History of the Byzantine Empire. Volume 3, period V

The third volume of the unparalleled “History of the Byzantine Empire” by Academician Fyodor Uspensky is devoted to the rule of the Macedonian dynasty, beginning with its founder Basil I the Macedonian, passing through the reign of Basil II—who remained in the annals with the grim epithet Bulgar-Slayer—and reaching its collapse after the rule of his two elderly sisters, who elevated their favorites to the throne.

This is a vast and turbulent period not only for the empire, but also for the relations between the Western and Eastern Churches. During this time unfolded their struggle for the spiritual domination of the Slavic world, which led to the rupture between the two supreme institutions, especially while Photius occupied the patriarchal throne. It was also the time of the great educational mission entrusted by him to the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius. From this period date the expulsion of their disciples from Great Moravia—which subsequently disappeared from the map of the world—and their warm reception in Bulgaria by Tsar Simeon, presented by Academician Uspensky as one of the most outstanding, enlightened, and powerful statesmen of the era.

With a researcher’s passion and an उत्कृष्ट style, the historian reveals little-known facts and circumstances surrounding the reign of the Macedonian dynasty, the ordeals of the brothers Cyril and Methodius and the persecutions against their disciples, the desperate struggle of Tsar Samuel for the independence of Bulgaria, its fall under Byzantine rule, and… a little-known event connected with the date March 3—but in the 9th century, more precisely in 870—after which Bulgaria became Orthodox, finding itself in the eye of the storm raging between Constantinople and Rome over dominance in church authority.

"History of the Byzantine Empire" is published in Bulgarian in five volumes, with the first volume divided into two parts.

• Volume 1, Period I
  Period I (up to 527). Elements of the formation of Byzantinism
• Volume 1, Period II
  Period II (518–610). From Justinian I to Heraclius
• Volume 2, Periods III–IV
  Period III (610–716). Heraclius and his successors. Period of Iconoclasm (717–867)
• Volume 3, Period V
  Period of the Macedonian dynasty (867–1057)
• Volume 4, Periods VI–VII
  Period VI. Komnenoi (1057–1185). Period VII. Disintegration of the Empire (1185–1204)
• Volume 5, Periods VIII–IX
  Laskarids (1204–1261). Palaiologoi (1261–1453)