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Alcek or Alzeco was allegedly a son of
Kubrat Kubrat ( el, Κοβρᾶτος, Kούβρατος; bg, Кубрат ) was the ruler of the Onogur–Bulgars, credited with establishing the confederation of Old Great Bulgaria in ca. 632. His name derived from the Turkic words ''qobrat'' — ...
and led the Altsikurs to Ravenna that later settled in the villages of
Gallo Matese Gallo Matese (Molisano: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italy, Italian region Campania, located in a valley near the Matese Apennines chain and the boundary with Molise, about north of Naples and about north of ...
,
Sepino Sepino is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Campobasso in the Italian region Molise, located about south of Campobasso. The archaeological site of Saepinum is located nearby. Sepino borders the following municipalities: Cercemaggio ...
,
Boiano Bojano or Boiano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Campobasso, Molise, south-central Italy. History Originally named Bovianum, it was settled by the 7th century BC. As the capital of the Pentri, a tribe of the Samnites, it played a maj ...
and
Isernia Isernia () or, in Pliny and later writers, ''Eserninus'', or in the Antonine Itinerary, ''Serni''. is a town and ''comune'' in the southern Italian region of Molise, and the capital of province of Isernia. Geography Situated on a rocky crest ri ...
in the
Matese mountains The Matese (Italian: Monti del Matese or Massiccio del Matese) is a chain of mountains in southern Apennines, southern Italy. Geography The Matese mountains straddle two regions ( Molise and Campania) and four provinces ( Campobasso, Isernia ...
of
southern Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...
. Alzeco should not be confused with the Pannonian Bulgar leader
Alciocus Alcek or Alzeco was allegedly a son of Kubrat and led the Altsikurs to Ravenna that later settled in the villages of Gallo Matese, Sepino, Boiano and Isernia in the Matese mountains of southern Italy. Alzeco should not be confused with the Pann ...
who joined the Wends before Alzeco was born. After the collapse of
Old Great Bulgaria Old Great Bulgaria or Great Bulgaria (Medieval Greek: Παλαιά Μεγάλη Βουλγαρία, ''Palaiá Megálē Voulgaría''), also often known by the Latin names ''Magna Bulgaria'' and ''Patria Onoguria'' (" Onogur land"), was a 7th- ...
, some of the
Bulgars The Bulgars (also Bulghars, Bulgari, Bolgars, Bolghars, Bolgari, Proto-Bulgarians) were Turkic semi-nomadic warrior tribes that flourished in the Pontic–Caspian steppe and the Volga region during the 7th century. They became known as nomad ...
, led by Alzeco, thought to be a son of Khan Kubrat, settled in the lands of the Longobard Kingdom.
Paul the Deacon Paul the Deacon ( 720s 13 April in 796, 797, 798, or 799 AD), also known as ''Paulus Diaconus'', ''Warnefridus'', ''Barnefridus'', or ''Winfridus'', and sometimes suffixed ''Cassinensis'' (''i.e.'' "of Monte Cassino"), was a Benedictine monk, s ...
places a settlement in his history of the migration of the Bulgars in the area of the
Duchy of Benevento The Duchy of Benevento (after 774, Principality of Benevento) was the southernmost Lombard duchy in the Italian Peninsula that was centred on Benevento, a city in Southern Italy. Lombard dukes ruled Benevento from 571 to 1077, when it was conq ...
. Under the leadership of Alzeco, the Bulgars (called "Vulgars" by Paul) came to Italy in Benevento, where they settled in the Molise region.


Alciocus

The earlier Khagan called Alciocus who was the leader of Bulgar hordes of the Avar Khanganate, is also known. The main source for these events is the medieval
chronicle of Fredegar The ''Chronicle of Fredegar'' is the conventional title used for a 7th-century Frankish chronicle that was probably written in Burgundy. The author is unknown and the attribution to Fredegar dates only from the 16th century. The chronicle begins ...
. In 631
Samo Samo (–) founded the first recorded political union of Slavic tribes, known as Samo's Empire (''realm'', ''kingdom'', or ''tribal union''), stretching from Silesia to present-day Slovakia, ruling from 623 until his death in 658. According to ...
led a rebellion against the
Pannonian Avars The Pannonian Avars () were an alliance of several groups of Eurasian nomads of various origins. The peoples were also known as the Obri in chronicles of Rus, the Abaroi or Varchonitai ( el, Βαρχονίτες, Varchonítes), or Pseudo-Avars ...
. Alciocus fled with 9,000 Bulgars to
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
where he asked the
Frankish king The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who con ...
Dagobert I Dagobert I ( la, Dagobertus; 605/603 – 19 January 639 AD) was the king of Austrasia (623–634), king of all the Franks (629–634), and king of Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dy ...
I for a piece of land to settle in. The king at first allowed them some land, but one night he ordered his army to slaughter the Bulgars. Only 700 out of 9,000 survived the slaughter and fled for protection to Walluc king of the
Wends Wends ( ang, Winedas ; non, Vindar; german: Wenden , ; da, vendere; sv, vender; pl, Wendowie, cz, Wendové) is a historical name for Slavs living near Germanic settlement areas. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various peopl ...
. After the departure of Alciocus, Kubrat established peace between the Avars and Byzantium in 632.


Alzeco

Although only three of Kubrat's sons are mentioned by name it has been suggested that Kubrat gave the name Alzeco to one of his other two sons. After Kubrat's death over 40 years later, his empire was divided by his five sons in the 670s. Alzeco gained permission from the
King of the Lombards The Kings of the Lombards or ''reges Langobardorum'' (singular ''rex Langobardorum'') were the monarchs of the Lombards, Lombard people from the early 6th century until the Lombardic identity became lost in the 9th and 10th centuries. After 568, ...
, Grimoald, to settle in the area of
Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...
. Eventually they were sent south into the
Duchy of Benevento The Duchy of Benevento (after 774, Principality of Benevento) was the southernmost Lombard duchy in the Italian Peninsula that was centred on Benevento, a city in Southern Italy. Lombard dukes ruled Benevento from 571 to 1077, when it was conq ...
, where Alzeco was granted the rule of their settlements with the Longobard (Italian) title of
gastald A gastald (Latin ''gastaldus'' or ''castaldus''; Italian ''gastaldo'' or ''guastaldo'') was a Lombard official in charge of some portion of the royal demesne (a gastaldate, ''gastaldia'' or ''castaldia'') with civil, martial, and judicial powers. ...
.


Italian Archaeology

Human graves of a steppe-nomadic character as well as horse burials datable to the second half of the eighth century attest to the presence of Pannonian peoples in the
Molise Molise (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Neapolitan, Mulise) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy. Until 1963, it formed part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise, alongside the region of Abruzzo. The split, which did not become effe ...
and
Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...
. In the lifetime of
Paul the Deacon Paul the Deacon ( 720s 13 April in 796, 797, 798, or 799 AD), also known as ''Paulus Diaconus'', ''Warnefridus'', ''Barnefridus'', or ''Winfridus'', and sometimes suffixed ''Cassinensis'' (''i.e.'' "of Monte Cassino"), was a Benedictine monk, s ...
, he recorded that the descendants of these "Vulgars" still spoke their original language, as well as Latin.


Alzeco as Alciocus

Researchers have, in the past, claimed one identification of both historical figures. They have suggested that Alzeco might be identified with the Bulgar leader Alciocus of the Fredegar chronicle. This notion, however, must surmount a significant chronological contradiction, and it is possible that this was a title rather than a personal name. In any case, it seems more likely that the "vulgares" that settled in the Molise are more likely to refer to the men of Alciocus, as most of the tombs excavated at Campochiaro can be dated around the middle of the VII century, with some being certainly earlier or later. This would indicate a settlement in the area some time before the reign of Romuald as Duke in Benevento and Grimoald as king in Pavia. Furthermore, this is supported by the fact that the Longobards had no control of the Ravennate lands until the second half of the VIII century, meaning that Grimoald would have been unable to settle them in this area without Byzantine approval, which would be strange as Costans II was in the midst of a disastrous Italian campaign against the Southern Longobards. It is very probable that Paul the Deacon confused the settlement of Alzeco/Alciocus in the Molise after his flight from Dagobert I with another event about 50 years later, specifically the settlement of one of Kubrat's/Kurt's unnamed sons around Ravenna, most likely as a form of protection against the Longobards for the nominally Byzantine Exarchate. The name of the leader of this group is completely unknown, although the settlement may have been known thanks to Byzantine records in the Exarchate.Gli Àvari. Un popolo d'oriente nell'Europa dell'Alto Medioevo Bóna, István. (2000) - In: L'oro degli Avari. Popolo delle steppe in Europa S. 10


Sources

*Dillon, John B. "Bulgars". ''Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia'', ed. Christopher Kleinhenz. London: Routledge, 2004. * D'Amico, Vincenzo. ''I Bulgari trasmigrati in Italia nei secoli VI e VII dell’era volgare e loro speciale diffusione nel Sannio''. Campobasso, 1933.. * Paulus Diaconus, Historia Langobardorum, Book IV * Bòna, Istvàn, (2000) Gli Àvari. Un popolo d'oriente nell'Europa dell'Alto Medioevo - In: L'oro degli Avari. Popolo delle steppe in Europa S. 10


Notes


External links


I Bulgari stanziati nelle terre d'Italia nell'Alto Medio Evo
by Vincenzo D'Amico {{Authority control Dulo clan 7th-century Bulgarian people