The most comprehensive account of Nikephoros III's life and reign is "The History", written in the 1070s by the Byzantine historian Michael Attaleiates and dedicated to Nikephoros himself. Attaleiates is the primary contemporary source for Nikephoros's reign and counters the narrative of Byzantine historian Michael Psellos's "Chronographia", the only other contemporary source for Nikephoross reign. Attaleiates highlights Nikephoross achievements, often containing records of his actions which no other source mentions, such as his eleven-day rearguard command after the Battle of Zygos Pass, which Attaleiates dedicates several pages to. Attaleiatess high opinion of Nikephoros was likely shaped by Nikephoros raising him to the rank of "vestes", and by his benefiting from Nikephoross patronage. Much of Attaleiatess work is shaped by his personal opinion of the contemporary events, such as his bias against Nikephoross predecessor, Emperor Michael VII Doukas, being personally motivated.