Samuel of Bulgaria
Samuil ( Bulgarian Самуил or Samuel and Samoil, * 958, † October 6, 1014 ) was 997-1014 one of the last Tsar of the First Bulgarian Empire. Under his rule, on the same lake Ohrid was the capital of the Bulgarian Empire.
Fighting against Byzantium
Samuil led from 977 as a military leader and as Tsar of Bulgaria from 997 a forty- year-long military conflict with Byzantium, in the end of the Byzantine emperor Basil II retained the upper hand. The decisive battle of clothes Dion took place in 1014 Strymontal in Belasiza Mountains. 15,000 Bulgarian warriors were captured, blinded and sent to Samuel's residence in Prespa. At the sight of Tsar Samuil allegedly blinded to heat stroke; at least he died shortly afterwards. From now on, Basil II Bulgaroktonos ( Bulgarians Slayer ) was called. Bulgaria was soon divided it into five Byzantine themes ( provinces ).
Under the reign of Tsar Samuil the Archbishopric of Ohrid was appointed to the Bulgarian Orthodox Patriarchate Church. Patriarch Germanus was I. After the conquest of Byzantium was reduced the Patriarchate of Ohrid back to a archbishopric, but remained autocephalous.
Tomb
1969 led the Greek archaeologist professor Nikolaos Moutsopoulos the excavations in the Basilica " Agios Achillios " on the eponymous island in Lake Prespa little to the north of Greece. He discovered the right Naos of the basilica four sarcophagi that had been buried rich, but were robbed in the Middle Ages by grave robbers. Although any inscriptions missing, Moutsopoulos assumed that it is the three tombs of the last Tsar of the First Bulgarian Empire: Samuil, Gavril Radomir and Ivan Vladislav. In the fourth sarcophagus is loud Moutsopoulos to the tomb of Ivan Vladimir, brother of Ivan Vladislav.
The remains of individuals from the sarcophagi are now in the laboratory of the professor in Thessaloniki. He has several times the Bulgarian State offered if he would get in return some Byzantine writings.
Importance
Complaint, as with other national symbols of the region, both Bulgaria and since 1990 also the Tsar Samuil each Macedonia for itself. However, the discussion about whether ruler Samuil a Macedonian, Bulgarian or Bulgarian state was West is ahistorical, as it represents an attempt to project ethnic conceptions of the present to the past. The Byzantine Macedonia to Adrian Opel (Eastern Thrace ) - - On the map opposite, the Southeast Europe shows around the year 1000, is also a region to see what the name of Macedonia throughout the High Middle Ages ( 10th-13th century. ) bears. Its geographical position agreed at the time agreed neither with the Macedonia of antiquity, even with today's Republic of Macedonia. In green you see on the map as "Bulgaria" drawn in the Bulgarian Empire under Samuil, which coincides territorially large parts with today's Macedonia.
Tsar Samuil in the literature
The biography and the epoch in the Tsar Samuil lived has inspired a number of writers and artists. The trilogy of the author Dimitar Talew Самуил - цар български ( Engl. about Samuil's Bulgarian Tsar ) is based both on historical facts, but also on the perspective of the author.
The Battle of Belasiza The Landwehr soldiers on Shipka ( Bulg Опълченците на Шипка ) by Ivan Vazov been mentioned in the poem. With the Battle of the poem Pentscho Slaveikov Цар Самуил is ( Engl.: Tsar Samuil ) associated. The poet Atanas Daltschew mentions the " blinded Samuil soldiers " (from the Bulg ослепелите бойци на Самуила ) in his work Към родината ( Engl. about: At the home ).