Lardea
Encyclopedia
Lardea or Lardeya is a ruined late Roman
and medieval
fortress, situated near the village of Lozenets in Straldzha Municipality, Yambol Province
, south-eastern Bulgaria
. In the Middle Ages, Lardea often changed hands between Bulgaria
and Byzantium
.
along with the Zagore
area by the Byzantine Empire. After the Treaty of 815
, its fortifications were reinforced. Lardea was conquered by the Byzantine Empire in the aftermath of the Rus' invasion of Bulgaria
(967–971). In 1051 or 1052, Nikephoros Bryennios defeated a Pecheneg detachment near Lardea. According to Alexiad
by Anna Komnene
, the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos
(r. 1081–1118) spent 40 days in the fortress during his war with the Pechenegs in 1088. In her account, Komnene describes the fortress as lying between Diampolis
and Goloe.
Lardea was conquered by the reestablished Bulgarian Empire
in the late 12th century. In 1186, the Bulgarian and Cuman
forces of the brothers Asen
and Peter
engaged the troops of Byzantine emperor Isaac II Angelos
, who were retreating to the fortress of Lardea amidst an anti-Bulgarian campaign. The Bulgarian army employed its cavalry to weaken the Byzantine force before organizing a successful all-out attack. Forced to retreat, Isaac II Angelos abandoned his campaign and fled to Adrianople.
Lardea was captured by the Byzantines along with Ktenia
in 1278 during the Uprising of Ivaylo
. In 1304, emperor Theodore Svetoslav
(r. 1300–1321) regained north-eastern Thrace
including Lardea for Bulgaria. The fortress became part of the enlarged Despotate of Kran
, which served as the appanage
of Aldimir
, a Bulgarian noble loyal to his nephew Theodore Svetoslav.
However, the fortress was lost once again during the interregnum after the premature death of Theodore Svetoslav's son George II Terter
in 1322. It was recovered by the new emperor Michael Shishman
(r. 1323-1330) in 1324. After another brief Byzantine occupation between 1330 and 1332, it was once again in Bulgarian hands in the aftermath of the Battle of Rusokastro
on 18 July 1332. In 1373, the Ottomans captured the important city of Diampolis and the surrounding fortresses including Lardea.
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
and medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
fortress, situated near the village of Lozenets in Straldzha Municipality, Yambol Province
Yambol Province
Yambol is a province in southeastern Bulgaria, neighbouring Turkey to the south. It is named after its main city Yambol, while other towns include Straldzha, Bolyarovo and Elhovo...
, south-eastern Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. In the Middle Ages, Lardea often changed hands between Bulgaria
Bulgarian Empire
Bulgarian Empire is a term used to describe two periods in the medieval history of Bulgaria, during which it acted as a key regional power in Europe in general and in Southeastern Europe in particular, rivalling Byzantium...
and Byzantium
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
.
History
Lardea was founded in the late 3rd or early 4th century. In 705, it was ceded to the First Bulgarian EmpireFirst Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
along with the Zagore
Zagore
Zagore ; also Zagorie, Zagora, Zagoria) was a vaguely defined medieval region in Bulgaria. Its name is of Slavic origin and means "beyond [i.e. south of] the [Balkan] mountains"...
area by the Byzantine Empire. After the Treaty of 815
Treaty of 815
The Treaty of 815 was a 30-year peace agreement signed in Constantinople between the Bulgarian Khan Omurtag and the Byzantine Emperor Leo V the Armenian.- Background :...
, its fortifications were reinforced. Lardea was conquered by the Byzantine Empire in the aftermath of the Rus' invasion of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria refers to a conflict beginning in 967/968 and ending in 971, carried out in the eastern Balkans and involving the Kievan Rus', Bulgaria, and the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantines instigated the Rus' ruler Sviatoslav to attack Bulgaria, leading to the collapse of the...
(967–971). In 1051 or 1052, Nikephoros Bryennios defeated a Pecheneg detachment near Lardea. According to Alexiad
Alexiad
The Alexiad is a medieval biographical text written around the year 1148 by the Byzantine historian Anna Comnena, daughter of Emperor Alexius I....
by Anna Komnene
Anna Komnene
Anna Komnene, Latinized as Comnena was a Greek princess and scholar and the daughter of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos of Byzantium and Irene Doukaina...
, the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos, Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus , was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and although he was not the founder of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power. The title 'Nobilissimus' was given to senior army commanders,...
(r. 1081–1118) spent 40 days in the fortress during his war with the Pechenegs in 1088. In her account, Komnene describes the fortress as lying between Diampolis
Yambol
Yambol is a city in southeastern Bulgaria, an administrative centre of Yambol Province. It lies on both banks of the Tundzha river in the historical region of Thrace. As of February 2011, the town has a population of 72,843 inhabitants. It is occasionally spelt 'Jambol'.The administrative centres...
and Goloe.
Lardea was conquered by the reestablished Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...
in the late 12th century. In 1186, the Bulgarian and Cuman
Cumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...
forces of the brothers Asen
Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria
Ivan Asen I ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1189–1196. The year of his birth is unknown.-Life:...
and Peter
Peter IV of Bulgaria
Peter IV ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1185–1197. Together with his brother Asen he managed to restore the Bulgarian Empire after nearly 170 years of Byzantine domination.-Name:...
engaged the troops of Byzantine emperor Isaac II Angelos
Isaac II Angelos
Isaac II Angelos was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204....
, who were retreating to the fortress of Lardea amidst an anti-Bulgarian campaign. The Bulgarian army employed its cavalry to weaken the Byzantine force before organizing a successful all-out attack. Forced to retreat, Isaac II Angelos abandoned his campaign and fled to Adrianople.
Lardea was captured by the Byzantines along with Ktenia
Ktenia (fortress)
Ktenia is a ruined Roman and medieval fortress, situated 2.1 km to the north of the village of Lozarevo in Sungurlare Municipality, Burgas Province, south-eastern Bulgaria. In the Middle Ages, Ktenia often changed hands between Bulgaria and Byzantium....
in 1278 during the Uprising of Ivaylo
Uprising of Ivaylo
The Uprising of Ivaylo was an uprising of the Bulgarian peasantry against the Emperor Constantine Tikh and the Bulgarian nobility. The revolt was fuelled by resentment at the beginning feudalization of the Bulgarian Empire, as well as by the failure to confront the Mongol menace over north-eastern...
. In 1304, emperor Theodore Svetoslav
Theodore Svetoslav of Bulgaria
Theodore Svetoslav ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1300 to 1322. The date of his birth is unknown. He was a wise and capable ruler who brought stability and relative prosperity to the Bulgarian Empire after two decades of constant Mongol intervention in the internal issues of the Empire...
(r. 1300–1321) regained north-eastern Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
including Lardea for Bulgaria. The fortress became part of the enlarged Despotate of Kran
Kran, Bulgaria
Kran is a town in central Bulgaria. It is located just south of the Balkan Mountains and is administratively part of Kazanlak Municipality, Stara Zagora Province. Kran was an important castle of the Second Bulgarian Empire in the 13th–14th century...
, which served as the appanage
Appanage
An apanage or appanage or is the grant of an estate, titles, offices, or other things of value to the younger male children of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture...
of Aldimir
Aldimir
Aldimir or EltimirWhile Aldimir is mentioned in Medieval Greek sources solely as Ἐλτιμηρῆς, Eltimiris, his original name Aldimir has been established thanks to the discovery of his son Ivan Dragushin's epitaph. was a Bulgarian noble of the 13th–14th century...
, a Bulgarian noble loyal to his nephew Theodore Svetoslav.
However, the fortress was lost once again during the interregnum after the premature death of Theodore Svetoslav's son George II Terter
George II of Bulgaria
George Terter II reigned as emperor of Bulgaria 1321–1322. The date of his birth is unknown, but he was born not long before 1307.George Terter II was the son of Theodore Svetoslav and Euphrosyne, and was named after his paternal grandfather George Terter I. It is possible that he was associated...
in 1322. It was recovered by the new emperor Michael Shishman
Michael Shishman of Bulgaria
Michael Asen III ), ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1323 to 1330. The exact year of his birth is unknown but it was between 1280 and 1292. He was the founder of the last ruling dynasty of the Second Bulgarian Empire, the Shishman dynasty...
(r. 1323-1330) in 1324. After another brief Byzantine occupation between 1330 and 1332, it was once again in Bulgarian hands in the aftermath of the Battle of Rusokastro
Battle of Rusokastro
The Battle of Rusokastro occurred on July 18, 1332 near the village of Rusokastro, Bulgaria between the armies of the Bulgarian and Byzantine Empires. The result was a Bulgarian victory.-Origins of the conflict:...
on 18 July 1332. In 1373, the Ottomans captured the important city of Diampolis and the surrounding fortresses including Lardea.