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Krum
Khan of Bulgaria from 803 to 814 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Krum (Greek: Κροῦμος/Kroumos[a]), often referred to as Krum the Fearsome (Greek: Krum Strashni) (c. mid 8th century – 13 April 814) was the Khan of Bulgaria from sometime between 796 and 803 until his death in 814. During his reign the Bulgarian territory doubled in size, spreading from the middle Danube to the Dniester and from Odrin to the Tatra Mountains. His able and energetic rule brought law and order to Bulgaria and developed the rudiments of state organization.[1][2]
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Biography
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Origins
Krum was born around the middle of the 8th century, but his family background and the circumstances of his accession are unknown. It has been speculated that Krum might have been a descendant of Khan Kubrat through his son Kuber.[3] The Bulgar name Krum comes from the Old Turkic qurum and means "ruler".[4][5][6]
Establishment of new borders
Around 805, Krum defeated the Avar Khaganate to destroy the remainder of the Avars and to restore Bulgar authority in Ongal, the traditional Bulgar name for the area north of the Danube across the Carpathians covering Transylvania and along the Danube into eastern Pannonia. This resulted in the establishment of a common border between the Frankish Empire and Bulgaria, which would have important repercussions for the policy of Krum's successors.
Conflict with Nikephoros I
Krum engaged in a policy of territorial expansion. In 807, Bulgarian forces defeated the Byzantine army in the Struma valley. In 809 Krum besieged and forced the surrender of Serdica, slaughtering the garrison of 6,000 despite a guarantee of safe conduct. This victory provoked Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros I to settle Anatolian populations along the frontier to protect it and to attempt to retake and refortify Serdica, although this enterprise failed.
In early 811, Nikephoros I undertook a massive expedition against Bulgaria, advancing to Marcellae (near Karnobat). Here Krum attempted to negotiate on 11 July 811, but Nikephoros was determined to continue with his plunder. His army somehow avoided Bulgarian ambushes in the Balkan Mountains and made its way into Moesia. They managed to take over Pliska on 20 July, as only a small, hastily assembled army was in their way. Here Nikephoros helped himself to the treasures of the Bulgarians while setting the city afire and turning his army on the population. A new diplomatic initiative from Krum was rebuffed.
The chronicle of the 12th-century patriarch of the Syrian Jacobites, Michael the Syrian, describes the brutalities and atrocities of Nikephoros: "Now Nicephorus [sic] went with a large force against the Bulghars [sic]. He reached the capital city of their kingdom and caused great destruction, to the point that he threw their little children on the ground and mercilessly drove over them with his threshing wagons."[7]
While Nikephoros I and his army pillaged and plundered the Bulgarian capital, Krum mobilized as many soldiers as possible, giving weapons to women and even to peasants. This army was assembled in the mountain passes to intercept the Byzantines as they returned to Constantinople. At dawn on 26 July, the Bulgarians managed to trap the retreating Nikephoros in the Varbitsa Pass. The Byzantine army was wiped out in the ensuing battle and Nikephoros was killed, while his son Staurakios was carried to safety by the imperial bodyguard after receiving a paralyzing wound to the neck. It is said that Krum had the Emperor's skull lined with silver and used it as a drinking cup.
Conflict with Michael I Rangabe
Staurakios was forced to abdicate after a brief reign (he died from his wound in 812), and he was succeeded by his brother-in-law Michael I Rangabe. In 812 Krum invaded Byzantine Thrace, taking Develt and scaring the population of nearby fortresses to flee towards Constantinople. From this position of strength, Krum offered a return to the peace treaty of 716. Unwilling to compromise from a position of weakness, the new Emperor Michael I refused to accept the proposal, ostensibly opposing the clause for exchange of deserters. To apply more pressure on the Emperor, Krum besieged and captured Mesembria (Nesebar) in the autumn of 812.
In February 813, the Bulgarians raided Thrace, but were repelled by the Emperor's forces. Encouraged by this success, Michael I summoned troops from the entire Byzantine Empire and headed north, hoping for a decisive victory. Krum led his army south towards Adrianople and pitched camp near Versinikia. Michael I lined up his army against the Bulgarians, but neither side initiated an attack for two weeks. The Battle of Versinikia finally commenced on 22 June 813, when the Byzantines attacked and were immediately turned to flight. With Krum's cavalry in pursuit, the rout of Michael I was complete, and Krum advanced on Constantinople. On the way, most of the fortresses, hearing about the strength of the Bulgarian army, surrendered without a fight.[8] Only Adrianople resisted, and was besieged by Krum's brother. Krum himself reached Constantinople and performed an impressive pagan ceremony before its walls, sacrificing people and animals. This made a great impression on the inhabitants of Constantinople and was even described by Theophanes the Confessor and the Scriptor incertus (an anonymous Byzantine short chronicle describing the events of the period 811 – 820). In addition, Krum ordered a moat with a rampart to be dug from Blachernae to the Golden Gate, surrounding the capital on the land side. These siege preparations were more a demonstration of strength than a serious attempt to capture the city. The aim was to force the Byzantine rulers to conclude a peace with which they would recognize the conquests of the Bulgarians.[8]
The discredited Michael was forced to abdicate and become a monk; he was the third Byzantine Emperor forced to give up the throne by Krum in as many years.[8]
Conflict with Leo V the Armenian
Michael's successor Leo V the Armenian started the peace negotiations, with a secret intention to assassinate Krum. The two sides agreed to a meeting between small groups of unarmed negotiators. Leo V was not present, while Krum attended in the company of Kavkhan Iratais and Konstantin Pacik (Krum's son-in-law, who was most likely used as a translator). Leo's agents ambushed the group, but Krum, who had guessed what was happening, escaped after being wounded. The Kavkhan was killed, and Konstantin Patsik together with his son (Krum's nephew) were captured.[8] Enraged by the baseness of the Romans, Krum ordered the looting and burning of churches and monasteries in Eastern Thrace. His wrath culminated in the fall of Adrianople and the capture of 10,000 soldiers defending the city (including the parents of the future Emperor Basil I). Although Krum realized the defensive capabilities of the Byzantine capital, he ordered massive preparations for the attack on Constantinople to begin, which included Slavs, Avars and special siege equipment ("turtles", battle towers, "rams", flamethrowers, etc.).[8] Worried by all these preparations, the emperor began to strengthen the city walls and defenses. But this grandiose plan of the Bulgarian ruler was not implemented. On April 13, 814, Krum died, most likely of a hemorrhage and stroke.
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Legacy
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Krum was remembered for instituting the first known written Bulgarian law code, which ensured subsidies to beggars and state protection to all poor Bulgarians. Drinking, slander, and robbery were severely punished. Through his laws he became known as a strict but just ruler, bringing Slavs and Bulgars into a centralized state.
Novels have been written on his life, such as by Dmityar Mantov (1973)[9] and Ivan Bogdanov (1990).[10]
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