Battle of Adrianople 14 april 1205 AD

[giogicha]

The battle of Adrianople is a part of Bulgarian-Latin wars. One year before the battle the Holly city of Constantinople is conquered by the crusaders from the IV-th Crusade. The Orthodox community led by the bulgarian king Kaloyan decided to attacked the crusaders and to prevend the invasion against the Orthodox states on the Balkans.
In the Middle ages Eastern Trace is known in the writing sources as the province "Macedonia", part of the glory Byzantine Empire, and sometimes from Bulgaria. The greeks citizens from Eastern Trace supported the bulgarian army against the crusader in the battle of Adrianople. The bulgarian army consisted also light Cuman cavalry
The crusaders were led by the emperor of the Latine Empire - Balduin I and the Venetian doge Enrico Dandolo.
Kaloyan sent his Cumans running before the enemy camp. A cry was raised throughout the camp, and the crusaders rushed out to meet their foe. They pursued the lightly armored Cumans for a full league. The rout of the Cumans turned out to be a feigned rout, for when the Crusaders wanted to return to the camp, the Cumans turned around and began to shoot at them, wounding a good many of their horses.
As the crusaders returned to the camp, the barons were summoned to the quarters of the Emperor Baldwin. They took counsel, and agreed that if Kaloyan would attack again, they would set themselves in array of battle before the camp, and not pursue the enemy when they turned around.
On the next day - 14-th of april 1204, Kaloyan did the same, hi sent again the Cumans. Loui Deu Bloa went out first with his battalion, and began to follow after the Cumans, and sent a messenger to urge the emperor to follow him. Most of the crusader went into the bulgarian ambush. The Frank knights and the Venetians fought desperately, but were defeated (April 14, 1205); the count of Blois was slain, and the emperor captured. Some days after the Battle, the Venetian doge Enrico Dandolo died from the stab wound from, which he bacame in the battle.
The emperor brother's Henry succeded to survive and left immediately the battle. Hi was choosed as a new emperor by the Latin knights.
After the battle of Adrianople The Latin Empire began to fall down and the new greek states (Epir despotate, Nicean empire, Trebizond empire) succeeded to take the control of the situation and to take Constantinople back in 1261.
After this battle The Medieval Bulgarian state became a power in the Eastern Europe. In the next decades the bulgarian kings Ivan Asen II (1218-141), Ivaylo (1277-1280) led the Balkan Orthodox community against one new and strong invader - the Golden Horde and the strong Tatars.