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Nikephoros Xiphias
Nikephoros Xiphias ( el, Νικηφόρος Ξιφίας, ) was a Byzantine military commander during the reign of Emperor Basil II. He played a distinguished role in the Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria, and was instrumental in the decisive Byzantine victory at the Battle of Kleidion in 1014. In 1022 he led an unsuccessful rebellion against Basil II, and was disgraced, tonsured and exiled. He is last mentioned in 1028, when he was recalled from exile and retired to a monastery. Origin Nikephoros Xiphias was born probably some time around or before 980, and was most likely the son of Alexios Xiphias, who served as the Catepan of Italy in 1006–08. Few members of the Xiphiai are otherwise known and the family's origin is unclear, but they most likely hailed from Asia Minor, like many other prestigious families of the military aristocracy of the period. Wars against Bulgaria Nikephoros appears for the first time in Emperor Basil II's Bulgarian wars, in 999/1000, 1000/1 or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinople. It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire remained the most powerful economic, cultural, and military force in Europe. The terms "Byzantine Empire" and "Eastern Roman Empire" were coined after the end of the realm; its citizens continued to refer to their empire as the Roman Empire, and to themselves as Romans—a term which Greeks continued to use for themselves into Ottoman times. Although the Roman state continued and its traditions were maintained, modern historians prefer to differentiate the Byzantine Empire from Ancient Rome a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pliska
Pliska ( , cu, Пльсковъ, translit=Plĭskovŭ) was the first capital of the First Bulgarian Empire during the Middle Ages and is now a small town in Shumen Province, on the Ludogorie plateau of the Danubian Plain, 20 km northeast of the provincial capital, Shumen. Pliska was the first capital of Bulgaria, and according to legend founded by Asparuh of Bulgaria in the late 7th century; this legend is archaeologically unsubstantiated. The site was originally an encampment, with the first tent-shaped buildings at Pliska of uncertain date. No evidence exists of a settlement before the 9th century, and claims that the site dates from Late Antiquity have been contested. By the early 9th century, Pliska was surrounded by a defensive wall and of land was further enclosed by an outer earthwork with stone revetment long. After the Byzantine army sacked and burned Pliska in 811, led by the emperor Nikephoros I (), Pliska was rebuilt by Omurtag of Bulgaria, Omurtag (), who ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Servia, Greece
Servia (Greek: Σέρβια, ''Sérvia'') is one of the main towns in the Kozani regional unit, West Macedonia, Greece. It is one of the most historical places in the region, with a 6th-century Byzantine castle and the Kamvounia mountain dominating the landscape. There are also a number of 10th century Byzantine cave hermitages and small churches located nearby, which add to the Byzantine atmosphere of the area. Since the local government reform of 2019, it is the seat of the extended municipality of Servia. From 2011 to 2019, the town was the seat of the Municipality of Servia-Velventos. The town itself has a population of 3,540 people (2011 census). Hellenic Statistical Authority (in Greek) The municipal unit Servia has an area of 400.116 km2, the community (the town pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kastoria
Kastoria ( el, Καστοριά, ''Kastoriá'' ) is a city in northern Greece in the region of Western Macedonia. It is the capital of Kastoria regional unit, in the geographic region of Macedonia. It is situated on a promontory on the western shore of Lake Orestiada, in a valley surrounded by limestone mountains. The town is known for its many Byzantine churches, Byzantine and Ottoman-era domestic architecture, its lake and its fur clothing industry. Name The city is first mentioned in 550 AD, by Procopius as follows: "There was a certain city in Thessaly, Diocletianopolis by name, which had been prosperous in ancient times, but with the passage of time and the assaults of the barbarians it had been destroyed, and for a very long time it had been destitute of inhabitants; and a certain lake chances to be close by which was named Castoria. There is an island in the middle of the lake, for the most part surrounded by water; but there remains a single narrow approach t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boyana
Boyana ( bg, Бояна ) is a neighbourhood of the Bulgarian capital of Sofia, part of Vitosha municipality and situated 8 km south of the city centre, in the outskirts of Vitosha. Boyana is one of the most expensive parts of Sofia to live in. The residents are primarily wealthy business people, government officials and other prominent members of Bulgarian society. Formerly an outlying village, it was incorporated into Sofia in 1961. History Boyana's name was first mentioned in the 11th-century ''Vision of Daniel'' in the excerpt РЄЧЄТЬ ОУ БОІАНѢ ѠСТАВИТЄ ТОУ ПЛѢНЬ. The name is most likely derived from the personal name Boyan. An alternative suggested etymology from Vulgar Latin or Balkan Latin ''*boiana'' ("herdsman's iver, from Latin ''boviana'' ("herdsman's") is considered less likely. In connection with the 1040 uprising of Peter Delyan and the Pecheneg invasion of 1048, an important stronghold under the name of ''Boyan'' (''Боян, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and has many mineral springs, such as the Sofia Central Mineral Baths. It has a humid continental climate. Being in the centre of the Balkans, it is midway between the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea, and closest to the Aegean Sea. Known as Serdica in Antiquity and Sredets in the Middle Ages, Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. The recorded history of the city begins with the attestation of the conquest of Serdica by the Roman Republic in 29 BC from the Celtic tribe Serdi. During the decline of the Roman Empire, the city was raided by Huns, Visigoths, Avars and Slavs. In 809, Serdica was incorporated into the Bulgarian Empire by Khan Krum and became known as Sredets. In 1018, the Byzantines ended Bulgarian r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moglena
Almopia ( el, Αλμωπία), or Enotia, also known in the Middle Ages as Moglena (Greek: Μογλενά, Macedonian and Bulgarian: Меглен or Мъглен), is a municipality and a former province (επαρχία) of the Pella regional unit in Macedonia, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Aridaia. The municipality has an area of 985.817 km2. Name and history The name Almopia ( grc, Ἀλμωπία, ''Almōpia'') derives from the Almopes (), a Paeonian tribe that originally inhabited the area before being expelled from the region during the reign of Alexander I (r. 498–454 BC) when Almopia was incorporated into the ancient Macedonian kingdom. The Almopes traced their descent to the eponymous mythological figure of Almops, son of the Greek God Poseidon and Helle. The 2nd-century astronomer and geographer Claudius Ptolemy records three cities in the region in his ''Geography'': Horma (), Europos () and Apsalos (). In the early Byzantine period ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constantine Diogenes
Constantine Diogenes ( gr, Κωνσταντῖνος Διογένης; died 1032) was a prominent Byzantine general of the early 11th century, active in the Balkans. He served with distinction in the final stages of the Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria under Emperor Basil II, and occupied high commands in the Balkans until his arrest in 1029, as the result of his participation in a conspiracy against Emperor Romanos III Argyros. Imprisoned and forced to enter a monastery, he committed suicide in 1032 during an inquest on a further conspiracy. He was the father of Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes. Biography Constantine Diogenes is the first notable member of the noble Diogenes family with origins from Cappadocia, which played an important role in 11th-century Byzantium.. Diogenes began his career as a commander of one of the western '' tagmata'' during the reign of Basil II (r. 976–1025), in the latter's campaigns against Bulgaria. In 1014, he participated in the decisive Byzantine v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belasica
Belasica (Macedonian and Bulgarian: , also translit. ''Belasitsa'' or ''Belasitza'', Ottoman Turkish: بلش Turkish: ''Beleş''), Belles ( el, Μπέλλες, ''Bélles'') or Kerkini (, ''Kerkíni'';), is a mountain range in the region of Macedonia in Southeastern Europe, shared by northeastern Greece (about 45%), southeastern North Macedonia (35%) and southwestern Bulgaria (20%). Geography The mountain range is fault-block mountain about long and wide and is situated just northeast of Dojran Lake. The highest point is Radomir (Kalabaka) at 2,031 m, with elevation otherwise ranging between 300 and 1900 m above sea level. The borders of all three countries meet at Tumba Peak. The climate in the area shows strong Mediterranean influence. The area of Belasica became a euroregion in 2003. Two football teams are named after the mountain range, PFC Belasitsa from the nearby Bulgarian town of Petrich and FC Belasica from Strumica in North Macedonia. History Since ancient ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuil Of Bulgaria
Samuel (also Samuil; bg, Самуил, ; mk, Самоил/Самуил, ; Old Church Slavonic: Самоилъ; died October 6, 1014) was the Tsar (''Emperor'') of the First Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 6 October 1014. From 977 to 997, he was a general under Roman I of Bulgaria, the second surviving son of Emperor Peter I of Bulgaria, and co-ruled with him, as Roman bestowed upon him the command of the army and the effective royal authority. As Samuel struggled to preserve his country's independence from the Byzantine Empire, his rule was characterized by constant warfare against the Byzantines and their equally ambitious ruler Basil II. In his early years Samuel managed to inflict several major defeats on the Byzantines and to launch offensive campaigns into their territory. In the late 10th century, the Bulgarian armies conquered the Serb principality of Duklja and led campaigns against the Kingdoms of Croatia and Hungary. But from 1001, he was forced mainly to defend the Em ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Skylitzes
John Skylitzes, commonly Latinized as Ioannes, la, Johannes, label=none, la, Iōannēs, label=none Scylitzes ( el, Ἰωάννης Σκυλίτζης, ''Iōánnēs Skylítzēs'', or el, Σκυλίτση, ''Skylítsē'', label=none ; la, Ioannes Scyllitzes, , la, Scylitza, label=none , or la, Schillizzi, label=none ; early 1040s – after 1101), was a Byzantine historian of the late 11th century. Life Very little is known about his life. The title of his work records him as a '' kouropalatēs'' and a former ''droungarios'' of the ''Vigla'', whereby he is usually identified with a certain John Thrakesios. His major work is the ''Synopsis of Histories'' ( el, Σύνοψις Ἱστοριῶν ), which covers the reigns of the Byzantine emperors from the death of Nikephoros I in 811 to the deposition of Michael VI in 1057; it continues the chronicle of Theophanes the Confessor. There is a continuation of this work, known as ''Scylitzes Continuatus'', covering 1057 to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plovdiv
Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the cultural capital of Bulgaria and was the European Capital of Culture in 2019. It is an important economic, transport, cultural, and educational center. Plovdiv joined the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities in 2016. Plovdiv is situated in a fertile region of south-central Bulgaria on the two banks of the Maritsa River. The city has historically developed on seven syenite hills, some of which are high. Because of these hills, Plovdiv is often referred to in Bulgaria as "The City of the Seven Hills". There is evidence of habitation in the area dating back to the 6th millennium BCE, when the first Neolithic settlements were established. The city was subsequently a local Thracian settlement, later being conquered and ruled also by Pers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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