State Builders
from the Steppe
A History of the First Bulgarian Empire
By Eric D. Halsey
ISBN: 978-619-7814-11-8
Bulgaria cannot be a footnote in Europe’s history.
From creating the Cyrillic Alphabet and crowning the first ever Tsar to defeating the first Arab invasion of Europe and nearly conquering the last vestiges of the Roman Empire, the history of the First Bulgarian Empire is equally fascinating and dramatic.
A story of a people reckoning with change in a dangerous world.
While rarely covered in the English language, the history of the First Bulgarian Empire is full of high drama, intrigue, and intense fights over everything from mountain passes to culture itself. Over the course of 337 years, the Proto-Bulgarians evolved from a steppe tribe with unclear origins into a powerful empire that dominated southeastern Europe.
"This book makes the history of the first Bulgarian state far more accessible and engaging for the average reader, capturing both the dramatic rise and fall alongside the ways in which its history reverberates in our world even a millennium later. A must-read for anyone hoping to understand Bulgaria or just the Early Middle Ages in general."
- Panos Sophoulis, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Russian Language and Literature and Slavic Studies at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and author of "Byzantium and Bulgaria, 775-831."
For the first Bulgarian Empire, survival demands they reckon with who they are and how much they are willing to change. Cultural battles over language, religion, and who’s allowed into the elite of society play out over centuries as factions fight to the death to preserve the status quo or enable the empire to evolve.
At the end of this 337 year history, Bulgaria has a different language, religion, ethnic makeup, and culture. This newly forged Bulgarian identity and culture set the foundation for Slavic language and culture while also creating an identity that has survived for over a millennia.
Along the way, a Khan will toast to victory using the skull of an emperor, an entire army will be blinded, an alphabet used by hundreds of millions will be created, the first Arab invasion of Europe will be defeated, a heresy that will plague Europe for centuries will be created, and so much more…
State Builders from the Steppe was written for casual history fans and historians alike to learn why the First Bulgarian Empire was so instrumental in European history.
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About the author
Ever since he first encountered Bulgaria’s history after being given a biography of Tsar Boris III for Christmas in 2006, Eric has been fascinated by it. That interest led him to spend a year living in and studying the history of the country in 2009.
Since then he has obtained a BA in history and political science from The University of Mary Washington, and an MA in Nationalism Studies at Central European University, and spent a year conducting research in Sofia on a Fulbright grant.
After finishing his studies, Eric founded The Bulgarian History Podcast. 12 years, 237 episodes, and well over a million listens later, that project is still making the country’s fascinating history accessible and engaging to a global audience.