Boris Ier of Bulgaria

Boris I also called Boris-Mihail (Michel) , in Bulgarian: Борис I (Михаил) , or Bogoris (death the May 2nd, 907) was the sovereign of the Bulgaria of 852 with 889 and its first Christian monarch . At the time of sound Baptism in 864, Boris was baptized Michel in the honor of his godfather, the Byzantine emperor Michel III.

Beginning of reign

Boris I was the son and successor of Pressian Ier of Bulgaria. At the time of his accession to the throne, Boris is in shift in Macedonia, and Bulgaria is the subject of an invasion by the Eastern, victorious Francs against Boris and his Slaves allies in 853. Peace with the Francs is restored in 855, and Boris turns over his attention towards the tensions on the border Bulgaro-Byzantine, posing an ultimatum with the imperial government of Constantinople. The crisis is avoided, and Boris is combined with the king Louis Germanic the of the Eastern Francs against Prince Rastislav of the Slavic kingdom of Grande Moravie and the sovereign of the Croatia. The allies obtain some successes in 863, but Boris is beaten during his invasion of the Serbia of Mutimir, which brings the monarch has to sign peace at the same time with Croatia and Serbia. In spite of these reverses, Boris arrives has to maintain the territorial integrity of his kingdom.

Baptism

Wishing for various reasons to convert with Christianity, Boris enquiert to this end near Louis Germanic the in 863. However Bulgaria is invaded the same year by the Byzantine Empire for one period of famine and natural disasters. Taken by surprise, Boris is forced of parlementer and agrees to convert with the Christianisme according to the Eastern rite, n the other hand obtaining the peace and of the territorial concessions in Thrace. With the beginning of the year 864 Boris is baptized in secrecy with Pliska by an embassy of Byzantine priests, with his family and certain members of the Bulgarian nobility. The emperor Michel III being his godfather, Boris takes Michel like Christian name. Its conversion causes a rising of its subjects, of which certain notable. The revolt is repressed in blood in 865, with the execution of 52 Boyard S and their families.

Conversion of Bulgaria to Christianity

Boris enquiert also near the Byzantine Patriarch Photios I {{er}} for lesson on the manner of following a life of Christian, and also the possibility of establishing a Bulgarian church autocéphale. Disappointed by the answer of Photios, it turns to Rome and the pope Nicolas I {{er}}, to which it sends emissary with a long list of questions in August 866. The pope forwards to him 106 answers detailed concerning the Religion, the Loi S, the Politique and the Foi, but avoids the subject of the statute autocéphale wished by Boris. Roman missionaries are also sent to continue the conversion of Bulgaria according to the Western rite. Furious of the fastening of Bulgaria to papacy, the patriarch publishes in 867 an encyclical denouncing the practices of the Western rite and the ecclesiastical intervention of Rome in Bulgaria. This causes the Schisme of Photios which constitutes a major step towards the separation of the churches of the East and occident.

However the nomination by Boris of the papal legate, évèque the Formosa (which will become the pope Formosa in 891) under archbishop of Bulgaria is rejected by the pope. The pope Adrien II which succeeds Nicolas I {{er}} also rejects the nomination by Boris either of Formosa, or of the deacon Marin (which will become the pope Marin I {{er}} in 881) at the same station. Following these refusal, Bulgaria is turned over towards Contantinople. To the Fourth congress of Contantinople of 870, the Bulgarian orthodoxe Church is attached to the patriarchat of Constantinople and obtains the title of church autocéphale. During years 870 it is returned to papacy, but this transfer purely nominal does not affect the statute of the Bulgarian church autocéphale.

In 886 the disciples of Saint Cyrille and Saint Method are accommodated by the governor of Boris with Belgrade after those had been exiled of Large-Moravie, and are sent at Boris to Pliska. Two of these disciples, Clement d' Okhrid and Naum de Preslav, found schools with Pliska and Ohride intended has to develop the literature and the slavonic liturgy, using the glagolitic Alphabet developed by Cyrille and Method. Parallel to this development of the liturgy, Boris pousuit also with the contruction of churches and monasteries in its kingdom.

Abdication and dead

In 889 Boris abdicates and is made monk. His/her son and successor Vladimir try a restoration of the pagan worship, leading Boris to return to the capacity in 893. After having overcome and makes plug Vladimir, Boris places his third wire, Siméon I {{er}} on the throne, threatening it of the same fate in the event of Apostasie. Boris turns over to his monastery, but takes again the weapons in 895 to help Siméon to overcome the Magyars, which had invaded Bulgaria combined to the Byzantines. He takes again then his monastic life and dies in 907.

References

  • Jordan Andreev, Ivan Lazarov, Plamen Pavlov, Koj koj E v srednovekovna Bălgarija , Sofia 1999.
  • Fine John V.A. Jr., The Early Medieval Balkans , Ann Arbor, 1983. (in English)

Resources

  • http://www.bulgaria.com/history/rulers/boris1.html (in English)

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