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| ==Biography== | ==Biography== | ||
| ], which references Isbul |
], which references Isbul, in the Archaeological Museum of ]'s ]]] | ||
| The office of the ''kavhan'' was a hereditary title in the First Bulgarian Empire, monopolised by the members of the tentatively known "Kavhan family",<ref name="andreev1999-175">Андреев (1999), p. 175</ref> In order to accede to that position, Isbul must have belonged to the Kavhan family, which is indirectly evidenced by his ] name.<ref name="fine-109">Fine, p. 109</ref> Historian Plamen Pavlov theorises that Isbul may have begun his career under ] (r. 803–814), and by the time of Krum's son Omurtag (r. 815–831), Isbul was already an influential noble. As he is referred to as a ''kavhan'' and regent of the next ruler, Malamir (r. 831–836), one has to assume he had been appointed to the office at some point during Omurtag's rule.<ref name="andreev1999-175"/><ref name="bakalov">Бакалов</ref> | The office of the ''kavhan'' was a hereditary title in the First Bulgarian Empire, monopolised by the members of the tentatively known "Kavhan family",<ref name="andreev1999-175">Андреев (1999), p. 175</ref> In order to accede to that position, Isbul must have belonged to the Kavhan family, which is indirectly evidenced by his ] name.<ref name="fine-109">Fine, p. 109</ref> Historian Plamen Pavlov theorises that Isbul may have begun his career under ] (r. 803–814), and by the time of Krum's son Omurtag (r. 815–831), Isbul was already an influential noble. As he is referred to as a ''kavhan'' and regent of the next ruler, Malamir (r. 831–836), one has to assume he had been appointed to the office at some point during Omurtag's rule.<ref name="andreev1999-175"/><ref name="bakalov">Бакалов</ref> | ||
Revision as of 21:58, 21 November 2010
Isbul (Template:Lang-bg) (fl. 820s–830s) was the kavhan, or first minister, of the First Bulgarian Empire during the reigns of Omurtag, Malamir and Presian I. Appointed to the kavhan office under Omurtag, Isbul was a regent or co-ruler of the underage Malamir. Under Malamir and his successor Presian, Isbul headed Bulgaria's successful campaigns against the Byzantines in southern Thrace and Macedonia. As second-in-charge, Isbul held enormous power and wealth, and was unusually often mentioned beside the name of the ruler in inscriptions.
Biography
The office of the kavhan was a hereditary title in the First Bulgarian Empire, monopolised by the members of the tentatively known "Kavhan family", In order to accede to that position, Isbul must have belonged to the Kavhan family, which is indirectly evidenced by his Bulgar name. Historian Plamen Pavlov theorises that Isbul may have begun his career under Krum (r. 803–814), and by the time of Krum's son Omurtag (r. 815–831), Isbul was already an influential noble. As he is referred to as a kavhan and regent of the next ruler, Malamir (r. 831–836), one has to assume he had been appointed to the office at some point during Omurtag's rule.
The earliest record of Isbul is the stone epigraph known as the Malamir Chronicle, which states that Malamir "ruled together with kavhan Isbul". Malamir was the youngest son of Omurtag and must have been considered too immature to rule solitarily, in order to be appointed a regent. Omurtag specified Malamir as his heir because his eldest son, Enravota, was a Christian. The Byzantines hoped to take advantage of Bulgaria's instability at the time and broke the long-lasting peace established with the Treaty of 815, which they had initially reaffirmed upon Malamir's accession. In 836, Isbul was in charge of the Bulgarian forces which repulsed the Byzantine invasion and proceeded to raid into Byzantine territory.
As part of this campaign, Isbul and Malamir captured and ravaged the Thracian fortresses of Probaton (near Adrianople, modern Edirne) and Bourdizon (modern Babaeski) and reached Philippopolis (now Plovdiv). As the defence forces of Philippopolis had abandoned the city, Isbul and Malamir entered negotiations with the population in order to persuade them to cede the fortress. Pavlov is of the opinion that the war ended with a continuation of the peace of 815. He believes that Byzantine Emperor Theophilos (r. 829–842) was forced to make concessions to Bulgaria, which may have included the incorporation of Philippopolis and its close surroundings into the Bulgarian Empire.
During his time as co-ruler and kavhan of Malamir, Isbul financed the construction of a water conduit (aqueduct) or fountain in Pliska, which he donated to Malamir. That construction was the occasion for a great feast, which the ruler organised, and for gifts to the nobility. The building of such an installation and its donation to Malamir testifies to Malamir's affluence. In the source pertaining to that construction, Isbul is hailed alongside Malamir: "May God let the God-appointed ruler live a hundred years together with the kavhan Isbul". Normally, such blessings were only directed at the ruler, and this is the only case from the First Bulgarian Empire which references another person. The inscription also mentions Isbul's old age at the time.
After the surprise death of Malamir in 836, the Bulgarian throne was succeeded by Presian I (836–852), who too must have been underage. As evidenced by the Presian Inscription from Philippi, Isbul retained his position as kavhan and his decisive influence in the Bulgarian court. In 837, the Slavic tribe of the Smolyani (Smolenoi), who inhabited the lower Nestos (Mesta) River and Western Thrace near Drama, rose against their Byzantine rulers. The inscription of Philippi mentions large-scale Bulgarian activity in the lands of the Smolyani. The Bulgarian forces were led by Isbul, as well as the ichirgu-boil (commander of the capital garrison) and the head priest. As the inscription is damaged, it is unclear who Presian and Isbul supported in that conflict. However, during this campaign the Bulgarian army conquered most of Macedonia including Philippi, where the inscription was found. From that point on, Isbul disappears from the sources, and there is no information about the date and circumstances of his death.
Assessment and legacy
In his biography of Isbul, Pavlov underlines his "extraordinary merits for the development of the Bulgarian state" and describes him as "one of the architects of medieval Bulgarian statehood during the years of its rise". Romanian historian Florin Curta emphasises the similarity of Isbul's role to that of 8th-century Mayors of the Palace in the Frankish lands under the Merovingian dynasty.
Isbul Point on Livingston Island of the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica, was named in honour of kavhan Isbul by the Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria.
References
- ^ Андреев (1999), p. 175
- ^ Fine, p. 109
- ^ Бакалов
- ^ Андреев (2004), p. 66
- ^ Curta, p. 165
- Бешевлиев, p. 77
- Ziemann, p. 337
- Бешевлиев, p. 35
- ^ Андреев (2004), p. 69
- Ziemann, p. 339
- ^ Андреев (1999), p. 176
- Ziemann, p. 340
- Бешевлиев, p. 85
- Андреев (1999), p. 318
- Андреев (1999), pp. 175–176
- "Isbul Point, SCAR Gazetteer Ref. No 18173". SCAR Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
Sources
- Curta, Florin (2006). Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500–1250. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521815390.
- Fine, John Van Antwerp (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472081493.
- Ziemann, Daniel (2007). Vom Wandervolk zur Grossmacht: die Entstehung Bulgariens im frühen Mittelalter (7.-9. Jahrhundert) (in German). Böhlau Verlag Köln Weimar. ISBN 9783412091064.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Андреев, Йордан; Лазаров, Иван; Павлов, Пламен (1999). Кой кой е в средновековна България (in Bulgarian). Петър Берон. ISBN 9789544020477.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Андреев, Йордан; Пантев, Андрей (2004). Българските ханове и царе (in Bulgarian). Велико Търново: Абагар. ISBN 9789544272166.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Бакалов, Георги; Куманов, Милен (2003). "ИСБУЛ (IX в.)". Електронно издание "История на България" (in Bulgarian). София: Труд, Сирма. ISBN 9844830679.
{{cite book}}:|format=requires|url=(help); Check|isbn=value: checksum (help); Unknown parameter|trans_chapter=ignored (|trans-chapter=suggested) (help); Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Бешевлиев, Веселин (1981). Прабългарски епиграфски паметници (in Bulgarian). София: Издателство на Отечествения фронт. OCLC 8554080.
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