 | This article does not have any sources. (April 2026) |
| Krum | |
|---|---|
 A 14th-century drawing of Krum | |
| Khan of Bulgaria | |
| Reign | 796–803 to 814 |
| Predecessor | Kardam |
| Successor | Omurtag |
| Born | c. mid 8th century |
| Died | 13 April 814 |
| Spouse | Unknown |
| Issue | Omurtag Budim |
| Religion | Tengrism |
Krum (who was also called Krum the Fearsome) was the Kahn of the First Bulgarian Empire. He is remembered for making the Bulgarian Empire a lot bigger.
Krum was born in the middle of the 8th Century. There is almost nothing we know about his childhood, but many people guess that he was a descendant of Khan Kubrat. His name meant "ruler" in Turkic so that is why historians guess he was part of the royal family. He was crowned king in 796.
In 805, Krum took over parts of the Avar Khaganate, all the way up to the Danube River. This made it one of Europe's three strongest empires at the time, alongside the Frankish Empire and Byzantine Empire. The Bulgars had been raiding parts of Byzantine provinces like Macedonia and Northern Greece. When the Byzantines fought back, the Bulgars won a victory against the Byzantines in the Struma Valley in 808. A year later, Krum would lead an army to siege the city of Serdica. The Byzantine Emperor, Nicephorus I didn't like this so he invaded Bulgaria instead in 811. The Byzantine army took the Bulgar capital of Pliska and Nicephorus took a lot of the treasures there before lighting the city on fire.
Krum had escaped and he gathered what was left of his army, along with some women and Avars. The poorly assembled army trapped Nicephorus and his army in the Varbitsa pass on the 26th of July. This became the Battle of Pliska, where the Byzantine army was destroyed. Nicephorus was killed in the fight and his skull was turned into a skull cup. The Byzantine Emperor's son, Staurakios was injured in the neck but escaped.
Just 1 year after the battle in 812, Staurakios died and was replaced by Michael I Rangabe. Krum then moved into Thrace. The next year, Krum did the same thing but Michael's army defeated him and turned him back. Michael then chased him to Versinikia, where the two fought the Battle of Versinkia. Michael lost and then Krum chased him back to Constantinople. After this Krum went home and Michael became a monk.
Michael was replaced with Leo V the Armenian. Leo asked for peace talks but then tried to kill Krum at the peace talk. Krum managed to predict this and escape while being injured, but Krum's nephew and son in law were captured by the Byzantines. Krum then burnt churches and monasteries across Thrace and died while planning to siege Constantinople.