Barbarians and mountains

Tell Hamdun (Topprakale) fortress today

After the capture of Anazarbos, John II set about mopping up the last remaining fortresses in Cilician Armenia. The emperor was now in a hurry to secure his conquest and march on to Antioch in the Holy Land, his main objective. 

Along the way he conquered the strong fortress of Tell Hamdun (modern Toprakkale), a fortified hilltop surrounded by rich, flat farmland, at the confluence of routes between all the major Armenian cities. As such, it was essential for John to capture the fortress before he left Armenia.

An Arabic chronicler, Ibn al-Athir, describes this last stage of John's triumphant campaign:

"He [John] then went to Adana and Masisa, both in the possession of Leo the Armenian, lord of the castles of the Passes. He besieged and took both places. He then moved to 'Ayn Zarba, which he took by assault, and also seized Tell Hamdun. He transferred the population to the island of Cyprus."

From this, it appears the emperor moved the inhabitants of Tell Hamdun to Cyprus, presumably replacing them with a Greek garrison. The island already had an Armenian population, which was to grow further as the century went on; this may indicate that John transferred an entire community to Cyprus, rather than just a garrison. This is consistent with his policy of relocating Serb and Turkic peoples after defeating them in war.

The emperor now began his advance on Antioch. His conquest of Armenia was not quite complete, since he left at least one hostile fortress at his back, as well as recently conquered cities where the loyalty of the inhabitants was fragile. John did at least make some effort to win the population over, restoring order to the war-torn territory and showing tolerance towards Armenian and Syriac churches. 

Armenia had not enjoyed a stable government for over fifty years. Two Roman writers, Italikos and Choniates, praise John as having 'moved barbarians and mountains,' and clearing the roads of bandits. His capture of fortified points created centres of imperial authority, from which his men could bring order to the surrounding countryside. Some evidence is provided by the significant increase in the number of coins minted during this period. 

Another instance of John's merciful attitude is given by Matthew of Edessa, a 12th century Armenian chronicler. Matthew describes how the emperor's father, Alexios I, had forced Armenian Christians to be re-baptised. John reversed this policy, thus earning the goodwill of all Armenians.