Ivan Assen I.

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Ivan Assen I ( Bulgarian Иван Асен I , scientific transliteration Ivan Asen; † 1196 in Tarnowgrad ) was a Bulgarian tsar who ruled from 1190 to 1195. Ivan Assen I. (often just Assen, his birth name was Johann or Ivan) was also known under the name Belgun (from Proto Bulgarian : wise, knowing ) known.

Ivan Assen I. initially administered the region around Lovetsch under Byzantine rule together with his brother Theodor , before he led an uprising against the Byzantines. The uprising soon spread in the area between the Balkan Mountains and the Danube . It ended with the peace treaty with Byzantium signed in Lovech in 1187, which sealed the establishment of the Second Bulgarian Empire de jure. Tarnowgrad was chosen as the new capital .

His brother Theodor ruled as Tsar Peter IV for a year after the death of Iwan Assen I. Iwan Assen I, together with his brothers Teodor-Petar and Kalojan Assen, co-founded the Assenid dynasty . Under the leadership of this dynasty, the Bulgarian Empire gained independence from Byzantium and regained power. It dominated the Balkan Peninsula again , both militarily and culturally.

The Byzantine historian Niketas Choniates is an important source for Iwan Assen . Niketas Choniates reports that Iwan Assen was a determined tactician and merciless towards his enemies. He describes him as proud and self-confident and that his lack of gentleness and fiery character was one of the reasons for his downfall.

Restoration of the Bulgarian state

A revolt broke out in Bulgaria in 1185 under the leadership of Assen and Theodor-Peter. Niketas Choniates reported that the reason for the outbreak of the uprising was the refusal of the Byzantine emperor Isaac II to accept the two brothers into the Pronoiai system , a kind of tax tenancy as a substitute for a wage. The two brothers urgently needed land and the income from it in order to be able to pay a substantial new tax to the emperor. This new tax was introduced by Isaac II to raise money for the wedding of the daughter of Béla III. from Hungary to get together.

In the spring of 1185 and early 1186 the insurgents had successes. The Byzantine emperor undertook several campaigns against the Bulgarians. During one of the campaigns, the Byzantine army was stopped at the strong Lovetsch fortress in 1187. After the siege by the Byzantines was unsuccessful, they were forced to a peace treaty. This practically meant the restoration of the Bulgarian Empire.

Building an independent Bulgarian church

One of the first tasks of the new rulers was to clarify the church question. Until then, the Bulgarian territories were under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Ohrid . As an independent state, however, the independent, new Bulgarian Empire aimed to have its own church. Wasiliji was chosen as head of the Bulgarian Church, who then crowned Teodor tsar. In order to underline the succession of the First Bulgarian Empire, Teodor took the dynastic name Petar IV.

Third crusade

Friedrich I. Barbarossa led the German knights on their Third Crusade in 1189 . Assen and Peter decided that this German king could legally enshrine the status of Bulgaria. That is why they offered him military assistance in the fight against Byzantium on two occasions.

literature

  • Ivan Dujčev: Asen I . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 1, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1980, ISBN 3-7608-8901-8 , Sp. 1106.
  • Edgar Hösch , Karl Nehring, Holm Sundhaussen (ed.): Lexicon for the history of Southeast Europe. Böhlau, Vienna / Cologne / Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-205-77193-1 , p. 62 f.
  • Detlef Kulman: Asen I. , in: Biographisches Lexikon zur Geschichte Südosteuropas . Vol. 1. Munich 1974, p. 102 f.

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LMA). Munich 1980ff. part 1
personal data
SURNAME Ivan Assen
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Иван Асен; Ivan Asen; Asen I.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bulgarian ruler (1190–1195)
DATE OF BIRTH before 1190
DATE OF DEATH 1196
Place of death Tarnowgrad