Despot Aldimir

Aldimir, a Bulgarian aristocrat of the Terter dynasty who lived in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, was the younger brother of Tsar George I Terter. He became an influential local ruler of the Despotate of Kran. After George I Terter's deposition, Aldimir lived in exile but returned to Bulgaria in the late thirteenth century as an ally of the regent Smiltsena.

Although he did not oppose his nephew Todor Svetoslav when he became tsar, and even helped him remove certain claimants to the throne, Todor Svetoslav removed Aldimir after he betrayed him and allied himself with the Byzantines.

Aldimir and his brother George I Terter were of Cuman origin. They had fled to Bulgaria after 1241 to escape unrest in Hungary. They descended from the Cuman ruling dynasty of Terteroba.

Aldimir held the high title of "despot", probably from 1280. He became ruler of Kran in 1298 after his exile ended. Following Tsar George I Terter's abdication, Aldimir went into exile but returned to Bulgaria in 1298 as an ally of Smiltsena. He received possessions in the Kran region.

In 1299, after Smiltsena and John found refuge in the Despotate of Kran, Aldimir became an important figure in Bulgaria. He took part in the unsuccessful negotiations for an anti-Byzantine agreement between Bulgaria and Serbia. After George I Terter's abdication in 1292, Aldimir went into exile but returned in 1298.

In 1300, when Todor Svetoslav ascended the throne in Tarnovo, Aldimir offered Smiltsena and John refuge in the Despotate of Kran. His loyalty to Tsar Todor Svetoslav was rewarded with an expansion of his possessions, including the fortresses of Yambol and Lardea.

In 1303, during hostilities between Bulgaria and Byzantium, Aldimir confronted Sebastokrator Radoslav, who led a Byzantine campaign against him. Radoslav was captured, blinded and sent back to Thessaloniki. Aldimir received an expansion of his possessions after this success.

Thus, at different stages of his life, Aldimir participated in events in Bulgaria and maintained his connections with the Byzantines and other rulers in the region.