In our previous episode we covered the battle of
Adrianople, where the Bulgarian ruler Crushed the army of the Fourth Crusade, killing or capturing
its leaders, before being assassinated himself soon after. These events sent a shockwave through
the entire region as countless lords were involved in the desperate scramble for power. How would the
new leaders cope with this dangerous environment and which claimants would solidify
themselves as a dominant power over the rest? You missed the chance to help stop the Chaos
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which chapter you are going to choose! The assasination of Kaloyan managed to halt
the avalanche of Bulgarian conquests against the Latins, however the Kingdom of Thessaloniki,
which was more powerful than the Empire itself faced another crisis. In an attempt to win
over the local populace Boniface favored his infant son Demetrius, who was seen as more
legitimate since his mother Margaret of Hungary was a former Byzantine empress. When Boniface died
the kingdom passed not to his eldest son William, but his newborn with Margaret acting as
regent, this however angered the Lombard lords who held fiefs in his name
all over Greece and they rebelled. Emperor Henry of Flanders tried to be lenient
and called the nobles to Ravennika in May 1209 in an attempt to resolve the issue, but most of
them didn’t show up. A 2-year war ensued ending with an uneasy peace as the rebel nobles
and their Templar supporters were defeated. Many were starting to see that this new Latin
Empire was unlikely to last and while they swore oaths of fealty to Henry instead of the new
Kingdom of Thessalonica ruled by an infant boy, most lords were only after
their own self-interest. The Principality of Morea and Despotate of
Epirus were vassals of the Latin Empire, but that same year they became vassals
of the Republic of Venice as well, granting them generous trade rights in all
of their cities . Despot of Epirus Michael I Komnenos Dukas, in particular, was trying
to play each side, converting to Catholicism, but at the same time ransoming Alexios III from
captivity in order to gain a claim to the throne. Meanwhile, the ruler of Nicea Theodore Lascaris was desperately trying to enforce his own
claim, by annexing other successor states. After absorbing Phrygia and Philadelphia,
Theodore allied with the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum and attacked the Empire of Trebizond, which was
attempting to take Nicomedia from the Latins. The Empire of Trebizond was led by two
Komnenoi brothers supported by Georgia and despite having the best claim they were
forced to become vassals to Henry of Flanders in return for military aid in the form of
300 knights. The Nicean advance was stopped at Heraclia and Trebizond responded by launching a
punitive raid against Theodore Lascaris. However, the 300 Frankish knights separated from the main
force and were soundly defeated in an ambush. The tides turned, and in 1208 Nicea took Heraclea,
Cytorus and Amastris in quick succession. On the European side of the Bosphorous the
Bulgarian throne was usurped by Kaloyan’s nephew Boril who quickly married the Cuman
queen, giving rise to the theory that the assasination and usurpation were both part of
a pro-Cuman plot. This forced the legitimate heir Ivan Asen II to flee from Tarnovo and
take refuge in the Principality of Halych at the age of 14. This disputed succession caused
several nobles in Bulgaria to break off, including Boril’s cousin Alexios Slav, who became the despot
of a small realm in the southwest and received the backing of Emperor Henry. Boril knew he had to
enforce his rule and decided to attack the Latins. He managed to surprise them by attacking the
Latin camp near Beroe. There the Latins took heavy casualties as a hail of arrows killed many of the
knights who didn’t get the chance to put on their armor. The Bulgarian cavalry attacked the flanks
and the Emperor was caught by a lasso, but just as disaster was imminent, a knight cut off the rope
and shielded his liege. Over the next 12 days the Latins retreated to Philippopolis in good order,
but still taking many casualties along the way. Finally, once they approached the city,
Henry took a stand and formed up his line. Around 3000 warriors remained,
several hundred of which were knights, against 30000 Bulgarians, of which
7000 were Cuman mounted archers. Boril tried to mimic what his uncle had done
in Adrianople 3 years prior, but this time the crusader army did not fall for the trap. Marshal
Geoffroy de Villehardouin used his heavy cavalry to repel a charge and the open fields allowed the
Latin cavalry to compensate for its small number and inflict heavy losses on the Cuman riders who
had trouble fighting in the summer heat. The day belonged to the Latins, but both sides took heavy
casualties and hostilities ceased for a few years. After the military approach failed to give Boril
the stability he craved for, he attempted to consolidate his power by persecuting the Bogomils
, summoning the Synod in Tarnovo in 1211, where he personally led the debates against the heretics,
which were very similar to the Cathars in southern France, who were massacred in the Albigensian
crusade during the same period . That same year, Boril managed to secure an alliance with one of
the breakaway Bulgarian states under a man named Strez and established an anti-Latin coalition made
up of the Despotate of Epirus, Strez and Nicea. Boril and Strez launched a campaign against
Thessaloniki and assaulted the city while Henry was fighting Nicea, but despot Michael
changed sides once more to aid the Latins, and the Bulgarians were soundly defeated at the
city. Meanwhile, the recently ransomed Alexios III wanted to make a comeback and he allied with
the Seljuk sultan Kaykhusraw I who had recently taken over Antalya. Together they marched
at the head of a large army totaling around ten thousand against the Niceans who brought 2000
cavalry along with 800 mounted Latin mercenaries. The Seljuks laid siege to Antioch-on-the-Meander,
which was critical to the whole region. As soon as Theodore learned that the city was about to fall,
he ordered a forced march, leaving the baggage train and carrying just a few days' rations
in a desperate attempt to relieve the siege. Alexios III and the sultan abandoned the
siege and rode out to meet the enemy in a narrow valley where they couldn't deploy their
full force. As soon as the two armies met, the Latin cavalry rushed into the enemy
center, crushing many archers and slingers. It then pulled back and charged again, but this
second charge was less deadly as the soldiers got into a formation, withstanding the charge
before surrounding and slaughtering the Latins. The Seljuks kept on advancing
and at the edge of victory, Kaykhusraw I scanned the battlefield,
searching for Theodore Lascaris, the two rulers met and Theodore was struck with a
heavy blow by a mace and fell from his horse, the sultan barked orders at his servants to carry the
pretender away, but suddenly the Nicean emperor cut down the rear leg of the horse and decapitated
the Seljuk leader. His head was impaled on a lance and the sight brought terror to the remaining
army, which retreated back to Iconium. Nicea was victorious but was unable to pursue the enemy
as they had sustained heavy casualties themselves. The ultimate prize was the capture of Alexios III, who was stripped of his imperial insignia and
spent the rest of his days in a monastery. This finally gave Lascaris the legitimacy he
needed to claim the title, but there was a long road ahead. Henry did not underestimate the
severity of this threat and used the opportunity to strike at Nicea in October 1211. After a
day long battle, the Niceans could not defeat the heavily armored knights and Henry pushed
as far as Nymphaion This successful campaign led to the treaty of Nymphaion which solidified
the Latin position on the coast of the Propontis as well as some islands, but ended their
vassalage over the Empire of Trebizond. The latter clause of the treaty meant that the
Latins weren’t protecting Trebizond any more, a cunning move that allowed Lascaris to make up for
the lost lands by annexing most of Paphlagonia. That same year the Seljuks would take
Sinope and kill David Komnenos who led the defense of the city. Shortly after,
his brother Alexios managed to retake it, but misfortune struck again as he was
captured during a hunting expedition. The Emperor of Trebizond was then brought
in front of the walls of his city and was tortured at the sight of its inhabitants until
they opened the gates. Alexios was ransomed and the Empire of Trebizond became a vassal of the
Seljuks. Despite the fact that Trebizond retook the Byzantine lands in Crimea, it would
never again be a contender to the throne. The defeat at Philipopolis and Thessaloniki,
along with the truce with Nicea ended Boril’s ambitions and he
married his daughter Maria to Henry, while becoming his vassal and returning the
lands Kaloyan conquered in Thrace as her dowry. Bulgaria was once again in the sphere of influence
of Constantinople and would be inherited by Henry’s heir. Boril continued his diplomacy by
marrying another daughter to the king of Hungary Andrew II and this approach was incredibly
successful in helping him retain his power. Henry sent troops to aid Bulgaria in its
unsuccessful invasion of Serbia, while Andrew took Vidin after the local Cumans rebelled against
Boril and then returned the city to the Bulgarian Tsar. The only disturbance of this relatively
peaceful period was Epirus retaking Thessaly, Dyrrachium and Corfu while everyone else was
distracted, but the status quo wouldn't last. In 1215, the ruler of Epirus was assassinated,
in 1216 Pope Innocent III suddenly died, a month later Emperor Henry was killed by
poison, possibly by one of the Lombard nobles, all of which destabilized the region once again.
When the new pope Honorius III called for a Fifth Crusade to retake Jerusalem, Hungarian king
Andrew II was the first to answer the call, mustering the largest royal crusader army in
history which was transported to the Holy lands by the Venetian fleet. The Latin Empire held a
new election and chose Henry’s Peter of Courtenay, who was the husband of Henry’s sister Yolanda.
He was consecrated as the new Roman Emperor outside the walls of Rome by Pope Honorius
III, and began his journey to Constantinople. Meanwhile in Bulgaria, a pro-Bulgarian faction
who financed and staged an uprising against Boril, and replaced him with Ivan Asen II, who returned
to his homeland with Rus mercenaries and blinded his uncle. Once on the throne, the new Tsar proved
to be very different from the rest of his dynasty as he did not pursue a war with any of
his neighbours, and maintained the truce with the Latins. When king Andrew II wanted
to return to Hungary by land Ivan Asen II declared that he would allow his army to pass
only if he marries his daughter Anna-Maria. The two houses were joined and Bulgaria was given
Belgrade and Branicevo which were exchanged for the 5th time in our story. The warmongering
opportunism that Bulgaria was known for since the uprising of his father Ivan Asen I,
was now replaced with caution and diplomacy, which allowed the state to recover and
rebuild while ending internal instability. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Epirus
was now ruled by Theodore Dukas, an extremely ambitious man who was determined to restore the
Eastern Roman Empire. After absorbing Alexios Slav and allying with Serbia, Theodore hosted
what could best be described as the Red Wedding, luring the previously mentioned Peter of Courtenay
with the offer of food and drink, as well as support for the Fifth Crusade. Once the Latins let
their guard down, they were captured or massacred. Despite his betrayal, Theodore Dukas managed
to trick the Pope into thinking he regretted his decision and would release his prisoners.
Trying to save the life of the doomed emperor, Pope Honorious forced Venice to back down from the
invasion they were preparing to retake Dyrrachium. Instead Thedore proceeded to expand in every
direction, taking Neopatras and Lamia in the south, then castle Platamon, Serres and
many other fortresses around Thessaloniki, which was completely cut off. This time the
Pope excommunicated the Epirote ruler and mustered a large crusader army at Brindisi
which made its way towards Serres, however the only remaining powerful crusader state
of Morea did not assist this crusade, because the same pope excommunicated its leader
the previous year for mistreating the local clergy and declaring him an enemy of
God “more inhuman than Pharaoh”. In Nicaea, the successful ruler
Theodore Lascaris died in 1221, which led to a succession crisis between his two
brothers and his son-in-law. Emperor Robert I, the son of Peter, had just taken the
throne of the Latin Empire that same year and intervened on the side of the brothers, hoping
to gain land and leverage in the east. And so, in 1223 the new Nicaean Emperor, John III Vatazes
fought a Latin army under the two pretenders, which were decisively defeated,
captured and you guessed it - blinded. The news of the defeat reached the crusading
army at Serres, where many panicked and rushed to Constantinople to regroup and reconsider
their strategy. On the way there, however, they were intercepted by Theodore Dukas who
destroyed the majority of the army. In the following two years, the Latins lost Thessaloniki
to Epirus and signed a treaty with Nicaea which ceded all of their lands in Asia except for
Nicomedia, only to be invaded immediately after and lose Adrianople as well. The Duchy of Morea
became an independent state and the Latin Empire was a mere prize the rest of the contenders fought
over. Another desperate crusade was launched trying to retake Thessaloniki, but the host was
struck by dysentery and those who didn’t succumb to the illness returned to Italy. Theodore Dukas
used this opportunity to crown himself Emperor of Thessaloniki, directly challenging Nicaea’s
claim, and launching a campaign which took over much of Thrace including Adrianople. He now began
planning the final step towards the ultimate goal. In 1228, the reign of Emperor Robert
came to an end with his death, this was the moment Ivan Asen II was waiting
for. He kept faith with the Catholic church for a decade, upheld the alliances, resisted the
urge to take advantage of the chaotic situation and married into the royal family. Now when
the crown passed to the 10-year-old Baldwin II, the Tsar offered the hand of his daughter
Helen and proposed to take up the regency, coming up with a plan on how the Latins
could retake the lands they lost to Epirus. The nobles began negotiations with the Bulgarian
ruler, but behind the scenes they were frantically trying to find another regent, trying to pick the
lesser of two evils. They found that candidate in the 60-year-old John of Brienne, a French
noble who held the title King of Jerusalem, but not the city itself. In order to get him to
accept, the Latin nobles made a bizarre agreement. John would rule as regent until the heir
turned 20, but at that point Baldwin II would be Emperor in name, with effective control
over only the Latin holdings in Asia, which were almost non-existent. Furthermore, John’s two sons
would inherit Epirus and Macedonia upon his death, and once again neither region was even
close to being controlled by the Empire. Ivan Asen II was furious and instantly enacted
a drastic change in policy, converting Bulgaria back to Orthodoxy after three decades under
Catholicism and securing a marriage alliance with the Empire of Thessaloniki. Together they
formed a coalition against the Latins and Nicea. During that same time the rift between the
Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II and the Papacy was at an all-time high, and since John
of Brienne was a strong supporter of the Pope, Frederick II sent a large contingent to Epirus
to aid them in their conquest of Constantinople. In 1230 a massive army assembled
in the second city of the Empire, ready to avenge the fourth crusade, but in the
very last moment Theodore Dukas changed his course and invaded Bulgaria instead, hoping to get rid of
the rival he just allied. He was so confident in his victory that he brought his entire family and
most of the aristocracy to witness his triumph. The army moved slowly, plundering villages
and churches along the Maritsa river, once Ivan Asen II learned of this
he quickly rallied his forces and called in a small, but elite
Cuman contingent from the Steppe marching in front of the army with the treaty
Theodore broke on his spear for all to see. The Bulgarians possessed a force of 10000, a
thousand of which were Cumans positioned on a hill overlooking the Klokotnitsa river, while the
invaders had an army of 20000 with a sizable contingent of German knights. The speed of the
Bulgarians caught Theodore completely off guard, but he was still poised to show off his military
might and reaffirm that he was the true Emperor of the Romans, so he ordered his army to cross the
river and crush the numerically inferior side, while his family and supporters
watched from the camp. The spring crossing of the river, defended by
the Bulgarian infantry, caused heavy casualties, slowed down the army and threw it into
disarray. At the critical moment in the battle, the Cuman mounted archers, who were patiently
waiting on the forested hill leaped into action. The fighting quickly turned into a slaughter, and
Theodore Dukas found himself pressed between the Bulgarian line and the river he and his men barely
crossed, while the nomadic marksmen decimated his rear and captured the camp. Yet again the Cumans
played a vital role in the Bulgarian success and the majority of the enemy army and emperor’s
retinue was captured, except for Manuel Dukas, the emperor's brother who fought his way back with
a small force. Once again in a stark contrast to his predecessors, Ivan Asen II pardoned all
the soldiers and followers in the enemy army and allowed them to return home, while holding
on to the nobility which he treated with respect. With just one strike the Bulgarian tsar annexed
the majority of the Eastern Balkans as people flocked to him and changed sides. From that
moment onwards, he styled himself as “King of the Bulgarians, Romans and other peoples”. And so, yet
another competitor in the race to Constantinople was eliminated and two unlikely candidates -
the Second Bulgarian Tsardom and the Nicean Empire stared each other down. The fate of the
region now hung in balance between the two... Once again, thanks to Warhammer 40 thousand:
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Kings and Generals' doc on the Roman conquest of Greece in the first place is also DOPE and worth the time. Just as teasers, the Romans not only knew there was more than one "Battle of Thermopylae" but were themselves participants in 2, but Hannibal himself fled North Africa for an allegiance with the Seleucids.