Alcek
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Alcek (Bulgar: Altsikurs) was the leader of the horde of Bulgar horsemen who in the 7th century settled with their families in the Matese mountains of Central Italy in the villages of Gallo, Sepino, Boiano, Isernia and others.
[edit] History
Alcek, fifth of the many sons of Kubrat, was a leader of a horde of Bulgars who were part of the Avar khaganate. In 631, a war for the throne broke out between an Avar leader and Alcek. Eventually, the Bulgars were defeated and fled to Bavaria where they asked the Frankish king Dagobert I for a piece of land to settle in. The king first let them settle but one night he ordered his army to slaughter the Bulgars. Only 700 out of 9 000 survived the slaughter and fled to Italy, where they gained permission from Gromualt to settle in the area of Ravenna. Some authors see link between the modern Italian (Green-White-Red) and Bulgarian (White-Green-Red) national flags, moreover same colours are presented in the other countres' national flags - Chuvashia, Hungary and Tatarstan, in which ancient Bulgars settled. Alcek is thought by many historians to be the fifth son of the founder of Old Great Bulgaria Kubrat, but this theory is not proven.
