Kan Kardam

Kan Kardam was a Bulgarian ruler who reigned from 777 to 803. In April 791, the Byzantine emperor Constantine VI launched a campaign against the Bulgarians, but Kardam intercepted him at Provat near Adrianople and won the battle. The ensuing negotiations resulted in a peace treaty under which the emperor undertook to pay tribute to the Bulgarians.

In July 792, Constantine VI returned to seek revenge, but Kardam defeated him again in a battle near Marcellae. The emperor withdrew, and negotiations led to a new peace treaty in 796, under which Byzantium undertook to pay annual tribute.

The Byzantine emperor sent horse dung instead of gold in response to Kan Kardam’s threats. This caused renewed tension, but despite the emperor’s declarations, he failed to reach Marcellae. Negotiations over the following 17 days resulted in the renewal of the peace treaty of 792.

Kan Kardam combined a successful foreign policy with the strengthening of internal order, helping Bulgaria rise in the centuries that followed. Details of his death and reign are lacking, but he is credited with pacifying the country and bringing it out of political weakness.