GREAT BULGARIA - an association of Proto-Bulgarian Turkic-speaking nomadic tribes that took shape in the 1st third of the 7th century. in the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov during the collapse of the Western Turkic Khaganate (see Turkic Khaganate). From 635 Khan Kubrat owned lands from the Kuban to the Dnieper. In the middle of the 7th c. under the blows of the Khazars, the Proto-Bulgarians settled on the Lower Don, in the Lower Danube, on the Middle Volga, where the Volga-Kama Bulgaria was formed.

Creation of the state

Khan Kubrat (632-665) managed to unite his horde with other Bulgar tribes of the Kutrigurs, Utigurs (formerly dependent on the Turks), and Onogurs (possibly the Hunnogurs, Khungurs). The unification of the Bulgar tribes was started by Khan Organ, the uncle of Kubrat. Nicephorus (IX century), describing the events under 635, noted: “At the same time, Kuvrat, a relative of Organa, the sovereign of the Hunno-Gundurs, rebelled again against the Avar Khagan and all the people who were around him, subjecting insults, drove away from native land. (Kuvrat) sent ambassadors to Heraclius and made peace with him, which they maintained until the end of their lives. And Heraclius sent him gifts and honored him with the rank of patrician. Freed from the power of the Western Turkic Khaganate, Kubrat expanded and strengthened his state, which the Greeks called the Great Bulgaria.

Reign of Kubrat

Kubrat (Kurt or Huvrat) was born c. 605. In 632 Kubrat ascended the throne. From the emperor of Byzantium Heraclius Kubrat received the rank of patrician.

Great Bulgaria under Khan Kubrat was independent from both the Avars and the Khazars. But if from the west the danger passed completely due to the weakening of the Avar Khaganate, then from the east a threat constantly loomed. While Kubrat was alive, he had enough strength to keep the Bulgar tribes in unity and resist the danger. Around 665 Kubrat died. His grave is probably located near the village of Malaya Pereshchepina, Poltava region of Ukraine, where a rich burial of a nomadic leader was found containing a large number of gold and silver items and a seal with a monogram, in which it is possible to read the name of Kubrat.

The collapse of the state

After the death of Kubrat, the territory of Great Bulgaria was divided by five of his sons: Batbayan, Kotrag, Asparukh, Kuber, Alcek. Each of the sons of Kubrat led his own horde, and none of them individually had the strength to compete with the Khazars. During the clash with the Khazars, which followed in the 660s, Great Bulgaria ceased to exist. ethnic basis Khazar Khaganate were the same kindred peoples of the Hunno-Bulgarian circle.

Black Bulgarians

The eldest son Batbay (Batbayan) with his horde remained in place. These groups became Khazar tributaries and were subsequently known as "black Bulgarians". They are mentioned in the treaty between Prince Igor and Byzantium. Igor undertakes to defend the Byzantine possessions in the Crimea from the attacks of the black Bulgarians.

Volga Bulgaria

The second son of Kubrat - Kotrag crossed the Don and settled opposite Batbay. Most likely, it was this group of Bulgar tribes that moved north and subsequently settled on the middle Volga and Kama, where the Volga Bulgaria arose. The Volga Bulgars are the ancestors of the population of the Volga region represented by the Chuvash and Kazan Tatars. There were several migrations to the Kama of the Bulgarian peoples from the territories of Great Bulgaria and the Khazar Khagant.

Danube Bulgaria

The third son of Kubrat - Asparuh with his horde went to the Danube and approx. 650, stopping in the region of the lower Danube, created the Bulgarian kingdom. The local Slavic tribes, who had no experience in creating states, fell under the dominion of the Bulgars. Over time, the Bulgars merged with the Slavs, and from the mixture of the Asparuh Bulgars and the various Slavic and remnants of the Thracian tribes included in it, the Bulgarian nation was formed.

Bulgars in Vojvodina and Macedonia

The fourth son of Kubrat - Kuber (Kuver), with his horde Kuber moved to Pannonia and joined the Avars. In the city of Sirmium, he made an attempt to become the Khagan of the Avar Khaganate. After an unsuccessful uprising, he led his people to Macedonia. There he settled in the area of ​​Keremisia and made an unsuccessful attempt to capture the city of Thessaloniki. After that, he disappears from the pages of history, and his people united with the Slavic tribes of Macedonia.

Bulgars in Southern Italy

"Slavs and prabalgari prez VІ and VІІІv." in atlas "Atlas of history in Bulgaria for secondary schools", "Cartography", Sofia, 1990

The fifth son of Kubrat - Alcek went with his horde to Italy. Around 662, he settled in the possessions of the Lombards and asked for land from King Grimoald I of Benevento in Benevento in exchange for military service. King Grimuald sent the Bulgars to his son Romuald in Benevento, where they settled in Sepini, Bovian and Inzernia. Romuald accepted the Bulgars well and gave them lands. He also ordered that the title of Alcek be changed from duke, as the historian Paul the Deacon calls him, to gastaldia (meaning perhaps the title of prince), in accordance with the Latin title.

Pavel Deacon completes the story about the Bulgars of Alcek as follows: And they live in these places, about which we spoke, until now, and although they also speak Latin also, but still have not completely abandoned the use of their language.

Excavations in the Vicenne-Campochiaro necropolis near Boino, which date back to the 7th century, among 130 burials, there were 13 persons buried along with horses and artifacts of German and Avar origin.

In the period between 630 and 657, the Azov Huns, the Bulgarians, were liberated from the rule of the Turks. By 635, the leader Gunnogundur Kubrat expelled the Avars from the Northern Black Sea region and united the Azov and Black Sea Bulgarians under his rule, creating the so-called Great Bulgaria. After that, he sent an embassy to Byzantium and concluded an agreement with it, which was very important for a young state surrounded by enemies. Byzantium could only rejoice at the appearance of a new ally, especially valuable in the rear of the Avars - immediate neighbors and dangerous enemies of the empire. Heraclius sent gifts to Kubrat and honored him with the rank of patrician.

Volga Bulgaria occupied lands in the center of the Middle Volga region, in the Western Trans-Kama and Volga regions, and later, in the 12th century, its territory expanded: in the north - to the Kazanka basin, and the steppe, sparsely populated borders in the southeast sometimes reached the river. Yaik (Ural river).

It included the territories of modern Tatarstan, Chuvashia, Mari El, part of the land of Udmurtia, Mordovia and Bashkiria, as well as some areas of the Samara, Saratov, Volgograd, Astrakhan, Perm, Penza, Nizhny Novgorod and Ulyanovsk regions.

In fact, a significant part of the territory of the former Khazar Khaganate became part of Bulgaria. Ethnic composition of this country was motley not only during the formation of the state, but also later. The Turkic tribes of the Oghuz, Pechenegs and Kipchaks penetrated here from the southeast. But the main population of Bulgaria was called "Bulgars" - this is exactly how it is recorded in the written sources of that time. “Bulgar” was also the name of the capital of this state, located at the confluence of the Volga and Kama.

Protected by armor and shields with sharp spears in their hands, three Roman soldiers flee in a panic from two half-naked Bulgarian Huns. Situation characteristic of late Rome and Byzantium.

Politics of Bulgaria

Great Bulgaria pursued an active international policy in the Volga region. She had active ties with other states, including trade ones. Bulgaria enjoyed wide recognition from the Muslim states. In the 10th century in Bulgaria they minted their own coin, paying it off with foreign merchants. Trade in Bulgaria developed very rapidly. This was facilitated by the position of Bulgaria on the trade routes between Asia and Europe.

Volga Bulgaria already in the 9th century becomes a trading center of Eastern Europe. There was an active trade not only with the Russian principalities, but also with the Scandinavian countries, where they sold furs and metals. Bulgaria traded with Central Asia, with the Caucasus, with Iran, with the Baltic states. Trade caravans continuously traveled to Khorezm, Khorasan and back. Bulgaria had a good merchant fleet.

She traded not only furs, fish, nuts, timber, walrus teeth. Bulgar swords, chain mail, coda, processed in a special way (“Bulgari”) were in great demand. Jewelry, leather and fur products of the Bulgars were widely known. Merchants were convinced that "furs from these parts are warmer than furs from other countries."

The Bulgarian Khan Kubrat is the founder of Great Bulgaria in the steppes of the Black Sea region.

taxes

The taxes for the khan were not so high. So, they made up only one bull skin from each house. Khan's behavior was very democratic. He appeared on the streets of the capital and in the bazaars without any protection. People greeted him standing, taking off their headdress. At the festive table, the khan usually sat with his wife.

Thus, before the invasion of the Mongols, Bulgaria was a powerful kingdom with rich cities. Travelers argued that the inhabitants of this country are a single people who "hold the law of Mukhamettov more firmly than anyone else." As the state strengthened, the union of kindred tribes grew stronger. Thus, a single nation was formed. Therefore, in the 10th century, only two names of the people are spoken of: Bulgars and Suvars.

The main opponent of the Khazars was the Great Bulgaria of Khan Kubrat, but it collapsed from the first blow of the Khazars. Pursuing the Bulgars, the Khazars rushed to the west. The letter of the Khazar king Joseph (X century) says that the Khazars pursued the Bulgars to the Danube.

Population

And in the XI century they speak (in particular chronicles) only about one Bulgar people. The population of Bulgaria led a settled way of life. It ran a highly developed economy. Agriculture was well developed. In the 10th century, the Bulgars already used shares for plows. Their saban plow allowed plowing with the turnover of the layer. Hoes, shovels made of iron were also used. The Bulgars grew wheat, millet, barley, oats, peas, etc.

In total, more than 20 species of cultivated plants. The Bulgars were also engaged in horticulture and horticulture, beekeeping, as well as hunting and fishing. Travelers of the 12th century noted that the Bulgars consume "a lot of honey, and their fish are large, varied and very tasty." They noted that the Bulgars are the hardiest of people in relation to frost. This was explained by the fact that their food and drink were mostly from honey.

The Bulgarians fled from the Khazars to the Balkans. Here they found the “promised land” for themselves and their descendants, subjugated the local ethnic group, intermarried and merged with it and created a state that is prospering today.

production

The following crafts (productions) were developed among the Bulgars: jewelry, leather, bone carving, metallurgical. They worked copper. Bulgar pottery was widely known in all Russian principalities. Only in the capital of Bulgaria there were about 700 different workshops. Bone-cutting production was widely developed.

The Bulgars made not only iron tools, but also iron combat armor. They began to smelt iron long before Western Europeans. Cast iron was widely used in production, as were copper, silver, gold and their various alloys.

The son of Khan Kubrat Khan Asparuh - the founder of Balkan Bulgaria - the king of the First Bulgarian Kingdom in the late 9th - early 10th centuries.

They were built from stone, brick and wood. In construction, the Bulgars were recognized masters. They were often invited to the Russian principalities for the construction of temples, large buildings, etc. And now you can see Bulgar elements in the temples of Vladimir-Suzdal region: a fabulous bowl, herbs, animals, birds, etc. are used in the design.

Country of cities

Bulgaria was a country of cities, of which, together with fortified fortresses, there were about two hundred. The first capital of the country, the city of Bulgar, was located near the confluence of the Volga and Kama. The city itself consisted of two parts. In both parts of the city there were residential quarters and a large number of workshops of potters, metallurgists, bone cutters, tanners and others. The city of Bulgar was famous for its baths. They were built no later than the 8th century. In the 10th century, there were three such public baths in the city. One of them had a length of 30 m and a height of six meters (bath Ak pulat). There was also a public bath Kyzyl Pulat, as well as a bath for commoners. A swimming pool was built in the bath Ak pulat. As in Rome, the baths were a kind of clubs.

In order to unite the Bulgarians, Slavs and Greeks who lived in the Balkans, the Bulgarian Prince Boris I converted to Christianity. This allowed him to create the state of Bulgaria.

The city of Bulgar grew before our eyes. Paris, London, Damascus, etc. were significantly inferior to Bulgar both in terms of population and area. No wonder an Arab researcher of the 10th century wrote that in this city “all Muslims, 20 thousand horsemen come out of it. With every army of infidels, no matter how many, they fight and win.

Shopping center

Bulgar was a major trading center. There were many foreign merchants here. Seven kilometers from the city was the main point of foreign trade - Aga Bazaar. Camel caravans and merchant ships arrived here. Here foreign merchants met with each other - Indian, Chinese, Iranian, Arab and others. There was currency in circulation (including Bulgarian). Bulgarian merchants appeared not only in Scandinavia, the Baltic states and Russia, but also in Constantinople, Baghdad, North Africa.

The settlement area of ​​the Volga Bulgars.

Volga Bulgaria also had a second capital. It was the city of Bilyar, which was located at a distance of about a hundred kilometers from Bulgar (to the east). Bilyar became an even larger city than Bulgar. It was located on an area of ​​seven million square meters. In the XIII century, its population reached 70 thousand people. At the time, that was a lot. For comparison, let's say that even in the 15th century, cities with 30,000 inhabitants were considered large.

layout

The layout of the city was very original and attractive. It consisted of a citadel, an inner and an outer city. Posadas stretched around the outer city. The citadel itself was square in shape. It was oriented to the countries of the world. The citadel had wooden protective walls. The width of the walls reached ten meters. Guard towers were erected in the corners. A white-stone church with 24 columns was built inside the citadel. Its dimensions were 44 by 26 meters. The temple had two large halls. They were focused on the Muslim holy city of Mecca. Near the temple, a dizimam house was built. It was two stories, brick. In the citadel itself, granaries were built, as well as public wells.

Bulgar today.

The inner city was located directly around the citadel. Wealthy merchants and artisans lived there. The city was well planned. It was drawn by beautiful streets that came out of the squares. There were beautifully designed ponds on the squares. The streets were lined with brick and wooden houses.

outer city

Around the inner city was the outer city. It was inhabited by warriors and people of lesser means, such as middle-class merchants and artisans. Countless workshops and houses of artisans were located here. Foreigners also lived here. A large caravanserai was intended for foreign merchants.

The outer city was surrounded by a fortified rampart. Its length reached 10 kilometers. Around the outer city along the entire circumference were settlements. They were surrounded on the outer side by a fence.

Three Bulgaria: Great, Balkan and Volga. But it turns out that there were others, for example, Pannonian and Kyiv.

The city was equipped with water and sewer systems. Excess water from the city was diverted by an elaborate drainage system. The city also had central underfloor heating. By the way, in other Bulgarian cities there was a system of calorific heating of residential buildings. They also had plumbing systems. Dwelling houses in cities were above ground. They were drowned in white.

The largest cities of Bulgaria were Suvar, Oshel, Burtas. The remains of the city of Burtas are currently located on the territory of the modern Penza region. Many of the cities at a certain time were the capitals of principalities. Cities such as Zhuketau (Zhukatin), Kasham, Nukrat, Tukhchin and others were built. A well-fortified fortress with a white-stone mosque was not far from modern city Yelabuga.

Reconstruction of the appearance of the Volga Bulgars on the basis of skulls from a burial place around the 10th century.

Upbringing

The Bulgars had a very progressive system of education, which developed highly moral foundations in the younger generation. Children and teenagers were brought up industriousness, as well as respect for elders. Great importance was attached to the cult of ancestors. Everyone had to respect the place of eternal rest of their ancestors.

There was a special respect for fire. It was impossible to spit on the fire, to throw cutting and piercing objects into it, and in general to show disrespect, neglect. Water was also perceived as one of the primary elements of space.

The Bulgars were aware that water has a protective, cleansing and fertile power. According to the Bulgars, it is water that personifies the supreme deity - Tengre (Tangre). Tengre was the only deity in which the Bulgars believed.

In the early period of their history, the Bulgars, like other peoples, went the way of faith in many gods, gods and spirits. In the described time, the Bulgars were monotheists. Since the Bulgars believed in a single god, they easily accepted Islam, in which "there is no god but Allah." The universally recognized moral values ​​of the Bulgar people fully corresponded to the moral requirements of the Koran.

It should be said that at that time the Arab East was advanced in the sciences and arts, in many ways ahead of Byzantium and Rome, not to mention Western barbarian Europe. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the Volga Bulgaria found itself in the sphere of the Arab Muslim civilization.

Acceptance of Islam

Partially, Islam penetrated into the Bulgar environment during the Khazar Khaganate. The massive adoption of Islam by the Bulgars took place in 825, almost 1200 years ago. Since 922, Islam has become the state religion of the Volga Bulgaria. In 921, the supreme ruler of Bulgaria, Almas Shilki, sent ambassadors to the Caliph of Baghdad with a special mission to invite clerics who would procedurally correctly formalize the official adoption of Islam by Bulgaria. The embassy of such spiritual persons arrived in Bulgaria in 922. A special prayer service was solemnly held in the central mosque of the capital. Here the official adoption of Islam by Bulgaria was proclaimed, which became the state religion.

The common state religion was supposed to contribute to the rallying of the Bulgar people. This act was supposed to work to strengthen the security of the state, since Bulgaria from then on could count on the help and assistance of other Islamic states. Indeed, the adoption of Islam as the state religion played such a role.

An ancient mosque on the territory of the Volga Bulgaria.

After the adoption of Islam, Bulgaria began to switch from runic writing to Arabic writing. The number of mosques grew rapidly, and with them schools. Written sources also testify to this. Thus, a traveler of the tenth century notes that in the villages of Bulgaria there are mosques and elementary schools with muezzins and imams. Gradually began to open schools and a higher level - madrasah. Over time, students from other Muslim countries also began to study in these schools. The Bulgars themselves studied also in well-known educational institutions of Arabia and Central Asia. The settled Bulgar people had a long tradition of craving for knowledge, for universal literacy. Islam also obliges to study. In the hadiths of Muslims it is said: "If it is necessary to obtain knowledge, then go even to distant China, for the acquisition of knowledge is the first duty of every true believer."

Education and science

Education developed and science developed. Talented scientists appeared in Bulgaria in various areas sciences: mathematics, astronomy, medicine, history, etc. Astronomical observations were organized. They were conducted not only on the territory of Bulgaria itself. The works of the scientist Hadjiakhmet al-Bulgari, the philosopher Hamid bin Idris al-Bulgari and others received wide recognition. Books about medicines were published in Bulgaria, according to oratory, on literary criticism, which were written by Burkhanatlin bin Yusuf al-Bulgari. Tazhetlin Bulgari's books on medicine were also published. The works of Mahmut Bulgari, Khisamutdin Muslimi-Bulgari and others appeared. Bulgar thinkers and scientists gained world fame and recognition. This fact is indicative. Ahmet Bulgari became a teacher of the Sultan of the Ghaznavid state in the 11th century. This state included modern Afghanistan, part of India, Iran and Central Asia.

Successfully developed not only science, but also literature. The most famous poet Daud Saksin-Suari, who worked in early XII century. He was a native of the city of Saksina and belonged to the Suar people. The poet's most widely known book is The Garden of Flowers that Heal Diseases. It consists of 67 sections. At the beginning of each section, the author gives a description of the life of a scientist or other famous person.

Creation

The outstanding poet of the 13th century Kol Gali is also widely known. His poem "Kyssen Yusuf" ("The Legend of Yusuf") received worldwide recognition. It was read in Bulgaria for hundreds of years. At present, the Kol Gali Prize has been established in Tatarstan.

A large place among the Bulgars was occupied by oral folk art. Many traditions and legends connected with the life and struggle of the Bulgars, Burtases, etc. have survived to this day. Fairy tales, etc. have been preserved.

Russian principalities

Bulgaria sought to build friendly relations with the Russian principalities. In 985 an agreement was concluded between Bulgaria and Kiev. The parties agreed on eternal peace: "Then there will be no peace between us when the stone begins to float, and the hops sink." In 1016, a trade agreement was concluded between Bulgaria and Kiev principality. Bulgarian merchants received the right to trade in Russian lands. In 1024, a terrible famine broke out in the Suzdal principality. The Bulgars saved the inhabitants from starvation. They gave bread to the starving.

To be continued…

There was the formation here of the Slavic-Turkic state - Danube Bulgaria.

In 626, the Bulgar Khan Kubrat, who accepted Christianity from the Patriarch of Constantinople, freed himself from the power of the kagan and created the so-called Great Bulgaria in the Black Sea and Azov steppes. However, the Bulgars did not have enough strength to control such a vast territory, and in the second half of the 7th century they were forced to cede the southern steppes to the Khazars, an ethnically related North Caucasian people. One of the Bulgar hordes retreated to the north and settled on the middle Volga and the lower Kama, where later, subduing the surrounding Finnish tribes, formed a vast state - Volga Bulgaria. Another horde left for the Eastern Sea of ​​Azov (our chronicles know it under the name of the Black Bulgars). The third temporarily isolated itself in the so-called Corner, between the Dniester and the Danube, under the protection of swamps and rivers.

Around 670, in search of new lands for settlement, this last horde, led by Khan Asparuh, crossed the Danube, defeated the Romans and invaded Moesia on their shoulders. The local population, already basically Slavic (representatives of the so-called Union of Seven Slavic Tribes), without resistance, recognized his authority over them; dissatisfied simply moved to neighboring lands. Obviously, the tribute demanded by the Bulgars was preferable for the Slavs to the infamous Byzantine tax system. In 716, after a series of unsuccessful military conflicts, Byzantium finally recognized the independence of the Bulgarian state (the First Bulgarian kingdom with its capital in Pliska) and undertook to pay an annual tribute to the Bulgarian khans. Since that time, the North Balkan lands were finally separated from the empire, and Byzantine writers of the 8th - 9th centuries. completely lose even the correct geographical idea of ​​them.

Under Tsar Krum (803 - 814), the borders of Bulgaria were significantly expanded due to the Byzantine possessions: in 809 Sofia was captured, in 813 Adrianople was taken. His successor Omurtag (814 - 831) conquered the Slavic tribes of the Timochan and Branichevites, captured the cities of Sirmium and Singidunum, which led to the formation of the Bulgarian-Frankish borderland.

In 865, the Bulgarian Tsar Boris I (852-889), successfully playing on the contradictions between the Western and Eastern churches, adopted Christianity according to the Greek rite, and five years later he achieved the church independence of Bulgaria from the Patriarchate of Constantinople. The resettlement of Clement and Naum (disciples of the Slavic enlighteners Cyril and Methodius) to Bulgaria led to the bright flowering of Slavic culture within the framework of Christian society. Their translation into Church Slavonic of the main biblical books, as well as the works of the holy fathers, laid the foundations of Slavic literature.

The son of Boris, Simeon (893-927), educated in Constantinople, ruled in a truly imperial style. He subjugated almost all of Serbia, Macedonia, part of Thrace and significant areas along the Danube, expanding the territory of the Bulgarian kingdom from the Adriatic Sea in the west to the Black Sea in the east. Although his repeated attempts to take Constantinople failed, in 927 Simeon nevertheless declared himself "king of the Bulgarians and Greeks." Under him, the capital of the Bulgarian state moved from Pliska to Preslav, which was built on the model of Byzantine cities. The reign of Simeon crowned the compilation of the first Slavic code book.

First Bulgarian Kingdom (VII-X centuries)

New at first public education- Bulgaria - consisted mainly of two ethnic groups: nomadic Bulgars, who assumed the functions of political dominance and organization of the country's military security, and settled Slavic tribes, who voluntarily agreed to support newcomers in order to free themselves from subordination to the emperor. Perhaps some role in the peaceful subjugation of the Slavs to the Bulgars was played by memories of the period of relatively mild Hunnic rule, for the Bulgars were one of the main tribes in the motley Hunnic horde.

The assimilation of the Turkic Bulgars in the Slavic environment took place very quickly. Already in the decrees of Tsar Krum, no distinctions were made on ethnic grounds. Among his close associates were persons with Slavic names. So, the Slav Dragomir was the ambassador of Krum in Constantinople. In the future, the role of the Slavs in the elite of the Bulgarian kingdom only increased, and by the end of the 10th century. Bulgaria has become predominantly a Slavic state.
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The Azov Bulgarians and other tribes related to them in the 80s of the VI century subjugated the Turkic Khaganate. However, in the struggle against these Eastern Turks, the Bulgarians, having united together, managed to create a large and strong union of tribes, known in history as Great Bulgaria. The first to unite the Bulgarians was Prince Organa from the Dulo clan (by the way, the formidable Attila, the leader of the Huns, belonged to the same clan at one time). In 632, Kubrat, Organa's nephew, became the head of the state of Great Bulgaria, its khan. In separate sources, for example, in the chronicle of the Byzantine historian John of Nikuis, Kubrat is called baptized and brought up in Byzantium at the court of Emperor Heraclius.

However, some researchers question this message and say that it was not Kubrat who was baptized and lived in Constantinople, but his uncle Organa. Kubrat, obviously, remained in paganism, like all the Turks of that time believed in “Tengri” (“Tengrianism” is initial form monotheism), because it was not without reason that he received the Turkic title “Khan” and his name was Turkic. Being a skillful politician and a talented military leader, Kubrat managed to create a centralized state, which was named “Great” in the sources of that time for good reason.

Great Bulgaria occupied the territory in the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov, the lower reaches of the Don and on the Taman Peninsula. The capital was Fanagouris (Fanagoria), a former Greek port city on Taman. One of the big cities was also Tamatarkha - later, already in the Russian period, it became known as Tmutarakan.

The population of the state led a semi-nomadic lifestyle. Along the banks of the Don were summer camps; some of them reached rather large sizes up to one or one and a half kilometers long along the river. But people lived mainly in settlements, both open and fortified with earthen ramparts. Among the fortified settlements there were real fortresses with stone walls sometimes up to 7 m thick. They lived both in yurts and in real houses, and yurts were characteristic not only for nomads, but also for other settlements, even cities - this was the case in all semi-nomadic medieval the world.

These settlements and dwellings, together with all other remnants of material culture, constitute the Saltov-Mayatskaya archaeological culture. The name of this culture was given by two famous monuments: the Saltovsky burial ground in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine and the Mayatsky settlement in Voronezh region. Although the Saltov-Mayak (or simply Saltov) culture is the state culture of the Khazar Khaganate, it is believed that it was created mainly by the early Bulgarians and Alans, therefore it is equally considered the culture of Great Bulgaria. This culture, in addition to settlements and dwellings, is also represented by a considerable number of burial grounds and a wide variety of tools and weapons, household items, bronze, silver and gold jewelry, clay and glass vessels, children's toys, etc. All of them testify to a fairly rich agricultural and steppe culture, developed economy, high level of weapons and military affairs. Inherent was the ancient Bulgarians and runic writing, which penetrated there through Khazaria from the Turkic Khaganate. Although rare, coins are also found - these are mainly Arabic dirhems and partly Byzantine coins of the 8th - early 10th centuries. The Saltovo-Mayak culture dates back to the 8th-9th centuries.

This culture is the largest archaeological culture of the Turkic early medieval Eurasia. Later it became one of the foundations of the culture of the Volga Bulgars.

Kubrat died in the 50s-early 60s of the 7th century (some note an earlier and more accurate date - 642). His death was the actual end of the existence of the association he created. In general, such fleeting states, albeit with loud names, rested only on the power of a powerful monarch and, as a rule, disintegrated after his death. So it happened with Great Bulgaria.

In the annals of the Byzantine monk Theophanes the Confessor, compiled in 810-815, an ancient Bulgarian legend is cited, according to which Kubrat left behind five sons. He bequeathed to them never to be separated from each other and to live together so that they ruled over everyone and did not fall into slavery to others. This legend was later widely spread orally in the West. There is such an episode: the dying khan called his sons, ordered them to bring a bunch of flexible rods and ordered everyone to try to break it. None of them could do it. Then Kubrat took one of the rods from the bundle and easily broke it. Here, he said, a young, strong warrior could not overcome a bunch, while a weak, dying old man could easily break a single rod. And in life it is like this: the Bulgarians gathered together will be invincible, and each horde that stands out will be easily defeated and subdued by enemies ...

In the legend, the names of three sons of Kubrat are named: the eldest was called Batbay, the second - Kotrag, the third - Asparuh (the names of the last two are not indicated). However, major researchers of the history of the Khazars and Proto-Bulgarians M.I. Artamonov and S.A. Pletneva argue that, according to historical sources, Kubrat had only two sons: Batbay and Asparuh. They associate the name Kotrag with one of the Bulgarian tribes - with the Kotrags. On the whole, the information about the five sons reflects the inclusion of five ethnic groups, i.e. large tribes, into Great Bulgaria.

By this time, the territory of Great Bulgaria had been significantly cut down by the Khazars attacking from the east.

The sons of Kubrat remained the masters of only the southern regions along the Caucasian foothills: Batbay got the lands along the Kuban, Asparuh - the upper reaches of this river and the upland of modern Stavropol.

The Khazars pressed the Bulgarians more and more. Asparuh with the Onagur tribe went west: first he reached the mouth of the Danube River, here he was joined by other Bulgarian tribes who arrived there earlier - the Kutrigurs, as well as the Slavs, who appeared in those parts relatively recently. The strong paramilitary organization of the Bulgarians included the Slavs, and they, having made up a strong alliance together, soon defeated the 50,000-strong Byzantine army - the largest regular army of that time. This happened in 679, and two years later, in 681, they created a new Bulgarian state in the west - Danube Bulgaria with its capital in the city of Pliska.

The dominant position in the country for almost 200 years was occupied by the dynasty of Bulgarian khans: first - Asparuh (until 816), then - Omutarha. However, the Slavicization of the Bulgarians gradually intensified, already under the Slavic Tsar Boris (852–889), Christianity was adopted in 865, and in 894 - Slavic writing,

created there by the brothers Cyril and Methodius. Slavic language became official language churches and states. The ethnic difference between the Turkic-speaking Bulgarians and the southern Slavs gradually disappeared. In essence, the Bulgarians were absorbed by the more numerous Slavs, but left behind them their ethnonym, i.e. self-name.

The eldest son of Kubrat Batbai remained on his lands in the North Caucasus and submitted to the Khazars. Gradually, his Bulgarians, i.e. Kuban, began to be called "black". Modern Karachays (Karachaly) and Balkars are associated with them - pay attention to the proximity of the words “Bulgars” and “Balkars”. And the word “kara” generally formed part of the ethnonyms of a number of Turkic-speaking peoples, thereby emphasizing that they were swarthy, dark-haired. In addition to the Karachala, there were, for example, the Kara-Nogai, the Kara-Khazars already known to us, the Kara-Kitai (the Kara-Kitai are not Chinese, but Turkic tribes that lived in Northeast China in the 6th-8th centuries). It should also be noted that the well-known in science Pereshchepkinsky treasure of gold and silver dishes, precious weapons, jewelry, including the gold rings of his father Kubrat and cousin Organa, is associated with the name of Batbai. The treasure was found near the village. Malaya Pereshchepina, Poltava region.

Previously, they wrote that the third group of Bulgarians, led by the legendary Kotrag, after the death of Kubrat, headed for. Middle Volga. The fact that there was no such khanzade (prince), but there was a tribe of kotrags, has already been scientifically proven. In addition, archaeological research has shown that the Bulgarians did not appear in our area immediately after the described events of the middle of the 7th century. All the Bulgarians who remained in the Sea of ​​Azov and adjacent areas entered the Khazar union of tribes and created together with them and especially the Alans the above-named Saltovskaya archaeological culture and existed there almost until the end of the 8th century.

The Bulgarians appeared in the Middle Volga region, on the territory of our Tatarstan and adjacent lands to the south and south-west, exactly somewhere at the end of the VIII-beginning of the IX centuries.

How the Turks and Slavs founded the Danube Bulgaria. Part 1

Yaroslav Pilipchuk continues the series of articles about the key periods of Turkic history. Today the Ukrainian historian, columnist of Realnoe Vremya, talks about the history of Danube Bulgaria.

How the Slavs became subjects of the Bulgarian Khan

One of the most interesting aspects of the history of the Balkans is the history of the First Bulgarian Kingdom. We are specifically interested in the process of transformation of Danube Bulgaria from a Turkic khanate into a Slavic kingdom. The history of this state was studied by many scientists, such as V. Zlatarski, P. Pavlov, D. Dimitrov, R. Rashev, V. Guzelev, W. Fidler, E. Tryyarski. The question of the relationship between the Danube Bulgarians and the Romans was of interest to many Byzantines and Slavists. The objective of this study is to analyze the written sources about the relationship between the Bulgarians and the Slavs and the Romans, as well as to study the internal political processes in the middle of the Danube Bulgaria.

According to Nikephoros and Theophanes the Confessor, it is said that the Bulgarian Onogur tribe roamed in the area known as Ongl, between the Danube and the Dniester (migration is dated by Theophanes 671). They were besieged by Emperor Konstantin Pogonat, but the fact that he left for treatment was perceived as a fear of the Bulgarians, and the Roman troops fled. The Bulgarians pursued them.

According to Constantine of Apamea, in 681 a peace treaty was signed according to which the formation of Bulgaria was recognized. Asparuh's headquarters was moved to the cities of Odessa and Markianopolis. The border of the Bulgarians reached the mountains of Gemus (Staraya Planina). A confederation of seven Slavic tribes, led by the North, took over the power of the Bulgarians. The Bulgarians lived in Lesser Scythia (Dobruja) and Moesia. George Kedrin and John Skylitsa reported that during the time of Emperor Constant, the Romans fought against the Slavs. In 679, the Bulgarians were said to have invaded and crossed the Danube. They stood at Varna and won the battle with the Romans. According to the information of the Khazar-European correspondence, the Khazars drove the Vnntrs (Onogurs) from the Caucasus to the Runa (Danube) River. In the Bulgarian apocryphal chronicle, it was noted that on the Danube Ispor, the king (Asparuh) died in a battle with the Ishmaelites. R. Rashev considers the Khazars to be these Ishmaelites. George Amartol reported that in 680 the Bulgarians from the areas near Meotida came to Thrace, the Romans opposed them and besieged them in a fortress on the Danube. The emperor was ill and temporarily left the troops, but this led to the flight and defeat of the Romans. Many Romans were killed by the Bulgarians. Gifts were sent to the Kagan of the Scythians (Bulgarians) and a peace treaty was concluded with him. Leo Grammatik reported that the Kagan, the ruler of the Scythians, made peace with the Romans. Before that, it is said that the Bulgarians crossed the Danube and camped in the swampy area near Varna. Roman troops approached there, but the emperor was forced to leave for treatment in Mesemvria, which stimulated rumors in the army. The Romans began to flee in panic, and the Bulgarians pursued them. The Bulgarians occupied Moesia and received an annual tribute from the Romans. In 681, the chronicler Agathon reported that the Onogurs-Bulgarians defeated the Christians.

Tervel's seal. Photo by ChernorizetsHrabar / wikipedia.org

How the Bulgarians returned the emperor to the throne, and he went to war against his friends

Around 680 (690) Theophanes reported on a campaign against the Bulgars and Slavs. Justinian II defeated the Bulgars and went to Thessaloniki, captured many Slavs, whom he then settled in Asia Minor. On the way back, he was defeated by the Bulgars. In 700 Asparuh died, and Tervel became the khan of the Bulgars. In 696 (706) it was reported that Justinian, previously deposed from the throne, lived in exile in Chersonese. Emperor Tiberius III Apsimar asked the kagan to kill Justinian, but he was warned and he killed Papatz and Valgitza, whom the kagan instructed to kill Justinian. After that, Justinian fled and got on the ship to Tervel. With the help of the Bulgars and Slavins fighting on the side of Tervel, Justinian regained the throne in 697 (707) and entered Constantinople. In 698, he generously endowed Tervel and unleashed terror against his political opponents. In 700, Justinian broke the peace with the Bulgars, but near Anchial his army was defeated, and the emperor shamefully fled. Vardans and Philippik revolted against Justinian. In 711, it is said that Nikita Xilonite wrote to Artemius to come to Tervel and with the help of the Bulgars attack the reigning Leo the Isaurian. Tervel gave them troops and money, but Constantinople did not accept them, and then the Bulgars betrayed Xilonite and Artemy. Leo the Isaurian executed them, and the Bulgars beheaded the patrician Sisinius Rednaka. In 718, it is said about the siege of Constantinople by the Arabs, but at the same time Tervel was not mentioned.

In 754, it was reported about the rebellion of the Bulgars against their masters and that Teletzin (Taurus) became the khan. Many Slavs moved to the Romans, and they sent troops and a fleet against the new Bulgarian ruler. Teletzin sent 20,000 of his subjects to protect the passes in the mountains, while he himself fought the troops of Constantine Copronymus on the Anchial field. Many Bulgars were killed, many were taken prisoner. The emperor led the captives in chains around Constantinople during the triumph, and after him all of them were killed by the Romans. Among the Bulgars, Sabin, the son-in-law of Kormisos, who had long been the ruler of the Bulgars, became the ruler. The Bulgars themselves killed Teletzin. In 756 it was reported that Khan Pagan reigned among the Bulgars. Pagan arrived in Constantinople with his boilies, while the emperor met them with Sabin (who fled to the Romans during an uprising against his power). Vasilevs, in the presence of Sabin, reproached Pagan for hating Sabin. He assured the Bulgars of peacefulness, however, he organized a campaign against the Bulgars and reached Tunza, setting fire to the settlements of the Bulgars and Slavs. He executed Sever (prince of the Slavic tribe of the North). Under 766, it was reported that the ruler of the Bulgars, Cherig, found out that his relatives were betraying his plans to the Romans. Then he conceived an intrigue, as a result of which the Roman emperor cut down the relatives of Cherig.

Omurtag sends ambassadors to the Byzantines. Miniature from the Madrid Skylitzes. Photo wikipedia.org

Byzantine emperor from the Khazars

In 767 it is said that Constantine went on a campaign against the Bulgars, but hemorrhoid colic prevented this, and in the end Copronymus died, and Leo Khazar inherited his throne, who received his nickname because he was the son of a Khazar khatun, who was the wife of Constantine Copronymus. In 769, Cherig became related to the new Roman ruler, who gave him the title of patrician and gave him the sister of his wife Irina. In 801 (811) it is said that the commander of the Bulgars Krummos stood near Serdika and mastered it by cunning. He also threatened the emperor. Nicephorus in 803 collected large army and invaded Bulgaria, devastated the settlements of the Bulgars and took the Khan's palace. Krum asked for peace, but after the emperor's refusal, he launched a counteroffensive and executed Christians, and then defeated Nicephorus. Many noble Romans died with the emperor. After that, Michael became emperor, who gathered a new army. Meanwhile, Krummos took Develtos, while the Christians of Anchialus and Verroi abandoned their settlements. The Bulgars devastated Thrace and Macedonia. In 805 it was reported that Krummos sent Dargamir as an ambassador to the Romans. The ruler of the Bulgars threatened to siege Mesemvria, but the emperor Michael did not accept peace with the Bulgars because of bad advisers, and the Bulgars took Mesemvria, and then Develtos. Krummos, first at Versinicia, and then at Adrianople, waited for the Romans to give him a battle, but the Romans were frightened, and he did not give the order to pursue them only because he believed that this was some kind of military trick.

Theophan's successor pointed out that in the Scythian campaign of Nicephorus (811) Stavraky died, and the future emperor Leo V gave money to the Bulgars in order to calm the Bulgars at least for a while. Krum got the Romans to pay tribute and after that made peace. Leo, meanwhile, overthrew Michael and became emperor. Then Krum sent his army against the Romans, while Leo rebuilt long walls and near Mesemvria, luring the Bulgars into an ambush, defeated them. In 822-823. Bulgarian Khan Mortagon (Omurtag) sent his ambassadors to Emperor Michael II Travl from the Amorian dynasty. He made an alliance with him. He tried to keep peace with the Romans from the time of Emperor Leo, with whom the Khan tried to keep peace. Thomas the Slav rebelled against Michael. The troops of the Bulgars in the battle near the settlement of Kidukt defeated the troops of the Romans, and Thomas himself fled to Adrianople.

Bulgar siege of Adrianople. Miniature from the Madrid Skylitzes. Photo wikipedia.org

How the Bulgars fought with the Arabs in the name of Byzantium

Nicephorus reported that in 704 Justinian again took possession of the kingdom, having fled from Cherson to the Bulgars. There he found help from Tervel. He attracted him with the promise of money and marriage to his daughter. The Bulgars came to Constantinople. In 707, it was reported that Justinian went with a large army to Thrace, but was defeated by the Bulgars near Anchialus. In 710-711. Justinian sent a fleet to Chersonese, but part of the troops rebelled, and Philippic overthrew the tyrant. Campaigns against the Bulgars resumed after a long time. Constantine Kopronym in 756 fought against the Bulgars, who started the war because of non-payment of tribute by the Romans. The Bulgars went to the long walls and invaded Thrace. The Romans defeated them at the Battle of Marcellus. It was reported that Telessius was the ruler of the Bulgars, and his allies were the Slavs. This ruler was defeated by the Romans and killed. Sabin became the new khan, who, as soon as he ascended the throne, began negotiations and concluded an alliance with the Romans. This did not please the Bulgars, and they revolted. Sabin fled to Constantinople. Constantine Kopronym moved into Danubian Bulgaria in 765 because the Bulgars had excommunicated Umar, appointed by Sabin. They proclaimed Toktu, Bayan's brother, as their ruler. In the battle with the Romans, Toktu and others died, and the kavkhan fled to Varna. Danube Bulgaria was devastated by the Romans, who burned the Bulgarian and Slavic settlements.

George Amartol pointed out that Justinian regained his power with the help of the Bulgar ruler. In 708 he broke the peace with the Bulgars and attacked them, but was defeated and retreated in disgrace to Constantinople. During the reign of Emperor Philippicus, the Bulgars devastated Thrace and reached the Golden Gates. The Arabs under the leadership of Maslama laid siege to Constantinople in 717, but they were prevented from taking the city by the cold, the plague and the help of the Romans from the Bulgars, who killed 22 thousand Saracens. Nikita Xilinit provided many gifts and money to Tervel, who supported him. However, Leo the Isaurian killed this Roman. In 765, Constantine Copronymus made a campaign against the Bulgars and fought with them near Anchial. In this battle, the Byzantine emperor was defeated.

In 774, Telerig destroyed the Byzantine agents at his court, and his troops invaded Berzitia. In 775, Constantine Kopronym again sent his troops against the Bulgars, but could not do anything because of illness and soon died. The Patriarch of Constantinople considered the emperor guilty that the inhabitants of the empire became victims of the Scythian (Bulgarian) sword. In 784 Emperor Constantine attacked the Bulgars and defeated them. In 796, Khan Kardam demanded from the Romans that they give him tribute. He threatened to approach the Golden Gate. The emperor did not pay tribute and ridiculed Kardam for his advanced age. The Bulgars were defeated and were forced to return to their lands. In 811, Emperor Nicephorus set off on a campaign against the Scythians (Bulgars). He invaded the Bulgar possessions, while Khan Krum, meanwhile, strengthened the wooden fortifications in the mountains. In a battle that took place in a mountainous area, Nicephorus was utterly defeated and himself died. From the emperor's skull, Krum made a bowl. When Stavraky reigned, Krum demanded a large tribute and this was a condition of peace. Without waiting for the tribute, Krum moved deep into the Roman territories, laid siege to Adrianople, and the Bulgars also stood at the Golden Gates. When Krum came very close to the walls Byzantine capital, one Romani inflicted a wound on Krum with a spear, which later turned out to be fatal. The Bulgars withdrew from Constantinople, and the new khan helped Leo in pacifying the rebellious commander Thomas the Slav.

Krum gathers an army to defeat the Byzantines. Miniature from the Madrid Skylitzes. Photo wikipedia.org

At the gates of Tsargrad

Leo Grammaticus pointed out that Justinian II fled from exile in Cherson to the Bulgars, who helped him become emperor again. For this, he gave the Bulgars the province of Zagoria beyond Staraya Planina. Soon he broke the peace with the Bulgars and made a campaign against them. However, Justinian was defeated and fled to Anchialus, and then to Constantinople. During the reign of Philippicus, the Bulgars devastated the lands of the Romans. When describing the siege of Constantinople by Suleiman and Maslama, the main merit in the victory is attributed to the Romans, but it is indicated that Suleiman himself attacked the possessions of the Bulgars, which caused the response of the Bulgars, which led to the death of many Arab warriors. Patrician Nikita Xilinit offered Tervel to join the conspiracy against Leo the Esaurus for many gifts, but he betrayed the plans of the conspirators. In 763 Constantine Kopronym organized a successful campaign against the Bulgars. In Constantinople, he celebrated a triumph and led the captive Bulgars through the streets. In 766, Constantine made a new campaign, but he was defeated near Achelous and shamefully fled. At the court of Telerig in 774 there were those who informed the Romans about the intentions of the Bulgars, in particular about the campaign to Berzitia. Konstantin Kopronym pretended to be preparing for a war against the Arabs, while he himself was preparing for a war against the Bulgars. While he was negotiating with the ambassadors, the Romans invaded Danubian Bulgaria and won a great victory. The emperor himself planned a big campaign, but hemorrhoid colic led to the fact that the campaign had to be canceled, and then to the death of the emperor. Before Constantine's death, using deceit, Telerig revealed the Byzantine agents at his court and killed them. During the regency of Empress Irene, the Romans conquered the Slavs of Hellas. The fortifications of Verroi and Anchiala were rebuilt. Emperor Constantine VI defeated the Bulgars. When the Bulgarian ambassador came to him demanding tribute, he replied that he would not pay tribute, since Kardam had become too old. In 796, the Romans defeated Kardam's troops. Nicephorus invaded the Bulgar lands, and Krum had to build wooden fortifications, but in the battle in the mountains he defeated the Romans. The Roman emperor died, and his son Stavraky was wounded. The situation was taken advantage of by kurapalets Mikhail, who carried out a coup. Krum demanded a large tribute for peace. Michael sent troops against the Bulgars, who were defeated at Versinikia. Krum laid siege to Adrianople and reached the Golden Gate in Constantinople. However, his overconfidence let him down. One of the defenders of the city wounded him with a spear. The wound turned out to be fatal, and the Bulgar troops retreated from the capital. True, 12 thousand Romans were captured and resettled in Danube Bulgaria. Malamir in the chronicle was called Vladimir. During the regency of Empress Theodora in Byzantium, garrisons were fortified in the fortresses, and the Bulgar detachments devastated the countryside in Thrace and Macedonia. Bulgarin Boris took the Christian name Michael and was baptized.

To be continued

Yaroslav Pilipchuk