Nominalia of the Bulgarian rulers An essay by Ilia Curto Pelle Bulgaria is a country with a rich history, spanning over a millennium and a half. However, most Bulgarians are unaware of their origins. To be honest, the quantity of information involved can be overwhelming, but once someone becomes invested in it, he or she can witness a tale of the rise and fall, steppe khans and Christian emperors, saints and murderers of the three Bulgarian Empires. As delving deep in the history of Bulgaria would take volumes upon volumes of work, in this essay I have tried simply to create a list of all Bulgarian rulers we know about by using different sources. So, let’s get to it. Despite there being many theories for the origin of the Bulgars, the only one that can show a historical document supporting it is the Hunnic one. This document is the Nominalia of the Bulgarian khans, dating back to the 8th or 9th century, which mentions Avitohol/Attila the Hun as the first Bulgarian khan. However, it is not clear when the Bulgars first joined the Hunnic Empire. It is for this reason that all the Hunnic rulers we know about will also be included in this list as khans of the Bulgars. The rulers of the Bulgars and Bulgaria carry the titles of khan, knyaz, emir, elteber, president, and tsar. This list recognizes as rulers those people, who were either crowned as any of the above, were declared as such by the people, despite not having an official coronation, or had any possession of historical Bulgarian lands (in modern day Bulgaria, southern Romania, Serbia, Albania, Macedonia, and northern Greece), while being of royal descent or a part of the royal family. This is the reason why pretenders like Jacob Svetoslav and the archdukes of Austria will not be recognized as Bulgarian rulers, despite claiming the title. Moreover, the Habsburgs never held any Bulgarian lands for a prolonged period of time. In the absence of a Bulgarian ruler, the list will include those Byzantine emperors and Ottoman sultans, who had control over all of modern-day Bulgaria. The Russian occupations during the Russo-Turkish wars will also not be included, as they did not last for a protracted period of time. The only exception to this rule is the Provisional Russian Administration in Bulgaria from 1878 to 1879, when the modern state came into existence. The order and time each khan or tsar ruled is listed as calculated in the works of the scholars Petar Mutafchiev and Vasil Zlatarski, as well as many others Bulgarian historians (Hristo Gandev, Vera Mutafchieva, etc.) The source material includes but is not limited to the works of patriarch Nicephoros, Theophanes the Confessor, John Skylitzes, Evliya Çelebi, John the Exarch, St. Clement of Ohrid, Demetrios Kantakouzenos, and many others. The rulers of the Volga Bulgars are listed in the Cäğfär Taríxı, which holds interesting information, despite its originality being debatable. So, here is the list of rulers of the Bulgars, Volga Bulgaria, and Bulgaria from the time of the Huns until today: Hunnic Chieftains Title Name Rule Notable deeds King Kama Tarkhan 1st century A legendary chief who led the Huns to first appear near the Caspian Sea, according to Tacitus. King Vundus 2nd century Allegedly a son of Kama Tarkhan, he consolidated Hunnic rule over the Ukrainian steppes. King Balamber 370-378 Crushed the kingdom of the Ostrogoths. King Balthazar 378-390 First conducted raids on the Lower Danube. King Uldin 390-410 Attacked the Eastern Roman province of Moesia and defeated the Gothic king Radagaisus. King Donatus 410-412 Donatus, being deceived by oath, was unlawfully put to death. King Charaton 412-423 Made peace with the Eastern Roman Empire. Joint Kings Octar and Rugila 423-430 Attacked the Burgundians. King Rugila 430-434 Accepted Flavius Aetius as his guest and led numerous incursions against both the Western and Eastern Roman Empire. King Mundzucus 434 The father of Bleda and Attila, he was blamed for the death of Rugila and was killed. Joint Kings Bleda and Attila 434-445 Attacked the lands of the Persian Empire but were defeated in Armenia. After that they invaded the Eastern Roman Empire, thus forcing the emperor to pay them to leave. In 445 Bleda was killed by his brother. King Attila the Hun 445-453 Known as the Scourge of God, he ravaged the provinces of the Western Roman Empire, creating a powerful empire, but ultimately was defeated at the battle of Chalons by a united Barbarian-Roman coalition, led by Flavius Aetius. Attila invaded Italy, but was turned back by Pope Leo I. The Hunnic king was later murdered during his wedding night with the Germanic woman Gudrun. After his death, his empire fell apart. King Ellac 453-454 He tried to rebuild his father’s legacy but was killed at the battle of Nedao. King Dengizich 454-469 Attacked the Eastern Roman Empire but was killed by the general Anagastes at the battle of Bassianae. King Ernak 469-490 Made peace with the Byzantine Empire. King Dzsuras 490-500 Married into the Avar royal family to stop an invasion into his lands. King Tatras 500-с.515 Led numerous raids against the Byzantine Empire. King Grod c.515-528 Converted to Christianity and began suppressing the pagan cults. Overthrown by his brother Mugel. During this time the Kutrigur and Utigur Bulgars began splitting under Hunnic rule. King/Khan Mugel 528-530 Lost the city of Bosporus to the Byzantines. He was succeeded by his brother Chinialon and was the last ruler of the united Bulgars. Khans of the Kutrigur Bulgars Title Name Rule Notable Deeds Khan Chinialon 530-551 He was betrayed by the Utigurs while fighting a war with the Byzantine Empire. Ultimately, Chinialon lost the war and was forced to migrate with his people to Thrace, where they became foederati to the Byzantines. Khan Sandilch 551-558 A veteran of the Vandalic war and the battle of Ad Decimum, he opposed the Byzantine Empire after becoming the leader of the Kutrigurs. Khan Zabergan 558-586 He invaded Thrace and attacked Constantinople but was repelled by the general Flavius Belisarius at the battle of Melantias. Once again, the Utigurs attacked Zabergan in the rear, forcing him to return to Dacia, where under the rule of emperor Maurice (582-602) the Kutrigurs fell under the control of the Avar Khaganate. Khans of the Utigur Bulgars Title Name Rule Notable deeds Khan Sandilch 530-c.560 He was bribed by the Byzantines to betray and attack his former allies the Kutrigur Bulgars. However, his control over the northern Black Sea region began to be challenged by the rising Avar Khaganate. Khan Anagai c.560-581 In 576 he attacked and captured the fortress of Bosphoros. In 581, Anagai was killed in battle against the armies of the Western Turkish Khaganate and was replaced as a puppet ruler by the Onogondur chief Houdbaad. Old Great Bulgaria Title Name Rule Notable deeds Khan Houdbaad 581-c.600 Houdbaad was able to maneuver between the interests of the Western Turkish Khaganate and the Avar Khaganate and in a short time with the aid of the Avar Khagan Bayan II was able to unite both the Kutrigurs and Utigurs under his rule, thereby uniting all the Bulgars. Around 600 he died of a plague while marching with the Avars against the Byzantines. Unknown Unknown c.600-617 Probably the father of Kubrat and/or a son of Houdbaad, he was either killed or replaced by Organa in 617, who as an uncle of Kubrat served as his regent. Khan Organa 617-630 Organa allegedly led his nephew Kubrat to Constantinople, where the later became a ward of the Byzantine emperor Heraclius (610-641) until he could become khan. It is possible for both to have been baptized. Organa died in 630 and was replaced by Gostun of the Ermi clan. Regent Gostun 630-632 Gostun served as a regent for 2 years while Kubrat could return from Constantinople to assume full authority. Khan Kubrat 632-665 Kubrat led a successful rebellion against the Western Turkish Khaganate and created the first Bulgarian state – Old Great Bulgaria. His capital at Phanagoria became the center for trade in the Black Sea. In 635 he signed an alliance with emperor Heraclius and was granted the title of patrician. After his death his 3 (or 5) sons divided the Bulgars and went in different directions. This was the last great division of the Bulgar people. Khan Batbayan 665-668 The firstborn son of Kubrat, Batbayan stayed in Old Great Bulgaria and protected it from the rising Khazar Khaganate, but after a fierce resistance was forced to submit and pay tribute. With time his descendants mostly either assimilated into the Khaganate or joined the tribes of Batbayan’s brothers – Kotrag and Asparukh. Khan Alcek/Alciocus c. 635 A descendant of the Bulgars, who settled in Pannonia, or an alleged son of Kubrat, Alcek or Alciocus led a rebellion against the Avar Khagan and was forced in defeat to leave. He sought the protection of the Frankish king Dagobert (629-639) together with his Bulgars but was betrayed and many of his tribesmen were murdered. The survivors were allowed to settle in the exarchate of Ravenna, their descendants being alive in Italy to this very day. Khan Kuber c.670-c.710 Allegedly a son of Kubrat, Kuber led his Bulgars into modern-day Macedonia, where he attacked Thessaloniki but was repelled. From the inscriptions at the Madara Horseman it can be seen that Kuber and his descendants maintained a close relationship with the Bulgars of Asparukh, who settled the Lower Danube.