Simeon spent his early years in Constantinople, graduated the famous Magnaur School with honour and returning to Bulgaria he devoted himself to literary activities. In his father’s plans he was to stand ahead of the Bulgarian church. However, his brother’s betrayal of the Christian cause put him on the throne and in time this turned out to be a successful move. Knowing well the Byzantines Simeon set before himself a major goal: to crash the Empire and acquire the rights of its Emperor! But first he decided to expand the territory of his state and to consolidate its people.
In 894 the Byzantine emperor ordered the market-place for Bulgarian goods to be moved from Constantinople to Thessaloniki – which was quite a disadvantage for the Bulgarian traders – and that served Simeon as a motive for military actions against Byzantium Visit Bulgaria. In response the Emperor instigated the Magyars to attack Bulgaria from the north. But Simeon called the tribes of the Pechenegs for help and they drove back the aggressor, while the Bulgarian army crossed Eastern Thrace and reached Constantinople. So in 904 was signed a peace treaty: the Emperor recognized the new borders of Bulgaria which included Macedonia and Albania.
Wars against Byzantium
Thus ended the first decade of Simeon’s rule; to begin another period of wars against Byzantium…
After the siege of Constantinople in 913 the Emperor was compelled to acknowledge him the title “King of the Bulgarians” and Simeon was escorted with honours. But a year later the peace treaty was cancelled. So the Bulgarian troops invaded again some Byzantine northern territories and, sensing the danger, the Emperor built an anti-Bulgarian coalition of Serbs, Magyars and Pechenegs, then sent troops against Bulgaria by land and sea. In august 917, by the small river Ahelloy, near the Black Sea, took place a decisive battle in which the Byzantines were completely routed. Soon after that Simeon defeated the Serbs converting their lands into a Bulgarian province; then undertook a devastating march to the south invading the territories to Corinth, and now he could really call himself King Simeon the Great – as he was in fact master of the Balkan South-East. But while he was preparing for the last march against Byzantium in 927 Simeon died of heart attack.
Istanbul Street 