024 Looking Back On The First Bulgarian Empire (Part 2)
This episode recaps all the events from Bulgaria’s conversion to Christianity to the epic collapse of the First Bulgarian Empire.
top of page
Season 1: The First Bulgarian Empire
This season covers the 600s to 1018, the period during which a little known steppe tribe of obscure origin entered the European stage and did something no other steppe tribe had ever done: built a lasting state. That process involves transitioning from a society ruled by a bloodthirsty pagan elite into a unified Christian state with imperial legitimacy on the European stage.
Along the way, Bulgaria will help to save Europe from the armies of Islam, define the history of the Byzantine Empire, and create an alphabet used by more than 100 million people today.
Eric D. Halsey
Jul 29, 20161 min read
023 Looking Back on the First Bulgarian Empire (Part 1)
This episode recaps every that has happened since Asparuh first ventured into the Byzantine world until the state he built finally...
Eric D. Halsey
Jul 16, 20161 min read
022 The Fall of the First Bulgarian Empire
And so it has come to this. 337 years after Asparukh first defeated the Byzantines and established a new state on the fringe of their...
Eric D. Halsey
Dec 19, 20151 min read
021 The Bulgar Slayer
The story of Tsar Samuil comes to a close as one of the most consequential and brutal battles of Bulgarian history sends the First...
Eric D. Halsey
Dec 6, 20151 min read
020 The Tightening Noose
Tsar Samuil fights back as the Byzantine Emperor Basil II campaigns to make the noose tighter… Below are images of Bulgarians ambushing...
Eric D. Halsey
Oct 20, 20151 min read
019 The Comet Burns The West
Following the collapse of the Western half of the Bulgarian Empire, the grandson of an Armenian King will take the reigns to fight...
Eric D. Halsey
Oct 4, 20151 min read
018 Farewell To The Dynasty, Farewell To The East
Bulgaria is caught between the might of the Kievan Rus and the fury of Byzantium. A Centuries old dynasty will fade to dust, but will...
Eric D. Halsey
Jun 16, 20151 min read
017 The Hermit and The Heretic
The 10th century was a time of religious radicals. Bulgaria will fight for survival as hermits and heretics reject the very foundations...
Eric D. Halsey
Apr 2, 20151 min read
016 A Peaceful Man Stands Alone
Tsar Peter I, son of the conqueror Tsar Simeon attempts to bring peace to his Empire and allow it to enjoy the fruits of his father's...
Eric D. Halsey
Feb 2, 20151 min read
015 An Emperor Beyond The Wall
The Byzantine Empire faces one of the worst defeats in its history, an emperor is crowned beyond the walls of Constantinople, and Simeon...
Eric D. Halsey
Dec 29, 20141 min read
014 A Master of The Balkans
The young Tsar Simeon shows the world what he's made of, making a bold strike against the Byzantines and expanding Bulgaria's size to...
Eric D. Halsey
Oct 11, 20141 min read
013 Bulgaria reborn
It's time for the Pagans to strike back, as the Boyars and their ally take the throne and attempt to turn back the clock on Bulgaria's...
Eric D. Halsey
Sep 11, 20141 min read
012 Saint and Tsar
With the new title comes a new religion as Tsar Boris attempts to transform Bulgaria into a Christian European power. But how will the...
Eric D. Halsey
Aug 3, 20141 min read
011 The Pagan Twilight and the Serbian Dawn
Conversion, fratricide, guerrilla warfare, and a rising power in the West are what greet the successors of Omurtag as an era of Bulgarian...
Eric D. Halsey
Jul 8, 20141 min read
010 The Builder
Krum is dead, and with him his dream of conquering Constantinople. Now, his son Omurtag is only a boy and it remains to be seen whether...
Eric D. Halsey
May 8, 20141 min read
009 Khan Krum
A new Khan rises to power intent on crushing the Byzantines underfoot. The thing is, he just might have the cunning, skill, and brutality...
Eric D. Halsey
Apr 21, 20141 min read
008 Blood and Boyars (Part 2)
The Boyar reign of terror continues as they fight amongst themselves to decide the future of Bulgaria, and whether it will have a future....
Eric D. Halsey
Mar 31, 20141 min read
007 Blood and Boyars (Part 1)
With the central power of the Khans weakened, the noble Boyars have taken over. One after one, they murder and exile their way through...
Eric D. Halsey
Mar 18, 20141 min read
006 The Fall of The House of Dulo
"Avitohol lived 300 years. His clan was Dulo and he ascended to the throne in the fourth year of the serpent." In this episode, we see...
Eric D. Halsey
Mar 3, 20141 min read
005 A Savior of Europe
So we find Bulgaria at the beginning of the 8th century still dangerously positioned on what was so recently Byzantine land, sandwiched...
Eric D. Halsey
Feb 11, 20141 min read
004 The New State and The Eternal Challenges
In the last episode we discussed the complex and chaotic series of events which led to the breakup of the Old Great Bulgaria based around...
Eric D. Halsey
Dec 11, 20131 min read
003 Crossing the “Rubicon”
It's the year 680. Byzantium marches with full strength to eradicate “a foul tribe” which has entered their borders fleeing an even more...
Eric D. Halsey
Nov 20, 20131 min read
002 Whose 5th Century Horse Tribe is it Anyway?
The shifting contours of this debate have often reflected not only academic interest, but political ones. Today we discuss the very...
Eric D. Halsey
Nov 3, 20131 min read
001 The Balkan Context
Seeing as the next 100+ episodes are going to be audio, it's essential to begin with a good picture of the basic geography of Bulgaria...
Eric D. Halsey
Oct 26, 20131 min read
000 Intro Episode
The story I’m about to tell is one of a people who arose out of obscurity to create an empire which challenged, and often defeated the...
bottom of page