Voivode Dragshan

Dragshan was a Bulgarian voivode and defender of Voden, now Edessa, during Tsar Samuel's reign. In 1001 or 1002, the Byzantine emperor Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer captured the town, taking Dragshan prisoner in the operation.

After the town fell, most of Dragshan's fellow townspeople were forcibly resettled in the Boleron region beyond the Mesta. At his own request, however, Dragshan remained in Thessaloniki, closer to Edessa. There, he married a local notable's daughter and had four children with her.

Despite this privilege, Dragshan did not accept his fate and attempted to escape to Bulgaria three times. On his third attempt, he was captured and executed by impalement.

This is thought to have happened in 1015, during the unsuccessful uprising of Edessa's inhabitants against Basil II. It was the final chapter in Dragshan's life; he remains in history as a symbol of Bulgarian resistance to Byzantine invasion and a victim of ruthless Byzantine repression.