Family Tree of the Second Bulgarian Empire
23 reigning rulers across four dynasties — with their consorts, kin and the family's Byzantine branch
The Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396) was ruled by four successive dynasties — the Asen, Terter, Smilets and Shishman houses — from the uprising of the brothers Peter and Asen against Byzantium to the fall of Tarnovo to the Ottomans. This family tree charts every tsar and their relatives across those two centuries, together with the Asens in Byzantium: the descendants of Ivan Asen III, who lived on in Constantinople as the noble Asanes family. Switch between the houses with the tabs, expand a branch to follow a line, and select any name for their reign, family ties and the primary sources behind each fact.
Constantine Asen
- Siblings
Constantine Asen belonged to the second generation of the Byzantine Asens — an uncle of Emperor John V and of Manuel II Palaiologos — although his exact place in the pedigree remains undetermined (his father is unknown). Born around 1338–1340, he was a brother of John Asen.
The sources portray him as a remarkably many-sided figure: a confidant of the emperor, a participant in important foreign missions (1358, and 1369–1371, when he accompanied John V on his ill-fated journey to Italy) and in church affairs (1383, 1409), and moreover one of the prominent opponents of Palamism.
Especially remarkable is his intellectual profile — a celebrated rhetorician, author of theological treatises and epic poems, composer of hymns and dramatic works, owner of a rich library and at the same time a passionate hunter. His long life and his gifts allowed him to leave 69 works. The last notice of him is from 1415, when he was still alive.