rowers forced him to stop. After a while the order was restored and the fleet continued its course to Cephalonia.

The Battle:

The Saracen invaders had been informed of the problems in the Byzantine fleet and the fear of the Christian crews to face them in battle, and a climate of contempt for the Byzantine navy and overconfidence had prevailed in their ranks. So they had left their ships and engaged in looting the coast, defying the possibility of attack by the Byzantines.

Taking advantage of this situation, Nasar sailed to the Arab anchorage in Cephalonia and launched a night attack. Taken by surprise the Saracens suffered heavy losses. Their fleet was set on fire and many of the Saracens were burned inside their ships.
The Arab ships that escaped sailed for Sicily to the west, followed by the Byzantine fleet.

Aftermath:

Immediately after this victory, Nassar sailed for southern Italy, to help the army operating there under Generals Procopius and Leo Apostuppes. There, near the Aeolian (or Lipares) islands, he achieved another great victory over the fleet of the Aglavides, before returning to Constantinople.