Sabar people had expanded their domination towards
the Eastern Europe in the very early year of503 and they subdued some of the Bulgarian
groups. A crowded group of Sabar people settled between the Idyll (Volga)- Don Rivers and
on the banks of Kuban River that was located in the north of the Caucasus. Therefore, they
were directly in contract with the Byzantine and Sassani State. These situations led them
to have a priority in the history of the Eastern Europe. In those years while the Iranian-
Byzantine wars kept ongoing, Sabar people had a large-scaled military operation under the
command of Balak (Belek?). Then, Sabar people collaborated with Sassani people and fought
against the Byzantine (516).
It has been known that they organised some
raids towards the Ermeniye region and then penetrated into Anatolia and advanced towards
Kayseri, Ankara, and Konya. On this occasion, the Byzantine must have been lost in
amazement due to the great war power and especially the high techniques of the war
materials. The expressions of Prokopios are significant: "Sabar people have machines
that have not been designed either by Iranians and the Roman people since the periods that
the human being remembered. There was always a scientist in each two empires and they made
war machines in every period. However, any invention that was similar to tho materials of
these barbarians have not been invented or used like they did so far.
It is beyond
doubt that this is the masterpiece of the human wisdom." Pursuant to Balak (died in
520s), his widow wife, Bo(ğ)arık that replaced him was a famous Turkish queen that was
well-known with her warrior and governor characteristics and her beauty. She commanded the
Sabar army that was composed of "100 thousands" of people. The Byzantine Emperor
Justinianos (527-565) preferred to conclude an agreement with Boğarık in return for
various silvermade vases and the other rich gifts and presents (528). The Byzantine must
have considered that it would be a more appropriate political stance to collaborate with
Sabar people and establish friendly terms in the Sasani War that was ongoing for
centuries.
|
