Coronation of the Bulgarian monarch
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Bulgarian monarchs used the titles kanasubigi, khan, knyaz and tsar (emperor). When acceding to the throne in the First and Second Bulgarian Empire the occasion was marked with a coronation, conducted by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. During the Third Bulgarian State accession was marked by an oath on the constitution.
Eastern Orthodox Christianity entered Bulgaria during the reign of Prince Boris I. He converted to Orthodoxy in 864. His godfather was Emperor Michael III and Boris accepted the name Michael as his Christian name. His title was changed from the pagan Kanas to the Christian Knyas.
Prince Simeon I was the first Bulgarian ruler to be crowned in the Christian Faith. Halfway through his reign, Simeon assumed the title of Tsar (Emperor) of Bulgarians and the Romans.,[1] having prior to that been styled Knyaz.[2] He was recognised and crowned by Patriarch Nicholas I Mystikos in 913 as Emperor of the Bulgarians by Patriarch Nicholas in the Blachernae Palace[3][4] outside the city walls of Constantinople.
Second Bulgarian Empire
The rulers of the Second Bulgarian Empire were crowned in Tarnovo.
- Theodor and Asen declared Bulgaria's independence at Church of St Demetrius of Thessaloniki in Tarnovo on 26 October 1185. Theodor assumed the regal name Peter II and the title Tsar.
- Kaloyan was the only Bulgarian ruler to be crowned in the Catholic Faith in Tarnovo on 8 November 1204. He was crowned by Cardinal Leo Brancaleoni performing the ritual on behalf of Pope Innocent III. The Cardinal crowned Kaloyan with the title King of the Bulgarians and the Vlachs, but Kaloyan continued to style himself as Tsar (emperor).
