Theodore Balina (/Teodor Balina) was an Ottoman Bulgarian nobleman and leader in the

Sanjak of Nicopolis The Sanjak of Nicopolis ( ''Nikopolski sandzhak'', ) was a sanjak in the Ottoman Empire, with Nikopol in modern Bulgaria as its administrative centre. It was established out of the territories of the Tsardom of Vidin, after the Battle of Nicopoli ...

who led the

First Tarnovo Uprising The First Tarnovo uprising () was a Bulgarian uprising against Ottoman rule based in the former Bulgarian capital, Tarnovo, that broke out in 1598 and was severely crushed by the Ottoman authorities. The uprising was organized by religious le ...

against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in 1598.

Life

To him the local merchant from

Ragusa Ragusa may refer to: Places Croatia * Ragusa, Dalmatia, the historical name of the city of Dubrovnik * the Republic of Ragusa (or Republic of Dubrovnik), the maritime city-state of Ragusa * Ragusa Vecchia, historical Italian name of Cavtat, a t ...

Pavel Đorđević writes: Except Theodore, the uprising was organized by religious leaders, as well as public figures and merchants. These included the Archbishop of Tarnovo Dionysus Rali,

Pavle Đorđević Pavle (Macedonian and sr-Cyrl, Павле; ka, პავლე) is a Serbian, Macedonian, Croatian and Georgian male given name corresponding to the English Paul; the name is of biblical origin, coming from Saint Paul. People Mononyms * Pav ...

and the Sorkočević brothers, with the bishops Theophanes of

Lovech Lovech (, ) is a city in north-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the Lovech Province and of the subordinate Lovech Municipality. The city is located about northeast from the capital city of Sofia. Near Lovech are the towns of ...

, Jeremiah of

Rousse Ruse (also transliterated as Rousse, Russe; ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, fifth-largest city in Bulgaria. Ruse is in the northeastern part of the country, on the right bank of the Danube, opposite the Romanian city of Giurgiu, ...

, Spyridon of

Shumen Shumen (, also Romanization of Bulgarian, romanized as ''Shoumen'' or ''Šumen'', ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, tenth-largest city in Bulgaria and the administrative and economic capital of Shumen Province. Etymology The city ...

and Methodius of

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

and other high-ranking religious figures also taking part in the organization. The invasion of Wallachian forces under

Michael the Brave Michael the Brave ( or ; 1558 – 9 August 1601), born as Mihai Pătrașcu, was the Prince of Wallachia (as Michael II, 1593–1601), Prince of Moldavia (1600) and ''de facto'' ruler of Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711), Transylvani ...

in the northern Bulgarian lands in the autumn of 1598 provided good conditions for the uprising, as the fellow Christian army would support the insurrection according to the plan. At the time the Ottomans were engaged in the Long War with the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

. One descendant (may be Theodore Balina) of the medieval Shishman dynasty was proclaimed

Tsar of Bulgaria The monarchs of Bulgaria ruled Bulgaria during the medieval First Bulgarian Empire, First ( 681–1018) and Second Bulgarian Empire, Second (1185–1422) Bulgarian empires, as well as during the modern Principality of Bulgaria, Principality (1879 ...

(as Ivan Shishman II) and Tarnovo was briefly liberated, with about 12,000 people gathering. As a consequence, about 16,000 Bulgarians fled centrally-governed Ottoman territory and crossed the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

to settle in autonomous neighbouring Wallachia, where they established a Bulgarian community. The leader of the Uprising emigrated to Russia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balina, Theodore People from Veliko Tarnovo Bulgarian revolutionaries 17th-century Bulgarian people Rebels from the Ottoman Empire People from Nikopol, Bulgaria 16th-century Bulgarian people