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Nicephorus Phocas was born about 912 and into an aristocratic Cappadocian family that had produced several distinguished generals, including his father (Bardas Phocas), brother (Leo Phocas), and grandfather (Nicephorus Phocas the Elder), who had all served as commanders of the field army. He embraced a military career and, as a young patrician, distinguished himself at his father's side in a war in the east against the Arabs. Early in his career, Nicephorus married Stephano who bore him a son. Both, however, died before he gained his fame. With their deaths, Nicephorus, influenced by [[Athanasius the Athonite]] for whom he helped build the Monastery of the [[Great Lavra (Athos)|Great Lavra]] at [[Mount Athos]], embraced a [[monasticism|monastic]] life style.
Nicephorus was appointed by emperor Constantine VII to be the military governor of the Anatolikon Theme in 945. Nicephorus then restructured the army, reinforced discipline, and improved recruiting as well as wrote treatises on military tactics that have been attributed to him. After the death of emperor Constantine on [[November 9]], 959, and the ascension of emperor Romanos II, Romanos entrusted Nicephorus with the command of a expedition against the Arab Saracens who held the island of Crete. On [[March 7]], 961, after a nine-month siege of Candia (Iraklion), Nicephorus freed the island from the [[Muslims]] and re-stored life to the Christian communities on the island.
During the years 962-963, after returning to the East, Nicephorus conquered the cities of Cilicia and advanced into Syria where he captured Aleppo with help from his nephew John Tzimiskes. It was from these campaigns that he earned the sobriquet "The Pale Death of the Saracens".