Presence of the Turks in northern black sea and the Balkans (IV.-X. centuries)

Presence of the Turks in Northern Black Sea and the Balkans have take a new form by the Huns' attack that invaded homelands of Eastern Goths after had domineered the Alans in the last quarter of the 4th century. Huns, enlarged their dominance district to the River Tuna in a short time, from the beginnig of the fifth centry passed over Tuna under the leadership of their leader Uldin and Rua, and started invasions in the lands of Eastern Rome. Huns that reached the zenith of their power in the time of Atilla, became an unrivalled power in the East and Central Europe; but after the untimely death of Attila, with the struggle for power among his sons, they lost their political existence in a short time. After the fall of the Hun State, in a short time, less than a century, in the second half of the fifth centuy, Avars became a seious power in the same region. Avars settled himself in the Middle Tuna region under the leadership of their greatest Kagan Bayan; and after the successful wars with Byzantine in the east and Francs in the west, they enlarged their dominance in the Middle European districts. In the end of the sixth century and beginning of seventh century, Avars passed the River Tuna again and again and attacked on Byzantine's Balkan frontier. These attacks reached to the shores of Salonika and Dalmatia in the south. The most important consequence of the invasions of Avars in the Balkans is that Slavic people's settlement permenantly in this region. Avars that sieged Constantinople togerther with the army of Iran in 626, began to lose their political entity after failure of that siege. Even existence of Avars in Carpathian basin continued until beginning of the ninth century; Avar State that losed his pilitical power, was destroyed by the Francs in the end of the seventh century. In the last quarter of the seventh century, after downfall of the Great Bulgarian State in the North of the Black Sea, Bulgars that came and settled to the Lower Tuna region under leadership of Asparuh, son of Kubrat, successfully stroke back the first Byzantine attacks and forced Byzantines to recognize them. Bulgars completing their establishment during Asparuh and Tervel Khan's time, weakened for some time because of internal affairs, however, in the beginning of the ninth century in Krum Khan's time, they reconstructed their power again and became powerful enough to beat Byzantine, and encompass its capital city. However after Krum Khan, Slavization and Chtistianization process began in Bulgars, in Boris Khan's time they changed their religion, and with the influence of the Slavic culture, they lost their Turkic character. Another Turkic nation which has a significant place in the history of Northern Black Sea and the Balkans is Pechenegs that passed İdil river and after getting to Balkans, invaded the whole Thrace in the end of the ninth century. With their moving towards the West, Pechenegs lead Magyars to come and settle in their homelands of today, on the other hand, within their times, they became so greatest political power in the North of the Black Sea that Russian Knezs, Byzantines and Bulgars thought that they should apply to them for alliance. From the beginning of the eleventh century, Pechenegs got to the Balkans and moved their balance point to Tuna, and became the biggest rival of Byzantium for that period. Existence of Pechenegs that helped in the same time indirectly the Turks to move forward into Anatolia, continued until the end of the twelfth century, and after these years, they withdrew from the scene of history leaving permenant traces behind them. In Northern Black Sea and the Balkan geography, Turks that lived in four great political organisation in a period over the course of six hundred years, left deep traces in history and cultures of societies of that region they were in contact, and prepared a strong basis for the forthcoming Turkic conquests. Key Words: Early Middle Ages, Eastern Europe, Balkans, Huns, Avars, Bulgars, Ogurs, Pechenegs.