Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria
Ivan Alexander, also sometimes Anglicized as John Alexander, ruled as Emperor (Tsar) of Bulgaria from 1331 to 1371, during the Second Bulgarian Empire. The date of his birth is unknown. He died on 17 February 1371. The long reign of Ivan Alexander is considered a transitional period in Bulgarian medieval history. Ivan Alexander began his rule by dealing with internal problems and external threats from Bulgaria's neighbours, the Byzantine Empire and Serbia, as well as leading his empire into a period of economic recovery and cultural and religious renaissance.
Portrait of the tsar from the medieval manuscript, Tetraevangelia of Ivan Alexander
Contemporary mural portrait of Ivan Alexander from the Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo
Silver coin of Ivan Alexander, Bulgaria, 1331–1371
Coin depicting Ivan Alexander with one of his sons, co-emperor Michael Asen IV (right)
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state that existed between 1185 and 1396. A successor to the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Tsars Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the early 15th century.
The Church of St Demetrius in Tarnovo, built by Asen and Peter in the beginning of the uprising
The Church of the Holy Forty Martyrs where Kaloyan was buried
Emperor Constantine Tikh and his first wife Irene, fresco from the Boyana Church
The fortress of Baba Vida in Vidin