Mezamir ( gr, Μεζαμηρος, ; 560) was the chieftain of the Antes, an

early Slav The early Slavs were a diverse group of tribal societies who lived during the Migration Period and the Early Middle Ages (approximately the 5th to the 10th centuries AD) in Central and Eastern Europe and established the foundations for the Sl ...

ic tribal confederation in

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...

, believed to have been active around the year 560, at which time the Avar expanded further into Europe. He was the son of Idariz, and had a brother, Kelagast. Mezamir was recorded by

Menander Protector Menander Protector (Menander the Guardsman, Menander the Byzantian; el, Μένανδρος Προτήκτωρ or Προτέκτωρ), Byzantine historian, was born in Constantinople in the middle of the 6th century AD. The little that is known of ...

( fl. 558–582). Mezamir was described as "powerful", and had most likely established a Slavic confederation sometime before the 560s, which initially thwarted the Avar khaganate. At this time, the Antes were subject to the

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 Constantinopl ...

, ruled by

Justinian I Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renova ...

(r. 527–565), with the supreme chieftain holding the Byzantine title of '' archon''. The Antes were given old Roman towns and stipends, in exchange for securing the Danube from the Huns, and other Barbarians. At this time, the Antes held an "extensive polity, capable of military mobilization against the Avars." The Avars were ruled by ''khagan''

Bayan I Bayan I reigned as the first khagan of the Avar Khaganate between 562 and 602. As the Göktürk Empire expanded westwards on the Eurasian Steppe during the 6th century, peoples such as the Avars (also known as the ''Pseudo-Avars'', ''Obri'', ...

, and they used to pillage the Antes land, which at the time was neighbouring the

Kutrigurs Kutrigurs were Turkic nomadic equestrians who flourished on the Pontic–Caspian steppe in the 6th century AD. To their east were the similar Utigurs and both possibly were closely related to the Bulgars. They warred with the Byzantine Empire an ...

, who were Avar allies. After the Avars had ravaged and plundered the Antes, Mezamir was sent as an envoy to the Avars, to negotiate the ransom of captured Antes tribesmen. At the talks, Mezamir appeared to be a "loudmouth braggart" who spoke arrogantly and rashly; upon feeling that Mezamir became more arrogant than suitable for an envoy, a Kutrigur Bulgar who was a "friend of the Avars" and "hostile to the Antes" (believed by some to be ''khagan''

Zabergan Zabergan ( grc-x-medieval, Ζαβεργάν) was the chieftain of the Kutrigur Bulgar Huns, a nomadic people of the Pontic–Caspian steppe, after Sinnion. His name is Iranian, meaning full moon. Either under pressure from incoming Avars,; or in ...

; fl. 558–562) persuaded the Khagan that: The Avars disregarded the immunity of ambassadors (according to the '' jus gentium'') and killed Mezamir. The Avars proceeded to conquer the Antes, and other Slavs. This took place in the time period of 560–62, according to some historians.

Annotations

*Name: In historiography, he is mostly known as ''Mezamir'' (), derived from Greek ''Mezamiros'' (Μεζαμηρος). Another spelling is Mezamer. The Bulgar variant is ''Bezmer''. In Slavic, his name has been theorized to have been ''Mežamir'' (Межамир), ''Mužimir'' and Mezimir.

References

Sources

;Primary * ;Secondary * * * *{{cite book, author=Pavel Josef Šafařík, title=Slovanské starožitnosti: Oddíl dějepisný okres druhý od L. 476 před Kr. až do L. 988 po Kr, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BWBcAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA63, year=1863, publisher=Nákladem kněhkupce Bedřicha Tempského, pages=63– 6th-century rulers in Europe 6th-century Slavs Murdered royalty 6th-century Byzantine people Medieval diplomats 560s conflicts East Slavic history South Slavic history Avar–Byzantine wars Slavic warriors 6th-century diplomats