Croatian–Bulgarian battle of 926
Battle of the Bosnian Highlands | |||||||
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Part of the Croatian–Bulgarian wars | |||||||
Croatia and Bulgaria c. 925 | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Kingdom of Croatia | Bulgarian Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Tomislav of Croatia | Duke Alogobotur † | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown | Heavy, almost the entire army was lost on the battlefield |
In 926 a battle was fought in the
Principal information on the battle is provided by the emperor Constantine VII of the Byzantine Empire in his work De Administrando Imperio ("On the Governance of the Empire") and in the collection of preserved historical writings called Theophanes Continuatus.[2] Simeon's aim was to defeat the Byzantine Empire and conquer Constantinople. To achieve his aim, Simeon overran the eastern and central Balkans several times, occupied Serbia and finally attacked Croatia. The result of the battle was an overwhelming Croatian victory.[1][2]
Background
Events preceding the war
After the war between
Simeon captured a large part of the Byzantine territory in Europe and was crowned as "Emperor of the Bulgarians" by Patriarch
When the papal mission arrived in
Reasons for the war
In 924 Simeon sent a large army against
Tomislav received and protected the Serbs who were expelled by Simeon from Rascia.[11] Tomislav may have been granted by the Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos some years previously with some form of control over the coastal cities of the Byzantine Theme of Dalmatia and rewarded with some share of the tribute collected from the cities,[12] thus securing the friendship of Tomislav. These events were a sufficient proof to Simeon that the Croats took the side of the Byzantine Emperor and that they would support him actively in the future. Therefore, Simeon saw Croatia, harboring his enemies and allied to the empire, as a threat and he could not direct all his forces towards Byzamtium since there was nothing to prevent Croatia from striking his rear.[9]
The battle
In 926 Simeon sent a large army to invade Croatia.
The Croatian forces completely destroyed the Bulgarians.[9] Arguably key to the overwhelming victory was the choice of terrain on which the battle took place. Bulgarians at the time when the battle started were in an unfavorable position and the Croatian army had made a surprise attack against them.[10] Croatian soldiers would probably have been more experienced in fighting in the mountainous terrain of the Bosnian highlands. The Croats adjusted their military tactics, time and place of the battle to their opponents who possibly outnumbered them, which brought themselves a decisive advantage.[10] Duke Alogobotur most likely perished in the battle along with most of his soldiers since he is no longer mentioned in sources.
Aftermath
Simeon suffered a crushing defeat, but did not lose the bulk of his forces. He had sent a part of his army on that campaign and those forces had suffered heavy losses, but his overall army was strong enough to carry out another invasion of Byzantium.[9] The Croatian-Bulgarian war did not continue in a significant extent, no territorial changes followed,[2] and peace was concluded after the death of Emperor Simeon in 927.[4] In 927 Pope John X sent his legates with Bishop Madalbert to mediate between Croats and Bulgarians.[12]
Simeon died in May 927. His son and successor Peter I renewed the war with the Byzantines and concluded a peace treaty the same year. Byzantine sources, specifically George Kedrenos,[17] say that the cause for Peter's peace treaty proposal was his fear that all his neighbors, the Hungarians, Croats, Serbs and other, could take the advantage of Simeon's death to attack Bulgaria. In addition, Bulgaria had a major domestic problem, a severe famine resulting from an attack by locusts.[18]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Bakalov, Istorija na Bǎlgarija, "Simeon I Veliki".
- ^ a b c Clifford J. Rogers: The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, p. 162
- ^ De Administrando Imperio: XXXI. Of the Croats and of the country they now dwell in
- ^ a b c Neven Budak - Prva stoljeća Hrvatske, Zagreb, 1994., p. 21-22
- ^ Maddalena Betti: The Making of Christian Moravia (858-882), 2013, p. 130
- ^ a b Петър Коледаров: Политическа география на средновековната българска държава. Част I. От 681 до 1018 г., p. 47
- ^ a b John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 155-156
- ^ John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 154
- ^ a b c d e John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 157
- ^ a b c Ivo Goldstein: Hrvatski rani srednji vijek, Zagreb, 1995, p. 289-291
- ^ a b De Administrando Imperio: XXXII. Of the Serbs and of the country they now dwell in
- ^ a b Florin Curta: Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500-1250, p. 196
- ^ De Administrando Imperio: XXXI. Of the Croats and of the country they now dwell in. "Baptized Croatia musters as many as 60 thousand horse and 100 thousand foot, and galleys up to 80 and cutters up to 100."
- ^ John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 262
- ^ Vedriš, Trpimir (2007). "Povodom novog tumačenja vijesti Konstantina VII. Porfirogeneta o snazi hrvatske vojske" [On the occasion of the new interpretation of Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus'report concerning the strength of the Croatian army]. Historijski zbornik (in Croatian). 60: 1–33. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
- ISBN 978-953-340-061-7.
- ISBN 978-0-521-08070-5.
- ^ John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 161
External links
- Map of Bulgaria in the late 9th and early 10th century (Петър Коледаров: "Схема на българските граници с Византия към 865 и 905 г. и с Хърватско през 30-те години на X в.")