Siege of Zadar (998)

Siege of Zadar (998)
Part of the Croatian-Bulgarian wars

Image of Zadar in the Middle Ages
Date998
LocationZadar, Theme of Dalmatia,
ceded from Byzantine Empire
to Kingdom of Croatia
Result Croatian victory, Bulgarian withdrawal
Belligerents
Bulgarian Empire Kingdom of Croatia
Commanders and leaders
Emperor Samuil King Svetoslav Suronja
Strength
unknown unknown
Casualties and losses
unknown unknown
Depiction of one of the battles involving Samuil's army

The Siege of Zadar in 998 was part of the Third Croatian–Bulgarian war and one of the last military conflicts between Croatian forces of king Svetoslav Suronja (r. 997–1000), supported by the Venice and Byzantine Empire, and the army of emperor Samuil (r. 997–1014), who launched a large-scale Bulgarian military campaign against Kingdom of Croatia.

Samuil's army besieged the fortified city of Zadar in order to aid the king's rebel brothers Krešimir and Gojslav, who asked Samuil to come and help them to remove Svetoslav Suronja from the Croatian throne. The siege was unsuccessful and Samuil's forces withdrew in the direction of Croatian hinterland and Bosnia, finally tracing their way back home.

Background

In the last three decades of the 10th century, the Kingdom of Croatia was ruled by Stjepan Držislav, an ally of the Byzantine Empire, which in turn recognized him as the King of Croatia and Dalmatia. After his death in 997, his son and successor Svetoslav Suronja continued the pro-Byzantine policy of his father, but his younger brothers Krešimir and Gojslav started to organize a rebellion against him, since he rejected to share power over the Kingdom. The brothers asked Samuil, the new ruler of the Bulgarian Empire for help, knowing that he was at war with the Byzantine Empire.

Samuel, who at first controlled only the Slavic Macedonians' lands (approximately present-day Republic of Macedonia) at the southwestern part of the former large Bulgarian Empire, but later conquered a lot of Balkans, was at the height of his power and accepted the proposal of Croatian rebel princes. He attacked Croatia in 998, starting the Third Croatian–Bulgarian war. In his military campaign, he took almost all of the Dalmatian coast of Croatia up to the Zadar area, including cities like Trogir and Split. King Svetoslav Suronja was forced to withdraw westwards, in the direction of Zadar.

Siege

Having taken the most of Dalmatia, tsar Samuil turned his army further to the west and started to besiege the city of Zadar. It is not known whether king Svetoslav Suronja resided in the city during the siege and led the defence forces himself, but the large and thick stone city walls, as well as its defenders, resisted the attack and the siege failed. Having had no success, Samuil's army withdrew from the siege and then marched towards Croatian hinterlands, including the territory which is now part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Later it returned home using the Bosnian route. Thus the third and last of three Croatian-Bulgarian wars came to its end.

Aftermath

The Croatian territory conquered by Samuil's forces during the campaign was taken over by Krešimir and Gojslav, who finally won the Croatian civil war and came to power in the Kingdom in 1000. Svetoslav Suronja, the Byzantine and Venetian ally, was forced into exile. When the Byzantines, after almost 50-year of bitter warfare, conquered the Samuil's Empire in 1018, Krešimir and Gojslav became the former's vassals.

See also

External links


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