40:
656:
Byzantines could not cross, and neglected taking measures to protect his camp. Ouranos however, sought and found a ford, led his army across during the night, and attacked the
Bulgarians at dawn. The Bulgarians were not able to put up effective resistance, and the larger part of their army was destroyed and captured. Samuil himself was wounded and he and his son
655:
After heavy rainfalls, the river had swollen and flooded a large area on both shores. The
Bulgarians camped on the southern shore and the Byzantines on the northern, separated from each other by the river. The two armies remained thus encamped for several days. Samuil was confident that the
688:
in prison, he proclaimed himself the sole legitimate tsar and continued the war. Although Samuil initially managed to recover, the
Byzantines decisively took the lead in the war. In 1014, they decisively defeated the Bulgarians and conquered the country in the battles of
648:. Basil II had appointed Ouranos commander of all Balkan and Greek territories of the Byzantine Empire and gave him a large army to defeat the Bulgarians. He followed the Bulgarian army and confronted it after the Bulgarians went through the
167:
660:
evaded capture by feigning death among the bodies of their slain soldiers, while around 12,000 of their men were said to be captured. After nightfall they set off to
Bulgaria and in the
160:
907:
912:
560:. The Byzantine victory virtually destroyed the Bulgarian army, and ended its raids in the southern Balkans and Greece. The major historical source on the battle comes from
153:
684:
The battle was a major defeat of the
Bulgarian army. At first Samuil showed readiness for negotiations but upon the news of the death of Bulgaria's official ruler
309:
295:
697:. According to Skylitzes, the victory was entirely Ouranos's achievement, and Basil II is credited with little besides appointing him to the office of
902:
339:
897:
796:
726:
439:
932:
741:, Д., Временна византийска военна администрация в българските земи 971–987/989 г., ГСУ НЦСВП, т. 82 (2), 1988, с. 41–43, 55–56
358:
330:
644:
On his way back, Samuil met a
Byzantine army on the opposite side of the Spercheios river, led by the Domestic of the West,
917:
750:Ангелов, Д., Чолпанов, Б., Българска военна история през Средновековието (X–XV век), Издателство на БАН, София 1994, с. 45
690:
604:
took advantage of the situation. He managed to seize many castles in the surroundings of
Byzantium's second largest city,
589:
468:
434:
395:
385:
365:
269:
177:
619:
420:
370:
346:
488:
927:
194:
118:
264:
219:
214:
209:
204:
427:
315:
301:
31:
892:
451:
410:
244:
97:
483:
478:
279:
39:
508:
320:
286:
259:
351:
274:
229:
224:
694:
645:
601:
557:
549:
525:
493:
405:
400:
123:
114:
792:
722:
685:
609:
597:
503:
463:
444:
254:
669:
593:
561:
553:
498:
473:
415:
380:
249:
102:
664:
mountains gathered what was left of their army. Over the difficult 400 km journey to
458:
390:
325:
199:
853:, В., История на българската държава през средните векове, том I, част 2, София 1971, с.
811:, В., История на българската държава през средните векове, том I, част 2, София 1971, с.
774:, В., История на българската държава през средните векове, том I, част 2, София 1971, с.
762:, Ив., България в епохата на цар Самуил, с. 200, в: сп. Исторически преглед 1999, кн. 5–6
673:
657:
565:
533:
45:
886:
816:
922:
605:
545:
44:
Bulgarians put to flight by
Ouranos at the Spercheios River from the Chronicle of
858:
854:
812:
775:
649:
572:(Σύνοψις Ἱστοριῶν) contains a biography of the then-reigning Byzantine emperor,
874:Йордан Андреев, Милчо Лалков, Българските ханове и царе, Велико Търново, 1996.
585:
541:
68:
23:
838:
676:
with one thousand heads of
Bulgarian soldiers and twelve thousand captives.
624:
145:
839:Император Василий Болгаробойца. Извлечения из летописи Яхъи Антиохийского
614:
596:
descended into a civil war, further exacerbated by the conflict with the
573:
633:
629:
665:
661:
552:, which in the previous year had penetrated south into Greece, and a
72:
548:
in central Greece. It was fought between a
Bulgarian army led by
236:
149:
628:
of Thessalonica and marched south, eventually threatening
841:, с. 34 (взето от "Библиотека Якова Кротова" на 1.2.2008)
668:, his arm healed at an angle of 140°. According to
719:Basil II and the Governance of Empire (976–1025)
21:
618:the only emperor of Bulgaria. In 996, Samuil
540:) took place in 997 AD, on the shores of the
161:
8:
908:Battles involving the First Bulgarian Empire
608:. In 991, the Byzantines managed to capture
168:
154:
146:
18:
16:997 battle of the Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars
830:
828:
612:but this did not stop Samuil who was now
913:Battles of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars
710:
877:Ioannes Scylitzes, Synopsis Historion
789:The Legend of Basil the Bulgar-Slayer
7:
818:Гръцки извори за българската история
791:, Cambridge University Press, 2003,
556:army under the command of General
14:
822:, с. 278–279 (взето на 31.1.2008)
721:, Oxford University Press, 2005,
672:, Nikephoros Ouranos returned to
652:pass on the river of Spercheios.
340:Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
38:
359:Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria
1:
590:Battle of the Gates of Trajan
903:990s in the Byzantine Empire
949:
584:After the success of the
537:
529:
187:
129:
108:
91:
51:
37:
29:
898:10th century in Bulgaria
428:Uprising of Peter Delyan
179:Byzantine–Bulgarian wars
32:Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars
933:Medieval Central Greece
544:river near the city of
452:Second Bulgarian Empire
109:Commanders and leaders
815:(взето на 1.2.2008);
580:Historical background
570:Synopsis of Histories
130:Casualties and losses
918:History of Phthiotis
522:Battle of Spercheios
861:(взето на 1.2.2008)
778:(взето на 1.2.2008)
717:Catherine Holmes,
729:, pp. 163–165, 196
646:Nikephoros Ouranos
622:the forces of the
558:Nikephoros Ouranos
538:Μάχη του Σπερχειού
494:Uprising of Ivaylo
331:3rd Constantinople
270:2nd Constantinople
195:1st Constantinople
124:Nikephoros Ouranos
115:Samuil of Bulgaria
928:Spercheios Valley
787:Paul Stephenson,
610:Roman of Bulgaria
530:Битка при Сперхей
517:
516:
144:
143:
87:
86:
83:Byzantine victory
940:
862:
848:
842:
832:
823:
806:
800:
785:
779:
769:
763:
757:
751:
748:
742:
736:
730:
715:
670:Yahya of Antioch
539:
531:
469:2nd Arcadiopolis
440:5th Thessalonica
435:4th Thessalonica
396:3rd Thessalonica
386:2nd Thessalonica
371:1st Thessalonica
347:1st Arcadiopolis
182:
180:
170:
163:
156:
147:
137:~12,000 captured
103:Byzantine Empire
98:Bulgarian Empire
53:
52:
42:
19:
948:
947:
943:
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869:Further reading
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600:in Syria. Tsar
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893:990s conflicts
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674:Constantinople
658:Gavril Radomir
641:
638:
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566:John Skylitzes
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296:War of 894–896
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135:~1,000 killed,
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46:John Skylitzes
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797:0-521-81530-4
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230:2nd Marcellae
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220:2nd Anchialus
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210:1st Marcellae
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205:1st Anchialus
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28:
25:
20:
880:
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788:
783:
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746:
738:
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691:Thessalonica
683:
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643:
623:
613:
606:Thessalonica
583:
569:
521:
519:
450:
449:
426:
425:
375:
357:
356:
338:
337:
308:
294:
289:'s campaigns
285:
284:
239:'s campaigns
235:
234:
189:
92:Belligerents
30:Part of the
650:Thermopylae
550:Tsar Samuil
484:Klokotnitsa
421:Dyrrhachium
215:Rishki Pass
59:16 July 997
887:Categories
705:References
699:domesticos
586:Bulgarians
564:historian
542:Spercheios
509:Rusokastro
376:Spercheios
352:Dorostolon
321:Katasyrtai
260:Versinikia
190:Early wars
69:Spercheios
24:Spercheios
22:Battle of
851:Златарски
837:, В. Р.,
809:Златарски
772:Златарски
739:Стоименов
680:Aftermath
625:strategos
594:Byzantium
554:Byzantine
526:Bulgarian
406:Strumitsa
275:Mesembria
225:Litosoria
820:, том VI
695:Kleidion
620:defeated
615:de facto
598:Fatimids
592:in 986,
574:Basil II
401:Kleidion
316:Achelous
287:Simeon I
280:Burdizon
255:Debeltos
64:Location
859:668–669
855:663–665
813:662–663
799:, p. 17
776:660–662
760:Божилов
634:Corinth
630:Larissa
588:in the
504:Skafida
464:Tryavna
445:Ostrovo
245:Serdica
140:unknown
71:river,
795:
725:
666:Ochrid
662:Pindus
640:Battle
602:Samuil
568:whose
499:Devina
474:Serres
459:Lovech
416:Setina
411:Bitola
381:Skopje
250:Pliska
80:Result
73:Greece
835:Розен
686:Roman
562:Greek
546:Lamia
534:Greek
479:Varna
391:Kreta
326:Pegae
200:Ongal
793:ISBN
723:ISBN
693:and
632:and
520:The
237:Krum
56:Date
923:997
889::
857:,
827:^
701:.
636:.
576:.
536::
532:,
528::
524:(
169:e
162:t
155:v
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