5 – Battle of Kleidion (1014)
This was the decisive battle in the lengthy war between the Byzantines and the Bulgarians. By the end of the 10th century, the Byzantine Empire was still an important power in Europe and the Middle East, and it was stable under the excellent leadership of Basil II. It had a love-hate relationship with the Bulgars since the days of the First Bulgarian Empire in the late seventh century. During the Arab siege of Constantinople in 717, the Bulgars sent 30,000 men to help the Byzantines.
However, the two empires were usually on opposite sides of the conflict, and by the 970s, the Bulgarians appeared defeated. The Byzantines even claimed Bulgaria as part of their empire but thanks to the efforts of the Cometupoli brothers, the Byzantines were unable to conquer the western part of Bulgaria. By 997, Samuel Cometupoli became Bulgaria’s new tsar, and the experienced general led his people in a war of survival.
While Samuel extended his territory at the beginning of the eleventh century, Basil II was causing problems with annual invasions. Eventually, Samuel realized that his nation’s resources were dwindling and resolved to stop Byzantine invasions once and for all. He was expecting the enemy to invade once again and assembled a large army with an estimated 20,000 – 45,000 men. Meanwhile, Basil invaded with at least 20,000 men and marched into the Bulgarian heartland via the Struma River.
Samuel split his army when he heard of Basil’s arrival and sent 20,000 men under general Nestorista to strike at the enemy and threaten Thessalonica. Samuel expected Basil to send men to deal with the threat, but his plans were foiled when the governor-general of Thessalonica met the Bulgarians and defeated them in battle.
On July 26/27, 1014, Basil’s army arrived at the narrow gorge of Kleidion Pass. For three days, he tried to breach the recently built Bulgarian walls but suffered heavy casualties. Eventually, however, Basil found a way to trick the enemy and surrounded them from the back and front. Samuel was not on the battlefield at that stage and tried to rally his troops, but it was too late, his army had been routed.
The vast majority of the Bulgarian army was killed or captured. According to legend, Basil ordered the prisoners to be divided into groups of 100. He blinded 99 men and gouged out one eye of the other so he could guide the rest home. Samuel died two months later, and while it took the Byzantines four more years to finish the job, they finally defeated the Bulgarians at the Battle of Dyrrhachium in 1018. Bulgaria became a province of the empire until the rebellion of the Asen brothers in 1185.