@Nomadicenjoyer31

1 year ago

Krum Khan (also known as Krum the Fearsome) was a military chieftain from Pannonia who became one of the greatest rulers of Bulgaria. During his reign, he unified the Bulgars and fought a successful war against the Byzantine Empire. Krum's defeat of the Avars early in his rule enabled him to unite the Bulgars who had lived under Avar rule. With the defeat of the Avars, Bulgars replaced them as overlords of the Slavs and Romanians living north of the Danube River.
After the Byzantines raided Bulgaria in 807, Krum's troops struck back. In 811, the Byzantine emperor, Nikephoros I, personally led a large army against the Bulgars. He succeeded in sacking Krum's capital of Pliska, but on his way home the Bulgars ambushed and destroyed his army and killed Nikephoros. The Bulgars made his skull into a gruesome drink- ing cup. Krum followed his victory by capturing two important Byzantine ports on the Black Sea. In 813, after he had defeated the large army the Byzantines sent against him, Krum captured Thrace and invaded the area surrounding Constantinople. He sent many Byzantine subjects to Bulgaria to serve as soldiers in his army. In 814, as commander of a massive army, Krum marched on Constantinople. He never arrived, dying of a stroke on the way.

In his dealings with the Byzantine rulers, Krum resorted to military force only after diplomacy failed. For example, throughout his campaign against Nikephoros, he extended several peace offers, which the emperor ignored. Throughout 812 and 813, he attempted to negotiate with the Byzantines. Only after his gestures were rejected did he launch his attacks.
Krum was not only a great warrior but an effective administrator as well. He issued the first national law code in the history of the Bulgarian state, a fragment of which has survived. He tolerated other ethnic groups and employed a diverse group of people-Bulgars, Avars, Slavs, Greeks, and even an Arab-in his administration. In the Byzantine territories, he placed Greeks in high administrative positions.

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