Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of Adrianople

Battle of Adrianople was a battle fought on 14 April 1205 at Edirne, in what is now Turkey. It was part of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars, which ran from AD 680 to 1355. The recorded result: Bulgarian victory.

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Battle of Adrianople (1205)
Battle of Adrianople (1205). Kandi, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought14 April 1205
WhereEdirne, Turkey41.667N, 26.567E
OutcomeBulgarian victory
BelligerentsSecond Bulgarian Empire; CumansagainstLatin Empire; Republic of Venice
Casualties and lossesUnknownandHeavy
Part ofByzantine–Bulgarian WarsAD 680 to 1355

Where it sits in the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars

Battle of Ongal, AD 680Battle of Anchialus, AD 708Battle of Marcellae, AD 756Bulgarian campaigns of Constantine V, AD 756Battle of the Rishki Pass, AD 759Battle of Anchialus, AD 763Battle of Berzitia, AD 774Battle of Marcellae, AD 792Siege of Serdica (809), AD 809Battle of Pliska, AD 811Siege of Adrianople (813), AD 813Battle of Versinikia, AD 813Battle of Mesembria, AD 814Battle of Adrianople, AD 914Fall of Great Preslav, AD 971Battle of Spercheios, AD 997Battle of Thessalonica, 1004Battle of Kreta, 1009Battle of Thessalonica, 1014Battle of Strumica, 1014Battle of Bitola, 1015Battle of Setina, 1017Battle of Dyrrhachium, 1018Battle of Thessalonica, 1040Battle of Thessalonica, 1040Siege of Lovech, 1187Battle of Arcadiopolis, 1194Battle of Serres, 1196Siege of Varna (1201), 1201Battle of Adrianople, 1205Battle of Klokotnitsa, 1230Siege of Constantinople, 1235Battle of Adrianople, 1254Battle of Rhoupelion, 1255Battle of Bizye, 1256Battle of Devina, 1279Battle of Skafida, 1304Battle of Adrianople, 1331Battle of Rusokastro, 1332Battle of Adrianople, 1341AD 6801341Battle of Adrianople, 1205
40 placed engagements of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date14 April 1205
PlaceEdirne, Turkey
41.667N, 26.567E
KindBattle, medieval
StrengthGeoffrey of Villehardouin: around 40,000 Bulgarians and Vlachs (infantry, cavalry and archers) and 14,000 Cumans (light & missile cavalry)4,000; 300 heavy knights; (mainly from France)
Casualties and lossesUnknownHeavy
Commanders
  • Kaloyan of Bulgaria
  • Baldwin I of Constantinople
  • Louis I, Count of Blois
  • Renaud de Montmirail
  • Stephen du Perche (died 1205)
  • Geoffrey of Villehardouin
  • Enrico Dandolo
Battle of AdrianopleBattle of AdrianopleBattle of AdrianópolisBattle of VersinikiaBattle of AdrianopleSiege of AdrianopleBattle of AdrianopleBattle of AdrianópolisBurgasStara ZagoraTekirdağKhaskovoXanthiPlovdivSlivenLüleburgaz100 km41.667N, 26.567E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Adrianople
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 10 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Adrianople today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-06-25. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 38 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 19 to 152 m, 133 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 38% built-up, 36% cropland, 12% tree cover.

built-up: 38%cropland: 36%tree cover: 12%grassland: 10%water: 3%built-up 38%cropland 36%tree cover 12%grassland 10%water 3%
west to east, 10.0 km30 to 112 mnorth to south, 10.0 km30 to 99 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 10 times between AD 324 and 1913.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1205

Battle of Adrianople is one of 629 engagements of the 13th century in the atlas and one of 687 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1427630, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Adrianople (1205), revision 1370431016, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.