Zara, Sack of

The Sack of Zara was the Fourth Crusade’s capture of the Adriatic port of Zara (modern Zadar, Croatia) in November 1202, the first major diversion of the expedition. Unable to pay Venice for the fleet it had contracted, the crusader army agreed to take the rebellious, Hungarian-held Christian city for the Venetians under Doge Enrico Dandolo. The city fell on 24 November 1202 and was sacked, prompting Pope Innocent III to excommunicate the participants. The episode set the precedent for the further diversion to Constantinople in 1204.