The Bulgarian people represent the First and Second Bulgarian Empire, an Exploration Age civilization in Civilization VII. They are available with the Bulgaria Pack within the Crossroads of the World Collection, which was released on March 25, 2025.
The Bulgarians' civilization ability is Krum's Dynasty, which grants Production to all
Cities equal to 50% of the yield or
HP gained when pillaging
Buildings and
Improvements, but weakens attacks from military units against opponents' Medieval Walls. Their associated
Wonder is the Rila Monastery, and their unique components are as follows:
- Unique units: Bolyar (military), Tarkhan (civilian)
- Unique
Improvement: Hidden Fortress
- Unique
Civics: Seven Tribes, Tarnovo Schools, Tsarstvie
Intro[]
As the horseman tramples the dragon, Bulgaria shall overrun the earth.
In the seventh century, the Bulgars crossed the Danube and made the Balkans their own. Their warriors used the mountains to their advantage, scattering larger armies through skill and stratagems. The First Bulgarian Empire ran on conquest, expansion, and the growth of trade. The Second Empire saw the rise of art, literature, and architecture alongside spirituality and monastic traditions. All came crashing down when the Ottomans invaded.
Strategy[]
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Civilopedia entry[]
In the 670s, a powerful branch of Bulgars led by Khan Asparuch arrived in the Danube region with intent to settle. At the time, the territory was tenuously held by the Byzantine Empire; the expansion of the Avar Khaganate and an alliance among local Slavic tribes had recently challenged their authority. The Bulgars, a Turkic people from the Volga-Caspian region, had followed the Avars out of the Eurasian steppe after the collapse of the short-lived unified territories of Old Great Bulgaria. But unlike the peripatetic Avars, who maintained their nomadic empire, Asparuch’s Bulgars were beginning to adopt a more sedentary lifestyle and sought a permanent territory to make their own.
Forging an alliance with the unified Slavic tribes, Asparuch crossed the Danube River in 680. His progress was immediately challenged by Emperor Constantine IV, but the Bulgars decisively routed the Byzantine army at the Battle of Ongal. Their victory resulted in a favorable peace treaty that, to the chagrin of Byzantium, recognized Bulgaria as a state and ceded to it all land north of the Balkan Mountains.
The early period of the First Bulgarian Empire was characterized by state-building and the transition from nomadic to sedentary life. A capital was built at Pliska, out of stone to ensure its longevity, and an agricultural economy began to flourish. But it was also an era of expansion. The empire’s organization still followed the familiar military hierarchies of the Bulgars’ nomadic origins, and much of its wealth was sourced from warfare, primarily raiding in the rich Byzantine lands to the south.
The relationship between the Bulgars and the Byzantines was always complex, and helped define Bulgarian identity throughout the Middle Ages. The Bulgars were aggressive towards Byzantium because raiding funded their young state, and because a Byzantine takeover was always a (realistic) risk. Yet they also craved the validation of power that came with recognition from the Eastern Roman Empire, whether through treaties or titles gifted to Bulgar leaders (Asparuch’s successor Terval, for instance, helped the deposed Justinian II regain his throne and was awarded the title “caesar,” much to his great pleasure). Over the centuries, Byzantium’s proximity increasingly influenced many facets of Bulgaria, from politics and religion to literature and the arts.
The Byzantines, for their part, resented the threat at their northern doorstep. Occasionally they found use for the Bulgars, mainly weaponizing them against opponents during civil wars, but they were largely seen as a thorn in the empire’s side. The Byzantines had bigger fish to fry – their primary rival during this era was the Abbasid Caliphate, which posed a far greater danger. To avoid fighting on two fronts, they attempted to pacify the Bulgars with treaties and coin while at war in the East, saving their Balkan campaigns for lulls in that larger conflict unless otherwise provoked.
The Bulgars were ferocious fighters and made excellent use of the Balkans’ complex terrain. They knew the land and developed tricks and ambush tactics to gain the upper hand against opponents who often far outnumbered them. These strengths made them deadly raiders, and also paid off in larger battles, as at Pliska in 811, when Khan Krum destroyed a Byzantine army led by Nikephoros I. The emperor himself was killed in the battle, and Krum celebrated by turning his skull into a drinking cup.
The victory at Pliska triggered a period of peace that opened new opportunities for Bulgaria to evolve as a state. Cyril and Methodius, two Byzantine missionaries, began traveling the Balkans to convert its Bulgar and Slavic inhabitants. In order to better communicate their teachings, they invented an alphabet, Glagolitic, for the Slavic language so that it could be written down. Along with the conversion to Orthodox Christianity, the cultural lines between Bulgar nobility and Slavic population were also blurring, with the Bulgars increasingly assimilating to the local culture. These shifts in Bulgarian identity strengthened the kingdom into a more unified entity while also opening new lines of (peaceful) political and economic communication with wider Christian Europe.
The zenith of the First Bulgarian Empire came during the reign of Simeon I (893-927). Educated in Constantinople, he grew his kingdom both culturally and geographically. He was a patron of art and literature, and developed the new capital Preslav into an impressive metropolis. He also launched military campaigns that expanded Bulgarian territory as far south as the Aegean and Adriatic coasts. But it was not to last. In 1014, Basil II annihilated the Bulgarian army at Kleidion, for which he gained the epithet “Bulgar Slayer.” In the aftermath, the Bulgarian Empire gave up its independence and succumbed to Byzantine authority for the next 150 years.
During this intermission, the Bulgars did not go quietly into the night. There were attempts to regain independence, most notably in 1040, when Peter Delyan managed to capture a large portion of the western Balkans before being defeated by Michael IV. (The young Norwegian prince Harald Hardrada took part in Michael’s campaign as a member of the Varangian Guard, earning a promotion for his contribution.) Less violently, but still aggressively, Byzantium also attempted to Hellenize the Balkans starting with an overhaul of the Bulgarian church. However, turmoil in other provinces caused by the Crusades and incursions by the Seljuk Turks prevented meaningful progress on this front.
In 1185, brothers Peter and Ivan Asen organized a rebellion for independence. After two years of hard fighting, Byzantium finally recognized Bulgaria as an independent kingdom once more – the Second Bulgarian Empire.
This chapter saw progress continue to be built upon the foundations of the First Empire, as well as adaptation to the region’s increasingly complex politics. While Bulgaria had formerly sought recognition from its formidable southern neighbor, Byzantium was weakening, and its approval (and its gifts) no longer held the same value or luster. Peter Asen’s successor, his brother Kaloyan, instead sought validation from the other Rome – the one in the West. Shortly after Constantinople fell to the Fourth Crusade, he and the Bulgarian Church were recognized by Pope Innocent III as Emperor and Patriarchy. Bulgaria subsequently found a new enemy in the short-lived Latin Empire.
The pinnacle of the Second Empire came under Ivan Asen II (1218-1241). Despite continued conflicts with neighbors, warfare was no longer the foundation of the Bulgarian economy. The expansion of the empire’s borders incorporated additional fertile land, and much of society was driven by agriculture. But Bulgaria also took advantage of its prime location as a crossroads between East and West, and revitalized itself as a strong center of trade. With this heightened economy, the arts flourished. A new capital was established at Tarnovo, and an extensive movement of creative output emerged under the Tarnovo Schools. Artists, architects, and writers generated a wealth of beauty and knowledge, both religious and secular. Urban centers grew rapidly, while remote mountains hosted both fortresses and monasteries.
After the death of Ivan Asen II, things turned sour for Bulgaria. Internally, the rift between aristocracy and peasantry grew extreme and led to several revolts, at one point enabling a swineherd to temporarily take the throne. Externally, the shifting world put pressure on the weakening empire from all sides – the Mongols from the north, the Serbs from the east, and eventually the Ottomans from the south. It was this final threat that proved deadly. Throughout the late 14th century, the Ottomans steadily advanced through the Balkans until they took Tarnovo in 1393. By 1396, with its last ruler dead and all territory lost, the Second Bulgarian Empire ceased to be.
Cities[]
Citizens[]
Males | Females |
---|---|
Boris | Anna |
Asparuch | Desislava |
Radislav | Keratsa |
Ivan | Militsa |
Bezmer | Ripsimia |
Tervel | Miroslava |
Kaloyan | Kosara |
Ivailo | Maria |
Peter | Beloslava |
Radivoi | Smiltsena |
Trivia[]
- The Bulgarian civilization's symbol is the Madara Rider, an early medieval rock relief in Shumen, northeastern Bulgaria, declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.
- The Bulgarian civilization ability is named after the dynasty founded by Krum, whose monarchs ruled the First Bulgarian Empire from 803 to 997.
Soundtrack[]
Original Track | № | Based on | Credits | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
"Bulgaria (Exploration Age)" | Kozhil’o Pisan i Sheryan Rano mi e, More Snoshti e Dobra |
Composed by Geoff Knorr Kathryn Mitchell, vocals Recorded at 38 North Studio, Falls Church, Virginia |
6:17 |
Gallery[]
Videos[]
See also[]
- Bulgarian in other games
External links[]
Civilization VII Civilizations [edit] | |
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Antiquity | |
Exploration | |
Modern | |
1 Requires DLC |