ABSTRACT
Arduin and his Norman allies seized Melfi, with the connivance (or at least the acquiescence) of the inhabitants, in the early part of March 1041. Within a few days they had also taken over the neighbouring towns of Venosa and Lavello, a few kilometres to the east, and Ascoli, some 25 km to the north. A few days later, on 17 March, the Normans defeated a hastily gathered Greek force, apparently under the personal command of the Catepan Michael Dokeianos, in a battle fought beside the River Olivento, between Melfi and Lavello. 1 This success consolidated their hold on the frontier region around the Upper Ofanto valley, and the invaders then moved down the valley towards the coast. Seven weeks later, on 4 May 1041, they fought a second battle, this time against a considerably larger Byzantine army near Canne, 50 km to the north-east, not far from the coastal town of Barletta, and either on or very close to the site of their predecessors’ disastrous defeat in 1018. Despite outnumbering the invaders several times over, the Greek forces were once again defeated with heavy casualties.
