Two imperial armies had taken Taranto from…

Two imperial armies had taken Taranto from the Saracens in 880, ending a Muslim dominion of forty years.

Among the first actions taken by Apostyppes, ruling in the name of the emperor, had been the enslavement and deportation of the Latin-Longobard original inhabitants—who had almost completely converted to Islam—and the import of Greek colons, in order to increase the population.

Taranto had soon become one of the most important cities in the Thema Longobardia, the imperial possession in southern Italy.

In 882 the Saracens, having been invited by Duke Radelchis to assist him, had captured it and held it for some time.

The city of Taranto had suffered from other Saracen raids, such as in 922 and in 927, when the Saracens had conquered and destroyed the city, enslaving and deporting to Africa all the survivors.

Taranto thus has had no inhabitants until the reconquest in 967 by Nikephoros II Phokas, who understands the importance of a strong military presence and harbor in southern Italy, and rebuilds the city, adding several military fortifications.