The ancient map of Bulgaria shows evolutions of Bulgaria. This historical map of Bulgaria will allow you to travel in the past and in the history of Bulgaria in Eastern Europe. The Bulgaria ancient map is downloadable in PDF, printable and free.

Around 5,000 BC a sophisticated civilization already existed and produced some of the first pottery and jewelry in the world. After 3,000 BC the Thracians appeared on the Balkan peninsula as you can see in Ancient Bulgaria map. Around 500 BC they formed the powerful Odrysian Kingdom, which subsequently declined and Thracian tribes fell under Macedonian, Celtic and Roman domination. This mixture of ancient peoples was assimilated by the Slavs, who permanently settled on the peninsula after 500 AD. Meanwhile in 632 the Bulgars, originally from Central Asia, formed an independent state that became known as Great Bulgaria under the leadership of Kubrat. Pressure from the Khazars led to the subjugation of Great Bulgaria in the second half of the 7th century. One of the Kubrat successors, Asparukh, migrated with some of the ancient Bulgar tribes to the area, around the Danube delta, and subsequently conquered Scythia Minor and Moesia Superior from the Byzantine Empire, expanding his new kingdom further into the Balkan Peninsula.

A peace treaty with Byzantium in 681 and the establishment of a permanent Bulgarian capital at Pliska south of the Danube mark the beginning of the First Bulgarian Empire. The new state brought together Thracian remnants and Slavs under Bulgar rule, and a slow process of mutual assimilation began. In the following centuries Bulgaria established itself as a powerful empire, dominating the Balkans through its aggressive military traditions, which led to development of distinct ethnic identity. Its ethnically and culturally diverse people united under a common religion, language and alphabet which formed and preserved the Bulgarian national consciousness despite foreign invasions and influences. In the 11th century the First Bulgarian Empire collapsed under Rus and Byzantine attacks, and became part of the Byzantine Empire until 1185 as its shown in Ancient Bulgaria map. Then, a major uprising led by two brothers - Asen and Peter of the Asen dynasty, restored the Bulgarian state to form the Second Bulgarian Empire.

After reaching its apogee in the 1230s, Bulgaria started to decline due to a number of factors, most notably its geographic position which rendered it vulnerable to simultaneous attacks and invasions from many sides. In the late 13th century, Bulgaria was squeezed between the advancing Mongol hordes from the north and the Latin Empire from the south, eventually becoming a Mongol tributary state for a period of 25 years. A peasant rebellion, one of the few successful such in history, established the swineherd Ivaylo as a Tsar. His short reign was essential in recovering - at least partially - the integrity of the Bulgarian state as its mentioned in Ancient Bulgaria map. A period of relative thrive followed after 1300, but ended in 1371, when factional divisions caused Bulgaria to split into three small Tsardoms. By 1396, they were subjugated by the Ottoman Empire. Following the elimination of the Bulgarian nobility and clergy by the Turks, Bulgaria entered an age of oppression, intellectual stagnation and misgovernment that would leave its culture shattered and isolated from Europe for the next 500 years.