The Norman prince Robert, known as Guiscard (the Cunning), master of Bari, Amalfi, Salerno, and all of Sicily, also coveted Greece and the Byzantine Empire itself. In Albania, he besieged Durazzo. The Venetian war fleet, commanded by the Doge himself, arrived to aid the city. This was the first Venetian naval battle for which we have a detailed written account, in this case by Anna Comnena, the gifted daughter of Emperor Alexius. The battle began with stones and insults being thrown, containers of mud to blind and soap to slip, as well as arrows and pieces of wood launched from catapults. The final outcome of the battle depended on hand-to-hand combat. Venice was victorious, but the victory only served to delay Robert’s conquest of Durazzo. Robert died a few years later. In exchange for support for Durazzo and later for Corfu, the Byzantine emperor Alexios issued the Golden Bull in 1082, granting trade privileges and duty exemption to Venice.
