The Battle of Pliska (811)

In 811 the Byzantine emperor Nikephoros I gathered a large army to finish off the Bulgar state once and for all. Khan Krum offered peace, but the emperor refused. The Byzantine army took the Bulgar capital Pliska and plundered and burned the khan's palace.

Meanwhile Krum had the passes out of the Balkan mountains blocked with wooden barriers. The returning Byzantine army was trapped in the Varbitsa pass. On the night of 26 July 811 the Bulgars attacked, most of the army was destroyed, and Emperor Nikephoros was killed.

Pliska was one of the worst defeats in Byzantine history: for more than 150 years emperors did not dare send armies north of the Balkan range. According to the sources, Krum had Nikephoros's skull lined with silver and used it as a drinking cup.