The Battle of Anchialus ( bg, Битката при Анхиало) (

Medieval Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Fall of Co ...

: Μάχη του Αγχίαλου) occurred in 708 near the modern-day town of

Pomorie Pomorie ( bg, Поморие ), historically known as Anchialos (Greek: Αγχίαλος), is a town and seaside resort in southeastern Bulgaria, located on a narrow rocky peninsula in Burgas Bay on the southern Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. It is ...

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 Macedo ...

Origins of the conflict

In 705, the Bulgarian Khan,

Tervel Khan Tervel ( bg, Тервел) also called ''Tarvel'', or ''Terval'', or ''Terbelis'' in some Byzantine sources, was the khan of Bulgaria during the First Bulgarian Empire at the beginning of the 8th century. In 705 Emperor Justinian II named ...

helped the ex-emperor of Byzantium,

Justinian II Justinian II ( la, Iustinianus; gr, Ἰουστινιανός, Ioustinianós; 668/69 – 4 November 711), nicknamed "the Slit-Nosed" ( la, Rhinotmetus; gr, ὁ Ῥινότμητος, ho Rhinótmētos), was the last Eastern Roman emperor of the ...

, regain his throne after 10 years in exile. To show his gratitude, Justinian gave the

Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...

an enormous quantity of gold, silver, and silk, as well as the "Zagore" area, located between Stara Zagora,

Sliven Sliven ( bg, Сливен ) is the eighth-largest city in Bulgaria and the administrative and industrial centre of Sliven Province and municipality in Northern Thrace. Sliven is famous for its heroic Haiduts who fought against the Ottoman Turk ...

, and the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

. Three years later, Justinian II considered himself strong enough to invade

and restore his rule over these lands.

The battle

The Byzantines reached the Anchialus fortress and set their camp there, unaware of the fact that the Bulgarian army was in the vicinity. While the invaders were gathering food, Tervel and his cavalry charged the outermost

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 ...

troops, while at the same time the infantry attacked the camp. The Byzantines were surprised and confused; most of them perished in the battle or were captured, as well as many horses and arms. The emperor was one of the very few who managed to reach the fortress and escape to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

on a ship.

Aftermath

The Bulgarians secured the new territorial gains for centuries. In 711 when a riot and coup attempt forced Justinian II to seek for help, Tervel gave him 3,000 soldiers, who after several skirmishes were given safe conduct to Bulgaria by the new emperor, who had Justinian II executed.

References

*Атанас Пейчев и колектив, 1300 години на стража, Военно издателство, София 1984. *Йордан Андреев, Милчо Лалков, Българските ханове и царе, Велико Търново, 1996. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anchialus 708 700s conflicts Pomorie 8th century in Bulgaria 700s in the Byzantine Empire Battles involving the First Bulgarian Empire Battles of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars in Thrace Military history of Bulgaria History of Burgas Province Twenty Years' Anarchy 708