Asparuh and the founding of 681

In 681 Emperor Constantine IV made peace with Khan Asparuh after defeat at the Danube delta. The treaty recognized a Bulgarian state south of the river — the date marks the beginning of the First Bulgarian Empire.

Asparuh was a son of Kubrat and carried forward Bulgar political organization after Old Great Bulgaria fragmented. Early capitals Pliska and later Preslav became centers of rule, literacy, and building programs.

Excavations at Pliska and Malamirovo reveal fortifications, palace complexes, and early Christian basilicas from the eighth and ninth centuries, showing administered statehood, not only a military alliance.

Byzantine chronicles treat the Bulgars as a major rival. After 681 the Danube and Black Sea frontiers shaped Southeast European politics into the eleventh century.

681 anchors school curricula and differs from the 3 March national holiday — one line is early medieval statehood, the other nineteenth-century liberation.

Museums in Shumen, Pliska, and Sofia display fortifications, coins, and inscriptions from Asparuh’s era and his successors.

Bulgarian communities abroad include the topic in schools and celebrations, linking knowledge to family life.