Епиграфски свидетелства за мирния договор между Византия и България от 819/820 г.
Epigraphic data on the peaceful treaty between Byzantium and Bulgaria of 819/820

Summary/Abstract: It has long been established that the so-called Suleymankyoy inscription has preserved part of the text of the 30-year peace treaty between Byzantium and Bulgaria from the time of Leo V the Armenian. However, previous researchers have not noticed that other fragments belong to the same monument, which supplement and clarify in more detail its contents and at the same time indicate its dating. This was established by the author of this publication after a careful and immediate study of the epigraphic fragments. It turned out that the studied fragments are not only of the same material, but have the same palaeography and orthography, the same style of engraving, similar font size and line spacing, moreover there is a grammatical and semantic integrity of the text. The treaty was probably drafted and concluded in Constantinople and was in the interests of both parties at the time. The total number of clauses remains unknown, but they were certainly at least three or four and were probably ranked in order of importance.The first chapter dealt with the issue of the border between the two countries and the dividing line was described in detail. Based on the research made here, it can be assumed that the territory north of Erkesiya and the area north of the Maritsa River, which is locked between the Sazliyka River and the Chirpan Hills, belonged to the territory officially ceded to Bulgaria. The second chapter of the agreement was dedicated to the Slavs. According to the first point of this clause, the Slavs, who were subordinated to Byzantium and Bulgaria, had to return to their previous territories. This shows that demographic changes took place in the Balkans during the war. The second point concerns Slavs who had their own political independence. Probably this refers to military units that had acted as allies during the war and were subsequently captured.The third chapter determined the fate of the captive Christian population. Certainly, this text refers only to the Byzantine population that found themselves in Bulgaria during the war. For Byzantium, this was perhaps the most important or one of the most important issues. The first point of this clause concerns the Roman prisoners of war – they were to be either redeemed according to their rank, or to be exchanged for Bulgarian commanders and soldiers. The peaceful Christian population, it seems, had to be returned unconditionally, without a ransom being demanded. The next point in this clause concerns the Byzantine deserters, but unfortunately it is not clear what was regulated for them. The text of the peace agreement ended with a reference to oaths, the names of the signatories of the treaty and the date of conclusion – 819/820. Based on this inscription, as well as other sources, at the end of the study a new reconstruction of the Byzantine-Bulgarian relations from 814 to about 850 has been proposed.

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