The conquest of Bulgaria by Svyatoslav
1050 years ago, in 968, the great Russian prince Svyatoslav Igorevich defeated the Bulgarians and established himself on the Danube.
prehistory
The Khazar campaign of Svyatoslav made a huge impression on the surrounding tribes and countries, especially the Byzantine (East Roman) empire. Russian troops pacified Volga Bulgaria (Bulgaria), defeated hostile Russia and the essentially parasitic Khazaria, which for centuries had robbed Slavic-Russian tribes, took tribute to people to sell them into slavery. Svyatoslav completed a long struggle with the Khazar "miracle Yud", which was also led by Rurik, Oleg and Igor. The Ruses defeated the Khazars, took their capital Itil, and the ancient capital of the Kaganate - Semender on the Caspian Sea (Saber kick of Svyatoslav on the Khazar "miracle-yuda"; 1050 years ago Svyatoslav squads defeated the state of the Khazars). Rus were conquered by the tribes of the North Caucasus - Yasy-Aces-Alans and Kasogh-Circassians. Svyatoslav established on the Taman Peninsula, which became the Russian Tmutarakan. On the way back, Svyatoslav completed the rout of the Khazars, taking her last stronghold on the Don, Sarkel, who became the Russian fortress Belaya Vezha.
The results of the campaign were amazing: the huge and powerful Khazar empire was crushed and disappeared forever from the world map, the remnants of the Khazar usury and merchant elite, who lived through the slave trade and control of the routes from Europe to the East, fled to Crimea or the Caucasus (after Svyatoslav died Khazars-Jews will settle in Kiev). Paths to the East have been cleared. Russia received strong outposts - Tmutarakan and Belaya Vezha. Volga Bulgaria has ceased to be a hostile barrier. The balance of power in the half-Byzantine and semi-Khazar Crimea changed, where Kerch (Korchev) also became a Russian city.
All this alarmed Byzantium, which Russian campaigns had already shaken more than once in the past. The Byzantines (Greeks, Romans) used the ancient strategy of Rome - divide and conquer. Khazaria was necessary for them as a counterbalance to Russia and the steppe people. In general, the defeat of the Khazars suited the Romans, it was possible to include the Khazars in its sphere of influence, to increase its influence on it. However, the complete defeat of the Kaganate and the capture of the important outposts on the Don, Taman and Crimea in Constantinople did not suit the Russians. Most of all, the Romans were afraid of a spurt of Russian troops in Tavria (Crimea). Svyatoslav troops cost nothing to cross the Bosphorus of Cimmeria (Kerch Strait) and capture the flowering region. Kherson was then a rich trading city. Romans did not have the strength to protect the city and especially the whole Crimea. Now the fate of the Kherson theme, which supplied Constantinople with grain, depended on the favor of the Russian prince. The Khazar campaign set free for the Russian merchants trade routes along the Volga and the Don. It was logical to continue the successful offensive and take the gate to the Black Sea - Chersonese. The strategic situation led to a new round of Russian-Byzantine confrontation.
Kalokira Mission
It is obvious that in the Byzantine elite all understood this perfectly. Romans decided to lure Svyatoslav on the Danube to distract from the Crimea. And there you see the warlike prince and lay down his head in one of the fights and save Byzantium from a headache. Around the end of 966 (or the beginning of 967 of the year), the Byzantine embassy arrived in the capital city of Kyiv to the Russian prince Svyatoslav Igorevich. He was headed by the son of Chersonesus stratiga Kalokir, who was sent to the Russian prince by the emperor Nikifor Fock. Before sending the envoy to Svyatoslav, Basileus summoned him to Constantinople, discussed the details of the negotiations, conferred the high title of Patrik and handed over a valuable gift, a huge amount of gold - 15 centenaries (about 450 kg).
The Greek envoy was an extraordinary man. The Byzantine historian Leo Deacon calls him "courageous" and "ardent." Later, Kalokir will still meet on the path of Svyatoslav and prove that he is a man who knows how to play a big game. The main goal of Kalokir’s mission, for which, according to the Byzantine chronicler Lev Deacon, Patricia with a huge amount of gold was sent to Russia, was to persuade him to act in alliance with Byzantium against Bulgaria. In 966, the emperor Nicephorus Fock led his troops against the Bulgarians.
"Sent by Tsarist will to the Tauro-Scythians (as the old memory was called the Rus, considering them to be direct descendants of the Scythians, heirs of the Great Scythia) Patrician Kalokir, who came to Scythia (Rus), liked the head of the Taurians, bribed him with gifts, charmed with flattering words ... and convinced him to go against minis (Bulgarians) with a great ratiu with the condition that he, having conquered them, kept their country in their own power, and assisted him in conquering the Roman state and obtaining the throne. He promised him (Svyatoslav) for delivering the great countless treasures from the state treasury. ” The version of the Deacon is extremely simple. The Byzantine chronicler tried to show that Kalokir bribed the barbarian leader, made him his tool in his hands, a weapon against Bulgaria, which was to become a springboard for a higher goal - the throne of the Byzantine Empire. Kalokir dreamed, relying on Russian swords, to seize Constantinople and hand over to Bulgaria for payment to Svyatoslav.
However, this is a false version created by the Greeks, who were constantly rewriting history in their own interests. Researchers studied other Byzantine and Eastern sources and found out that the Deacon did not know much, or did not consciously mention it, did not mention it. Obviously, initially Kalokir acted in the interests of the emperor Nicephorus Focha. But after the vile murder of Nikifor II Foki - the conspiracy was led by the emperor's wife Feofano and her lover, the commander John Tzimiskes, decided to fight for the throne. In addition, there is evidence that the Ruses, while helping Nicephorus in the struggle with Bulgaria, performed the allied duty. The union was concluded before the reign of Svyatoslav. Russian troops, possibly under the command of the young Svyatoslav, had already helped Nikifor Foke to repel the island of Crete from the Arabs.
Vladimir Kireev. "Prince Svyatoslav"
The situation in Bulgaria
Did Svyatoslav see a game of Greeks? Obviously, he guessed the idea of the Byzantines. However, the proposal of Constantinople perfectly corresponded to his own designs. Now the Rus could, without military opposition from Byzantium, establish themselves on the banks of the Danube, capturing one of the most important trade routes that went along this great European river and approached the most important cultural and economic centers of Western Europe. At the same time taking under his protection the Slavs-streets that lived in the Danube. There, according to the Russian historian B. Rybakov, there was an “island of the Rus”, formed by the bend and the Danube delta, the sea and the “Trajan bank” with a moat. This area formally belonged to Bulgaria, but the dependency was small. By the right of the population, its Russians-streets, Kiev could also claim it. The Greeks also had their own interests here, relying on the Greek population of coastal towns and fortresses. Thus, the Danube region was of strategic and economic importance for Russia, Bulgaria and Byzantium.
It is also worth remembering about the civilizational, national-linguistic and cultural kinship of Rus-Russians and Bulgarians. Russ and Bulgarians were representatives of one superethnos, civilization. The Bulgarians had just begun to separate from the single super-ethnos of the Rus. The Rus and the Bulgarians had only recently prayed to the same gods, the Bulgarians had not yet forgotten the old gods, celebrated one holiday, the language, customs and traditions were one, with slight territorial differences. Similar territorial differences were in the lands of the Eastern Slavic Rus, say between the meadows, the Drevlyans, the Krivichi and the Novgorod Slovenes. Slavic unity has not been forgotten. Russ and Bulgarians were another kind. It must be said that even after a thousand years this relationship was felt between the Russians and the Bulgarians, it was not for nothing that the Bulgarians always fraternally greeted the Russians during the wars with the Turks, and the Soviet era Bulgaria was called “16 Soviet Republic”. The separation took place only in the elite - the Bulgarian elite betrayed the people's interests and was transferred to the West.
Therefore, Svyatoslav did not want to give fraternal Bulgaria under the power of the Romans. Byzantium has long tried to bend Bulgaria under itself. Svyatoslav did not want the Greeks to establish themselves on the Danube. The approval of Byzantium on the banks of the Danube and the strengthening at the expense of captured Bulgaria made the Romans the neighbors of Russia, which did not promise the Russians anything good. The prince himself wished to stand firmly in the Danube. Bulgaria could become part of the Russian Empire, or at least be a friendly state.
The Eastern Roman Empire has long tried to subjugate the Bulgarian tribes. But the Bulgarians have repeatedly given a hard answer. Thus, Tsar Simeon I the Great (864 — 927), who miraculously escaped from the “honorable” captivity in Constantinople, himself launched an offensive against the empire. Simeon more than once smashed the Byzantine army and planned to seize Constantinople, to create his own empire. However, the seizure of Constantinople did not take place, Simeon died unexpectedly. The “miracle” that the Greeks so prayed for happened. The son of Simeon, Peter I, ascended to the throne - Peter I. Peter strongly supported the Greek clergy, giving churches and monasteries lands and gold. This caused the spread of heresy, whose supporters called for the rejection of worldly goods (Bogomilism). The meek and God-fearing king lost most of the Bulgarian territories, could not resist the Serbs and Magyars (Hungarians). Byzantium went from defeat and resumed expansion in the Balkans.
While Svyatoslav fought with the Khazars in the Balkans, important events were brewing. In Constantinople, they carefully watched as Bulgaria weakened and decided that the time had come when it was time to take their hands. In 965-966 violent political conflict flared up. The Bulgarian embassy, which appeared in Constantinople for the tribute that the Byzantines had been paying since the times of Simeon's victories, was driven out in disgrace. The emperor ordered the Bulgarian ambassadors to be pushed down the cheeks and called the Bulgarians poor and disgusting people. The Bulgarian tribute was clothed in the form of the content of the Byzantine Princess Maria, who became the wife of the Bulgarian Tsar Peter. Mary passed away in the 963 year, and Byzantium was able to break this formality. It was a reason to go on the offensive.
Everything was prepared for the capture of Bulgaria. On the throne was a meek and indecisive king, more busy with church affairs than with matters of development and state protection. He was surrounded by a craze-minded boyars, the old comrades of Simeon, who saw the threat from the Greeks, were pushed aside from the throne. Byzantium allowed itself in relations with Bulgaria more and more dictates, actively intervened in domestic politics, supported the provantian party in the Bulgarian capital. The country has entered a period of feudal fragmentation. The development of large boyar landownership contributed to the emergence of political separatism, leading to the impoverishment of the masses. A significant part of the boyars saw a way out of the crisis in strengthening ties with Byzantium, supporting its foreign policy, and strengthening Greek cultural, religious, and economic influence. Boyars did not want a strong royal power and preferred dependence on Constantinople. They say that the emperor is far away and will not be able to control the boyars, the power of the Greeks will be nominal, and the real power will remain with the big feudal lords.
A serious turn occurred in relations with Russia. Formerly friends, peoples of the same origin, and brother-countries connected by long-time kinship, cultural and economic ties, they more than once opposed the Byzantine Empire. Now everything has changed. The pro-Byzantine party in the Bulgarian kingdom followed with suspicion and hatred the successes and strengthening of Russia. In the 940-ies, the Bulgarians with Chersonese twice warned Constantinople about the performance of Russian troops. In Kiev, it quickly noticed. Bulgaria from a former ally became hostile to the Byzantium bridgehead. It was dangerous.
In addition, at this time, the Second Rome significantly strengthened its army. Already in the last years of the reign of Emperor Roman, the Byzantine armies, under the leadership of talented commanders, the brothers Nikifor and Lev Foki, achieved notable success in the struggle against the Arabs. In 961, after a seven-month siege, the capital of the Cretan Arabs Handan was captured. The allied Russian detachment also participated in this campaign. The Byzantine fleet established dominance in the Aegean Sea. Lev Fok won victories in the East. Having taken the throne, Nikifor Fock, a stern warrior and ascetic man, continued to purposefully form a new Byzantine army, the core of which was the "knights" - catapractic (from the ancient Greek. Κατάφρακτος - armored). The armament of the cataphractarians is primarily characterized by heavy armor, which defended the warrior from head to toe. The cataphractarium wore a lamellar or scaly shell. Protective armor was not only riders, but also their horses. The main weapons katafraktaria was kontos (ancient Greek κοντός, "cattle"; lat. contus) - a huge spear that reached Sarmatian length, probably 4 — 4,5. The blows of such weapons were terrible: ancient authors report that these spears could pierce right through two people. The heavily armed cavalry attacked the enemy in light trot with a close formation. Protected by armor from arrows, darts and other projectiles, they represented a formidable force, and often, overturning the enemy with long spears, broke through his battle formations. The light cavalry and infantry that followed the “knights” completed the rout. Nikifor Fock devoted himself to the war and conquered Cyprus from the Arabs, oppressed them in Asia Minor, preparing for the campaign against Antioch. The success of the empire was facilitated by the fact that the Arab Caliphate entered a period of feudal fragmentation, Bulgaria became dependent, Russia under the rule of Princess Olga also came under the cultural, and therefore political, influence of Tsargrad-Constantinople.
In Constantinople, it was decided that it was time to end Bulgaria, to include it in the empire. It was necessary to act, while in Preslav there was a weak power and a strong pro-Byzantine party. It was impossible to give her the opportunity to escape from the cleverly woven networks. Bulgaria has not yet been completely broken. The traditions of Tsar Simeon were alive. The grandees of Simeon in Preslav moved away into the shadows, but still retained influence among the people. The provisan politics, the loss of previous gains and the dramatic material enrichment of the Greek clergy provoked discontent on the part of the Bulgarian people, part of the boyars.
Therefore, Bulgarian Queen Maria barely died, the Second Rome immediately went to the gap. The Greeks refused to pay tribute, and the Bulgarian ambassadors were defiantly humiliated. When Preslav raised the issue of renewing the 927 peace agreement of the year, Constantinople demanded that Peter’s sons, Roman and Boris, come to Byzantium as hostages, and Bulgaria itself would not let the Hungarian troops pass through its territory to the Byzantine border. In 966, there was a final break. It should be noted that the Hungarians really disturbed Byzantium, passing freely through Bulgaria. Between Hungary and Bulgaria there was an agreement that during the passage of the Hungarian troops through the Bulgarian territory to the possessions of Byzantium, the Hungarians should be loyal to the Bulgarian population. Therefore, the Greeks accused Preslav of treachery, in a latent form of aggression against Byzantium by the hands of the Hungarians. The Bulgarians could not or did not want to stop the Hungarian raiders. Indeed, in the case of resistance, Bulgaria itself became the object of aggression. Part of the Bulgarian boyars who hated the Greeks, with pleasure used the Hungarians against the empire.
Constantinople, leading the incessant struggle with the Arab world, did not dare to divert the main forces for the war with the Bulgarian kingdom, which was still quite a strong opponent. Therefore, in Constantinople decided to use the strategy of divide and conquer, and with one blow to solve several problems at once. First, defeat Bulgaria with the forces of Russia, retaining its troops, and then absorb the Bulgarian territories. Moreover, with the failure of the troops of Svyatoslav, Constantinople won again - two dangerous enemies for Byzantium — Bulgaria and Russia — faced each other’s heads. Bulgaria was repelled by Russia, which could help the fraternal people in the struggle against the Second Rome. Secondly, the Byzantines diverted the threat from their Kherson theme, which was the breadbasket of the empire. Svyatoslav was sent to the Danube, where he could die. Thirdly, the success and failure of the army of Svyatoslav were to weaken the military might of Russia, which after the liquidation of the Khazars became a particularly dangerous enemy. The Bulgarians were considered a strong enemy, and they had to offer stubborn resistance to the army of Svyatoslav.
Judging by the actions of Svyatoslav, he saw the game of the Second Rome. But decided to go to the Danube. Svyatoslav could not calmly look at the place of the formerly friendly Russia of the Bulgarian kingdom, occupied by a weaker, and hostile Bulgaria, that fell into the hands of a provisant party. Bulgaria controlled the Russian trade routes along the western coast of the Black Sea, through the lower Danube cities down to the Byzantine border. Combining hostile Rus Bulgaria with the remnants of the Khazars and the Pechenegs could be a serious threat to Russia from the south-western direction. And with the liquidation of Bulgaria and the seizure of its territory by Byzantium, the imperial armies, with the support of the Bulgarian troops, would already have become a threat. Apparently, Svyatoslav decided to take part of Bulgaria, to establish control over the Danube, including the area of the Rus streets, and to neutralize the Byzantine party around Tsar Peter. This was to bring Bulgaria back into the mainstream of the Russian-Bulgarian alliance. In this case, he could rely on the part of the Bulgarian nobility and people. Later, Svyatoslav, having received a reliable rear in Bulgaria, could already put pressure on the Second Rome in order to make his policy more friendly.
The Byzantine Empire began the war first. In 966, Basileus Nikifor Fock moved the army to the border of Bulgaria, and Kalokir immediately left for Kiev. The Romans captured several border towns. They managed to capture the strategically important city in Thrace, the present-day Plovdiv, with the help of the pro-Quantized nobility. However, this military successes ended. Greek troops stopped in front of the Balkan Mountains. They did not dare to make their way to the internal Bulgarian regions through difficult passes and forested gorges, where a small detachment could stop the whole army. In these mountains in the past, many warriors laid down their heads. Nikifor Fock pretended that he had won a decisive victory and returned to the capital with triumph and again switched to the Arabs. The fleet moved to Sicily, and Basileus himself, at the head of the land army, went to Syria. At this time, in the east, Svyatoslav went on the offensive. In 967, the Russian army marched on the Danube.
To be continued ...
prehistory
The Khazar campaign of Svyatoslav made a huge impression on the surrounding tribes and countries, especially the Byzantine (East Roman) empire. Russian troops pacified Volga Bulgaria (Bulgaria), defeated hostile Russia and the essentially parasitic Khazaria, which for centuries had robbed Slavic-Russian tribes, took tribute to people to sell them into slavery. Svyatoslav completed a long struggle with the Khazar "miracle Yud", which was also led by Rurik, Oleg and Igor. The Ruses defeated the Khazars, took their capital Itil, and the ancient capital of the Kaganate - Semender on the Caspian Sea (Saber kick of Svyatoslav on the Khazar "miracle-yuda"; 1050 years ago Svyatoslav squads defeated the state of the Khazars). Rus were conquered by the tribes of the North Caucasus - Yasy-Aces-Alans and Kasogh-Circassians. Svyatoslav established on the Taman Peninsula, which became the Russian Tmutarakan. On the way back, Svyatoslav completed the rout of the Khazars, taking her last stronghold on the Don, Sarkel, who became the Russian fortress Belaya Vezha.
The results of the campaign were amazing: the huge and powerful Khazar empire was crushed and disappeared forever from the world map, the remnants of the Khazar usury and merchant elite, who lived through the slave trade and control of the routes from Europe to the East, fled to Crimea or the Caucasus (after Svyatoslav died Khazars-Jews will settle in Kiev). Paths to the East have been cleared. Russia received strong outposts - Tmutarakan and Belaya Vezha. Volga Bulgaria has ceased to be a hostile barrier. The balance of power in the half-Byzantine and semi-Khazar Crimea changed, where Kerch (Korchev) also became a Russian city.
All this alarmed Byzantium, which Russian campaigns had already shaken more than once in the past. The Byzantines (Greeks, Romans) used the ancient strategy of Rome - divide and conquer. Khazaria was necessary for them as a counterbalance to Russia and the steppe people. In general, the defeat of the Khazars suited the Romans, it was possible to include the Khazars in its sphere of influence, to increase its influence on it. However, the complete defeat of the Kaganate and the capture of the important outposts on the Don, Taman and Crimea in Constantinople did not suit the Russians. Most of all, the Romans were afraid of a spurt of Russian troops in Tavria (Crimea). Svyatoslav troops cost nothing to cross the Bosphorus of Cimmeria (Kerch Strait) and capture the flowering region. Kherson was then a rich trading city. Romans did not have the strength to protect the city and especially the whole Crimea. Now the fate of the Kherson theme, which supplied Constantinople with grain, depended on the favor of the Russian prince. The Khazar campaign set free for the Russian merchants trade routes along the Volga and the Don. It was logical to continue the successful offensive and take the gate to the Black Sea - Chersonese. The strategic situation led to a new round of Russian-Byzantine confrontation.
Kalokira Mission
It is obvious that in the Byzantine elite all understood this perfectly. Romans decided to lure Svyatoslav on the Danube to distract from the Crimea. And there you see the warlike prince and lay down his head in one of the fights and save Byzantium from a headache. Around the end of 966 (or the beginning of 967 of the year), the Byzantine embassy arrived in the capital city of Kyiv to the Russian prince Svyatoslav Igorevich. He was headed by the son of Chersonesus stratiga Kalokir, who was sent to the Russian prince by the emperor Nikifor Fock. Before sending the envoy to Svyatoslav, Basileus summoned him to Constantinople, discussed the details of the negotiations, conferred the high title of Patrik and handed over a valuable gift, a huge amount of gold - 15 centenaries (about 450 kg).
The Greek envoy was an extraordinary man. The Byzantine historian Leo Deacon calls him "courageous" and "ardent." Later, Kalokir will still meet on the path of Svyatoslav and prove that he is a man who knows how to play a big game. The main goal of Kalokir’s mission, for which, according to the Byzantine chronicler Lev Deacon, Patricia with a huge amount of gold was sent to Russia, was to persuade him to act in alliance with Byzantium against Bulgaria. In 966, the emperor Nicephorus Fock led his troops against the Bulgarians.
"Sent by Tsarist will to the Tauro-Scythians (as the old memory was called the Rus, considering them to be direct descendants of the Scythians, heirs of the Great Scythia) Patrician Kalokir, who came to Scythia (Rus), liked the head of the Taurians, bribed him with gifts, charmed with flattering words ... and convinced him to go against minis (Bulgarians) with a great ratiu with the condition that he, having conquered them, kept their country in their own power, and assisted him in conquering the Roman state and obtaining the throne. He promised him (Svyatoslav) for delivering the great countless treasures from the state treasury. ” The version of the Deacon is extremely simple. The Byzantine chronicler tried to show that Kalokir bribed the barbarian leader, made him his tool in his hands, a weapon against Bulgaria, which was to become a springboard for a higher goal - the throne of the Byzantine Empire. Kalokir dreamed, relying on Russian swords, to seize Constantinople and hand over to Bulgaria for payment to Svyatoslav.
However, this is a false version created by the Greeks, who were constantly rewriting history in their own interests. Researchers studied other Byzantine and Eastern sources and found out that the Deacon did not know much, or did not consciously mention it, did not mention it. Obviously, initially Kalokir acted in the interests of the emperor Nicephorus Focha. But after the vile murder of Nikifor II Foki - the conspiracy was led by the emperor's wife Feofano and her lover, the commander John Tzimiskes, decided to fight for the throne. In addition, there is evidence that the Ruses, while helping Nicephorus in the struggle with Bulgaria, performed the allied duty. The union was concluded before the reign of Svyatoslav. Russian troops, possibly under the command of the young Svyatoslav, had already helped Nikifor Foke to repel the island of Crete from the Arabs.
Vladimir Kireev. "Prince Svyatoslav"
The situation in Bulgaria
Did Svyatoslav see a game of Greeks? Obviously, he guessed the idea of the Byzantines. However, the proposal of Constantinople perfectly corresponded to his own designs. Now the Rus could, without military opposition from Byzantium, establish themselves on the banks of the Danube, capturing one of the most important trade routes that went along this great European river and approached the most important cultural and economic centers of Western Europe. At the same time taking under his protection the Slavs-streets that lived in the Danube. There, according to the Russian historian B. Rybakov, there was an “island of the Rus”, formed by the bend and the Danube delta, the sea and the “Trajan bank” with a moat. This area formally belonged to Bulgaria, but the dependency was small. By the right of the population, its Russians-streets, Kiev could also claim it. The Greeks also had their own interests here, relying on the Greek population of coastal towns and fortresses. Thus, the Danube region was of strategic and economic importance for Russia, Bulgaria and Byzantium.
It is also worth remembering about the civilizational, national-linguistic and cultural kinship of Rus-Russians and Bulgarians. Russ and Bulgarians were representatives of one superethnos, civilization. The Bulgarians had just begun to separate from the single super-ethnos of the Rus. The Rus and the Bulgarians had only recently prayed to the same gods, the Bulgarians had not yet forgotten the old gods, celebrated one holiday, the language, customs and traditions were one, with slight territorial differences. Similar territorial differences were in the lands of the Eastern Slavic Rus, say between the meadows, the Drevlyans, the Krivichi and the Novgorod Slovenes. Slavic unity has not been forgotten. Russ and Bulgarians were another kind. It must be said that even after a thousand years this relationship was felt between the Russians and the Bulgarians, it was not for nothing that the Bulgarians always fraternally greeted the Russians during the wars with the Turks, and the Soviet era Bulgaria was called “16 Soviet Republic”. The separation took place only in the elite - the Bulgarian elite betrayed the people's interests and was transferred to the West.
Therefore, Svyatoslav did not want to give fraternal Bulgaria under the power of the Romans. Byzantium has long tried to bend Bulgaria under itself. Svyatoslav did not want the Greeks to establish themselves on the Danube. The approval of Byzantium on the banks of the Danube and the strengthening at the expense of captured Bulgaria made the Romans the neighbors of Russia, which did not promise the Russians anything good. The prince himself wished to stand firmly in the Danube. Bulgaria could become part of the Russian Empire, or at least be a friendly state.
The Eastern Roman Empire has long tried to subjugate the Bulgarian tribes. But the Bulgarians have repeatedly given a hard answer. Thus, Tsar Simeon I the Great (864 — 927), who miraculously escaped from the “honorable” captivity in Constantinople, himself launched an offensive against the empire. Simeon more than once smashed the Byzantine army and planned to seize Constantinople, to create his own empire. However, the seizure of Constantinople did not take place, Simeon died unexpectedly. The “miracle” that the Greeks so prayed for happened. The son of Simeon, Peter I, ascended to the throne - Peter I. Peter strongly supported the Greek clergy, giving churches and monasteries lands and gold. This caused the spread of heresy, whose supporters called for the rejection of worldly goods (Bogomilism). The meek and God-fearing king lost most of the Bulgarian territories, could not resist the Serbs and Magyars (Hungarians). Byzantium went from defeat and resumed expansion in the Balkans.
While Svyatoslav fought with the Khazars in the Balkans, important events were brewing. In Constantinople, they carefully watched as Bulgaria weakened and decided that the time had come when it was time to take their hands. In 965-966 violent political conflict flared up. The Bulgarian embassy, which appeared in Constantinople for the tribute that the Byzantines had been paying since the times of Simeon's victories, was driven out in disgrace. The emperor ordered the Bulgarian ambassadors to be pushed down the cheeks and called the Bulgarians poor and disgusting people. The Bulgarian tribute was clothed in the form of the content of the Byzantine Princess Maria, who became the wife of the Bulgarian Tsar Peter. Mary passed away in the 963 year, and Byzantium was able to break this formality. It was a reason to go on the offensive.
Everything was prepared for the capture of Bulgaria. On the throne was a meek and indecisive king, more busy with church affairs than with matters of development and state protection. He was surrounded by a craze-minded boyars, the old comrades of Simeon, who saw the threat from the Greeks, were pushed aside from the throne. Byzantium allowed itself in relations with Bulgaria more and more dictates, actively intervened in domestic politics, supported the provantian party in the Bulgarian capital. The country has entered a period of feudal fragmentation. The development of large boyar landownership contributed to the emergence of political separatism, leading to the impoverishment of the masses. A significant part of the boyars saw a way out of the crisis in strengthening ties with Byzantium, supporting its foreign policy, and strengthening Greek cultural, religious, and economic influence. Boyars did not want a strong royal power and preferred dependence on Constantinople. They say that the emperor is far away and will not be able to control the boyars, the power of the Greeks will be nominal, and the real power will remain with the big feudal lords.
A serious turn occurred in relations with Russia. Formerly friends, peoples of the same origin, and brother-countries connected by long-time kinship, cultural and economic ties, they more than once opposed the Byzantine Empire. Now everything has changed. The pro-Byzantine party in the Bulgarian kingdom followed with suspicion and hatred the successes and strengthening of Russia. In the 940-ies, the Bulgarians with Chersonese twice warned Constantinople about the performance of Russian troops. In Kiev, it quickly noticed. Bulgaria from a former ally became hostile to the Byzantium bridgehead. It was dangerous.
In addition, at this time, the Second Rome significantly strengthened its army. Already in the last years of the reign of Emperor Roman, the Byzantine armies, under the leadership of talented commanders, the brothers Nikifor and Lev Foki, achieved notable success in the struggle against the Arabs. In 961, after a seven-month siege, the capital of the Cretan Arabs Handan was captured. The allied Russian detachment also participated in this campaign. The Byzantine fleet established dominance in the Aegean Sea. Lev Fok won victories in the East. Having taken the throne, Nikifor Fock, a stern warrior and ascetic man, continued to purposefully form a new Byzantine army, the core of which was the "knights" - catapractic (from the ancient Greek. Κατάφρακτος - armored). The armament of the cataphractarians is primarily characterized by heavy armor, which defended the warrior from head to toe. The cataphractarium wore a lamellar or scaly shell. Protective armor was not only riders, but also their horses. The main weapons katafraktaria was kontos (ancient Greek κοντός, "cattle"; lat. contus) - a huge spear that reached Sarmatian length, probably 4 — 4,5. The blows of such weapons were terrible: ancient authors report that these spears could pierce right through two people. The heavily armed cavalry attacked the enemy in light trot with a close formation. Protected by armor from arrows, darts and other projectiles, they represented a formidable force, and often, overturning the enemy with long spears, broke through his battle formations. The light cavalry and infantry that followed the “knights” completed the rout. Nikifor Fock devoted himself to the war and conquered Cyprus from the Arabs, oppressed them in Asia Minor, preparing for the campaign against Antioch. The success of the empire was facilitated by the fact that the Arab Caliphate entered a period of feudal fragmentation, Bulgaria became dependent, Russia under the rule of Princess Olga also came under the cultural, and therefore political, influence of Tsargrad-Constantinople.
In Constantinople, it was decided that it was time to end Bulgaria, to include it in the empire. It was necessary to act, while in Preslav there was a weak power and a strong pro-Byzantine party. It was impossible to give her the opportunity to escape from the cleverly woven networks. Bulgaria has not yet been completely broken. The traditions of Tsar Simeon were alive. The grandees of Simeon in Preslav moved away into the shadows, but still retained influence among the people. The provisan politics, the loss of previous gains and the dramatic material enrichment of the Greek clergy provoked discontent on the part of the Bulgarian people, part of the boyars.
Therefore, Bulgarian Queen Maria barely died, the Second Rome immediately went to the gap. The Greeks refused to pay tribute, and the Bulgarian ambassadors were defiantly humiliated. When Preslav raised the issue of renewing the 927 peace agreement of the year, Constantinople demanded that Peter’s sons, Roman and Boris, come to Byzantium as hostages, and Bulgaria itself would not let the Hungarian troops pass through its territory to the Byzantine border. In 966, there was a final break. It should be noted that the Hungarians really disturbed Byzantium, passing freely through Bulgaria. Between Hungary and Bulgaria there was an agreement that during the passage of the Hungarian troops through the Bulgarian territory to the possessions of Byzantium, the Hungarians should be loyal to the Bulgarian population. Therefore, the Greeks accused Preslav of treachery, in a latent form of aggression against Byzantium by the hands of the Hungarians. The Bulgarians could not or did not want to stop the Hungarian raiders. Indeed, in the case of resistance, Bulgaria itself became the object of aggression. Part of the Bulgarian boyars who hated the Greeks, with pleasure used the Hungarians against the empire.
Constantinople, leading the incessant struggle with the Arab world, did not dare to divert the main forces for the war with the Bulgarian kingdom, which was still quite a strong opponent. Therefore, in Constantinople decided to use the strategy of divide and conquer, and with one blow to solve several problems at once. First, defeat Bulgaria with the forces of Russia, retaining its troops, and then absorb the Bulgarian territories. Moreover, with the failure of the troops of Svyatoslav, Constantinople won again - two dangerous enemies for Byzantium — Bulgaria and Russia — faced each other’s heads. Bulgaria was repelled by Russia, which could help the fraternal people in the struggle against the Second Rome. Secondly, the Byzantines diverted the threat from their Kherson theme, which was the breadbasket of the empire. Svyatoslav was sent to the Danube, where he could die. Thirdly, the success and failure of the army of Svyatoslav were to weaken the military might of Russia, which after the liquidation of the Khazars became a particularly dangerous enemy. The Bulgarians were considered a strong enemy, and they had to offer stubborn resistance to the army of Svyatoslav.
Judging by the actions of Svyatoslav, he saw the game of the Second Rome. But decided to go to the Danube. Svyatoslav could not calmly look at the place of the formerly friendly Russia of the Bulgarian kingdom, occupied by a weaker, and hostile Bulgaria, that fell into the hands of a provisant party. Bulgaria controlled the Russian trade routes along the western coast of the Black Sea, through the lower Danube cities down to the Byzantine border. Combining hostile Rus Bulgaria with the remnants of the Khazars and the Pechenegs could be a serious threat to Russia from the south-western direction. And with the liquidation of Bulgaria and the seizure of its territory by Byzantium, the imperial armies, with the support of the Bulgarian troops, would already have become a threat. Apparently, Svyatoslav decided to take part of Bulgaria, to establish control over the Danube, including the area of the Rus streets, and to neutralize the Byzantine party around Tsar Peter. This was to bring Bulgaria back into the mainstream of the Russian-Bulgarian alliance. In this case, he could rely on the part of the Bulgarian nobility and people. Later, Svyatoslav, having received a reliable rear in Bulgaria, could already put pressure on the Second Rome in order to make his policy more friendly.
The Byzantine Empire began the war first. In 966, Basileus Nikifor Fock moved the army to the border of Bulgaria, and Kalokir immediately left for Kiev. The Romans captured several border towns. They managed to capture the strategically important city in Thrace, the present-day Plovdiv, with the help of the pro-Quantized nobility. However, this military successes ended. Greek troops stopped in front of the Balkan Mountains. They did not dare to make their way to the internal Bulgarian regions through difficult passes and forested gorges, where a small detachment could stop the whole army. In these mountains in the past, many warriors laid down their heads. Nikifor Fock pretended that he had won a decisive victory and returned to the capital with triumph and again switched to the Arabs. The fleet moved to Sicily, and Basileus himself, at the head of the land army, went to Syria. At this time, in the east, Svyatoslav went on the offensive. In 967, the Russian army marched on the Danube.
To be continued ...
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