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A period of decline then set in, until finally in 1018 Byzantium managed to achieve its long-dreamed-of goal, the re-annexation of Bulgaria. This lasted for just over 150 years, until, following an uprising led by the brothers Petar and Asen, Byzantine control was overthrown, and the Second Bulgarian Kingdom (1186–1396) was established under the rule of Tsar Petar II (1186–1196).

The Ottoman era

This second kingdom reached its height during the reign of Tsar Ivan II (1218–1241) and marked a new high point in Bulgarian art and cultural development. However, a period of internal strife and unrest soon set in, and this took its toll on the Bulgarian state, so that by the middle of the 14th century it was in no condition to resist the advancing Ottoman Turks. They penetrated into Europe in 1354, and by 1396 had snuffed out the last pocket of Bulgarian resistance.

The Ottoman ‘yoke’, as it is usually called, lasted for over 500 years, and was a black period for Bulgaria, bringing great suffering to the ordinary people and, for several centuries, stifling the development of the nation. Finally, during the 18th century, something of a renaissance began to take place. Driven forward on the one side by patriotic monks such as Paisius of Hilendar (Paisiy Hilendarski) and later Neophyt of Rila (Neofit Rilski), and on the other by increasingly wealthy Bulgarian merchants, Bulgaria began its National Revival Period. This not only saw the flourishing of arts and crafts such as woodcarving and icon painting, but also inspired a new collective Bulgarian pride and ignited the desire for independence, first educational and religious, and finally political.