Cardam (Bulgaria)

Kardam ( Bulgarian Кардам ) was the ruler ( Khan ) of Bulgaria from 777 to 803. He was the successor of Telerig , who went into exile in 777. The only known source for this, however, is Sigebert von Gembloux .

Like other Bulgarian rulers of the time, very little has been passed on about the life of Khan Kardam. Around 790 he advanced with his troops far into western Byzantine territory, in the direction of the Bulgarian khaganate of Bitola . In the Struma valley he defeated a Byzantine army . 791 decided the Byzantine emperor Constantine VI. to countermeasures and marched towards Sagore . Khan Kardam got ahead of him, he surprised and defeated the Byzantines near Adrianople whereupon they withdrew.

In July 792, Emperor Constantine VI left. Constantinople in the direction of Marcellai near which the Bulgarian-Byzantine border ran. Once there, he set up camp and fortified the fortifications. The Bulgarian troops led by Khan Kardam reached Marcellai on July 20th and were able to defeat the Byzantines in the ensuing battle .

Cardam captured the imperial train. Emperor Constantine VI. agreed to peace and annual tribute payments . When Constantine VI. Refusing to pay the annual tribute in 796, Cardam threatened the devastation of Thrace and the siege of Constantinople. The Byzantine emperor, who was waiting for a revenge, threatened a crushing victory at Marcellai. However, when he left Constantinople towards the Bulgarian-Byzantine border, the Bulgarian troops were already at Adrianople. According to the Byzantine chronicler Theophanes, the two armies faced each other for 17 days without being involved in combat operations. This time was probably used for talks, because shortly afterwards the peace treaty of 792 was renewed.

No other sources for the life of Khan Kardam have come down to us. This is one of the reasons why it is assumed that he died of natural causes. Khan Kardam pacified the various Boilen factions , which often stirred up conspiracies in his predecessors. During his reign the Bulgarian empire consolidated internally. With regard to Byzantium, Kardam switched from the defense policy of his predecessors to a policy of aggression and thus laid the groundwork for the foreign policy and military successes of his successors. 803 succeeded Krum on the Bulgarian throne.

Cardam Buttress , a mountain ridge on Livingston Island in Antarctica, has been named after him since 2005 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Латински извори за българската история (German for example: Latin sources on Bulgarian history), Volume 3, Verlag БАН, Sofia 1965, p. 44.

literature

• Mosko Moskov: Imennik na bălgarskite hanove (novo tălkuvane) , Sofia 1988.
• Jordan Andreev, Ivan Lazarov, Plamen Pavlov: Koj koj ev srednovekovna Bălgarija , Sofia 1999.
• Bahši Iman: Džagfar Tarihy , vol. III, Orenburg 1997.

predecessor	Office	successor
Telerig	Khan of Bulgaria 777-803	Krum