Saint Demetrius (or Demetrios) of Thessalonica (Greek: Ἅγιος Δημήτριος τῆς Θεσσαλονίκης, Hágios Dēmḗtrios tēs Thessaloníkēs), also known as the Holy Great-Martyr Demetrius the Myroblyte (meaning 'the Myrrh-Gusher' or 'Myrrh-Streamer'; 3rd century – 306), was a Greek Christian martyr of the early 4th century AD.
During the Middle Ages, he came to be revered as one of the most important Orthodox military saints, often paired with Saint George of Lydda.
Peter II, born Theodor, also known as Theodor-Peter (Bulgarian: Теодор-Петър; died in 1197), was the first emperor or tsar of the restored Bulgarian Empire from 1185 to 1197. He hails from the Byzantine theme of Paristrion, although his exact place and date of birth are unknown.
He and his younger brothers, Asen and Kaloyan, were mentioned as Vlachs in most foreign contemporaneous sources but they were probably of a mixed Vlach, Bulgarian, and Cuman origin. In 1185, Theodor and Asen approached the Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelos in Thrace, demanding an estate in the Balkan Mountains. After the Emperor refused and humiliated them, they decided to incite a rebellion, taking advantage of the discontent that a new tax had caused among the Bulgarians and Vlachs. To convince their compatriots to join them, they had native prophets declare that Saint Demetrius of Thessalonica had abandoned the Romans in favour of the Bulgarians and Vlachs. Before the end of the year, Theodor was crowned Emperor of Bulgaria, taking the name Peter and adopting the insignia used only by emperors.
The Uprising of Asen and Peter (Bulgarian: Въстание на Асен и Петър) was a revolt of Bulgarians and Vlachs living in Moesia and the Balkan Mountains, then the theme of Paristrion of the Byzantine Empire, caused by a tax increase. It began on 26 October 1185, the feast day of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki, and ended with the restoration of Bulgaria with the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire, ruled by the Asen dynasty.
Isaac II Angelus, in order to raise money for his wedding with the daughter of King Béla III of Hungary, levied a new tax which fell heavily on the population of the Haemus Mountains. They sent two leaders (Peter and Asen) to negotiate with the emperor at Kypsella (now İpsala) in Thrace. They asked to be added to the roll of the Byzantine army and to be granted land near Haemus to provide the monetary income needed to pay the tax. This was refused, and Peter and Asen were treated roughly. Their response was to threaten revolt.
The military saints, warrior saints and soldier saints are patron saints, martyrs and other saints associated with the military. They were originally composed of the early Christians who were soldiers in the Roman army during the persecution of Christians, especially the Diocletianic Persecution of AD 303–313.
Most of the early Christian military saints were soldiers of the Roman Empire who had become Christian and, after refusing to participate in Imperial cult rituals of loyalty to the Roman Emperor, were subjected to corporal punishment including torture and martyrdom.