Page "Greek fire" Paragraph 7

Kallinikos ' development of Greek fire came at a critical moment in the Byzantine Empire's history: weakened by its long wars with Sassanid Persia, the Byzantines had been unable to effectively resist the onslaught of the Muslim conquests.

Within a generation, Syria, Palestine and Egypt had fallen to the Arabs, who in ca.

672 set out to conquer the imperial capital of Constantinople.

The Greek fire was utilized to great effect against the Muslim fleets, helping to repel the Muslims at the first and second Arab sieges of the city.

Records of its use in later naval battles against the Saracens are more sporadic, but it did secure a number of victories, especially in the phase of Byzantine expansion in the late 9th and early 10th centuries.

Utilisation of the substance was prominent in Byzantine civil wars, chiefly the revolt of the thematic fleets in 727 and the large-scale rebellion led by Thomas the Slav in 821 – 823.

In both cases, the rebel fleets were defeated by the Constantinopolitan Imperial Fleet through the use of Greek fire.

The Byzantines also used the weapon to devastating effect against the various Rus ' raids to the Bosporus, especially those of 941 and 1043, as well as during the Bulgarian war of 970 – 971, when the fire-carrying Byzantine ships blockaded the Danube.