1.
Sokollu Mehmed Pasha
–
Sokollu Mehmed Pasha was an Ottoman statesman. He was assassinated in 1579, ending his near 15-year rule as de facto ruler of the Ottoman Empire, sokollus birth name was probably Bajica, and he was of ethnic Serb origin. He was said to be born into a modest shepherd family, adherent to the Serbian Orthodox Church, Sokollu is a demonym, derived from his place of birth. He had two brothers and a sister, who married the brother of Hüseyin Pasha Boljanić, as well as at least one uncle. However, details about his family and relations are disputed on two major counts, one is his relationship to Makarije Sokolović. Traditionally identified as his brother, today some historians consider him to have either a nephew or distant relative. The second is the matter of Mehmeds uncle, by some accounts, his uncle was a monk at the Mileševa monastery who had his two nephews, Bajica and Makarije, educated there. Other sources suggest that his uncle converted to Islam early, in 1516, an Ottoman expedition gathering up boys as part of the devşirme system reached Sokol. According to folklore, Bajica was either taken from his fathers home or, due to a reputation as a gifted child. The story further holds that his uncle unsuccessfully appealed to the authorities, as proclaimed in Baghdad on 13 March 1535, Mehmed was sent to be one of the seven retainers of the Imperial Treasurer Iskender Çelebi. Upon Iskenders death, Mehmed returned to Constantinople, in addition to Turkish, he spoke Serbian, Persian, Arabic, Venetian-Italian and Latin language. Mehmed in 1541 first became an Imperial Chamberlain and then the head of the Sultans squires, in these positions he became very close to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and learned from him. As a soldier, Mehmed excelled at the Battle of Mohács, in 1546 the Kapudan Pasha Hayreddin Barbarossa died and Mehmed was appointed his successor. In this capacity he was present at the expedition against Trablus. During his five years in this position, Mehmed Pasha greatly strengthened the arsenal of the naval fleet, Mehmed became Beylerbey of Rumelia in 1551, headquartered in Sofia. While he was visiting the area of his birth, his mother recognized him by the birthmark on his face, after the death of John Zápolya, king of Hungary as an Ottoman vassal, in 1540, Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor looked to annex Zápolyas lands. The Hungarian diet had elected infant John Sigismund Zápolya, the son of Zápolya and Isabella Jagiellon, as King of Hungary, which broke the Treaty of Nagyvárad, Isabella struggled to rule Hungary as Queen dowager for her son. Frater George Martinuzzi, appointed by John as regent, opposed her, Ferdinand I sent mercenary leader Bartolomeo Castoldo with more than 7,000 mercenaries who beat a contingent led by Péter Petrovics, killing more than 2,500 of them, near Csanád
2.
Serbs
–
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group that formed in the Balkans. The majority of Serbs inhabit the state of Serbia, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina. They form significant minorities in Croatia, Macedonia and Slovenia, there is a large Serb diaspora in Western Europe, and outside Europe there are significant communities in North America and Australia. The Serbs share many traits with the rest of the peoples of Southeast Europe. They are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians by religion, the Serbian language is official in Serbia, co-official in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is spoken by the majority in Montenegro. The modern identity of Serbs is rooted in Eastern Orthodoxy and traditions, in the 19th century, the Serbian national identity was manifested, with awareness of history and tradition, medieval heritage, cultural unity, despite living under different empires. When the Principality of Serbia gained independence from the Ottoman Empire, Orthodoxy became crucial in defining the national identity, instead of language which was shared by other South Slavs. The tradition of slava, the family saint feast day, is an important ethnic marker of Serb identity, the origin of the ethnonym is unclear. Serbia has among the tallest people in the world, after Montenegro and Netherlands, Slavs invaded and settled the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries. Up until the late 560s their activity was raiding, crossing from the Danube, the Danube and Sava frontier was overwhelmed by large-scale Slavic settlement in the late 6th and early 7th century. What is today central Serbia was an important geo-strategical province, through which the Via Militaris crossed and this area was frequently intruded by barbarians in the 5th and 6th centuries. The numerous Slavs mixed with and assimilated the descendants of the indigenous population, numerous small Serbian states were created, located in modern Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia. With the decline of the Serbian state of Duklja in the late 11th century, Raška separated from it, prince Stefan Nemanja conquered the neighbouring territories of Kosovo, Duklja and Zachlumia. The Nemanjić dynasty ruled over Serbia until the 14th century, over the next 140 years, Serbia expanded its borders. Its cultural model remained Byzantine, despite political ambitions directed against the empire, the medieval power and influence of Serbia culminated in the reign of Stefan Dušan, who ruled the state from 1331 until his death in 1355. Ruling as Emperor from 1346, his territory included Macedonia, northern Greece, Montenegro, when Dušan died, his son Stephen Uroš V became Emperor. With the death of two important Serb leaders in the battle, and with the death of Stephen Uroš that same year, hrebeljanović was subsequently accepted as the titular leader of the Serbs because he was married to a member of the Nemanjić dynasty. In 1389, the Serbs faced the Ottomans at the Battle of Kosovo on the plain of Kosovo Polje, both Lazar and Sultan Murad I were killed in the fighting
3.
Serbia
–
Serbia, officially the Republic of Serbia, is a sovereign state situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the central Balkans. Relative to its territory, it is a diverse country distinguished by a transitional character, situated along cultural, geographic, climatic. Serbia numbers around 7 million residents, and its capital, Belgrade, following the Slavic migrations to the Balkans from the 6th century onwards, Serbs established several states in the early Middle Ages. The Serbian Kingdom obtained recognition by Rome and the Byzantine Empire in 1217, in the early 19th century, the Serbian Revolution established the nation-state as the regions first constitutional monarchy, which subsequently expanded its territory. During the breakup of Yugoslavia, Serbia formed a union with Montenegro which dissolved peacefully in 2006, in 2008 the parliament of the province of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence, with mixed responses from the international community. Serbia is a member of organizations such as the UN, CoE, OSCE, PfP, BSEC. An EU membership candidate since 2012, Serbia has been negotiating its EU accession since January 2014, the country is acceding to the WTO and is a militarily neutral state. Serbia is an income economy with dominant service sector, followed by the industrial sector. The country ranks high on the Social Progress Index as well as the Global Peace Index, relatively high on the Human Development Index, located at the crossroads between Central and Southern Europe, Serbia is found in the Balkan peninsula and the Pannonian Plain. Serbia lies between latitudes 41° and 47° N, and longitudes 18° and 23° E. The country covers a total of 88,361 km2, which places it at 113th place in the world, with Kosovo excluded, the area is 77,474 km2. Its total border length amounts to 2,027 km, all of Kosovos border with Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro are under control of the Kosovo border police. The Pannonian Plain covers the third of the country while the easternmost tip of Serbia extends into the Wallachian Plain. The terrain of the part of the country, with the region of Šumadija at its heart. Mountains dominate the third of Serbia. Dinaric Alps stretch in the west and the southwest, following the flow of the rivers Drina, the Carpathian Mountains and Balkan Mountains stretch in a north–south direction in eastern Serbia. Ancient mountains in the southeast corner of the country belong to the Rilo-Rhodope Mountain system, elevation ranges from the Midžor peak of the Balkan Mountains at 2,169 metres to the lowest point of just 17 metres near the Danube river at Prahovo. The largest lake is Đerdap Lake and the longest river passing through Serbia is the Danube, the climate of Serbia is under the influences of the landmass of Eurasia and the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
4.
Kosovo Serbs
–
Kosovo Serbs are the largest ethnic minority group in Kosovo, numbering around 150,000 people. By the end of 19th century they were the majority population, Kosovo was the cultural, diplomatic and religious core of the medieval Serbian state. Because of Serbian medieval history and monuments, Kosovo has long called the Serbian Jerusalem. The Medieval Monuments in Kosovo, founded by the Nemanjić dynasty, is a combined World Heritage Site consisting of four Serbian Orthodox Christian churches and monasteries, after centuries of Ottoman rule, Kosovo was annexed by the Kingdom of Serbia in 1912, following the First Balkan War. The formal names for the Serb community in Kosovo is Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija or Serbs of Kosmet, in use by the community itself and they are also referred to as Serbs of Kosovo or Serbs in Kosovo. The term Kosovo Serbs is predominantly used in English and they are known by the demonym Kosovci, though this is properly used for inhabitants of the region of Kosovo, along with Metohijci. Sclaveni raided and settled the western Balkans in the 6th and 7th century, through linguistical studies, it is concluded that the Early South Slavs were made up of a western and eastern branch, of parallel streams, roughly divided in the Timok–Osogovo–Šar line. Parts of northwestern Kosovo were part of the Serbian Principality, in the late 9th century the region was seized by the Bulgar Khanate, while the region switched hands between the Byzantines and Bulgars until the Byzantine restoration of 1018–19. In 1040–41 a massive Slavic rebellion broke out, which included Kosovo, vukan, the new independent Serbian Grand Prince, began raiding Byzantine territories, first in Kosovo, advancing into Macedonia. He broke several peace treaties concluded personally with the Byzantine Emperor at Zvečan and Lipljan, in 1166, a Serbian prince, Stefan Nemanja, the founder of the Nemanjić dynasty, asserted independence after an uprising against the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Comnenus. Nemanja defeated his brother, Tihomir, at Pantino near Pauni, Nemanja was eventually defeated and had to return some of his conquests, and vouched to the Emperor that he would not raise his hand against him. Nemanjas son, Stefan, ruled a realm reaching the river of Lab in the south, Stefan conquered all of Kosovo by 1208, by which time he had conquered Prizren and Lipljan, and moved the border of his realm to the Šar mountain. In 1217, Stefan was crowned King of Serbs, due to which he is known in historiography as Stefan the First-Crowned, in 1219, the Serbian Church was given autocephaly, with Hvosno, Prizren and Lipljan being the Orthodox Christian eparchies with territory in modern-day Kosovo. By the end of the 13th century, the centre of the Serbian Church was moved to Peć from Žiča. King Stefan Dušan founded the great Monastery of the Holy Archangel near Prizren in 1342–52, the Serbian Kingdom was elevated into an Empire in 1345–46. Stefan Dušan received John VI Kantakuzenos in 1342 at Pauni to discuss an alliance against the Byzantine Emperor, in 1346, the Serbian Archbishopric at Peć was upgraded into a Patriarchate, but it was not recognized before 1375. After the death of Dušan in 1355, the fall of the Serbian Empire began, with feudal disintegration during the reign of his successor, parts of Kosovo became domain of Vukašin Mrnjavčević, but Vojislav Vojinović expanded his demesne further onto Kosovo. The armies of Vukašin from Pristina and his allies defeated Vojislavs forces in 1369, after the Battle of Maritsa on 26 September 1371 in which the Mrnjavčević brothers lost their lives, Đurađ I Balšić of Zeta took Prizren and Peć in 1372. A part of Kosovo became the demesne of the Lazar of Serbia, the Ottoman Empire invaded the realm of Prince Lazar on 28 June 1389, at the Battle of Kosovo near Pristina, at Gazimestan
5.
Serbs in Vojvodina
–
The Serbs of Vojvodina are the largest ethnic group in this northern province of Serbia. According to the 2011 census, there were 1,289,635 Serbs in Vojvodina or 66. 76% of the population of the province, before the Roman conquest in the 1st century BC, Illyrian, Thracian and Celtic tribes inhabited the territory of present-day Vojvodina region. During the Roman rule, original inhabitants were heavily Romanized, and it is thought that this original population had not entirely disappeared, leaving certain genetic traces among the modern Serb population of the region. The Slavs settled todays Vojvodina in the 6th and 7th centuries, until the 13th century, the region had dominant Slavic population. In the 9th century the region of present-day Vojvodina was ruled by the two local Bulgaro-Slavic dukes and their names were Salan and Glad. Salan ruled the territory of Bačka, and his city was Titel. The descendant of Glad was Ahtum, another local duke of Banat, the important local Bulgaro-Slavic duke was also Sermon, a vassal of the Bulgarian emperor Samuil, who ruled over Srem in the 11th century. Parts of Vojvodina were conquered by the Kingdom of Hungary between the 10th and 12th centuries and this was followed by the destruction of the local Slavic tribal organization and introduction of the county system of rule. The first known prefect of the Bač county was recorded in 1074 and his name was Vid, during the rule of the Hungarian king Coloman, the local Serb nobles in Bačka were Uroš, Vukan and Pavle. A record from 1309 speak about Schismatics, who lived in Bačka, arsenije I Bogdanović from Srem, the second Serb archbishop after Saint Sava, was born in Srem, in the village Dabar near Slankamen. From 1282 to 1316 Serbian King Stefan Dragutin Nemanjić reigned several lands as a King of Syrmia, the center of his realm was in Lower Syrmia, while he also possibly ruled Upper Syrmia. Stefan Dragutin died in 1316, and was succeeded by his son Vladislav, an increasing number of Serbs began settling in the Vojvodina region from the 14th century onward. By 1483, according to a Hungarian source, as much as half of the population of the Vojvodina territory of the Kingdom of Hungary at the time consisted of Serbs. The Hungarian kings encouraged the immigration of Serbs to the Kingdom, after the Ottoman Empire conquered Serbian Despotate, Serbian titular despots ruled in parts of Vojvodina as vassals of the Hungarian crown. The residence of the despots was Kupinik in Srem, the Serbian despots were, Vuk Grgurević, Đorđe Branković, Jovan Branković, Ivaniš Berislav, Stevan Berislav, Radič Božić, Pavle Bakić and Stefan Štiljanović. The last three did not rule in the territory of present-day Vojvodina, but had possessions in the territories of present-day Romania, Hungary, the Ottoman Empire took control of Vojvodina following the Battle of Mohács of 1526 and the conquest of Banat in 1552. Soon after the Battle of Mohač, Jovan Nenad, a leader of the Serb mercenaries, established his rule in Bačka, northern Banat and he created an ephemeral independent state, with Subotica as its capital. At the pitch of his power, Jovan Nenad proclaimed himself Serbian Emperor in Subotica, taking advantage of the extremely confused military and political situation, the Hungarian noblemen from the region joined forces against him and defeated the Serbian troops in the summer of 1527
6.
Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina
–
The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina are one of the three constitutive nations of the country, predominantly residing in the political-territorial entity of Republika Srpska. In the other entity Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Serbs form the majority in Drvar, Glamoč, Bosansko Grahovo and they are frequently referred to as Bosnian Serbs in English, regardless of whether they are from Bosnia or Herzegovina. They are also known by names such as Krajišnici, Semberci, Bosanci, Hercegovci. The 2013 population census registered 1,086,733 Serbs or 30. 8% of the population of Bosnia. Bosnian Serbs are the most territorially widespread nation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the vast majority live on the territory of the Republika Srpska, where they constitute around 88% of population. The majority of Bosnian Serbs are adherents of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina speak the Serbian language in its Ijekavian accent, similar to that of Serbs of Montenegro and Croatia, and also to the language of Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats. Slavs settled the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries, according to De Administrando Imperio, the Serbs had settled what is now Bosnia and Herzegovina. They inhabited and ruled Serbia, which included Bosnia, and the principalities of Travunija, Zahumlje and Paganija. Serbia was at the time ruled by the Vlastimirović dynasty, during the rule of Mutimir, the Serbs were Christianized. Prince Petar, defeated Tišemir in Bosnia, annexing the valley of Bosna, Petar took over the Neretva, after which he seems to have come into conflict with Michael, a Bulgarian vassal ruling Zahumlje. Časlav defeated the Magyars on the Drina river banks when protecting Bosnia, however, after his death, Duklja emerged as the most powerful Serb polity, ruled by the Vojislavljević dynasty. Constantine Bodin installed his relative Stefan as Ban of Bosnia, next, the Nemanjić dynasty acquired the rule of the Serbian lands. With the establishment of the autocephalous Serbian Church, Archbishop Sava founded the Metropolitanate of Zahumlje, with the Ottoman conquest of medieval Serbia, there were large migrations towards Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Serb Uprising of 1596–97 was suppressed at Gacko, in 1809, Jančićs Revolt broke out in Gradiška. In 1834, Priest Jovicas Revolt broke out in Gradiška, in 1858, Pecijas First Revolt broke out in Knešpolje. In 1875, the Herzegovina Uprising broke out in the Bosnia Vilayet, on July 2,1876, Golub Babić and his 71 commanders signed the Proclamation of the Unification of Bosnia with Serbia. In 1878, Bosnia and Herzegovina became a protectorate of Austria-Hungary, the first parliamentary elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina were held in 1910, the winner was Serbian National Organization. On June 28,1914, Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip made international headlines after assassinating Arch Duke Francis Ferdinand in Sarajevo and this sparked World War I leading to Austria-Hungarys defeat and the incorporation of Bosnia and Herzegovina into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
7.
Serbs of Montenegro
–
Serbs of Montenegro or Montenegrin Serbs, compose the second largest ethnic group in Montenegro, after the Montenegrins. In historiography, the Orthodox people of Montenegro were called Serbs, in the constitutions of the Principality of Montenegro and Kingdom of Montenegro, the Montenegrin peoples ethnonym was Serbs. With the formation of Socialist Yugoslavia, the censuses showed a majority of people declaring as Montenegrins, following the Slavic settlement of the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries, several principalities were established in the Western Balkans towards the Adriatic. Duklja, first mentioned in the De Administrando Imperio, was one of the Serbian principalities that came under Byzantine rule in 1018 after Basil IIs conquest of Bulgaria, the Serbs were the Empires most important but insubodinate subjects in the western Balkans. Duklja broke away from Byzantine rule in 1042 under ruler Stefan Vojislav, all of what is today Montenegro came under the rule of Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja, the founder of the Nemanjić dynasty, after 1180. Zeta, formerly known as Duklja, became an important region in the Serbian state. Nevertheless, it remained a land, given to the heir of the monarch. Several monasteries date to this period, such as, Praskvica, Banja, Morača, Vranjina, Montenegro saw independence under the Petrović-Njegoš dynasty, firstly as a principality and then as a kingdom. Both Kingdoms fought together as independent states in the Balkan Wars, the conflict led to the Christmas Uprising, in which the Whites with support from the Serbian army defeated the Greens. During the Second World War both Serbs and Montenegrins were very active in resistance movements, the Yugoslav Partisans and the Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland known as the Chetniks. At the end of the war the socialist Yugoslavia was created and we Montenegrins are the salt of the Serbs. All the strength of the Serbs is not here but their soul is, the country was renamed Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Montenegro was also included by the sanctions imposed to Serbia during the 1990s. During the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia both Serbia and Montenegro suffered the attacks of the NATO forces and several targets inside Montenegro were also bombarded. In 2006, six years after the fall of Milošević in 2000, and after insisting on international diplomacy, the former Yugoslavia became known as the state union of Serbia and Montenegro. The process of becoming a state union ironically lead to the separation of the two states - a change which was officiated by the referendum on Montenegrin independence on 21 May 2006. A total of 419,240 votes were cast, representing 86. 5% of the total electorate, of them,230,661 votes or 55. 5% were in favour of independence and 185,002 votes or 44. 5% were against. Since independence, the Montenegrin society has been divided among many issues, the Montenegrin language lacks ISO code, and the Montenegrin Orthodox church is canonically unrecognized
8.
Serbs of Croatia
–
The Serbs of Croatia or Croatian Serbs constitute the largest national minority in Croatia. The community is predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christian by religion, as opposed to the Croats who are Roman Catholic, there has been a substantial Serb population in the territory of what is today Croatia since the Early Modern period. Serbs settled in several waves, and they populated the Dalmatian hinterland, Lika, Kordun, Banija, Western Slavonia, Eastern Slavonia. An important part of their identity is the Habsburg military service, the population has been declining sharply since 1991 and the Croatian War, from 12% to 4%. According to the 2011 census there were 186,633 ethnic Serbs living in Croatia,4. 4% of the total population. Their number was reduced by more than two thirds in the aftermath of the 1991–95 War in Croatia as the 1991 pre-war census had reported 581,663 Serbs living in Croatia,12. 2% of the total population. The lands of Pagania, Zachumlia and Travunia were inhabited by Serbs, the event would have taken place during the rule of either Radoslav or his son, Prosigoj. In the 880s, the Serb Prince Mutimir exiled his two brothers due to treachery, but kept his nephew Petar at the court, Petar later fled to the Croatian principality. When Mutimirs son Pribislav had ruled for a year, Petar returned and defeated him, in 894 Bran returned but was defeated and blinded. Pavle, the son of Bran, later returned and defeated Pavle with Bulgarian aid, King Mihailo I built the St. Michaels Church in Ston, which has a fresco depicting him. Beloš Vukanović, a member of the Serb Vukanović dynasty, was given the title of Ban of Croatia by the Kingdom of Hungary and ruled 1142-1158 and briefly in 1163. The first Serbian Orthodox monastery in Croatia, Krupa, was built in 1317 by Stephen Uroš II Milutin of Serbia, other monuments include Krka. Many monasteries and churches were damaged in the War in Croatia, members of the Orlović Serb clan settled in Lika and Senj in 1432, they later joined the Uskoks. On 22 November 1447, the Hungarian King Ladislaus V wrote a letter which mentioned Rascians, as many former inhabitants of the Austrian-Ottoman borderland fled northwards or were captured by the Ottoman invaders, they left unpopulated areas. After the Ottoman capture of Smederevo fortress in 1459 up to 200,000 Orthodox Christians moved into central Slavonia, at the beginning of the 16th century settlements of Orthodox Christians were also established in western Croatia. In the first half of the 16th century Serbs settled Ottoman part of Slavonia while in the part of the 16th century they moved to Austrian part of Slavonia. In 1550 they established the Lepavina Monastery, the Austrian Empire encouraged people from the Ottoman Empire to settle as free peasant soldiers, establishing the Military Frontiers in 1522. They were mostly of Orthodox faith, Serbs and Vlachs, Catholic Vlachs were assimilated into Croats, while the Orthodox, under the Serbian Orthodox Church, identified with Serbs
9.
Serbs of the Republic of Macedonia
–
Serbs are one of the constitutional peoples of the Republic of Macedonia. Numbering about 36,000 inhabitants, they are based on the populations as well as later relocated or migrated ethnic Serbs. They follow the Serbian Orthodox Church, within the see of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric, the territory of todays Republic of Macedonia was periodically part of the Serbian Kingdom and Empire from the end of the 11th century to the Battle of Kosovo when it was conquered by the Ottomans. The South Slavic Orthodox people now lived under a foreign, Muslim power, in tax registries, the Orthodox Christians were recorded as infidels. Atrocities, failed rebellions and tax increases prompted several mass migrations into the north, Minor revolts took place in Ottoman Macedonia, although the liberation of these lands came to fruit in the late 19th and early 20th century, with Serbian and Bulgarian effort. During this time a separate Macedonian identity emerged in the local Slavs, by 1913, Serbia had captured most of present-day Macedonia, which subsequently was unified in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and Socialist Yugoslavia with other South Slavic peoples. In 1991, with the outbreak of the Yugoslav Wars, the Socialist Republic of Macedonia became independent, the Sclaveni had pillaged the Balkans as early as the 520s. The South Slavic territories were called Sclaviniae, and were from times independent from the Byzantine Empire, in 577, some 100,000 Slavs poured into Thrace and Illyricum, pillaging cities and settling down. By the 580s, as the Slav communities on the Danube became larger and more organised, by 581, many Slavic tribes had settled the land around Thessaloniki, though never taking the city itself, creating a Macedonian Sclavinia. In 586 AD, as many as 100,000 Slav warriors raided Thessaloniki, in De Administrando Imperio, the Serbs trace their origin to the migration of the White Serbs led by the Unknown Archont, who took the protection of the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius. The Serbs, who lived in Macedonia subsequently settled the lands that would become the early Serbian Principality, constans II conquered Sclavinia in 656-657, capturing many and subduing them, he also resettled Slavs from the Vardar area to Asia Minor, to a city named Gordoservon. The Sclaviniae of Macedonia were conquered in 785 by Constantine VI, meanwhile, in 681, Bulgars established the Bulgarian Khanate. By Peter I of Bulgarias reign, a symbiosis between the Bulgars and Slavs occurred and they established a form of national identity that, despite far from modern nationalism helped them to survive as a distinct ethnicity through the centuries. In 971-972, Eastern Bulgaria was conquered by John Tzimiskes, who burned down Bulgarian capital Preslav, the series of events are not clear due to contradicting sources, but it is sure that after 971, the Cometopuli brothers were the de facto rulers of the Western Bulgarian lands. Tsar Samuel then became a general under Roman I of Bulgaria, in 997, Roman died in captivity in Constantinople and Samuel was chosen as the new Emperor of Bulgaria. The political center of the Bulgarian realm was moved then to Macedonia, Ohrid served as capital, by 997, Serbia had been conquered and made again subject to Bulgaria by Tsar Samuel. When the Byzantines finally defeated the Bulgarians in 1018, they regained control over most of the Balkans for the first time in four centuries, in 1092, Grand Prince Vukan defeated an army sent by Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. Alexios I responded by sending a much larger army, but it was stopped by Serbian envoys wanting to negotiate, Peace was concluded, and Alexios returned to tackle the plundering Cumans
