Peter (diplomat)
Encyclopedia
Peter was a relative of knyaz
(khan
) Boris I
(r. 852–889) who was in charge of diplomatic missions during the Christianization of Bulgaria
. His position in the Bulgarian
administrative hierarchy is unknown but it has been suggested that he had the title kavhan, i. e. the second person in the state after the ruler.
elite being Tengriists
while the Slavic population practiced its own religion
. Christianity was already spread in Bulgaria as the country was established on former territories of the Byzantine Empire
, and seems to have been influential. Even one of the sons of Khan Omurtag
(r. 814-831), Enravota
, converted to Christianity. The Bulgarian nobility was hostile to Christianity as it was directly associated with the Byzantine Empire, and feared any strong Byzantine influence. Boris I however had many reasons to convert - Bulgaria was situated between two powerful Christian empires, Byzantium and East Francia; Christian doctrine particularly favoured the position of the monarch as God's representative on Earth, while Boris also saw it as a way to overcome the differences between Bulgars and Slavs. The geopolitical situation was also favourable, because of the increasing friction and rivalry between the Papacy in Rome and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
for influence in Central Europe. That struggle between the two churches would give the Bulgarian ruler the opportunity to manoeuver and negotiate with both, thus extracting favourable concessions while keeping the country out of direct foreign influence. When the Byzantines invaded Bulgaria in the autumn of 863 and demanded conversion to Christianity from Constantinople as the single condition to retreat, Boris I readily accepted and was baptized in the beginning of 864. That step was very unpopular among the nobility, but when they rebelled Boris I dealt decisively with them and executed 52 magnates along with their whole families. However, when in the next year the Byzantines showed their determination not to allow the existence of an autocephalous Bulgarian Church, Boris I decided to turn to the Papacy.
with the participation of Peter, with the first one in the summer of 866. The interest of Boris I in the Roman Church was caused by the reluctance of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople to accept his request to appoint an independent patriarch
(or at least archbishop
) for the Bulgarian diocese, but retain it subordinated to Constantinople. Boris I was determined to make Bulgaria Christian while keeping the country's religious and political independence. Since the end of the 850s the churches of Rome and Constantinople were in a period of a heated competition for influence over the Slavs and the Ecumenical Church power. This rivalry favoured Boris' plans, as it gave him the opportunity to play one side off against the other and choose. The new orientation of the Bulgarian policy also allowed Boris I to calm down the nobility of the boyars, which was cautious and hostile to the increased Byzantine
influence in the country after the Christianization.
on 29 August 866. During that year Boris quelled the rebellion of the boyars against the Christianization. Among the gifts presented to the Pope by the delegation was the weapon of Boris "with which [he] was armed when in the name of Christ he celebrated over his enemies". The Bulgarians also brought a document with questions by their ruler to the Pope. The content of the questions is reproduced on paragraph 106 of the "Answers of Pope Nicolas to the questions of the Bulgarians". The arrival of the Bulgarian envoys in Rome became a very important event. The Pope enthusiastically spread the news in a letter to Hincmar of Reims and the other archbishops of the Frankish Empire
.
That Bulgarian mission was mentioned thirteen years later (June 879) in a letter to Boris I, with which Pope John VIII
tried to prevent Bulgaria from returning to the Constantinople Patriarchate. That letter proves Peter's participation in the mission of 866:
The Bulgarian envoys received the answers of Pope Nicolas I at a ceremony in the Lateran Palace
on 13 November 866. Soon after that Peter and the other envoys returned to their country along with the papal emissaries Formosus of Portus
and Paul of Populona. Both bishops exercised educative activities in Bulgaria. Along with Peter departed other envoys of the Pope, the bishop of Ostia
Donatus, the presbyter
Leo and the deacon of the apostolic episcopacy Marinus
, who had to continue to Constantinople and there clarify the policy of Rome to the Bulgarians.
prepared a group of clerics led by Dominic of Trivena and Gromuald of Polymartis. The unexpected death of Nicolas I on 13 November 867 postponed the papal response and the departure of the group. Peter and the other Bulgarian diplomats participated in the burial of the deceased Pope and waited in Rome until the election of a new pontiff. The new Pope Hadrian III confirmed the decisions of his predecessor. In the middle of December the delegation headed back for the Bulgarian capital Pliska
by land, with letters to the Bulgarian prince written by Nicolas I. En route to Bulgaria the delegation stayed in the monastery of the town Aquileia
, an event noted in the Cividale gospel in which an unknown monk wrote down the names of the Bulgarian envoys and the members of their families:
The delegation arrived in Pliska in the beginning of 868. Boris I learned that the Pope had offered him to choose the archbishop of the Bulgarian Church from among the presbyters he had sent. By order Hadrian II, Formosus of Portus and Paul of Populona returned to Rome as early as February in the same year, accompanied by Peter. Boris I was disappointed with the Pope's answers and decided to end the negotiations with Rome.
:
It is certain that the idea for the application of Marinus was suggested to Boris I by Formosus of Portus. Formosus and Marinus were friends and close associates. Marinus was an influential diplomat who participated in many missions between Rome and Constantinople. However, Hadrian II did not approve of him and suggested for the office his trusted man - the subdeacon
Silvester. With his decision the Pope underestimated the ambitions of Boris I for independent church policy, which led to the alienation of the Bulgarian ruler from Rome and indirectly helped the Patriarchate of Constantinople in its efforts to influence the events in Bulgaria.
When in the beginning of 868 Peter and Formosus arrived in Rome, the brothers Cyril and Methodius
and their disciples were there on invitation by the Pope. Formosus and bishop Gauderig of Veletria ordained many of the brothers' disciples for priests, deacons and subdeacons. It has been suggested that Peter was among the first high-ranking Bulgarians who was acquainted with the ideas of Cyril and Methodius and brought the news to Bulgaria.
The consequent refusal of Hadrian II to ordain a candidate approved by Boris exhausted the patience of the Bulgarian prince. After a three-month stay in Bulgaria Silvester returned to Rome with a letter to the Pope in which for the last time Boris I insisted that either Formosus or Marinus must be ordained, but the Pope declined the proposal once again. During that time the Bulgarian ruler had already started negotiations with the Patriarch of Constantinople Ignatius, who was trying to improve the relations with Rome, which had been strained after the mutual anathema
s made in 863 by his predecessor Photios I and Pope Nicolas I. Just like Photios, however, Ignatius did not want to allow a permanent establishment of the Roman Church in Bulgaria. In order to settle the differences between the two Churches, the Eighth Ecumenical Council was planned to be held in Constantinople in 869. After a long stay in Rome (868-869), Peter returned to Bulgaria and was immediately sent to participate in the council.
and Antioch
. The Papal legates were unaware of the secret negotiations between Bulgaria and Byzantium and did not expect to discuss the status of the Bulgarian Church on the council. As a result they were very surprised too see high-ranking Bulgarian envoys attending the official closure of the Council on 28 February 870: the ichirgu-boil
Stazis, khan-bagatur Sondoke, khan-tarkan Iliya, sampsis Persiyan and sampsis Alexius Hunol.
On 4 March 870, three days after the Council's final session, Emperor Basil I
invited the participants to the Imperial Palace
: Patriarch Ignatius, the Papal legates Donatus of Ostia, Stephen of Nep and deacon Marinus, as well as the representatives of the Eastern Patriarchs archdeacon Joseph (from Alexandria), bishop Thomas of Tyre (from Antioch) and presbyter Elijah (from Jerusalem), telling them that Peter was bringing gifts from the Bulgarian Prince. After the exchange of greetings Peter, who had been instructed in advance, raised the issue of the jurisdiction over the Bulgarian Church and turned to the assembled men:
The Roman legates answered:
In order to take decision the envoys of the Eastern Patriarchs asked the Bulgarian delegated the following question: "When you took [your] Motherland, tell us under which authority it used to be and were there Latin or Greek priests?". They gave the prepared answer: "We took [our] Motherland with arms from the rule of the Greeks and there we found not Latin but Greek priests." In compliance with the response of the Bulgarian envoys, the Eastern Patriarchates pronounced their decision: "If you have found Greek priests, it is clear that this land was under the rule of Constantinople... Therefore we adjudge, because the Bulgarian motherland, as we got to know, was previously under Greek ruler and had Greek priests, to be now returned again through Christianity to the holy Church of Constantinople, from which it was separated through paganism." The protests of the Roman legates were futile. They forged a letter in which the Pope allegedly warned the Patriarch of Constantinople not to interfere with the Bulgarian matters, but Ignatius ignored it. After the Council (in the very same year) the Latin priests had to leave Bulgaria and were substituted by Byzantine missionaries.
and the kavhan in the administration of the First Bulgarian Empire
. The starting point of those discussions is that there were one kavhan and one ichirgu-boil at the same time and that the kavhan is the higher office. The different views on the functions of Peter comes from the different interpretation of the historical sources (the letters of Pope John VIII, the notes of the Cividale gospel and the story of Anastasius Bibliothecarius about the Council of Constantinople).
In 879 Pope John VIII appealed not only to Boris I but also to his close associates, including Peter. The letter was addressed to "Petro Cerbule et Sundice ceterisque optimatibus et consiliariis dilecti filii nostri Michaelis regis Vulgarorum" ("To Peter, Tserbula and Sundika, and the other boyars and advisers of our favourite son, the Bulgarian prince Michael"). The idea that Cerbule is the personal name Tserbula (Zergobula) is supported by Zlatarski
. Veselin Beshevliev interprets that as a title to the personal name of Peter Petro cerbulae (Peter ichirgu-boil). According to Ivan Venedikov
in 879 Peter was ichirgu-boil, having replaced Stazis. The connection of Cerbule to Petro has been rejected by Vasil Gyuzelev
. He suggests that Cerbule is related to Stazis. The omission of his personal name is explained with the fact that the Roman administration could not always cope with the Bulgarian anthroponymy
and used titles instead of personal names.
The historians are also not unanimous about who led the missions to Rome and Constantinople. According to Yordan Ivanov the second mission was led by Sondoke, while Venedikov suggests it was Stazis. According to Gyuzelev the leading person in the Bulgarian delegation was Peter which was made clear during the Council of Constantinople. He emphasizes that according to the story of Anastasius Bibliothecarius the gifts to the Roman legates were sent through Peter. Peter is the person of the Bulgarian delegation in Constantinople who spoke at the Council. Gyuzelev also pays attention to the letters of Pope John VIII. Letters were sent to Boris I (16 April 878 and May 879), to Doks - brother of Boris I (April 878), to Peter (16 April 878) and to high ranking boils including Peter (in the letter of May 879). In the letter of April 878 addressed personally to Peter the Pope called him comita (Petrum comitem). It has been suggested that under comita the Pope did not mean a regional governor but comes palatii, i. e. the first person in the court of the ruler. Gyuzelev concludes that Peter's role in the events between 866 and 879 is more important than that of the ichirgu-boil Stazis and therefore Peter must have been kavhan at least during that period.
Knyaz
Kniaz, knyaz or knez is a Slavic title found in most Slavic languages, denoting a royal nobility rank. It is usually translated into English as either Prince or less commonly as Duke....
(khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
) Boris I
Boris I of Bulgaria
Boris I, also known as Boris-Mihail and Bogoris was the Knyaz of First Bulgarian Empire in 852–889. At the time of his baptism in 864, Boris was named Michael after his godfather, Emperor Michael III...
(r. 852–889) who was in charge of diplomatic missions during the Christianization of Bulgaria
Christianization of Bulgaria
The Christianization of Bulgaria was the process by which 9th-century medieval Bulgaria converted to Christianity. It was influenced by the khan's shifting political alliances with the kingdom of the East Franks and the Byzantine Empire, as well as his reception by the Pope of the Roman Catholic...
. His position in the Bulgarian
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
administrative hierarchy is unknown but it has been suggested that he had the title kavhan, i. e. the second person in the state after the ruler.
Historical background
When Boris I assumed the throne of Bulgaria, the country was still pagan, with the ruling BulgarBulgars
The Bulgars were a semi-nomadic who flourished in the Pontic Steppe and the Volga basin in the 7th century.The Bulgars emerge after the collapse of the Hunnic Empire in the 5th century....
elite being Tengriists
Tengriism
Tengriism is a Central Asian religion that incorporates elements of shamanism, animism, totemism and ancestor worship. Despite still being active in some minorities, it was, in old times, the major belief of Turkic peoples , Bulgars, Hungarians and Mongols...
while the Slavic population practiced its own religion
Slavic mythology
Slavic mythology is the mythological aspect of the polytheistic religion that was practised by the Slavs before Christianisation.The religion possesses many common traits with other religions descended from the Proto-Indo-European religion....
. Christianity was already spread in Bulgaria as the country was established on former territories of the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, and seems to have been influential. Even one of the sons of Khan Omurtag
Omurtag of Bulgaria
Omurtag was a Great Khan of Bulgaria from 814 to 831. He is known as "the Builder".In the very beginning of his reign he signed a 30-year peace treaty with the neighboring Eastern Roman Empire which remained in force to the end of his life...
(r. 814-831), Enravota
Enravota
Saint Enravota or Voin or Boyan was the eldest son of Omurtag of Bulgaria and the first Bulgarian Christian martyr, as well as the earliest Bulgarian saint to be canonized....
, converted to Christianity. The Bulgarian nobility was hostile to Christianity as it was directly associated with the Byzantine Empire, and feared any strong Byzantine influence. Boris I however had many reasons to convert - Bulgaria was situated between two powerful Christian empires, Byzantium and East Francia; Christian doctrine particularly favoured the position of the monarch as God's representative on Earth, while Boris also saw it as a way to overcome the differences between Bulgars and Slavs. The geopolitical situation was also favourable, because of the increasing friction and rivalry between the Papacy in Rome and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
for influence in Central Europe. That struggle between the two churches would give the Bulgarian ruler the opportunity to manoeuver and negotiate with both, thus extracting favourable concessions while keeping the country out of direct foreign influence. When the Byzantines invaded Bulgaria in the autumn of 863 and demanded conversion to Christianity from Constantinople as the single condition to retreat, Boris I readily accepted and was baptized in the beginning of 864. That step was very unpopular among the nobility, but when they rebelled Boris I dealt decisively with them and executed 52 magnates along with their whole families. However, when in the next year the Byzantines showed their determination not to allow the existence of an autocephalous Bulgarian Church, Boris I decided to turn to the Papacy.
Missions to Rome
According to the historical sources there were three Bulgarian missions to the PopePope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
with the participation of Peter, with the first one in the summer of 866. The interest of Boris I in the Roman Church was caused by the reluctance of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople to accept his request to appoint an independent patriarch
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
(or at least archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
) for the Bulgarian diocese, but retain it subordinated to Constantinople. Boris I was determined to make Bulgaria Christian while keeping the country's religious and political independence. Since the end of the 850s the churches of Rome and Constantinople were in a period of a heated competition for influence over the Slavs and the Ecumenical Church power. This rivalry favoured Boris' plans, as it gave him the opportunity to play one side off against the other and choose. The new orientation of the Bulgarian policy also allowed Boris I to calm down the nobility of the boyars, which was cautious and hostile to the increased Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
influence in the country after the Christianization.
First mission
The Bulgarian delegation arrived before Pope Nicholas IPope Nicholas I
Pope Nicholas I, , or Saint Nicholas the Great, reigned from April 24, 858 until his death. He is remembered as a consolidator of papal authority and power, exerting decisive influence upon the historical development of the papacy and its position among the Christian nations of Western Europe.He...
on 29 August 866. During that year Boris quelled the rebellion of the boyars against the Christianization. Among the gifts presented to the Pope by the delegation was the weapon of Boris "with which [he] was armed when in the name of Christ he celebrated over his enemies". The Bulgarians also brought a document with questions by their ruler to the Pope. The content of the questions is reproduced on paragraph 106 of the "Answers of Pope Nicolas to the questions of the Bulgarians". The arrival of the Bulgarian envoys in Rome became a very important event. The Pope enthusiastically spread the news in a letter to Hincmar of Reims and the other archbishops of the Frankish Empire
Frankish Empire
Francia or Frankia, later also called the Frankish Empire , Frankish Kingdom , Frankish Realm or occasionally Frankland, was the territory inhabited and ruled by the Franks from the 3rd to the 10th century...
.
That Bulgarian mission was mentioned thirteen years later (June 879) in a letter to Boris I, with which Pope John VIII
Pope John VIII
Pope John VIII was pope from December 13, 872 to December 16, 882. He is often considered one of the ablest pontiffs of the ninth century and the last bright spot on the papacy until Leo IX two centuries later....
tried to prevent Bulgaria from returning to the Constantinople Patriarchate. That letter proves Peter's participation in the mission of 866:
The Bulgarian envoys received the answers of Pope Nicolas I at a ceremony in the Lateran Palace
Lateran Palace
The Lateran Palace , formally the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran , is an ancient palace of the Roman Empire and later the main Papal residence....
on 13 November 866. Soon after that Peter and the other envoys returned to their country along with the papal emissaries Formosus of Portus
Pope Formosus
Pope Formosus was Pope of the Catholic Church from 891 to 896. His brief reign as Pope was troubled, and his remains were exhumed and put on trial in the notorious Cadaver Synod.-Biography:...
and Paul of Populona. Both bishops exercised educative activities in Bulgaria. Along with Peter departed other envoys of the Pope, the bishop of Ostia
Ostia
Ostia may refer to:*Ostia , a municipio of Rome on the Tyrrhenian Sea coast*Ostia Antica, a township and port of ancient Rome*Ostia Antica , a district of the commune of Rome...
Donatus, the presbyter
Presbyter
Presbyter in the New Testament refers to a leader in local Christian congregations, then a synonym of episkopos...
Leo and the deacon of the apostolic episcopacy Marinus
Pope Marinus I
Pope Marinus I , Pope between December 16, 882 and May 15, 884. He succeeded John VIII in about the end of December 882.-Prior history:...
, who had to continue to Constantinople and there clarify the policy of Rome to the Bulgarians.
Second mission
The abilities and the efforts of Formosus of Portus impressed Boris I. No later than a year after his first mission in Rome, Peter was put in charge of a second one in order to arrange the ordination of Formosus as Bulgarian archbishop. The Bulgarian delegation arrived in Rome in the second half of 867. Nicolas I declined the proposal concerning Formosus and accepted only the other request of Boris I - to send more presbyters to Bulgaria. The curiaRoman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
prepared a group of clerics led by Dominic of Trivena and Gromuald of Polymartis. The unexpected death of Nicolas I on 13 November 867 postponed the papal response and the departure of the group. Peter and the other Bulgarian diplomats participated in the burial of the deceased Pope and waited in Rome until the election of a new pontiff. The new Pope Hadrian III confirmed the decisions of his predecessor. In the middle of December the delegation headed back for the Bulgarian capital Pliska
Pliska
Pliska is the name of both the first capital of Danubian Bulgaria and a small town which was renamed after the historical Pliska after its site was determined and excavations began....
by land, with letters to the Bulgarian prince written by Nicolas I. En route to Bulgaria the delegation stayed in the monastery of the town Aquileia
Aquileia
Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in what is now Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about 10 km from the sea, on the river Natiso , the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times...
, an event noted in the Cividale gospel in which an unknown monk wrote down the names of the Bulgarian envoys and the members of their families:
The delegation arrived in Pliska in the beginning of 868. Boris I learned that the Pope had offered him to choose the archbishop of the Bulgarian Church from among the presbyters he had sent. By order Hadrian II, Formosus of Portus and Paul of Populona returned to Rome as early as February in the same year, accompanied by Peter. Boris I was disappointed with the Pope's answers and decided to end the negotiations with Rome.
Third mission
The historical source for the positions of the Bulgarian ruler is the biography of Pope Hadrian II, written by the Vatican librarian AnastasiusAnastasius Bibliothecarius
Anastasius Bibliothecarius was Head of archives and antipope of the Roman Catholic Church.- Family and education :...
:
Subdeacon
-Subdeacons in the Orthodox Church:A subdeacon or hypodeacon is the highest of the minor orders of clergy in the Orthodox Church. This order is higher than the reader and lower than the deacon.-Canonical Discipline:...
Silvester. With his decision the Pope underestimated the ambitions of Boris I for independent church policy, which led to the alienation of the Bulgarian ruler from Rome and indirectly helped the Patriarchate of Constantinople in its efforts to influence the events in Bulgaria.
When in the beginning of 868 Peter and Formosus arrived in Rome, the brothers Cyril and Methodius
Saints Cyril and Methodius
Saints Cyril and Methodius were two Byzantine Greek brothers born in Thessaloniki in the 9th century. They became missionaries of Christianity among the Slavic peoples of Bulgaria, Great Moravia and Pannonia. Through their work they influenced the cultural development of all Slavs, for which they...
and their disciples were there on invitation by the Pope. Formosus and bishop Gauderig of Veletria ordained many of the brothers' disciples for priests, deacons and subdeacons. It has been suggested that Peter was among the first high-ranking Bulgarians who was acquainted with the ideas of Cyril and Methodius and brought the news to Bulgaria.
The consequent refusal of Hadrian II to ordain a candidate approved by Boris exhausted the patience of the Bulgarian prince. After a three-month stay in Bulgaria Silvester returned to Rome with a letter to the Pope in which for the last time Boris I insisted that either Formosus or Marinus must be ordained, but the Pope declined the proposal once again. During that time the Bulgarian ruler had already started negotiations with the Patriarch of Constantinople Ignatius, who was trying to improve the relations with Rome, which had been strained after the mutual anathema
Anathema
Anathema originally meant something lifted up as an offering to the gods; it later evolved to mean:...
s made in 863 by his predecessor Photios I and Pope Nicolas I. Just like Photios, however, Ignatius did not want to allow a permanent establishment of the Roman Church in Bulgaria. In order to settle the differences between the two Churches, the Eighth Ecumenical Council was planned to be held in Constantinople in 869. After a long stay in Rome (868-869), Peter returned to Bulgaria and was immediately sent to participate in the council.
Mission to Constantinople
The Eighth Ecumenical Council was inaugurated on 5 October 869. Besides the representatives of Rome and Constantinople, the event was attended by envoys of the Eastern Patriarchs of Jerusalem, AlexandriaPatriarch of Alexandria
The Patriarch of Alexandria is the Archbishop of Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation of Pope , and did so earlier than that of the Bishop of Rome...
and Antioch
Patriarch of Antioch
Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the Bishop of Antioch. As the traditional "overseer" of the first gentile Christian community, the position has been of prime importance in the church from its earliest period...
. The Papal legates were unaware of the secret negotiations between Bulgaria and Byzantium and did not expect to discuss the status of the Bulgarian Church on the council. As a result they were very surprised too see high-ranking Bulgarian envoys attending the official closure of the Council on 28 February 870: the ichirgu-boil
Ichirgu-boil
The Ichirgu-boil or Chargobilya was a high-ranking official in the First Bulgarian Empire. He was the commander of the garrison of the capital and was the third most important person in the state after the ruler and the Kavkhan. In peace-time the ichirgu-boil had diplomatic functions...
Stazis, khan-bagatur Sondoke, khan-tarkan Iliya, sampsis Persiyan and sampsis Alexius Hunol.
On 4 March 870, three days after the Council's final session, Emperor Basil I
Basil I
Basil I, called the Macedonian was a Byzantine emperor of probable Armenian descent who reigned from 867 to 886. Born a simple peasant in the Byzantine theme of Macedonia, he rose in the imperial court, and usurped the imperial throne from Emperor Michael III...
invited the participants to the Imperial Palace
Great Palace of Constantinople
The Great Palace of Constantinople — also known as the Sacred Palace — was the large Imperial Byzantine palace complex located in the south-eastern end of the peninsula now known as "Old Istanbul", modern Turkey...
: Patriarch Ignatius, the Papal legates Donatus of Ostia, Stephen of Nep and deacon Marinus, as well as the representatives of the Eastern Patriarchs archdeacon Joseph (from Alexandria), bishop Thomas of Tyre (from Antioch) and presbyter Elijah (from Jerusalem), telling them that Peter was bringing gifts from the Bulgarian Prince. After the exchange of greetings Peter, who had been instructed in advance, raised the issue of the jurisdiction over the Bulgarian Church and turned to the assembled men:
The Roman legates answered:
In order to take decision the envoys of the Eastern Patriarchs asked the Bulgarian delegated the following question: "When you took [your] Motherland, tell us under which authority it used to be and were there Latin or Greek priests?". They gave the prepared answer: "We took [our] Motherland with arms from the rule of the Greeks and there we found not Latin but Greek priests." In compliance with the response of the Bulgarian envoys, the Eastern Patriarchates pronounced their decision: "If you have found Greek priests, it is clear that this land was under the rule of Constantinople... Therefore we adjudge, because the Bulgarian motherland, as we got to know, was previously under Greek ruler and had Greek priests, to be now returned again through Christianity to the holy Church of Constantinople, from which it was separated through paganism." The protests of the Roman legates were futile. They forged a letter in which the Pope allegedly warned the Patriarch of Constantinople not to interfere with the Bulgarian matters, but Ignatius ignored it. After the Council (in the very same year) the Latin priests had to leave Bulgaria and were substituted by Byzantine missionaries.
Title
In the historical literature Peter is thought to have been: boyar, great boil, comita , ichirgu-boil and kavhan (conditional or unconditional). The discussion on the title (or office) of Peter is part of the scientific discussion on the place of the ichirgu-boilIchirgu-boil
The Ichirgu-boil or Chargobilya was a high-ranking official in the First Bulgarian Empire. He was the commander of the garrison of the capital and was the third most important person in the state after the ruler and the Kavkhan. In peace-time the ichirgu-boil had diplomatic functions...
and the kavhan in the administration of the First Bulgarian Empire
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
. The starting point of those discussions is that there were one kavhan and one ichirgu-boil at the same time and that the kavhan is the higher office. The different views on the functions of Peter comes from the different interpretation of the historical sources (the letters of Pope John VIII, the notes of the Cividale gospel and the story of Anastasius Bibliothecarius about the Council of Constantinople).
In 879 Pope John VIII appealed not only to Boris I but also to his close associates, including Peter. The letter was addressed to "Petro Cerbule et Sundice ceterisque optimatibus et consiliariis dilecti filii nostri Michaelis regis Vulgarorum" ("To Peter, Tserbula and Sundika, and the other boyars and advisers of our favourite son, the Bulgarian prince Michael"). The idea that Cerbule is the personal name Tserbula (Zergobula) is supported by Zlatarski
Vasil Zlatarski
Vasil Nikolov Zlatarski was a Bulgarian historian-medievalist, archaeologist, and epigraphist.- Life :Vasil Zlatarski was born in Veliko Tarnovo in 1866, the youngest child of the teacher Nikola Zlatarcheto who was a prominent activist in the educational movement and the religious and national...
. Veselin Beshevliev interprets that as a title to the personal name of Peter Petro cerbulae (Peter ichirgu-boil). According to Ivan Venedikov
Ivan Venedikov
Ivan Yordanov Venedikov was a Bulgarian archaeologist, historian, thracologist and philologist who studied Thracian and medieval history, archaeology, art and culture; Bulgarian cultural and artistic heritage....
in 879 Peter was ichirgu-boil, having replaced Stazis. The connection of Cerbule to Petro has been rejected by Vasil Gyuzelev
Vasil Gyuzelev
Vasil Todorov Gyuzelev is a Bulgarian historian who studies Bulgaria during the Middle Ages.Gyuzelev was born in the village of Rakovski in 1936. Between 1954 and 1959 he studies history and archaeology in the Sofia University and then worked for a short time in the Museum of History in...
. He suggests that Cerbule is related to Stazis. The omission of his personal name is explained with the fact that the Roman administration could not always cope with the Bulgarian anthroponymy
Anthroponymy
Anthroponomastics , a branch of onomastics, is the study of anthroponyms Anthroponomastics (or anthroponymy), a branch of onomastics, is the study of anthroponyms Anthroponomastics (or anthroponymy), a branch of onomastics, is the study of anthroponyms (Anthroponomastics (or anthroponymy), a branch...
and used titles instead of personal names.
The historians are also not unanimous about who led the missions to Rome and Constantinople. According to Yordan Ivanov the second mission was led by Sondoke, while Venedikov suggests it was Stazis. According to Gyuzelev the leading person in the Bulgarian delegation was Peter which was made clear during the Council of Constantinople. He emphasizes that according to the story of Anastasius Bibliothecarius the gifts to the Roman legates were sent through Peter. Peter is the person of the Bulgarian delegation in Constantinople who spoke at the Council. Gyuzelev also pays attention to the letters of Pope John VIII. Letters were sent to Boris I (16 April 878 and May 879), to Doks - brother of Boris I (April 878), to Peter (16 April 878) and to high ranking boils including Peter (in the letter of May 879). In the letter of April 878 addressed personally to Peter the Pope called him comita (Petrum comitem). It has been suggested that under comita the Pope did not mean a regional governor but comes palatii, i. e. the first person in the court of the ruler. Gyuzelev concludes that Peter's role in the events between 866 and 879 is more important than that of the ichirgu-boil Stazis and therefore Peter must have been kavhan at least during that period.