In the 14th-century

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

, Merope ( el, Μερόπη, bg, Меропа, ''Meropa'') was a subregion of

Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to t ...

in modern northern

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and southern

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

. The region lay in the western and middle part of the

Rhodope Mountains The Rhodopes (; bg, Родопи, ; el, Ροδόπη, ''Rodopi''; tr, Rodoplar) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in ...

. The term is only found in the writings of

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

John VI Kantakouzenos John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzene ( el, , ''Iōánnēs Ángelos Palaiológos Kantakouzēnós''; la, Johannes Cantacuzenus; – 15 June 1383) was a Byzantine Greek nobleman, statesman, and general. He served as grand domestic under An ...

. Merope extended to the

Nestos River Nestos ( ), Mesta ( ), or formerly the Mesta Karasu in Turkish (Karasu meaning "black river"), is a river in Bulgaria and Greece. It rises in the Rila Mountains and flows into the Aegean Sea near the island of Thasos. It plunges down towering c ...

in the west and to the town of Gratianopolis in the east.John V. A. Fine Jr., ''The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest'', 1994, , p. 303-305. Bulgarian historian Plamen Pavlov defines Merope as encompassing the course of the

Arda River Arda or ARDA may refer to: Places *Arda (Maritsa), a river in Bulgaria and Greece *Arda (Italy), a river in Italy *Arda (Douro), a river in Portugal *Arda, Bulgaria, a village in southern Bulgaria *Arda, County Fermanagh, a List of townlands in Co ...

up north until the

Chepelare River The Chepelare (, Chepelarska reka, also called Chaya, Чая and Asenitsa, Асеница) is a river in Bulgaria that takes its source from Rozhen Peak (around 1,500 m above sea level) in the Rhodopes. The river's length is about 82 km and t ...

and including the fortresses Sveta Irina ("Saint Irene") and Podvis. In 1343, John VI Kantakouzenos granted Merope to Bulgarian brigand

Momchil Momchil ( bg, Момчил, el, Μομ ��ζίλος or Μομιτζίλας, sr, Момчило / Momčilo; – 7 July 1345) was a 14th-century Bulgarian brigand and local ruler. Initially a member of a bandit gang in the borderlands ...

for his military assistance in the

Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347 The Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347, sometimes referred to as the Second Palaiologan Civil War, was a conflict that broke out in the Byzantine Empire after the death of Andronikos III Palaiologos over the guardianship of his nine-year-old so ...

. After Momchil changed sides in the civil war and was ultimately defeated by Kantakouzenos in 1345, Merope returned to Byzantine sovereignty.

References

Historical regions in Bulgaria Historical regions in Greece Geography of medieval Thrace Rhodope Mountains {{EastMacedoniaThrace-geo-stub