According to the generally accepted opinion, he was the second most important person in the state after the Bulgarian ruler. He had a number of responsibilities and concentrated huge power and authority. The
kavkhan was a commander-in-chief of the
Bulgarian army and one of the primary diplomats in the state. He was a member of the '
Bolyar Counsel' and one of the most important advisers to the Bulgarian ruler; the
kavkhan was sometimes his regent or co-ruler. The
kavkhan was a high magistrate and substitute to the ruler when the latter is absent from the capital. He is also attributed to have been a judge. It is assumed that there was a prominent bolyar family in Bulgaria from which the
kavkhan was chosen generation after generation - the so-called "
kavkhan kin". The title was therefore hereditary and for life. According to most historians the title outlived the First Empire which was conquered by
Basil II in 1018. The last person who had the prerogatives and responsibilities of a
kavkhan was
Georgi Voiteh, an initiator of the uprising of
Peter III (Constantine Bodin) in 1072. == History ==