Early Life
The antecedents of George Terter I are unclear, but the Byzantine sources testify that he was of Bulgarian and Cuman descent, something corroborated by his double name, which recalls the name of the Cuman clan Terteroba. George Terter I had at least one brother, named Aldimir (Eltimir), who was made a despotēs by either his older brother or by the regency for Ivan II.
When Ivan Asen III became emperor at Tărnovo in 1279 during the Uprising of Ivaylo, he sought to strengthen his position by allying himself with George Terter. The latter divorced his first wife Maria, who was sent together with their son Theodore Svetoslav as a hostage to the Byzantine Empire, to marry Maria (Kira Maria), the sister of Ivan Asen III. George Terter was accordingly made a despotēs, the highest rank in the Byzantino-Bulgarian court hierarchy.
Read more about this topic: George I Of Bulgaria
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