Veliko Tarnovo

April 25, 2023

This town has the most glorious history of any town in Bulgaria and is the symbol of Bulgarian statehood. It is situated in Central Northern Bulgaria, in the hollow between the Danube and the Balkan Mountains that was cleft by the Yantra River, whose meanderings form three peninsulas - Tsarevets, Trapezitsa and Sveta Gora. The old Bulgarian capital was built on these three hills.

The earliest traces of human life in the area, which were discovered on the Trapezitsa hill, date from the Paleolithic Age - the 6th millennium B.C.. There are remains from the Bronze Age (13th century B.C.) on the Tsarevets hill.

The inhabitants of the region, up until the end of the Iron Age, were the Thracian Usdicensi and Crobyzi tribes. The next cultural layer is early Byzantine (6th-7th century AD). A medieval Slavic settlement emerged later on the ruins of the castle on the Tsarevets hill and survived throughout the period of the First Bulgarian Kingdom and Byzantine rule (under which Bulgaria fell in 1018).

In 1185, the brother-boyars Asen and Petar organized an uprising against Byzantine rule. Tarnovgrad became the capital of the restored Bulgarian state. For centuries it was the political, administrative and cultural centre of Bulgaria.

Remarkable monuments of architecture, painting, literature, arts and crafts were created. This was the second golden age of Bulgarian culture, which gave the Slavic world - and Southeastern Europe - the literary school of Patriarch Euthymius, the singing school of John Koukouzeles (nicknamed Angel-Voice), and the Tarnovo painting and architectural school.

During the Ottoman rule, the old Bulgarian capital was a stronghold of Bulgarianness - a centre for plots, rebellions and uprisings, of hope for the Bulgarian spirit.
Today the town is a busy student and tourist centre. Its population numbers approximately 89000 inhabitants.

We recommend our private Veliko Tarnovo tour. BOOK NOW