Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars
The Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars were a series of military conflicts between the Bulgarian Empire and the Byzantine Empire . They lasted for most of the Middle Ages and took place mainly in the Balkan Peninsula . The Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars began even before the Bulgarian tribes under the leadership of Khan Asparuch had settled in the northeast of the Balkan Peninsula in the last quarter of the 7th century. These wars went through several stages. By the beginning of the 9th century, Asparuch's state and his heirs managed to establish themselves on the territory of the Eastern Roman Empire (synonym: Byzantine Empire) - in the region between the lower reaches of the Danube and the Balkan Mountains . In the first half of the 9th century, the Proto-Bulgarian Empire expanded rapidly to the south and south-west - again at the expense of the Byzantine Empire. First under Khan Krum (ruled 803-814) and later under Tsar Simeon I (ruled 893-927), Bulgaria became a serious threat to the Byzantine Empire. For three centuries the Bulgarians, along with the Arabs, were the most dangerous enemies of Byzantium.
The struggle against Byzantium was an important factor in strengthening the Bulgarian state and transforming it into a centralized monarchy. After the successful battles against Byzantium, expansion into the areas populated by Slavs followed , which changed Danube Bulgaria not only territorially, but also in its ethnic composition. The wars did not hinder the mutual economic and cultural influence between Bulgaria and Byzantium, as they were interrupted by longer periods of peace. This influence had a particular effect on Bulgaria after its Christianization in 864 to 866.
The Bulgarian-Byzantine wars did not come to an end with the conquest of Bulgaria by Byzantium under Emperor Basil II “the slayer of the Bulgarians” in 1018-1019. During the period of Byzantine rule (until 1186) the Bulgarians rose up in some unsuccessful uprisings. Only the uprising of Ivan Assen I and Peter IV in 1185/86 led to the creation of the second Bulgarian empire with Tarnowo as its center.
At the beginning of the 13th century, under Tsar Kaloyan , the restored Bulgarian empire again included Moesia , Thrace and Macedonia (as it had done three centuries earlier) . From 1204 to 1261 Bulgaria even actively interfered in the struggle between the Despotate of Epirus , the Empire of Nikaia and the Western European crusaders of the Fourth Crusade , with the aim of succeeding the temporarily destroyed Byzantine Empire.
Since the second half of the 13th century, the enmity between Bulgaria and Byzantium was reduced to the struggle for the territory of Thrace, as the military and political power of both countries declined and new regional powers ( Hungary , Golden Horde , Serbia and the Turks) showed up.
This hostility between Bulgaria and Byzantium made it easier for the Ottoman Turks to invade the Balkans in the middle of the following century, with the result that the Bulgarian and Byzantine empires were conquered by the Ottomans.
Bulgarian campaigns against Byzantium in the 5th to 6th centuries
The enmity between the early Bulgarians (the so-called Proto- Bulgarians ) and Byzantium began after the first waves of the Great Migration . At the time when the Hun leader Attila died in 453, and during the subsequent collapse of his state, there were some large ethnic groups that are mentioned in historical sources under the collective name "Bulgarians".
Some settled in Pannonia (parts of today's Hungary, Vojvodina and Slavonia ), others in the steppes around the Sea of Azov . The mutual relations were not always clear: Byzantium was forced to endure the Bulgarian attacks on its Balkan possessions (Diocese of Thrace and Illyria ) and at the same time to maintain good relations with the Bulgarians, who were used as mercenaries in the fight against the other enemies of the Byzantine Empire, especially against the Ostrogoths . The resettlement of the Ostrogoths from what is now eastern Bulgaria to Italy in 488 paved the way for Bulgarian raids on the territory of the Byzantine Empire.
The sources contain reports of large-scale Bulgarian attacks against the Balkans in the years 493, 499 and 502. However, these sources can only be trusted to a limited extent, as they often only used collective names (e.g. Huns ) instead of their actual ones Ethnonyms .
The Bulgarian threat forced Emperor Anastasios I (ruled 491 to 518) to have the so-called Long Wall (also Anastasius Wall ) built between the Black Sea coast and the Marmara Sea , 50 kilometers west of Constantinople, in 512 . After the defeat of the Byzantine Army in Thrace in 499, the Byzantine Empire was no longer able to effectively resist the Bulgarians. In the following years so it came the Bulgarians, as this the commander in chief (during the last year reign of Anastasius I new attacks Heermeister ) Vitalian (Byzantium) incited to rebellion against Anastasius I and supported.
According to reports by Byzantine and Western chroniclers, the Bulgarians invaded the Danube almost every year at the time of Emperor Justinian I (527-565), coming from the north. At the same time there were Slavic incursions into the territory of the Byzantine Empire. The military successes of the Byzantine generals against the invaders in 530 and 535 were exceptional. Justinian I was unable to spare enough troops to defend his Balkan possessions, as he was completely occupied with defensive wars against the Sassanid Empire in Mesopotamia , Syria and the Caucasus as well as with the conquest of North Africa , Italy and Spain by the Germanic tribes . That is why Justinian I had a total of 600 fortresses built, which formed a defensive belt on the Danube, in Thrace, the Rhodope Mountains , Macedonia and Greece.
These large structures held up, but did not put an end to the attacks of the Bulgarians, Slavs and other “ barbarian tribes”. The Bulgarian attack in 539/540 extended to the areas from the Adriatic Sea to Constantinople and was accompanied by the depopulation of these areas. In the 50s of the 6th century the areas south of the Danube as far as Constantinople, the Gallipoli peninsula and Thermopylae were sacked by the Kutrigurs under Chinialus and Zabergan (also called Samur Khan). To neutralize them, Justinian resorted to diplomatic means: with expensive gifts, the emperor drew the Utigurs , the neighbors of the Kutrigurs, on his side and instigated a war in which both peoples mutually exhausted their strengths.
After 568 the Pannonian Bulgarians fell under the rule of the Avar Khaganate , but also continued their campaigns against Byzantium as vassals of the Avars . It is known that Bulgarians were actively involved in the siege of Thessaloniki in 618 (or 622), as well as in the siege of Constantinople by the Avars in 626. From the end of the 6th century until the arrival of the Bulgarians under Asparuch and Kuwer on the Balkan Peninsula Thessaloniki besieged five times by the Slavs.
Wars between Byzantium and the First Bulgarian Empire (7th to 11th centuries)
Settlement of the Bulgarians on the Balkan Peninsula
After the collapse of Kubrat's Greater Bulgarian Empire in the 1860s, Bulgarian groups relocated to the west under pressure from the Khazars from their areas on the Sea of Azov. Led by Asparuch, they crossed the Dnieper and the Dniester and reached the area around Onglos (the first settlement of Asparuch's Bulgarians after they settled on the lower Danube), which extends to the Danube Delta and bordered the Byzantine Empire. In the following decade, these Bulgarians invaded Byzantine territory several times, advancing from the north over the Danube to far south, taking advantage of the advance of the Arabs on Constantinople.
This prompted the Byzantine Emperor Constantine IV (668–685) to undertake a major campaign against them after he had defeated the Arabs. The campaign against Onglos ended with the defeat of the Byzantine army in 680. Immediately after their victory, Asparuch's Bulgarians crossed the Danube and occupied the area up to the Balkan Mountains , which they wrested from the Byzantine Empire. In the following year Constantine IV was forced to sign a peace treaty with them, in which he recognized his territorial losses and undertook to pay tribute to the Bulgarians .
At about the same time, other Bulgarians appeared on the Balkan Peninsula. These were subjects of Kuwer , Asparuch's brother. They freed themselves from Avar rule in 674–684 and moved their settlement area from Syrmia (today Sremska Mitrovica between the Danube and Save rivers ) to Macedonia. After an unsuccessful attempt to take Thessaloniki , Kuwers Bulgarians signed a peace treaty with Constantine IV. However, their influence on the Slavs living in the region diminished almost completely.
The Bulgarians on the Danube and in Macedonia were closely connected. Their striving to subjugate and detach the local Slavic population from the Byzantine Empire forced Justinian II , the successor of Constantine IV, to break the peace treaties. During the 687–688 (or 688–689) war, the emperor achieved initial successes against the Bulgarians and succeeded in subjugating the Slavs in the Thessaloniki region and relocating a large part of them to Asia Minor. In the battle of the Akontisma gorge (north of Kavala ), Justinian II's troops suffered a heavy defeat by the Bulgarian troops. Historical research is divided as to whether the Bulgarian troops were Asparuch's or Kuwer's troops.
In 705 there was another war between Bulgarians and Byzantines. The Bulgarian ruler Khan Terwel came with his troops to Constantinople and helped Justinian II to wrest power from Tiberios II (698–705) and to return to the throne that he had lost ten years earlier. In return for his help, Khan Terwel received rule over the Sagore area in northeastern Thrace from Justinian II . Three years later Justinian II undertook a campaign against the Bulgarians in order to take back the Sagore area, but suffered a defeat at Anchialos ( Battle of Anchialos (708) ). Despite this conflict, Justinian II received military aid from Terwel in the conflicts in the Byzantine Empire in 711. Terwel later also fought against Philippikos Bardanes , who had usurped the throne of Justinian II . The Bulgarian cavalry had reached the Bosphorus in 712 and wreaked havoc. In 716 a peace treaty was signed that established the borders of Thrace, as well as an annual tribute from the Byzantines to the Bulgarians. This treaty also regulates the mutual trade relations and military aid that the Bulgarians had to provide Byzantium in repelling the siege by the Arabs ( Siege of Constantinople (717–718) ). The peace treaty of 716 was kept for nearly forty years.
The campaigns of Constantine V against the Bulgarians
After Emperor Leo III. and Constantine V had won a series of victories against the Arabs in Asia Minor and Syria, the balance of power on the Balkan Peninsula shifted.
In 755 Constantine V broke the peace treaty of 716 when he carried out fortification work in Thrace and had troops from Syria and Armenia transferred there. The punitive actions of the Bulgarians led them in their campaigns to the Anastasius Wall , but there they were smashed by the Byzantines.
The counterattack by Constantine V led his troops to the Thracian border fortress Markeli (near today's Karnobat ), where the Bulgarians were defeated again in 756 and were forced to seek peace. Three years later, the Byzantine troops advanced into Danube Bulgaria, but were defeated there in the battle of the Rishkipass . This was just the beginning of a series of land and sea campaigns with which Constantine V sought to destroy the Bulgarian state. The campaigns extended over a period of 20 years, during which there were fierce internal power struggles in Bulgaria and the rulers changed several times.
With the help of their fleet, the Byzantines repeatedly devastated the Bulgarian areas near the Black Sea coast north of the Balkan Mountains. In the summer of 763 Constantine V defeated the Bulgarian ruler Khan Telez in a great battle of Anchialus (763) (today Pomorie ).
Telez was killed in clashes that followed the defeat of the Bulgarians at Anchialos. His place was taken by Khan Sabin (765–766), who was unsuccessful in his attempts to make peace with Byzantium. Constantine V organized a large-scale campaign on land and sea in 765, but it failed after a severe storm sank a significant part of the Byzantine fleet in the Black Sea. The Byzantines invaded again in 767-768 in the territory of the Bulgarians and the allied Slavic tribe of the Severen (in the eastern Balkan Mountains). The next campaigns of Constantine V followed in 773-774. With the Battle of Berzitia , which was successful for him in 774, the emperor was able to prevent a Bulgarian campaign against Macedonia, but his efforts to conquer Bulgaria were ultimately unsuccessful. The emperor died in September 775 while preparing the next attack against the Bulgarians. After the death of Constantine V, the Bulgarian empire recovered from conflicts and wars and became stronger than before. The hostility to Byzantium led to a rapprochement between the Bulgarians and the Slavs who settled in the region.
Bulgarian troops invaded Macedonia towards the end of the 8th century. This is proven by a defeat they inflicted on the Byzantine troops on the Struma in 789 .
Under Khan Kardam , Bulgaria achieved 791–792 military successes against the Byzantine troops in Thrace. The next military conflict in 796 probably ended with a new peace treaty.
The restoration and survival of the Bulgarian state south of the lower Danube in the 7th and 8th centuries was made possible by the Balkan Mountains, which formed a barrier to the south and thus offered the Bulgarians a strategic advantage in defense against advancing Byzantine troops. Another factor in survival was the human and material reserves provided by the Bulgarian area north of the Danube. These areas were never destroyed by the Byzantine campaigns. Added to this is the military pressure that the Arab caliphate was exerting on the eastern borders of the Byzantine Empire at the same time (see also Arab-Byzantine Wars ).
After the Byzantine Empire lost Egypt in the 1940s, the Balkans, and especially Thrace, had a greater economic importance for Byzantium than they did under Emperor Justinian I. However, Asia Minor was vital for the food and defense of Constantinople, and that is where it was concentrated also the bulk of the empire's military resources. These troops were only deployed towards the Balkans at times when the Arab threat was weaker. It was not until the end of the 8th century that Thrace became an economically fully-fledged province of strategic importance for Byzantium thanks to a long-term military and settlement policy of the Byzantines. This economic boom in Thrace was short-lived and ended with the war against Khan Krum .
From the end of the 7th and 8th centuries Bulgaria was again exposed to pressure from the Avars from the northwest and the Khazars from the northeast. This pressure and the economic and demographic superiority of the Byzantine Empire was the reason that the Bulgarian rulers only pursued limited strategic goals against Byzantium. One of the goals was to gain economic advantage through favorable conditions for trading and the imposition of taxes. Another goal of the Bulgarians was to capture the southern foothills of the eastern Balkan mountains. There was the most direct and convenient route to the old Bulgarian capital Pliska , which the Byzantine army could take in the event of war.
Although the Bulgarians were outnumbered and poorly equipped, they won some decisive battles: on the one hand thanks to their excellent cavalry and on the other hand thanks to their skilful tactics. By waiting, sudden attacks and counter-attacks, as well as long-range pursuit of the defeated enemy, they achieved victories at the Battle of Ongala (680), the Battle of Anchialos (708) and the Battle of Marcellae (792). These tactics also gave the Bulgarians advantages at the time of the Khan Krum wars against Byzantium.
Expansion of the Bulgarian Empire up to the middle of the 9th century
Like Constantine V, his successors followed a consistent policy of restoring the power of the Byzantine Empire in the interior of the Balkan Peninsula up to the beginning of the 9th century and endeavored to consolidate the borders with the Bulgarian Empire. Campaigns by the Byzantine army against the Slavs in Macedonia, Thessaly , Epirus and the Peloponnese in 758, 783 and 805 served this goal .
The areas that directly bordered the Bulgarian Empire were colonized by Byzantium and this population was obliged to do military service. After his successful campaigns against the Arabs in 756 and 752, Constantine V settled a large part of the resettlers from Armenia and Syria in Thrace. The forced resettlement of the Syrians in 778 continued under his son Leo IV . Nikephorus I relocated the military population from Asia Minor to Thrace and the Struma river in order to end the increasingly frequent attacks by the Bulgarians on these areas. For this purpose, a line of fortifications was built along the entire southern slope of the Balkan Mountains: it reached from Deultum via Edirne and Philippopolis (now Plovdiv ) to Serdica (now Sofia ). The attempt of Nikephorus I to destroy Bulgaria by direct military attacks, however, ended in a heavy defeat for him.
In 807 the emperor undertook a campaign against the Bulgarians in Thrace. The campaign was stopped right at the beginning because of a conspiracy against the Nikephoros. In the following year 808 Bulgarian troops penetrated deep south along the Struma and smashed (probably at Serres ) the Byzantine troops who controlled the access to the Aegean Sea . Khan Krum conquered the city of Serdica (now Sofia ) in 809 . The attempt of Nikephorus I to regain control of the city was only temporarily successful and Serdica soon fell under Bulgarian rule, clearing the way for attacks in the south-west. Through their military successes, the Bulgarians challenged the Byzantine attempts to assimilate the Slavic population in the interior of the Balkan Peninsula.
In the summer of 811 Nikephorus I gathered a significant part of his army and undertook a campaign north over the Balkan Mountains. In the first battles the Bulgarian troops were defeated and the Byzantines took one of the residences of Khan Krum (probably Pliska). In the following period, however, the Byzantine army was forced to retreat. On July 26, 811, it was almost completely destroyed by the Bulgarians (reinforced by Slavs and Avars) in the battle of the Warbiza Pass . The Emperor was among the fallen.
After the victory of the Bulgarians under Khan Krum in the Battle of Pliska moved Krum military activities to Thrace and took 812-813 a number of cities on (among other Deultum , Mesembria and Adrian Opel ), where he is wall-breaking battering rams operated, the he had taken over from the Byzantines. The Byzantine Empire had refused to conclude a new peace treaty with Bulgaria, which is why Krum was prompted to take these "defensive measures". By conquering territories in Thrace ceded by Constantine V, Krum pursued the goal of compelling Byzantium to conclude a peace treaty that was favorable to him. In the Battle of Adrianople (813) the Bulgarians crushed the army commanded by Emperor Michael I and the future Emperor Leo V. Then Krum came with his troops to Constantinople. Much of the population of Byzantine Thrace was resettled in Bulgarian territories north of the Danube. Many cities (including those in Eastern Macedonia) were abandoned by their people who fled the Bulgarians.
Kahn Krum died in April 814 at the height of preparations for a decisive attack against Constantinople. His son and successor Omurtag (814-831) continued the war, but suffered a defeat by Emperor Leo V in a battle in Thrace. Both rulers concluded a peace treaty for 30 years in 815, which established the borders in Thrace and relations with the Slavic population in the border area. Peaceful relations lasted until Omurtag's death in 831. After there was a new emperor in 820 with Michael II , the peace treaty was renewed. Omurtag helped Michael II in 823 to fend off an uprising by the opposing emperor Thomas the Slav .
After Khan Malamir (831-836) ascended the throne , the Byzantine Emperor Theophilos (829-842) violated the peace treaty. The following military conflicts in Eastern Thrace were successful for the Bulgarian troops under the leadership of Kawkhan Isbul . As a result of this victory, the city of Philippopolis (now Plovdiv ) was permanently annexed to the Bulgarian Empire. The enmity between Bulgarians and Byzantines increased at the beginning of the rule of Khan Presian I (836-852), because the Byzantine fleet had helped the insurgent Macedonians to flee from the areas of the Bulgarian empire on the other side of the Danube (the inhabitants of the Byzantine region of Macedonia , today's Eastern Thrace , were captured and resettled 25 years ago from Krum). Bulgarian troops led by Isbul initially helped the Byzantines against rebellious Slavs from the Rhodope Mountains and in the region around Thessaloniki . After Byzantium broke the peace several times, they turned their arms against the Byzantines. Although there are no clear testimony, it is believed that at that time (it could have been 837-839) the Western Rhodopes and Macedonia (today's historical-geographical region) were annexed to Bulgaria.
In the last years of Presian I's reign (which coincided with the beginning of the reign of Emperor Michael III in Byzantium) new fighting broke out in Thrace. These lasted at the beginning of the rule of Khan Boris I (later: Tsar Boris I) and ended in 856 with the conclusion of a peace treaty, on the basis of which Bulgaria surrendered part of its Thracian territories and received its new territorial acquisitions in the southwest confirmed. The war of 863 was unsuccessful for Bulgaria, but ended with a long lasting peace after Boris I agreed to accept the Christian faith together with his people.
The wars of Tsar Simeon the Great against Byzantium
During most of Boris I's reign (after 863) and the brief reign of Vladimir Rassate , there was peace with Byzantium. The Byzantine Empire was only forced to fight again against Bulgaria in the second year of Simeon I's reign . The fighting began in 894 and lasted almost ten years, with occasional interruptions due to temporary ceasefire. That was the beginning of a new period in the relations between Byzantium and Bulgaria, which was marked by distrust and the desire to destroy the enemy. A sign of the growing distance between the two realms was the rejection of the Greek language (893) in the Bulgarian administration and the Bulgarian Church and its replacement by the Old Church Slavonic language .
The reason for the war of 894 was the relocation of the market for Bulgarian traders in Byzantium from Constantinople to Thessaloniki and the conclusion of an alliance treaty between the Byzantines and the Hungarians, who at that time threatened the Bulgarian territories across the Danube. In the same year, Prince Simeon I invaded eastern Thrace and crushed the weakened Byzantine troops, some of which had been withdrawn to repel the oncoming Arabs in Asia Minor and southern Italy.
To turn the course of the war in his favor, Emperor Leo VI moved. (886-912) brought together new troops in Thrace with experienced military leaders and at the same time caused the Hungarians to attack the Bulgarian Empire. In addition, the Byzantine fleet in 894 put the Hungarian cavalry across the Danube. Simeon I, who was defeated by the Hungarians, conducted sham negotiations for a peace treaty with the Byzantine emissaries.
With the help of the Pechenegs , the ruler of the Bulgarians attacked the Hungarians in 896 and defeated them in the Etelköz region (also called Atelkuzu). Immediately after having secured the title of ruler, Simeon I invaded Eastern Thrace and smashed the main power of the Byzantine army in the Battle of Bulgarophygon (896). A peace treaty was concluded three years later, in which the Bulgarian claims to the market for the Bulgarian traders in Constantinople were satisfied.
A new conflict broke out in 901–902 when Simeon I took away from the Byzantines a number of settlements that were located around Durrës (now Albania). In 904 the Bulgarians wanted to settle Thessaloniki, which had been captured and depopulated by the Arabs that same year. Byzantium successfully opposed this intention of the Bulgarians by diplomatic means. The border between the Byzantine and Bulgarian empires was moved closer to Thessaloniki and now ran about 20 kilometers north of the city.
Simeon I waged his next war against Byzantium in 913. His goal was to establish Bulgarian rule over southeast Europe by establishing a new empire in place of the Byzantine Empire, for which he also aspired to the Roman imperial title. Simeon I also took over the Byzantines' claim to leadership in the community of Christian states. During a dynastic crisis in Constantinople after the death of Emperor Leo VI. (912) favorable circumstances arise for Simeon I for the realization of his goals. Leo VI's heir, Emperor Alexander (912–913), provided the pretext for war when he turned down the Bulgarian offer to renew the peace treaty of 904. In August 913, Simeon I besieged the Byzantine capital from land with a large force. At that time, Emperor Alexander was no longer alive. Simeon I entered into negotiations with Emperor Constantine VII and was received by the Patriarch Nicholas I in Constantinople . The reign of the minor Constantine VII under the leadership of the Patriarch Nicholas I made an agreement with the ruler of the Bulgarians. Simeon I received the imperial crown, but was only recognized as the "Basileus (Emperor) of Bulgaria" and not generally as a "Basileus". Simeon I retired to Bulgaria after his coronation to the basileus of the Bulgarians. In addition, the regents had to undertake to marry his daughter to Constantine VII.
Empress Zoe Karbonopsina (the mother of Constantine VII) took over the reign in 914. To stop the growing Bulgarian influence, she terminated the agreement between Simeon I and the Patriarch Nicholas I. Thereupon Simeon I sent his troops who captured Adrianople and also exerted military pressure on the Byzantines in Thessalonike and Dyrrhachion. In order to withstand the military pressure of the Bulgarians, Byzantium concluded an armistice with the caliph in Baghdad and transferred all of its troops to the Balkans for a decisive battle. In the Battle of Anchialus on August 20, 917, the Byzantines suffered a crushing defeat.
Now Simeon I ruled almost all Byzantine areas on the Balkan Peninsula and declared himself the "basileus of the Bulgarians and Rhomeans ". The Bulgarian troops need the Byzantines to suffer a number of other defeats: among others in the Battle of Katasyrtai in 917 and in the Battle of Pigae in 922 and advanced to the Peloponnese . Only a few enclaves remain in Byzantine hands, such as Thessalonike, Dyrrhachion and Constantinople. Simeon I was not able to take Constantinople, however, the siege failed because he could not block it on the sea side. Two attempts to forge an alliance with the Arabs, who could make their fleet available to him, failed.
The overwhelming power of the land forces and the lack of a Bulgarian fleet determined the places and character of the acts of war at this time: the Byzantines kept most of their port cities, which the Bulgarians bypassed on land without being able to realize a complete military superiority. Since it was impossible for them to feed so many soldiers over a long period of time without victories and booty, the Bulgarians temporarily relocated their military activities to Greece.
Simultaneously with the military conflicts in the eastern and southern parts of the Balkan Peninsula, the Byzantine and Bulgarian empires waged a struggle for supremacy in Serbia. In the period 917-924 Byzantium tried to bring his followers to the Serbian throne and incite them against the Bulgarians. Ultimately, however, Simeon I conquered part of the Serbian territories.
After the death of Tsar Simeon I on May 27, 927, his son and successor Peter I made a peace with Romanos I , which lasted around 40 years. As a result of this peace treaty, Byzantium recognized the title of Tsar as the Bulgarian ruler and the appointment of a separate patriarch for the Bulgarian church.
The subjugation of the Bulgarians by the Byzantine Empire
The Fall of Preslaw 971
Under Peter I (927–969), heir to Tsar Simeon I, the Bulgarian Empire was weakened militarily and politically. One reason for this was the appearance of strong neighbors in the northeast: Hungarians, Pechenegs and Russians . The weakening of Bulgaria coincided with the rise of the Byzantine Empire, which achieved decisive successes in the struggle against the Arabs in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean in the 1060s.
In the fight against the Arabs, the Byzantines perfected their military organization and tactics. With the introduction of heavy armored cavalry ( Kataphrakt and Klibanophoros ), the Byzantine army had significantly increased in strength. The strengthening of the economic power of Constantinople allowed the Byzantine emperor to increase the Byzantine and foreign mercenary troops and make them permanent. This increased the discipline and tactical cohesion of the heavily armed infantry.
In 966 the 40-year period of peace between Bulgaria and Byzantium ended. One of the reasons for the renewed conflict was the refusal of Peter I to stop the Hungarian invasion. The Hungarians had invaded Byzantine Thrace through Bulgaria. The Byzantine Emperor Nikephorus II (963–969) undertook a campaign in the southern part of the Bulgarian Empire. Since he was at war with the Arabs in Syria at the same time, he did not want to use up his own strength against Peter I. After a successful initiative of Byzantine diplomacy in 968 (see Kalokyres ), the Russian prince Svyatoslav I moved with a strong force to the lower reaches of the Danube. The Russians conquered the northeastern area of the Bulgarian Empire (today's Bessarabia and Dobruja ). Tsar Peter I, who could not withstand them with his Bulgarian troops, died in early 969. His successor, Boris II , was forced to submit to Svyatoslav I and join his campaign against Constantinople. Svyatoslav I moved the capital of Kievan Rus to Veliki Preslav .
The Bulgarian and Russian troops fought together in Thrace in 970 against the Byzantines at Arkadiopolis (today Lüleburgaz ). To put an end to the threat from the Russians, the new Basileus Johannes Tzimiskes (969–976) led his troops to the region north of the Balkan Mountains. As a result of this campaign, the Byzantines captured Veliki Preslav in April 971 and Dorostolon (today Silistra ) in July . Prince Svyatoslav I was forced to withdraw from Danube Bulgaria (= First Bulgarian Empire). Byzantium installed a military administration there. The Bulgarian Tsar Boris II was brought to Constantinople as a prisoner and had to publicly surrender his symbols of power there, but officially remained Tsar of the Bulgarians. This ended the existence of the Bulgarian Empire in 971 in the eyes of Byzantium.
The fight of Samuil and his successors against Basil II.
Main articles: Samuil , Battle of Trajan Gate, and Battle of Kleidion
Five years later, in 976, the Bulgarians began a large-scale attack from the south-east of the former First Bulgarian Empire (= Preslav Kingdom). These Bulgarians refused to recognize the rule of the Byzantine Empire ( revolt of the Komitopuli ; from Greek κομιτοπούλος / komitopoulos = son of the Komit; Komit is the administrator of a county ; meaning the sons of the Komit Nikola ). Taking advantage of the internal power struggles that had broken out in the Byzantine Empire after the death of Johannes Tzimiskes , the four brothers-Komitopuli David, Mojsej, Aron and Samuil undertook military actions against today's "Aegean Macedonia " ( Macedonia (geographical region of Greece) ) and Thessaly . Despite the early defeat of the first two brothers and their death, the Bulgarians achieved success against the local Byzantine rulers. From 978/979 the free part of Bulgaria no longer had a ruler ( Tsar of the Bulgars ) only in terms of title , but also an actual Bulgarian ruler - Tsar Roman , the son of Tsar Peter I. Roman had recently escaped from his Byzantine captivity succeeded. Byzantium refused to recognize the tsar title of the heirs of Boris II . Because every attempt to restore or continue the Bulgarian empire after its symbolic destruction in 971 (through the solemn surrender of the symbols of power of the Bulgarian Tsar Boris II) represented in the eyes of Byzantium an uprising against the legitimate power of the basileus. That was one of the reasons for the ongoing wars between Emperor Basil II and Tsar Samuil . There is the hypothesis that these wars were interrupted from 1005 to 1014 and that Basil II recognized the title of Tsar of Samuil at times during this period.
In 986, 10 years after his enthronement, Basil II undertook a campaign against Sredez (now Sofia ). But he failed with this attempt to subdue Bulgaria with a single blow, as he suffered a heavy defeat on August 17, 986 in the battle of the Trajan Gate . In 991, Basil II himself led a campaign against the Bulgarians for the second time. This second campaign developed into a whole series of campaigns that dragged on for almost four years - until the beginning of 995. As during the reign of Tsar Simeon, the Byzantines won the Serbs as allies for the war against the Bulgarians. However, there were no lasting military successes.
In the period between the attacks of the Byzantine emperor, the Bulgarian leader Samuil (from 997 Tsar Samuil) succeeded in recapturing former Bulgarian territories in the northeast and wresting vast areas of what is now Albania and northern Greece (Durrës, Epirus , Thessaly) from Byzantium . Immediately after Basil II was forced to lead his troops to Syria to repel the attack of the Fatimids there , Samuil went on to attack Thessaloniki and brought the local Byzantine military leaders 995-996 a series of military defeats. Then the Bulgarian troops went to Greece and advanced to the south of the Peloponnese .
It was not until the Byzantine military leader Nikephoros Ouranos ended the advance of the Bulgarians in this direction when he defeated the troops of Samuil and his son Gavril Radomir in the battle of Spercheios (996). After the defeat at Spercheios, Samuil changed the thrust of his attacks. In 998 he organized a campaign to Dalmatia against cities on the Adriatic coast which were subject to the Byzantine emperor: Dubrovnik , Ulcinj , Kotor and Zadar . During this campaign, Samuil also subjugated the Principality of Duklja , which had allied itself with Byzantium from 992–993.
In the wars against Basil II, the Bulgarians rely much more on ambushes than on open battles. This can be explained by the disappearance of the heavy armored horsemen, who until the events of 971 were deployed and armed in the inner regions of Bulgaria, the area between the Balkan Mountains and the Danube. Samuil's troops consisted mainly of very mobile, but only lightly armed infantry and cavalry, which in open combat could not compete with the numerous, well-armed and disciplined Byzantine army.
From the year 1000, the war took a turn. After the Byzantine emperor Basil II had made a ten-year peace with the Fatimid ruler al-Hākim bi-amr Allāh , the Byzantines went to systematically conquer the outskirts of the Bulgarian empire. From 1000 to 1003 they achieved significant successes. Samuil first lost its northeastern territories with the cities of Veliky Preslaw and Pliska . Then the Bulgarian fortresses fell in Thessaly , along the Aliakmonas river and in southeast Macedonia ( Edessa ). The city of Vidin was captured after eight months of siege. After that, the Byzantine Emperor came with his troops in Skopje , where he is on the alliance with the Hungarian king I. Stephan was based. Tsar Samuil also lost the Adriatic port of Durrës in 1005. 1006-1007 the areas remaining in the Bulgarian Empire were again devastated by a Byzantine attack. The attempt of the Bulgarians to start a counterattack on Thessaloniki was unsuccessful because they suffered a defeat in the Battle of Crete near Thessaloniki (Tsar Samuil against Emperor Basil II) in 1009 .
In the summer of 1014 there was a decisive battle near the village of Klutsch (Greek: Κλειδίον / Kleidion) in a narrow valley north of the Belasiza Mountains (between Belasiza and Ograschden Mountains).
There the Bulgarian army was surrounded on July 29, 1014 and taken prisoner by the Byzantines. On the orders of Basileus II, around 14,000 Bulgarian soldiers were blinded . Thereafter, Basil II received the nickname Bulgaroktónos ( Bulgarian slayer or Bulgarian butcher ). In the same year, at the beginning of October 1014, Tsar Samuil died. After his death, power struggles broke out among the Bulgarian Boljars . Part of the Boljars tend to submit to Byzantium. However, because of the nature of the military actions, the battle is dragging on. Byzantium is forced to take every Bulgarian fortress individually: by force or diplomacy. The Bulgarians continued to successfully use the geographical advantage of the largely mountainous region for their raids.
Despite some defeats by the Byzantines:
- Battle of Strumitza (August 1014; Tsar Gawril Radomir against Theophylaktos Botaniates †)
- Battle of Bitola (1015; Tsar Ivan Wladislaw against Georgios Gonitsiates and Orestes)
- Siege of Pernik (1016)
- Siege of Kastoria (1017)
Basileus II had the military superiority on his side.
Both heirs of Tsar Samuil, Tsar Gawril Radomir (1014-1015) and Tsar Ivan Wladislaw (1015-1018) perished: the first as a result of a conspiracy instigated by Byzantine diplomacy, the second in the battle of Durrës in early 1018. Neither his Son of Ivan Wladislaw, Presian II. , Nor his voivode Iwaz managed to organize a major resistance against Basileus II. The majority of the Bulgarian Boljars voluntarily submitted to the Byzantine Empire. After the conquest of Syrmie in 1019, Bulgaria was finally subjected.
Bulgarian uprisings against Byzantine rule
After the death of Basileus II, Byzantium went through a period of decline. In the 11th century the Bulgarians rose up in some revolts against Byzantine rule. The largest were the uprisings of Peter Deljan (1040-1041) and Georgi Voitech (1072) in the western areas of the former Bulgarian Empire. The uprising in Thessaly (1066), the uprising in the Danube region (1074), the uprising in Sredez (now Sofia) and Mesembria (now Nessebar) (1078/1079) and the uprising in the Plovdiv Oblast (1084– 1086). Under the Komnenen dynasty at the end of the 11th century and during most of the 12th century, the Byzantine Empire regained its strength and stopped the Bulgarians' attempts at liberation.
The uprising of 1040-1041 began in the Morava region (around the Morava River ) not far from Belgrade and then spread south to the Peloponnese. The uprising was triggered by the replacement of the Bulgarian clergy under the direction of the Archdiocese of Ohrid by Greek clergymen and the introduction of taxes (in the form of monetary levies) instead of the levies in kind that were common in Samuil's time. The insurgents proclaimed Peter Deljan as their tsar (believed to be Samuil's grandson) and launched an attack south. The important Byzantine bases of Skopje and Durrës were taken and Thessaloniki was also threatened with conquest after the Byzantine Emperor Michael IV was forced to flee from Deljan's troops. The Bulgarians conquered Thessaly and penetrated deep into Greece (Elada), defeating the Byzantine troops at Thiva . A turning point came when Alusian , son of Ivan Wladislaw , appeared in the rebel camp. The attack on Thessaloniki ended in a heavy defeat for the Bulgarians. The subsequent split between the followers of Deljan and the followers of Alusian facilitated the Byzantine counterattack. Alusian suffered defeat by the Byzantines and then joined their side. Deljan was captured after the Battle of Ostrowo (1041; Tsar Peter II against Emperor Michael IV). The victory of the Byzantines was final after they broke the resistance of Manuil Iwaz near Prilep and the resistance of Vojvoden Botko in the fortress Boyana (near Sredez).
In 1072, another descendant of Samuil, Konstantin Bodin (son of the Serbian king Mihailo Vojislavljević and grandson of Samuil's daughter Kosara), made a second attempt to restore the Bulgarian empire. This uprising started in the Amselfeld ( Prizren ) and then spread in two directions:
With Serbian help, the Bulgarians, led by Konstantin Bodin and Georgi Voitech, managed to defeat the Byzantines near Skopje. Byzantium managed to launch a successful counter-offensive, although it had only suffered severe attacks by the Seljuks in Armenia a year earlier . The insurgents suffered their first defeat at Kastoria and as a result lost control of Skopje. In the end they were finally beaten at Taonij (in the southern part of the blackbird field).
Wars between the Byzantine Empire and the Second Bulgarian Empire (12th-14th centuries)
Restoration of the Bulgarian state (1185 / 1186–1202)
The Byzantine rule in the northern areas of the First Bulgarian Empire could only be shaken off by the Bulgarians in the last quarter of the 12th century. because Byzantium was weakened as a result of the nomadic invasions from the steppes surrounding the Black Sea region ( Pechenegen , Torki , Kumanen ). These nomad invasions had already begun in the 11th century. In the course of time, the local Bulgarian aristocracy, to whom Byzantium had entrusted the defense of the areas on the Danube and on the Balkan Peninsula, became more and more politically and economically important.
In autumn 1185 (or spring 1186 - according to another chronology) the brothers Theodor and Assen led an uprising of the population north of the Balkan Mountains, which was directed against the Byzantine emperor (uprising of Assen and Peter). Theodore , the older of the two, was proclaimed tsar and took the name Peter, which was also borne by the ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire (Simeon's son Peter I ) and also the leader of uprisings against Byzantine rule in the 11th century.
In the following two years (1185–1187 or 1186–1188) the Byzantine emperor Isaac II and his generals Johannes Dukas , Johannes Kantakuzenos and Alexios Branas undertook a number of campaigns to crush the rebels. The emperor's first campaign, which led him north of the Balkan Mountains, was successful: some of the rebels submitted to him while others retreated north across the Danube. The success was only temporary, however, as Assen and Peter quickly regained control of Moesia (the region north of the Balkan Mountains, between the Balkan Mountains and the Danube) and, with the support of the Cumans, carried the war to Thrace. After there was no clear winner in the battle of Lardeja fortress (1186 or 1187), Isaac II threw his army again into the region north of the Balkan Mountains. The three-month siege of Lovech (1187) in the spring of 1187 (or 1188) did not lead to a positive result for the Byzantines either. The Byzantine emperor concluded an armistice with Peter and Assen and thus de facto recognized the Bulgarian state, whose new center was Veliko Tarnovo .
From the summer of 1186 the Kumanan, as allies of the Bulgarians, took an active part in the wars that Assen and his brothers waged against Byzantium. Some historical research assigns the Cumans a "decisive role in the creation of the Tarnow Tsarist Empire" (= Second Bulgarian Empire). In other works, however, it is emphasized that the lightly armed, but quickly agile cavalry of the Cumans played an auxiliary role (diversion, raids in hostile areas) in the victories of the Bulgarians.
The peace agreed in Lovech was short-lived. Peter and Assen tried to form an alliance against Byzantium with the German Emperor Barbarossa when he led the Third Crusade and traveled through the Balkans (1189–1190). This alliance endeavor prompted Isaac II to undertake a third campaign against northern Bulgaria. The Byzantines reached and besieged Veliko Tarnovo, but suffered a devastating defeat in the summer of 1190 when the Bulgarians defeated them in the Battle of Trjawnaja (more precisely: on the Trjawna Pass near Trjawna ). This finally confirmed the existence of the second Bulgarian empire.
Under the leadership of Assen, the Bulgarians launched the attack, which was directed against the region south of the Balkan Mountains. According to the Byzantine chronicler Niketas Choniates , the aim of the Bulgarians, from the very beginning of their uprising, was to unite the areas of Moesia and Macedonia under one rule, as was the case during the First Bulgarian Empire. The conspiracy of the Byzantine general Constantine Angelos against Isaac II in 1193 made it easier for Assen to achieve his goals. The Bulgarian and Cuman armed forces penetrated deep into Thrace and defeated the Byzantines in 1194 in the Battle of Arcadiopolis (1194) (Tsar Ivan Assen I against Alexios Gid and Basil Vatatsi †). The attempt of the Byzantines to undertake a counterattack with the support of the Hungarians was repulsed in the spring of 1195 after Isaac II. From his brother Alexios III. was overthrown. Assen conquered Sredez and pulled the Struma valley along the lower reaches of the Struma to the south with his army.
In the Battle of Serres (1196, Tsar Ivan Assen I against Sebastokrator Isaac) and in the Battle of Amphipolis (1196) the Byzantines were defeated by the Bulgarians. The end of Byzantine rule over the north-western areas (Niš, Belgrade, Branitschewo near Kostolac ) was in sight. The attack by the Bulgarians was interrupted because of the murder of Ivan Assen I by his cousin Ivanko and the subsequent power struggle in Veliko Tarnowo. As a result, Assen's brother, Tsar Peter IV , was also murdered.
The war continued after Tsar Kalojan , the younger brother of Peter and Assen, took the throne in Tarnovo. The new ruler of the Bulgarians supported his compatriots Iwanko and Dobromir Chrysos , who had separated part of the Rhodope and Macedonia (1198–1200) from the Byzantine Empire . After Iwanko by Alexios III. was captured, Kaloyan initiated a new anti-Pyzantine insurrection in Macedonia and Thessaly, led by Dobromir Chrysos and Manuel Kamytzes . In March of the same year the Bulgarian tsar conquered Varna , the last city in northeastern Bulgaria remaining under Byzantine rule. This protracted Bulgarian-Byzantine war was ended by a peace treaty in 1201 or early 1202. In this treaty, Byzantium was forced to recognize some of the territorial gains of the Tarnov Tsarist Empire, but not the title of Tsar of Kaloyan or the title of patriarch for the highest Bulgarian clergyman.
Battle for the Byzantine heritage: Tarnowo against Epirus and Nikaia
Constantinople was invaded by the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade in 1203 . Kaloyan rejected it with his force Alexios III. to come to the rescue and instead used the difficulties of the Byzantines to conquer those parts of Macedonia that had remained in the Byzantine Empire with the peace treaty of 1201.
In April 1204 the Crusaders conquered Constantinople and laid the foundations for the Latin Empire , which lasted a little more than half a century. Only a few smaller countries remained from the Byzantine Empire in northwest Greece ( Despotate Epirus ), in eastern Asia Minor ( Empire Nikaia ) and on the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor ( Empire Trebizond ).
The Greeks in Greece recognized Kalojan as their ruler, but later they preferred to submit to the Latins. Ever since the Battle of Adrianople (1205) , in which the Latin Empire was defeated by the Bulgarians and Kumanan, Epirus and Nicaea fought for the restoration of the Byzantine Empire.
Of the three successor states of the Byzantine Empire, only the despotate Epirus shared a border with Bulgaria. After the defeat of the independent Bulgarian Sebastokrators Sterz in his campaign against the Serbs in 1214, the despot of Epirus Theodoros I Angelos (ruled 1215-1230) appropriated his territories in Macedonia. Theodoros' aggressive policy, who conquered Thessaloniki and Edirne and proclaimed himself emperor, led to war with the Tarnov Bulgarian Empire in 1230. As a result of the Battle of Klokotnitsa (1230), the despotate of Epirus ceased to exist. His territories in Thrace, Macedonia and Albania were annexed to the Bulgarian Empire and Manuel I , the ruler of the territories in the region of Thessaloniki, Thessaly and Epirus became a de facto vassal of Ivan Assen II.
After the defeat of Theodoros I Angelos , the Nikaia Empire became the main contender for the restoration of the Byzantine Empire. In 1237 Bulgaria was still at war with the Empire of Nikaia and supported the unsuccessful attempt of the Latin emperor to drive the defenders of Nikaia from the fortress of Zurulon, which protected the outskirts of Constantinople. After the death of Ivan Assen II, the nike ruler John III. exploited the weakness of the Tarnow Bulgarian Empire and in 1246 conquered Eastern Thrace, the Rhodope Mountains and a large part of Macedonia
The attempt by Michael II Assen to retake these areas led to war between 1254 and 1256. Initially, the Tarnow troops, supported by the uprising of the population in the Rhodope Mountains, had great success. The counterattack by Theodor II forced Tsar Michael II Assen to conclude the Peace of Regin (Bulgarian Регински мир) in 1256 , with which the Nikaia empire strengthened its territorial expansion that took place 10 years ago.
Because of the Bulgarian defeat, fighting broke out for the Tsar's throne in Veliko Tarnovo. At the same time, the Bulgarian Empire in the north-west of Hungary was threatened. Under this constellation, the Empire of Nicaia succeeded in retaking Constantinople in 1261 , with which the Latin Empire came to an end and the Byzantine Empire was restored.
Conflicts in Bulgaria and the strengthening of the Byzantine Empire (1261–1301)
After the time of Latin rule in Constantinople, there was a change in the strategic goals of the military conflict between Bulgaria and Byzantium. Byzantium no longer pursued the goal of destroying the Bulgarian Empire, but wanted to achieve much more territorial gains in Thrace. With small exceptions, after Kalojan and Ivan Assen II, the Bulgarian tsars no longer pursued the goal of conquering Thessaloniki and Constantinople. Instead, they concentrated on keeping the areas inhabited by Bulgarians (Thrace, Rhodope, Macedonia). Compared with the other enemies of the Byzantine Empire, the Bulgarians became a secondary factor in Byzantine foreign policy.
In 1262 a protracted war broke out between the Second Bulgarian Empire and the restored Byzantine Empire. One of the reasons for this war was that the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII , who initially supported Tsar Konstantin Tich Assen against Mizo Assen , suddenly began to support the new aspirant to the throne in Tarnowo.
At the beginning of the war, Konstantin Tich Assen captured a number of fortresses in Eastern Thrace. At the same time the Bulgarian army captured part of Macedonia.
The Byzantine military leader Mikhail Tarchaniot (Bulgarian Михаил Глава Тарханиот) led a successful attack in 1263, through which the Bulgarians lost many cities in Thrace: including Plovdiv and Mesembria (was handed over to Byzantium by Mizo Assen ). Tsar Konstantin Tich Assen responded in 1265 with new incursions into Eastern Thrace with the support of the Tatars , but did not achieve any lasting success. The war ended in 1269 with a treaty that was strengthened by the marriage of the Bulgarian tsar to the niece of Michael VIII. The bilateral relations, however, remained hostile until the end of the Tsarist rule of Konstantin Tich Assen.
With the uprising of Iwajlo in 1277 one of the internal wars began again in Bulgaria. After the defeat of Konstantin Tich Assen in the fight against the rebels, Iwajlo, son of Mizo and grandson of Ivan Assen II, was proclaimed tsar by the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII. Michael VIII sent Iwajlo with his troops to the area north of the Balkan Mountains to take possession of his tsarist empire (1278).
Since Iwajlo was busy with the Tatars who had invaded northeast Bulgaria, the son of Mizo succeeded in usurping the throne in Tarnowo and becoming Tsar Ivan Assen III. to crown. He was also able to do this because he was supported by part of the Bulgarian elite. The Byzantine troops, led by Mikhail Tarchaniot, conquered almost all of Moesia and advanced west to Vidin. They surrounded Iwajlo in the fortress Durostorum (today Silistra ). These Byzantine successes were short-lived. The war took a turn in Iwajlo's favor in 1279 when it defeated two Byzantine armies, the Ivan Assen III. rushed to help ( Battle of Devnja ; July 17, 1279, Tsar Ivajlo against Murin). After that Iwan Assen III was. forced to flee to Byzantium: on the one hand he was threatened by the insurgents under Iwajlo, on the other hand by a conspiracy of the Boljars in Tarnowo. Thus, Michael VIII's attempt to subjugate Bulgaria to the throne in Tarnovo by means of a tsar who was dependent on him had failed.
Under Emperor Andronikos II (Byzantium) (1282–1328) and Tsar Georgi I Terter (1280–1292) a peace was made between Tarnowo and Constantinople. The subsequent Bulgarian Tsar Smilez (1292-1298) waged a war against Byzantium at the beginning of his rule, but was defeated by Mikhail Tarchaniot and was forced to seek peace. Soon after the death of Smilez, the Tsarist empire in Tarnow was internally destabilized. Once again the Byzantines tried, as they did in the time of Iwajlo, to heave their husband onto the throne of Tarnowo, this time against Tsar Todor Svetoslav (1300-1321). The first contender was Michael Tich Assen , the son of Konstantin Tich Assen , whose campaign against Tarnowo 1300/1301 ended in defeat. A little later Byzantium sent the Sebastokrator Radoslaw together with Byzantine troops to Bulgaria, he was one of the brothers of Smilez (there were three brothers in total: Smilez, Radoslaw and Wojsil ). However, this attempt also failed: Radoslaw was beaten, captured and blinded by Aldimir . Aldemit was the ruler of the Despotate Kran (bulg. Крънско деспотство) and an ally of Todor Svetoslav.
Bulgarian-Byzantine clashes on the eve and in the course of the Ottoman conquest (14th century)
Tsar Todor Swetoslaw and Aldimir, the despot of Kran, raided the Byzantine possessions south of the Balkan Mountains in 1303–1304. Mesembria, Sozopol and other cities fell into their hands. The Byzantine troops who opposed them were led by Michael IX. , the emperor's son, as well as Smilez's brother Wojsil and Michail Tarchaniot.
In the Battle of Skafida (1304) Wojsil's troops were crushed by Todor Svetoslav. In response, Emperor Michael IX. an attack on the regions near the Balkan Mountains, which was unsuccessful. After some successes on the battlefield, Byzantium was able to win Aldimir on his side. Tsar Todor Svetoslav successfully fought against Aldimir and destroyed his despotate. The war ended for the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1307 with territorial gains in northeast Thrace.
The Bulgarian Tsar Georgi II Terter attacked Byzantine Thrace in 1322 and took Prowdiv. This took place at the height of the civil war in Byzantium, which between Andronikos II. And his grandson Andronikos III. raged. Andronikos III. succeeded in crushing the Bulgarian armed forces that had advanced into the vicinity of Edirne. After the death of Georgi II Terter in the same year (1322) the cities in northeastern Thrace (between Iambol and Mesembria ) sided with the Byzantines. Soon after the coronation of Tsar Michael III. in Tarnowo he took back his lost territories, the cities mentioned. However, he lost Plovdiv, which was captured by the Byzantines due to the negligence of the local garrison. Michael III succeeded in defeating the Bulgarian allies of the Byzantines, Wojsil, who ruled the region on the Balkan Mountains around the Anevo fortress (also known as Kopsis; near the village of Anewo ). Then Michael III urged. deep into Eastern Thrace. In the summer of 1324 a peace treaty was signed that laid down the territorial status quo achieved in the course of the fighting . The conflict flared up again in 1328, but was by an agreement between the Bulgarian Tsar and Andronikos III. attached. Andronikos III. had in the meantime already finally prevailed in the internal power struggle against Andronikos II.
After the defeat and death of Michael III. in the battle of Welbaschd (July 28, 1330) against the Serbs, Emperor Andronikos III captured. again the areas around Iambol and Mesembria. He then had to cede it again after Tsar Ivan Alexander (1331-1371) had defeated him in the Battle of Rusokastro (July 18, 1332).
Bulgarian-Byzantine relations deteriorated again in 1341 when Byzantium sent its allies Umur (ruler of the emirate of Aydın ), with the center of Smyrna - now Izmir . Umur's fleet reached the mouth of the Danube, where it destroyed the city of Kilija . In the same year a power struggle broke out between John VI in Byzantium . and the government of the underage emperor Johannes V. Tsar Ivan Alexander actively interfered in the internal Byzantine power struggles: the Bulgarian troops advanced along the lower reaches of the Maritsa . Seeking to be an ally against John VI. To win, the government in Constantinople ceded the city of Plovdiv and a number of other cities in the Rhodope Mountains to the Bulgarian tsar in Tarnowo. In order to oppose the Bulgarians, John VI. Troops from Umur, the emir of Aydın. The Turks from Aydın, later also the Ottoman Turks, devastated the Bulgarian territories in Thrace heavily.
The Ottoman attack on Thrace in the 50s and 60s of the 14th century ended the Bulgarian-Byzantine conflicts. The last war between Trnowo and Constantinople took place in 1364 when John V took the cities of Anchialos (now Pomorie ) and Mesembria. Two years later, Count Amadeus VI. of Savoy at the request of the Byzantines the cities of Agatapolis (today Akhtopol ) and Mesembria and handed them over to the Byzantines.
End of the Bulgarian-Byzantine Wars
In 1422 the second Bulgarian empire finally succumbed to the blows of the Ottoman attacks. In 1453 Constantinople was taken. Both empires, the Byzantine and Bulgarian empires, became part of the Ottoman Empire , which ended the long series of Bulgarian-Byzantine wars forever.
See also
Remarks
- ↑ The Battle of the Rishki Pass is also known as the Battle of the Veregava Pass . Veregava or Verigava is the old name for the Rish Pass of the Balkan Mountains , located in the fortress Markeli. In addition, Veregava is the Slavic name for the Balkan Mountains, particularly the Eastern Balkan Mountains, mentioned in Byzantine sources from the 9th century.
- ^ John Fine: Bulgaria. In: Dictionary of the Middle Ages . Volume 2, ISBN 0-684-17022-1 , pp. 399-414.
- ↑ Etelköz or Atelkuzu is Hungarian for "land between the rivers" - between the Bug and the Dniester . That is roughly the area of today's southern Ukraine , the Republic of Moldova and the Romanian region of Moldova .
- ↑ The Bulgarian Manuil Iwaz was one of the commanders of Michael II , probably the son of Samuil's boyars Iwaz .
- ↑ The Lardeja fortress is located near the village of Losenez (Yambol Oblast) in the Yambol Oblast .
literature
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- Raymond Detrez: Historical dictionary of Bulgaria . Scarecrow Press, Lanham 1997, ISBN 0-8108-3177-5 .
- John VA Fine Jr .: The Early Medieval Balkans. A critical survey from the sixth to the late twelfth century. Ann Arbor 1983, ISBN 0-472-08149-7 . ( online at google.books )
- Nevill Forbes (Author), Arnold J. Toynbee (Contributor), D. Mitrany (Contributor), DG Hogarth (Contributor): The Balkans: A History Of Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Rumania and Turkey. Oxford 1915. (Reprinted 2012, ISBN 978-1-4538-7135-5 .)
- Wassil Gjuselew : Research on the history of Bulgaria in the Middle Ages. Friends of the Wittgenstein House, Vienna 1986.
- Wassil Gjuselew: Medieval Bulgaria Byzantine Empire Black Sea Venice. Publishing house Baier, Villach 1988.
- Hans-Joachim Härtel, Roland Schönfeld: Bulgaria. From the Middle Ages to the present. Verlag Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg 1998, ISBN 3-7917-1540-2 .
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- Daniel Ziemann: From wandering people to great power: the emergence of Bulgaria in the early Middle Ages (7th-9th centuries) . Böhlau Verlag, Cologne / Weimar 2007, ISBN 978-3-412-09106-4 .