Simeon I

"Simeon the Great," the ruler under whom the First Bulgarian Empire reached its peak.

Life

Half-Greek

Simeon was the son of Boris I. He studied in Constantinople as a youth and was nicknamed the "half-Greek." After coming to the throne in 893 CE he moved the capital to Preslav.

Tsar

He attacked Byzantium repeatedly, inflicting a crushing defeat on the Byzantine army at the Achelous River in 917 CE, styling himself "Tsar of the Bulgarians and the Romans," and extending his realm over most of the Balkan Peninsula. He was a great patron of literature and translation, and his reign is known as the "Golden Age" of Bulgarian culture.

Golden Age

He died in 927 CE while preparing for another expedition.

Legacy

Under Simeon, Bulgaria became the most powerful state in southeastern Europe and the center of Slavic culture.

Did you know? He was the first Bulgarian monarch to use the title "tsar."

Key dates

• 893Accession
• 913Marched on Constantinople and won the title of tsar
• 917Great victory at the Battle of Achelous
• 927Died