Ivailo of Bulgaria

Ivaylo Ивайло
Tsar of Bulgaria
Reign	1278–1279
Predecessor	Constantine Tikh Asen
Successor	Ivan Asen III
Died	1281
Spouse	Maria (the second wife of Constantine Tikh Asen)

Ivaylo, also spelled Ivailo, (Bulgarian: Ивайло), nicknamed Bardokva ("radish" or "lettuce" in Bulgarian) or Lakhanas (Λαχανᾶς, "cabbage") in Greek, was a rebel leader and emperor (Tsar) of Bulgaria. In 1277, he spearheaded a peasant uprising and forced the nobles to accept him as emperor. He reigned as emperor from 1278 to 1279, scoring victories against the Byzantines and the Mongols, but beset by foreign and domestic enemies, which included the Bulgarian nobility, he was forced into exile among the Mongols, where he presented himself as a dethroned vassal. The Mongols then killed him in 1280 as an enemy of the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus. His career as a monarch has been used as an example of early, anti-feudal class warfare by Marxist historians and as translated through folk songs, traditions and legends served as inspiration to Bulgarian guerrilla (hajduk) freedom fighters during the Ottoman period of Bulgarian history.

According to some sources Ivaylo began his life living humbly and herded swine for payment. Other sources indicate he was a peasant farmer with no land of his own. He allegedly saw visions of himself grounded in the medieval Christian tradition, accomplishing great deeds and ridding Bulgaria of its troubles, including above all the frequent incursions by the Mongols of the Golden Horde under Nogai Khan. By 1277, Ivaylo had put his words into actions, and had acquired leadership of an army composed largely of discontented peasants. Among his close associates and military commanders was Hranislav, who later entered Byzantine service after being captured. An attempt to subdue Ivaylo by the Bulgarian monarch Constantine I ended in utter failure, and Ivaylo is credited with killing the tsar in his chariot himself.

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