In 1057 he aided Isaac I Komnenos in overthrowing Emperor Michael VI Bringas, leading forces at the decisive Battle of Petroe.

Having insulted Emperor Michael with overly frank appeals for help against the Seljuk Turks in Byzantine Anatolia, Nikephoros decided to protect himself from reprisals by seizing the throne.

His military acumen and family renown won him strong support, and he took power in 1078 with the approval of the Byzantine Senate and the citizens of Constantinople.

Diplomatically, he secured the submission of Theodore Gabras and Philaretos Brachamios, governors of Trebizond and Antioch, respectively, who had become de facto independent of the Byzantine Empire.

Much of Attaleiates's work is shaped by his personal opinion of contemporary events, such as his bias against Nikephoros's predecessor, Emperor Michael VII Doukas.

Attaleiates is invaluable in providing an understanding of what the populace of the Byzantine Empire, outside of the nobles of Constantinople, thought of the Turkish invasion of Anatolia.

While her narrative primarily focuses on the actions of Alexios, it does provide information on Nikephoros's last years in power and his subsequent exile to a monastery.

Nikephoros ordered his cavalry to hold a tight formation, limiting the damage the horse-archers of the Pechenegs could inflict and deployed scouts to prevent his troops from being ambushed.

Nikephoros had them continue on foot and refused to flee when offered a horse, proclaiming he would prefer death to the dishonor of cowardice, which reinforced the morale of his troops.

After eleven days of constant attacks, they reached the Byzantine city of Adrianople, where the Pechenegs finally gave up their pursuit.

Isaac's victory placed the military aristocracy firmly back in control and marked the first time a general had held the throne since the death of Emperor Basil II in 1025.

The evidence for his time in Thessalonica comes from several surviving signed and dated documents from the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos.

Nikephoros sent Michael the spatharokandidatos to inquire into the case, before ruling that, based upon a chrysobull issued by Basil II which had declared that the monastery's property and Paroikoi were exempt from taxes, they could not be confiscated by the government.

[3][13][14] Nikephoros settled a boundary dispute between the Iveron Monastery and the Bishop of Ezoba, basing his ruling on the knowledge of the local populace.

[3][16] In the fall of 1064, the Oghuz Turks invaded the Byzantine Balkans and defeated both Nikephoros and Basil Apokapes, archon of Paristrion, in battle, and took them captive, which Attaleiates suggests was greatly humiliating for Nikephoros;[3][17] however, the two men were able to escape captivity after the Oghuz Turk forces were devastated by both Bulgarian raids and disease.

[3][20] Although his troops were inexperienced and under-equipped, Nikephoros was able to repel numerous raids against Antioch from the Emirate of Aleppo, largely due to his own military prowess, his well-trained retinue, and his use of local levies.

[3] Upon the death of Constantine X in 1067, his wife, Empress Eudokia Makrembolitissa, considered taking Nikephoros as husband and emperor, but instead chose Romanos IV Diogenes (r. 1068–1071).

[3][21] The need for an emperor was made pressing by the constant raids of the Turks into the Byzantine territories of Antioch, Cilicia, and Armenia;[3][22] Eudokia, Patriarch John VIII of Constantinople, and the Byzantine Senate agreed that their top priority was the defense of the empire and that they needed an emperor to lead troops to repel the Turks.

[3][26][27] Emperor Michael VII (r. 1071–1078) brought Nikephoros, who was now in his early seventies, out of retirement and declared him kouropalates and governor of the Anatolic Theme.

[3][40] The second revolt came from a supporter of Bryennios, Nikephoros Basilakes the protoproedros, rebelled in Dyrrhachium (modern-day Durrës) in 1078, but he was quickly defeated by Alexios, and similarly blinded.

At the same time, Dobromir the Paulician stirred up a revolt in Mesembria, in co-operation with Leca, and began to pillage the surrounding areas.

[3][55] Alexios was entrusted with a substantial army to defeat the Norman threat but conspired with his relative John Doukas to instead take the throne for himself.

[3] Alexios raised a rebellion against Nikephoros and was able to quickly surround Constantinople and put it to siege due to the lack of a defensive army.

Nikeophoros was unable to secure the support of either the Seljuk Turks or Nikephoros Melissenos, his traditional rivals, and thus was forced to prepare to abdicate.

[3] Daniel Maynard comments that both Anthony Kaldellis and João Vicente de Medeiros Publio Dias tend to characterize Nikephoros' reign as part of the Doukas dynasty, with Kaldellis stating that "Botaniates' reign was basically an extension of the Ducas dynasty", and de Medeiros Publio Dias stating that "His government is normally only seen as a prelude to the important, but at the same time controversial rule of Alexios I Komnenos".

[3][62] Whether or not these acts managed to gain the support of the people cannot be ascertained, as Nikephoros's reign was filled with revolts and political uncertainty; however, it can be assumed that he was determined to prevent the betrayal which many previous emperors had suffered, and as such freely handed out gifts and titles.

Attaleiates says that these laws "put an end to the fear of debt", which he said had been a source of much suffering for the Byzantine citizens under the Doukas dynasty.

His marriage to Maria, the wife of Michael VII, and attempt to take Constantine as his heir, show Nikephoros's determination to both secure his succession and restore stability to the empire.

[3][66] Nikephoros settled several pressing legal issues in 1079, first enacting a law regarding spousal insanity, the second increasing the time between sentencing and execution to thirty days to allow new evidence to be presented or the judge to review whether the crime merited capital punishment.

Nikephoros negotiated with Philaretos for the submission of his fief in 1078 and granted him the title of doux, leaving him the legitimate ruler of the newly returned Byzantine province.