Ivats ( bg, Ивац) or Ibatzes was a
Bulgarian noble[History of the Byzantine Empire from DCCXVI to MLVII, George Finlay, BiblioBazaar, LLC, 2009, , p. 385.] and military commander in the late 10th and early 11th century. He served three
Bulgarian Emperors -
Samuil
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 ...
(997-1014);
Gavril Radomir
Gavril Radomir ( bg, Гаврил Радомир; el, Γαβριὴλ Ρωμανός, Gavriil Romanos; anglicized as "Gabriel Radomir"; died 1015) was the emperor (tsar) of the First Bulgarian Empire from October 1014 to August or September 101 ...
(1014–1015) and
Ivan Vladislav
Ivan Vladislav ( cu, Їѡаннъ Владиславъ; bg, Иван/Йоан Владислав; died February 1018) ruled as emperor (tsar) of the First Bulgarian Empire from August or September 1015 to February 1018. The year of his birth is ...
(1015–1018).
In 1015, he defeated a
Byzantine
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 Constantinopl ...
army in the
battle of Bitola and stopped the disastrous campaign of
Basil II
Basil II Porphyrogenitus ( gr, Βασίλειος Πορφυρογέννητος ;) and, most often, the Purple-born ( gr, ὁ πορφυρογέννητος, translit=ho porphyrogennetos).. 958 – 15 December 1025), nicknamed the Bulgar S ...
in the heart of the
Bulgarian Empire
In the medieval history of Europe, Bulgaria's status as the Bulgarian Empire ( bg, Българско царство, ''Balgarsko tsarstvo'' ) occurred in two distinct periods: between the seventh and the eleventh centuries and again between the ...
. After the death of Ivan Vladislav and the surrender of the Empress, the
Patriarch
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certai ...
and many nobles to the
Byzantines, he chose to continue the struggle along the sons of the dead Emperor and several other nobles. His stronghold was the fortress ''
Tomornitsa'' in
Mount Tomor
Tomorr is a mountain range in the region of Berat and Skrapar, in Albania. It reaches an elevation of above sea level at the Çuka e Partizanit, which is the highest peak in central Albania.
Mount Tomorr is one of Albania's biggest water-col ...
, modern south-eastern
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. The fortress was soon besieged by Basil II but the 55-day siege was unsuccessful for the Byzantines. In August 1018 he was treacherously blinded by the Byzantine ''strategos''
Eustathios Daphnomeles
Eustathios Daphnomeles ( el, , early 11th century) was a Byzantine and patrician who distinguished himself in the Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria. He ranks as one of the most prominent and successful generals in the thirty-year war between Emp ...
.
References
10th-century births
11th-century deaths
10th-century Bulgarian people
11th-century Bulgarian people
Medieval Bulgarian nobility
Medieval Bulgarian military personnel
Bulgarian people of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars
Albania under the Bulgarian Empire
{{Bulgaria-bio-stub