Svilengrad ( Bulgarian : Свиленград ; Greek : Σβίλενγκραντ ; Ottoman Turkish : Cisr-i Mustafapaşa ) is a town in Haskovo Province , south-central Bulgaria , situated at the tripoint of Bulgaria , Turkey , and Greece . It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Svilengrad Municipality .
126-603: Svilengrad is close to the road borders of Greece and Turkey (supposedly one of the largest road customs in Europe). Svilengrad is located ESE of Sofia and Plovdiv , South of Varna and Burgas , West of Edirne and North of the nearest Greek community Ormenio and Alexandroupolis in Greece. There is a higher level of employment than in surrounding villages. Most people work for customs and border related industries e.g. TIR servicing, hotels, border police, etc. The town centre has
252-659: A tetrarchic capital of the Roman Empire. In 343 AD, the Council of Sardica was held in the city, in a church located where the current 6th century Church of Saint Sophia was later built. The city was destroyed in the 447 invasion of the Huns and laid in ruins for a century It was rebuilt by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I . During the reign of Justinian it flourished, being surrounded with great fortress walls whose remnants can still be seen today. Serdica became part of
378-649: A bloodless coup with the Principality of Bulgaria . The Ottomans reorganised the Bulgarian territories, dividing them into several vilayets , each ruled by a Sanjakbey or Subasi accountable to the Beylerbey . Significant parts of the conquered land were parcelled out to the Sultan 's followers, who held it as benefices or fiefs (small timar , medium zeamet and large hass ) directly from him, or from
504-538: A bridge was built on the Maritsa River, representing a significant facility for its time. The bridge now connects the two parts of Svilengrad. A new settlement appeared around the bridge - Jesir Mustafa Pasha , which became a town in the second half of the 16th century. During the Ottoman rule , the population of the city selflessly fought to preserve their national identity. In 1847 a school for secular sciences
630-550: A centre of Sredets province (Sredetski komitat, Средецки комитат). The Bulgarian patron saint John of Rila was buried in Sredets by orders of Emperor Peter I in the mid 10th century. After the conquest of the Bulgarian capital Preslav by Sviatoslav I of Kyiv and John I Tzimiskes ' armies in 970–971, the Bulgarian Patriarch Damyan chose Sredets for his seat in the next year and the capital of Bulgaria
756-478: A complex set of factors behind the process. These include: pre-existing high population density owing to the late inclusion of the two mountainous regions in the Ottoman system of taxation; immigration of Christian Bulgarians from lowland regions to avoid taxation throughout the 1400s; the relative poverty of the regions; early introduction of local Christian Bulgarians to Islam through contacts with nomadic Yörüks ;
882-743: A decade earlier with the establishment of the Bulgarian Exarchate . The sabotage of the Conference, by either the British or the Russian Empire (depending on theory), led to the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) , whereby the much smaller Principality of Bulgaria , a self-governing, but functionally independent Ottoman vassal state was created. In 1885 the Ottoman autonomous province of Eastern Rumelia unified through
1008-558: A form of tax farming , which created conditions for severe exploitation of taxpayers by unscrupulous land holders. According to Radishev, overtaxation became a particularly poignant issue after jizye collection in most of the country was taken over by the Six Divisions of Cavalry . Bulgarians also paid a number of other taxes, including a tithe ("yushur"), a land tax ("ispench"), a levy on commerce, and various irregularly collected taxes, products and corvees ("avariz"). Generally,
1134-503: A history of nearly 7,000 years, with the great attraction of the hot water springs that still flow abundantly in the centre of the city. The neolithic village in Slatina dating to the 5th–6th millennium BC is documented. Another neolithic settlement was founded in the 3rd–4th millennium BC near the site of the modern National Art Gallery , which has been the traditional centre of the city ever since. The earliest tribes who settled were
1260-429: A pedestrianized high street mostly filled with cafes, bars, phone shops and hotels. The town has 3 DVD rental shops, two cinemas and a library. The Maritsa river flows through Svilengrad. The Evros regional unit of Greece is bordered to the south. The Rhodope mountains lie to the west and southwest. The area to the southwest is famous for its fruit trees and a moderate climate all year long. During Ottoman times,
1386-533: A period of intense demographic and economic growth. Sofia is the 14th-largest city in the European Union . It is surrounded by mountainsides, such as Vitosha by the southern side, Lyulin by the western side, and the Balkan Mountains by the north, which makes it the third highest European capital after Andorra la Vella and Madrid . Being Bulgaria's primary city, Sofia is home of many of
SECTION 10
#17327722353471512-583: A significant political and economical centre, more so as it became one of the first Roman cities where Christianity was recognised as an official religion (under Galerius ). The Edict of Toleration by Galerius was issued in 311 in Serdica by the Roman emperor Galerius, officially ending the Diocletianic persecution of Christianity. The Edict implicitly granted Christianity the status of " religio licita ",
1638-421: A slow, but steady process of Islamisation until the mid-1600s when the tax burden became so unbearable that most of the remaining Christians either converted en masse or left for lowland areas. These factors had an impact on the entire country. Due to them, the population of Ottoman Bulgaria is presumed to have dropped twofold from a peak of approx. 1.8 million (1.2 million Christians and 0.6 million Muslims) in
1764-646: A worship recognised and accepted by the Roman Empire. It was the first edict legalising Christianity, preceding the Edict of Milan by two years. Serdica was the capital of the Diocese of Dacia (337–602). For Constantine the Great it was 'Sardica mea Roma est' (Serdica is my Rome). He considered making Serdica the capital of the Byzantine Empire instead of Constantinople. which was already not dissimilar to
1890-632: A year, reaching its peak in late spring and early summer when thunderstorms are common. The driest recorded year was 2000 with a total precipitation of 304.6 mm (11.99 in), while the wettest year on record was 2014 with a total precipitation of 1,066.6 mm (41.99 in). The geographic position of the Sofia Valley limits the flow of air masses, increasing the chances of air pollution by particulate matter and nitrogen oxide . Solid fuel used for heating and motor vehicle traffic are significant sources of pollutants. Smog thus persists over
2016-476: Is 57 cm (22.4 in) (25 December 2001). The coldest recorded year was 1893 with an average January temperature of −10.4 °C (13 °F) and an annual temperature of 8.2 °C (46.8 °F). Summers are quite warm and sunny. In summer, the city generally remains slightly cooler than other parts of Bulgaria, due to its higher altitude. However, the city is also subject to heat waves with high temperatures reaching or exceeding 35 °C (95 °F) on
2142-568: Is commonly accepted to have started with the historical book, Istoriya Slavyanobolgarskaya , written in 1762 by Paisius , a Bulgarian monk of the Hilandar monastery at Mount Athos , lead to the National awakening of Bulgaria and the modern Bulgarian nationalism , and lasted until the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878 as a result of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78 . The Millet system
2268-507: Is most typically Central European. After World War II and the establishment of a Communist government in Bulgaria in 1944, the architectural style was substantially altered. Stalinist Gothic public buildings emerged in the centre, notably the spacious government complex around The Largo , Vasil Levski Stadium, the Cyril and Methodius National Library and others. As the city grew outwards,
2394-504: Is registered are the duplicate of the Gospel of Serdica, in a dialogue between two salesmen from Dubrovnik around 1359, in the 14th-century Vitosha Charter of Bulgarian tsar Ivan Shishman and in a Ragusan merchant's notes of 1376. In these documents, the city is called Sofia , but, at the same time, the region and the city's inhabitants are still called Sredecheski ( Church Slavonic : срѣдечьскои , "of Sredets"), which continued until
2520-431: The 2012 Pernik earthquake occurred west of Sofia with a moment magnitude of 5.6 and a much lower Mercalli intensity of VI ( Strong ). The 2014 Aegean Sea earthquake was also noticed in the city. Sofia has a humid continental climate ( Köppen climate classification Dfb ; Cfb if with −3 °C isotherm ) with an average annual temperature of 10.9 °C (51.6 °F). Winters are relatively cold and snowy. In
2646-691: The Austrians as part of their long war with the Ottomans. All of the uprisings were unsuccessful and were brutally suppressed . Most of them resulted in massive waves of exiles, often numbering hundreds of thousands. In 1739 the Treaty of Belgrade between Austrian empire and the Ottoman Empire ended Austrian interest in the Balkans for a century. But by the 18th century the rising power of Russia
SECTION 20
#17327722353472772-541: The Balkan mountains to the north. The valley has an average altitude of 550 metres (1,800 ft). Sofia is the second highest capital of the European Union (after Madrid ) and the third highest capital of Europe (after Andorra la Vella and Madrid). Unlike most European capitals, Sofia does not straddle any large river, but is surrounded by comparatively high mountains on all sides. Three mountain passes lead to
2898-563: The Bulgarian National Revival . In 1858 Nedelya Petkova created the first Bulgarian school for women in the city. In 1867 was inaugurated the first chitalishte in Sofia – a Bulgarian cultural institution. In 1870 the Bulgarian revolutionary Vasil Levski established a revolutionary committee in the city and in the neighbouring villages. Following his capture in 1873, Vasil Levski was transferred and hanged in Sofia by
3024-896: The Bulgarian church in Constantinople in pursuance of the March 12 [ O.S. February 28] 1870 firman of Sultan Abdülaziz of the Ottoman Empire. The foundation of the Exarchate was the direct result of the struggle of the Bulgarian Orthodox population against the domination of the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople in the 1850s and 1860s. In 1872, the Patriarchate accused
3150-463: The Byzantine Empire , according to the triumphal columns of Pliska for the conquest of the fortresses of Scutarion (now Shtit ), Provat and others. This region is associated with one of the greatest battles in medieval Bulgarian history. In 1205, Kaloyan 's troops inflicted the first major defeat on the hitherto invincible army of the [[Latin Em[ire]], led by Emperor Baldwin . It is believed that
3276-549: The Constantinople Conference (1876-1877), and along with the strategic interests of Russia on the Balkans, was a reason for the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 that ended with the reestablishment of independent Bulgarians state in 1878, albeit under the Treaty of Berlin Bulgarians were divided, and the territory of the Principality of Bulgaria was far smaller than what Bulgarians had hoped for and what
3402-583: The Dervendjis , who guarded important passes, roads, bridges, etc., ore-mining settlements such as Chiprovtsi , etc. Some of the most important Bulgarian cultural and economic centres in the 19th century owe their development to a former dervendji status, for example, Gabrovo , Dryanovo , Kalofer , Panagyurishte , Kotel , Zheravna . Similarly, Christians living on wakf holdings were subject to lower tax burden and fewer restrictions. The Ottoman Empire's greatest advantage compared to other colonial powers,
3528-711: The First Bulgarian Empire during the reign of Khan Krum in 809, after a long siege . The fall of the strategic city prompted a major and ultimately disastrous invasion of Bulgaria by the Byzantine emperor Nikephoros I , which led to his demise at the hands of the Bulgarian army . In the aftermath of the war, the city was permanently integrated in Bulgaria and became known by the Slavic name of Sredets. It grew into an important fortress and administrative centre under Krum's successor Khan Omurtag , who made it
3654-665: The First Tarnovo Uprising , the Chiprovtsi uprising , the Second Tarnovo uprising and Karposh's rebellion , which led to the massive flight of Christian Bulgarians to Wallachia and the Austrian Empire , the population of present-day Bulgaria in the 1680s is assumed to have dropped to approx. 0.9 million in the 1680s, divided into 450,000 Christians and 450,000 Muslims (or a ratio of 1:1). From
3780-644: The Rhodopes . During the Balkan Wars, the first military airport near Svilengrad was equipped. During the Second Balkan War , in the summer of 1913, the city was ruined and burned house by house when the Ottomans entered the war against Bulgaria. The city was finally annexed to Bulgaria at the end of September 1913, after the Treaty of Constantinople . According to the defined new border, Svilengrad remains in Bulgaria. Its returned inhabitants revived
3906-603: The Romanian Army entered Vrazhdebna in 1913, then a village 11 kilometres (7 miles) from Sofia, now a suburb, this prompted the Tsardom of Bulgaria to capitulate. During the war, Sofia was flown by the Romanian Air Corps , which engaged on photoreconnaissance operations and threw propaganda pamphlets to the city. Thus, Sofia became the first capital on the world to be overflown by enemy aircraft. During
Svilengrad - Misplaced Pages Continue
4032-695: The Second World War , Bulgaria declared war on the US and UK on 13 December 1941 and in late 1943 and early 1944 the US and UK Air forces conducted bombings over Sofia . As a consequence of the bombings thousands of buildings were destroyed or damaged including the Capital Library and thousands of books. In 1944 Sofia and the rest of Bulgaria was occupied by the Soviet Red Army and within days of
4158-620: The Thracian Tilataei . In the 500s BC, the area became part of a Thracian state union, the Odrysian kingdom from another Thracian tribe the Odrysses . In 339 BC Philip II of Macedon destroyed and ravaged the town for the first time. The Celtic tribe Serdi gave their name to the city. The earliest mention of the city comes from an Athenian inscription from the 1st century BC, attesting Astiu ton Serdon , i.e. city of
4284-624: The Vatican established the See of Sofia for Catholics of Rumelia , which existed until 1715 when most Catholics had emigrated. There was an important uprising against Ottoman rule in Sofia, Samokov and Western Bulgaria in 1737. Sofia entered a period of economic and political decline in the 17th century, accelerated during the period of anarchy in the Ottoman Balkans of the late 18th and early 19th century, when local Ottoman warlords ravaged
4410-601: The Vidin Eyalet , Silistra Eyalet and Niš Eyalet . Christians paid disproportionately higher taxes than Muslims, including poll tax, jizye , in lieu of military service. According to İnalcık, jizye was the single most important source of income (48 per cent) to the Ottoman budget, with Rumelia accounting for the lion's share, or 81 per cent of the revenues. By the early 1600s, the timar system had virtually been abolished, and almost all land had been divided into estates ( arpalik ) granted to senior Ottoman dignitaries as
4536-1002: The World Heritage List in 1979. With its cultural significance in Southeast Europe , Sofia is home to the National Opera and Ballet of Bulgaria , the National Palace of Culture , the Vasil Levski National Stadium , the Ivan Vazov National Theatre , the National Archaeological Museum , and the Serdica Amphitheatre . The Museum of Socialist Art includes many sculptures and posters that educate visitors about
4662-664: The millet system and the autonomy each denomination had within legal, confessional, cultural and family matters, nevertheless, largely did not apply to Bulgarians and most other Orthodox peoples on the Balkans, as the independent Bulgarian Patriarchate was destroyed and all Bulgarian Orthodox dioceses were subjected to the rule of the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople and made part of Rum millet (Greek Orthodox millet). Thus, instead of helping Christian Bulgarians maintain their customs and cultural identity,
4788-532: The "Five Bulgarian Sanjaks" as per 1865 Pop. Registry According to the "Kuyûd-ı Atîk" Ottoman Population Register, the male population of the five sanjaks to eventually form the future Principality of Bulgaria was divided into the following ethnoconfessional communities in 1865: Between 1855 and 1865, the population of the Danube Vilayet underwent seismic changes, as the Ottoman authorities settled more than 300,000 Crimean Tatars and Circassians on
4914-450: The "established Muslims" column and additional 20,000 were left out or simply lost in the carry-over. The division of Muslims into "Established" and "Muhacir" in the 1873-1874 Census and the 1875 Ottoman Salname was not based on origin, as the name might suggest, but on "taxability". Thus, colonists whose tax exemption had expired and were liable to taxation (i.e., those of them who had settled prior to 1862—Crimean Tatars, Nogais, etc. and
5040-402: The 11th century many Pechenegs were settled down in Sofia region as Byzantine federats. It was once again incorporated into the restored Bulgarian Empire in 1194 at the time of Emperor Ivan Asen I and became a major administrative and cultural centre. Several of the city's governors were members of the Bulgarian imperial family and held the title of sebastokrator , the second highest at
5166-511: The 1490s. At the same time, there are records of at least two forced relocations of Bulgarians to Anatolia, one right after the fall of Veliko Tarnovo and a second one to İzmir in the mid-1400s. The goal of this "mixing of peoples" was to quell any unrest in the conquered Balkan states, while simultaneously getting rid of troublemakers in the Ottoman backyard in Anatolia. However, Ottomans never pursued or practiced forced Islamisation of
Svilengrad - Misplaced Pages Continue
5292-622: The 14th century till the 19th century Sofia was an important administrative center in the Ottoman Empire. It became the capital of the beylerbeylik of Rumelia ( Rumelia Eyalet ), the province that administered the Ottoman lands in Europe (the Balkans ), one of the two together with the beylerbeylik of Anatolia . It was the capital of the important Sanjak of Sofia as well, including the whole of Thrace with Plovdiv and Edirne , and part of Macedonia with Thessaloniki and Skopje . During
5418-673: The 1580s to approx. 0.9 million in the 1680s (450,000 Christians and 450,000 Muslims), after growing steadily from a base of approx. 600,000 (450,000 Christians and 150,000 Muslims) in the 1450s. While the Ottomans were ascendant, there was overt opposition to their rule. The first revolt began at the time Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund established the chivalric Order of the Dragon , 1408, when two Bulgarian nobles, Konstantin and Fruzhin , revolted and liberated some regions for several years. The earliest evidence of continued local resistance dates from before 1450. Radik ( alternatively Radich)
5544-439: The 20th century. The Ottomans came to favour the name Sofya ( صوفيه ). In 1879, there was a dispute about what the name of the new Bulgarian capital should be, when the citizens created a committee of famous people, insisting for the Slavic name. Gradually, a compromise arose, officialisation of Sofia for the nationwide institutions, while legitimating the title Sredets for the administrative and church institutions, before
5670-585: The 3rd century, it became the capital of Dacia Aureliana , and when Emperor Diocletian divided the province of Dacia Aureliana into Dacia Ripensis (at the banks of the Danube ) and Dacia Mediterranea , Serdica became the capital of the latter. Serdica's citizens of Thracian descent were referred to as Illyrians probably because it was at some time the capital of Eastern Illyria ( Second Illyria ). Roman emperors Aurelian (215–275) and Galerius (260–311) were born in Serdica. The city expanded and became
5796-557: The 90s and 102,623 between 2000 and 2011. Until 1949, 13,114 buildings were constructed and between 10,000 and 20,000 in each following decade. Sofia's architecture combines a wide range of architectural styles, some of which are aesthetically incompatible. These vary from Christian Roman architecture and medieval Bulgarian fortresses to Neoclassicism and prefabricated Socialist-era apartment blocks, as well as newer glass buildings and international architecture. A number of ancient Roman, Byzantine and medieval Bulgarian buildings are preserved in
5922-495: The Balkan Mountains, passing between the eastern city suburbs, next to the main building and below the runways of Sofia Airport , and flows out of the Sofia Valley at the town of Novi Iskar , where the scenic Iskar Gorge begins. The city is known for its 49 mineral and thermal springs. Artificial and dam lakes were built in the twentieth century. While the 1818 and 1858 earthquakes were intense and destructive,
6048-401: The Beylerbeys. This category of land could not be sold or inherited but reverted to the Sultan when the fiefholder died. The lands were organised as private possessions of the Sultan or Ottoman nobility, called "mülk", and also as an economic base for religious foundations, called vakιf , as well as other people. The system was meant to make the army self-sufficient and to continuously increase
6174-484: The Bulgarian population, as had earlier been claimed by Communist Bulgarian historiography. According to scholarly consensus, conversion to Islam was voluntary as it offered Bulgarians religious and economic benefits. According to Thomas Walker Arnold , Islam was not spread by force in the areas under the control of the Ottoman Sultan . A 17th-century author said: Meanwhile he (the Turk) wins (converts) by craft more than by force, and snatches away Christ by fraud out of
6300-404: The Catholic Cathedral of St Joseph . Sofia has been named one of the top ten best places for startup businesses in the world, especially in information technologies. It was Europe's most affordable capital to visit in 2013. The Boyana Church in Sofia, constructed during the Second Bulgarian Empire and holding much patrimonial symbolism to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church , was included onto
6426-481: The Danube Vilayet, Bulgarian statistician Dimitar Arkadiev has found that men aged 15–60 represented, on average, 49.5% of all males and that the coefficient that would make it possible to calculate the entire male population is therefore 2.02 . To compute total population, male figures are then usually doubled (Bulgarian authors have suggested a coefficient of 1.956, but this has not gained international acceptance). Using this method of computation, (N=2 x (Y x 2.02)) ,
SECTION 50
#17327722353476552-612: The EU norm of 50 μg/m . Even areas with few sources of air pollution, like Gorna Banya , had PM2.5 and PM10 levels above safe thresholds. In response to hazardous spikes in air pollution, the Municipal Council implemented a variety of measures in January 2018, like more frequent washing of streets. However, a report by the European Court of Auditors issued in September 2018 revealed that Sofia has not drafted any projects to reduce air pollution from heating. The report also noted that no industrial pollution monitoring stations operate in Sofia, even though industrial facilities are active in
6678-474: The Empire and the term was used for legally protected religious minority groups , similar to the way other countries use the word nation . New millets were created in 1860 and 1870. The Bulgarian Exarchate (a de facto autocephalous Orthodox church) was created as separate Bulgarian diocese based on voted ethnic identity . It was unilaterally (without the blessing of the Ecumenical Patriarch ) promulgated on May 23 [ O.S. May 11] 1872, in
6804-449: The Exarchate that it introduced ethno-national characteristics in the religious organization of the Orthodox Church, and the secession from the Patriarchate was officially condemned by the Council in Constantinople in September 1872 as schismatic . Nevertheless, Bulgarian religious leaders continued to extend the borders of the Exarchate in the Ottoman Empire by conducting plebiscites in areas contested by both Churches. In this way, in
6930-471: The Future Principality of Bulgaria in 1875 At the same time, a flash summary of the results of the Danube Vilayet Census published in the Danube Official Gazette on 18 October 1874 (also covering the Sanjak of Tulça ) gave twice as many male Circassian Muhacir , 64,398 vs. 30,573, and slightly fewer "established Muslims" than the final results published in 1875. According to Turkish Ottomanist Koyuncu, 13,825 male Circassians were carried over to
7056-443: The Muslim population left Sofia. For a few decades after the liberation, Sofia experienced large population growth, mainly by migration from other regions of the Principality (Kingdom since 1908) of Bulgaria, and from the still Ottoman Macedonia and Thrace . In 1900, the first electric lightbulb in the city was turned on. In the Second Balkan War , Bulgaria was fighting alone practically all of its neighbouring countries. When
7182-400: The Ottoman administrative system. The boys were picked from one in forty households. They had to be unmarried and, once taken, were ordered to cut all ties with their family. While a minority of authors have argued that "some parents were often eager to have their children enrol in the Janissary service that ensured them a successful career and comfort" , scholarly consensus leans very much
7308-475: The Ottomans. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 , Suleiman Pasha threatened to burn the city in defence, but the foreign diplomats Leandre Legay, Vito Positano , Rabbi Gabriel Almosnino and Josef Valdhart refused to leave the city thus saving it. Many Bulgarian residents of Sofia armed themselves and sided with the Russian forces. Sofia was relieved (see Battle of Sofia ) from Ottoman rule by Russian forces under Gen. Iosif Gurko on 4 January 1878. It
7434-451: The Sanjak of Sofia (male Muslim population of 2,896 and male non-Muslim population of 8,038) to the Ottoman Empire and the kaza of Mankalya from the Sanjak of Varna (male Muslim population of 6,675 and male non-Muslim population of 499) to Romania and attached the kaza of Iznebol (male Muslim population of 149 and male non-Muslim population of 7,072) from the Sanjak of Niš to the Principality of Bulgaria. Ethnoconfessional Groups in
7560-424: The Serdi. According to the inscription and to the writings of Dio Cassius , the Roman general Crassus subdued the Serdi and behanded the captives. Dio Cassius, Pliny the Elder and Ptolemy say that in 27–29 BC Crassus attacked the region "Segetike", which is assumed to be Serdica, or the city of the Serdi. The ancient city is located between TZUM , Sheraton Hotel and the Presidency. It gradually became
7686-404: The Soviet invasion Bulgaria declared war on Nazi Germany. In 1945, the communist Fatherland Front took power. The transformations of Bulgaria into the People's Republic of Bulgaria in 1946 and into the Republic of Bulgaria in 1990 marked significant changes in the city's appearance. The population of Sofia expanded rapidly due to migration from rural regions. New residential areas were built in
SECTION 60
#17327722353477812-465: The Turkish religion is false. If there is one among them who has some little book or can teach them in some other manner something of God's world, they hear him as diligently as if he were their preacher. When Greek scholar Janus Lascaris visited Constantinople in 1491, he met many Janissaries who not only remembered their former religion and their native land but also favoured their former coreligionists. One of them told him that he regretted having left
7938-458: The centre of the city. These include the 4th century Rotunda of St. George , the walls of the Serdica fortress and the partially preserved Amphitheatre of Serdica . After the Liberation War, knyaz Alexander Battenberg invited architects from Austria-Hungary to shape the new capital's architectural appearance. Among the architects invited to work in Bulgaria were Friedrich Grünanger , Adolf Václav Kolář, and Viktor Rumpelmayer , who designed
8064-449: The city as temperature inversions and the mountains surrounding the city prevent the circulation of air masses. As a result, air pollution levels in Sofia are some of the highest in Europe. Particulate matter concentrations are consistently above the norm. During the October 2017 – March 2018 heating season, particulate levels exceeded the norm on 70 occasions; on 7 January 2018, PM10 levels reached 632 μg/m , some twelve times
8190-411: The city begins with the attestation of the conquest of Serdica by the Roman Republic in 29 BC from the Celtic tribe Serdi . During the decline of the Roman Empire , the city was raided by Huns , Visigoths , Avars , and Slavs . In 809, Serdica was incorporated into the Bulgarian Empire by Khan Krum and became known as Sredets. In 1018, the Byzantines ended Bulgarian rule until 1194, when it
8316-442: The city from the ashes and rebuilt it. During World War II , in 1940, one of the escape routes of Poles from occupied Poland led through Svilengrad to territory of Polish-allied France , where the Polish Army was reconstituted to continue the fight against Germany (see also Bulgaria–Poland relations ). Svilengrad Peninsula on Davis Coast , Antarctica is named after the town, in connection with its pioneering role in
8442-445: The city's earliest name, first appeared on paper in an 11th-century text. The city was called Atralisa by the Arab traveller Idrisi and Strelisa , Stralitsa , or Stralitsion by the Crusaders . The name Sofia comes from the Saint Sofia Church , as opposed to the prevailing Slavic origin of Bulgarian cities and towns . The origin is in the Greek word sophía ( σοφία , "wisdom"). The earliest works where this latest name
8568-423: The city, which have been key roads since antiquity, Vitosha being the watershed between Black and Aegean Seas . A number of shallow rivers cross the city, including the Boyanska , Vladayska and Perlovska . The Iskar River in its upper course flows near eastern Sofia. It takes its source in Rila , Bulgaria's highest mountain, and enters Sofia Valley near the village of German . The Iskar flows north toward
8694-414: The city. A monitoring station on Eagles' Bridge, where some of the highest particulate matter values were measured, was moved away from the location and has measured sharply lower values since then. Particulates are now largely measured by a network of 300 sensors maintained by volunteers since 2017. The European Commission has taken Bulgaria to court over its failure to curb air pollution. The area has
8820-411: The city. Here, in 1871, he founded a secret revolutionary committee. On January 8, 1878, Russian troops, commanded by General Alexander Strukov , entered Svilengrad. A year later, after the Berlin Treaty , the city was left under Turkish rule. 34 years later, during the First Balkan War , Svilengrad was occupied by Bulgarian forces on 5 October 1912, after the Bulgarian army captured Sheinovets peak in
8946-400: The coldest days temperatures can drop below −15 °C (5 °F), most notably in January. The lowest recorded temperature is −31.2 °C (−24 °F) (16 January 1893). On average, Sofia receives a total snowfall of 98 cm (38.6 in) and 56 days with snow cover. The snowiest recorded winter was 1939/1940 with a total snowfall of 169 cm (66.5 in). The record snow depth
9072-487: The country territory. The metropolitan area of Sofia is based upon one hour of car travel time, stretches internationally and includes Dimitrovgrad in Serbia. The metropolitan region of Sofia is inhabited by a population of 1.66 million. For a long time, the city possessed a Thracian name, Serdica ( Ancient Greek : Σερδικη , Serdikē , or Σαρδικη , Sardikē ; Latin : Serdica or Sardica ), derived from
9198-825: The country. The city is built west of the Iskar river and has many mineral springs, such as the Sofia Central Mineral Baths . It has a humid continental climate . Being in the centre of the Balkans , it is midway between the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea and closest to the Aegean Sea . Known as Serdica in antiquity and Sredets in the Middle Ages , Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. The recorded history of
9324-585: The countryside. 1831 Ottoman population statistics show that 42% of the Christians were non-taxpayers in the kaza of Sofia and the amount of middle-class and poor Christians were equal. Since the 18th century the beylerbeys of Rumelia often stayed in Bitola , which became the official capital of the province in 1826. Sofia remained the seat of a sanjak (district). By the 19th century the Bulgarian population had two schools and seven churches, contributing to
9450-561: The desire to stop paying jizya as a primary incentive for conversion to Islam in the Balkans, and Bulgarian researcher Anton Minkov has argued that it was one among several motivating factors. Two large-scale studies of the causes of adoption of Islam in Bulgaria, one of the Chepino Valley by Dutch Ottomanist Machiel Kiel , and another one of the region of Gotse Delchev in the Western Rhodopes by Evgeni Radushev reveal
9576-681: The early 1700s, the Christian population is assumed to have started growing again. According to the 1831 Ottoman census , the male population in the Ottoman kazas that fall within the current borders of the Republic of Bulgaria stood at 496,744 people, including 296,769 Christians, 181,455 Muslims, 17,474 Romani , 702 Jews and 344 Armenians . The census only covered healthy taxable men between 15 and 60 years of age, who were free from disability. Millets in present-day Bulgaria as per 1831 Ottoman Census By using primary population records from
9702-716: The first armor bearer of Philip the Good , Duke of Burgundy , who traveled to the Holy Sepulcher and back to explore the possibilities of a new crusade. Brokier describes how on the first day of the journey from Adrianople up the Maritsa River he and his comrades, numbering 10 horses, were transported in such a raft on March 12, 1433. Among the passengers was the Milan ambassador to the Turkish sultan in Adrianople. In 1529
9828-552: The hearts of men. For the Turk, it is true, at the present time compels no country by violence to apostatise; but he uses other means whereby imperceptibly he roots out Christianity... Thus, in a number of cases, conversion to Islam can be said to have been the result of tax coercion, due to the much lower tax burden on Muslims. While some authors have argued that other factors, such as desire to retain social status, were of greater importance, Turkish writer Halil İnalcık has referred to
9954-452: The heavy Muslim population losses earlier in the century, but also counteracted continued population loss and led to an increase in its Muslim population. In this connection, Karpat also refers to the material differences between Muslim and non-Muslim fertility rates, with non-Muslims growing at the rate of 2% per annum and Muslims usually averaging 0%. Koyuncu also notes a much higher natural rate of increase among Non-Muslims and attributes
10080-536: The hottest days, particularly in July and August. The highest recorded temperature is 40.2 °C (104 °F) (5 July 2000). The hottest recorded month was July 2012 with an average temperature of 24.8 °C (77 °F). The warmest year on record was 2023 with an annual temperature of 12.1 °C (54 °F). Springs and autumns in Sofia are usually short with variable and dynamic weather. The city receives an average precipitation of 625.7 mm (24.63 in)
10206-408: The inhabitants killed the recruiting officials. It was not rare for the boys to attempt to preserve their faith and some recollection of their homeland and their families. For example, Stephan Gerlach writes: They gather together and one tells another of his native land and of what he heard in church or learned in school there, and they agree among themselves that Muhammad is no prophet and that
10332-469: The initial stages of the Crusade of Varna in 1443, it was occupied by Hungarian forces for a short time in 1443, and the Bulgarian population celebrated a mass Saint Sofia Church . Following the defeat of the crusader forces in 1444, the city's Christians faced persecution. In 1530 Sofia became the capital of the Ottoman province (beylerbeylik) of Rumelia for about three centuries. During that time Sofia
10458-417: The largest bedesten (market) of the Balkans. Additionally, there were fountains and hammams (bathhouses). Most prominent churches such as Saint Sofia and Saint George were converted into mosques, and a number of new ones were constructed, including Banya Bashi Mosque built by the renowned Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan . In total there were 11 big and over 100 small mosques by the 17th century. In 1610
10584-475: The last mention was in the 19th century in a Bulgarian text ( Сардакіи , Sardaki ). Other names given to Sofia, such as Serdonpolis ( Byzantine ‹See Tfd› Greek : Σερδών πόλις , "City of the Serdi") and Triaditza ( Τριάδιτζα , "Trinity"), were mentioned by Byzantine Greek sources or coins. The Slavic name Sredets ( Church Slavonic : Срѣдецъ ), which is related to "middle" ( среда , "sreda") and to
10710-469: The last waves of Muslim migrants from Anatolia. As a result of the near-constant war led by the Ottoman Empire from the mid-1500s to the late 1600s, the need for additional tax revenues, the sixfold increase in jizye tax rates, which pauperised the Christian population, the Little Ice Age in the 1600s that caused crop failures and widespread famine and several important Bulgarian uprisings, e.g.,
10836-515: The latter was abandoned through the years. Sofia City Province has an area of 1344 km , while the surrounding and much bigger Sofia Province is 7,059 km . Sofia's development as a significant settlement owes much to its central position in the Balkans . It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the northern foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by
10962-768: The lifestyle in communist Bulgaria . The population of Sofia declined from 70,000 in the late 18th century, through 19,000 in 1870, to 11,649 in 1878, after which it began increasing. Sofia hosts some 1.28 million residents within a territory of 500 km , a concentration of 17.9% of the country population within the 200th percentile of the country territory. The urban area of Sofia hosts some 1.54 million residents within 5723 km , which comprises Sofia City Province and parts of Sofia Province ( Dragoman , Slivnitsa , Kostinbrod , Bozhurishte , Svoge , Elin Pelin , Gorna Malina , Ihtiman , Kostenets ) and Pernik Province ( Pernik , Radomir ), representing 5.16% of
11088-408: The major local universities, cultural institutions and commercial companies. The city has been described as the "triangle of religious tolerance". This is because three temples of three major world religions— Christianity , Islam and Judaism —are situated close together: Sveta Nedelya Church , Banya Bashi Mosque and Sofia Synagogue . This triangle was recently expanded to a "square" and includes
11214-501: The millet system actually promoted their assimilation. Bulgarian ceased to be a literary language, the higher clergy was invariably Greek, and the Phanariotes started making persistent efforts to hellenise Bulgarians as early as the early 1700s. It was only after the struggle for church autonomy in the mid-1800s and especially after the Bulgarian Exarchate was established by a firman of Sultan Abdülaziz in 1870 that this policy
11340-512: The most important Roman city of the region. It became a municipium during the reign of Emperor Trajan (98–117). Serdica expanded, as turrets , protective walls, public baths , administrative and cult buildings, a civic basilica , an amphitheatre , a circus, the City council (Boulé), a large forum, a big circus (theatre), etc. were built. Serdica was a significant city on the Roman road Via Militaris , connecting Singidunum and Byzantium . In
11466-480: The most important public buildings needed by the newly re-established Bulgarian government, as well as numerous houses for the country's elite. Later, many foreign-educated Bulgarian architects also contributed. The architecture of Sofia's centre is thus a combination of Neo-Baroque , Neo- Rococo , Neo-Renaissance and Neoclassicism , with the Vienna Secession also later playing an important part, but it
11592-459: The nearly constant Ottoman conflict with the Habsburgs from the mid-1500s to the early 1700s; the resulting massive war expenses that led to a sixfold increase in the jizya rate from 1574 to 1691 and the imposition of a war-time avariz tax; the Little Ice Age in the 1600s that caused crop failures and widespread famine; heavy corruption and overtaxation by local landholders—all of which led to
11718-417: The number of Ottoman cavalry soldiers, thus both fuelling new conquests and bringing conquered countries under direct Ottoman control. From the 14th century until the 19th century Sofia was an important administrative centre in the Ottoman Empire. It became the capital of the beylerbeylik of Rumelia ( Rumelia Eyalet ), the province that administered the Ottoman lands in Europe (the Balkans ), one of
11844-634: The oldest traces of human life date back to the end of the Neolithic and Stone Age . During the Bronze and Iron Ages the lands around today's Svilengrad were inhabited by the Thracian tribe Odrysians . Traces of settlements, tombs, sanctuaries, dolmens and others have remained from the time of the Thracians. In the old neighborhood of Kanaklia there was a place Mogilata, named after a large mound, in
11970-464: The other way. Christian parents are described to have resented the forced recruitment of their children, and would beg and seek to buy their children out of the levy. Many different ways of avoiding the devshirme are mentioned, including: marrying the boys at the age of 12, mutilating them or having both father and son convert to Islam. In 1565, the practice led to a revolt in Albania and Epirus, where
12096-709: The outskirts of the city, like Druzhba, Mladost and Lyulin. During the Communist Party rule, a number of the city's most emblematic streets and squares were renamed for ideological reasons, with the original names restored after 1989. The Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum , where Dimitrov's body had been preserved in a similar way to the Lenin mausoleum , was demolished in 1999. In Sofia there are 607,473 dwellings and 101,696 buildings. According to modern records, 39,551 dwellings were constructed until 1949, 119,943 between 1950 and 1969, 287,191 between 1970 and 1989, 57,916 in
12222-652: The overall tax burden on the rayah (i.e., Non-Muslims), was twice as high as that on Muslims. Christians faced a number of other restrictions: they were barred from testifying against Muslims in inter-faith legal disputes. Even though they were free to perform their own religious rituals, this had to be done in a manner that was inconspicuous to Muslims, i.e., loud prayers or bell ringing were forbidden. They were barred from certain professions, from riding horses, from wearing certain colours or from carrying weapons. Nevertheless, there were specific categories of rayah who were exempt from nearly all such restrictions, such as
12348-575: The population of present-day Bulgaria in 1831 would stand at 2,006,845 people. The Principality of Bulgaria was established on 13 July 1878 and incorporated five of the sanjaks that used to be part of the Ottoman Danube Vilayet : The Sanjaks of Vidin , Tirnova , Rusçuk , Sofya and Varna , with individual border changes, cf. below. The two other sanjaks in the Danube Vilayet, those of Niš and Tulça , were ceded to Serbia and Romania, respectively. Ethnoconfessional Groups in
12474-433: The religion of his fathers and that he prayed at night before the cross which he kept carefully concealed. Islam in Bulgaria spread through both colonisation with Muslims from Asia Minor and conversion of native Bulgarians. The Ottomans' mass population transfers began in the late 1300s and continued well into the 1500s. Most of these, but far from all, were involuntary. The first community settled in present-day Bulgaria
12600-635: The site of the battle was north of Adrianople, at the foot of Bukelon Fortress. In 1371, on the opposite right bank of the Maritsa River near Chermen , the Battle of Chernomen took place between the troops of Sultan Murad I and the Christian forces under the command of King Vukašin and Despot Uglješa , which ended in catastrophic defeat for the Christians. In 1433, the Burgundian pilgrim Bertrand de la Broquierre passed through here, then
12726-553: The struggle for recognition of a separate Church, the modern Bulgarian nation was created under the name Bulgar Millet . Also the Bulgarian Uniat Church was created. Armed resistance to the Ottoman rule escalated in the third quarter of the 19th century and reached its climax with the April Uprising of 1876 that covered part of the ethnically Bulgarian territories of the empire. The uprising, provoked
12852-470: The territory of the province. The settlement took place in two waves: one of 142,852 Tatars and Nogais , with a minority of Circassians, who settled in the Danube Vilayet between 1855 and 1862, and a second one of some 35,000 Circassian families (140,000–175,000 settlers), who arrived in 1864. According to Turkish scholar Kemal Karpat , the Tatar and Circassian colonisation of the vilayet not only offset
12978-413: The then-new neighbourhoods were dominated by many concrete tower blocks , prefabricated panel apartment buildings and examples of Brutalist architecture . Ottoman Bulgaria The history of Ottoman Bulgaria spans nearly 500 years, beginning in the late 14th century, with the Ottoman conquest of smaller kingdoms from the disintegrating Second Bulgarian Empire . In the late 19th century, Bulgaria
13104-484: The time, after the tsar . Some known holders of the title were Kaloyan , Peter and their relative Aleksandar Asen (d. after 1232), a son of Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria ( r. 1189–1196 ). In the 13th and 14th centuries Sredets was an important spiritual and literary hub with a cluster of 14 monasteries in its vicinity, that were eventually destroyed by the Ottomans. The city produced multicolored sgraffito ceramics, jewelry and ironware. In 1382/1383 or 1385, Sredets
13230-700: The town's name was Cisr-i Mustafapaşa, meaning "Bridge of Mustapha Pasha". In 1529, the Old Bridge ( Bulgarian : Старият мост ) over the Maritsa , one of the symbols of the town, was erected. The town was ceded to Bulgaria in 1912 after the First Balkan War . The favorable natural conditions in the Svilengrad region and its strategic geographical location are the reason why it has been inhabited since ancient times. According to Anastas Razboynikov ,
13356-524: The tremendous rate of increase in the Muslim population of the five Bulgarian sanjaks plus the Sanjak of Tulça of 84.23% (220,276 males) vs. 53.29% (229,188 males) for Non-Muslims from 1860 to 1875 to the colonisation of the vilayet with Crimean Tatars and Circassians. Ethnoconfessional Groups in the "Five Bulgarian sanjaks" as per 1873-74 Census The Congress of Berlin ceded the kaza of Cuma-i Bâlâ from
13482-520: The tribe Serdi , who were either of Thracian , Celtic , or mixed Thracian-Celtic origin. The emperor Marcus Ulpius Traianus (53–117 AD) gave the city the combinative name of Ulpia Serdica ; Ulpia may be derived from an Umbrian cognate of the Latin word lupus , meaning "wolf" or from the Latin vulpes (fox). It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made during his reign and
13608-536: The two together with the beylerbeylik of Anatolia . It was the capital of the important Sanjak of Sofia as well, including the whole of Thrace with Plovdiv and Edirne , and part of Macedonia with Thessaloniki and Skopje . The Danube Vilayet was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire from 1864 to 1878 with a capital in Ruse . In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of 34,120 square miles (88,400 km ) and incorporated
13734-658: The vicinity of which were found the remains of chariots. Anastas Razboynikov's observations were confirmed in 2003-2004 during the rescue excavations along the route of the Trakia Motorway on the hill above the Kanaklia neighborhood, where a pit sanctuary from the Iron Age was discovered. The region was a bustling crossroads and an arena of constant wars even after the establishment of the Bulgarian state. Under Khan Krum (803-814), Bulgarian troops often ravaged areas of
13860-474: The wide-scale migration of Muslims from Anatolia and emigration of Christians to Wallachia, etc. Both the Christian and Muslim population then grew steadily until the 1580s, reaching approx. 1.8 million, or 1.2 million Christians and 0.6 million Muslims (or a Christian-to-Muslim ratio of 2:1 or 66 per cent to 33 per cent), where the higher growth among the Muslims is attributed to both conversion of Christians and
13986-407: The world aerial warfare history. Sofia Sofia ( / ˈ s oʊ f i ə , ˈ s ɒ f -, s oʊ ˈ f iː ə / SOH -fee-ə, SOF - ; Bulgarian : София , romanized : Sofiya , IPA: [ˈsɔfijɐ] ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria . It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of
14112-549: Was liberated from the Ottoman Empire , and by the early 20th century it was declared independent . The brutal suppression of the Bulgarian April Uprising of 1876 and the public outcry it caused across Europe led to the Constantinople Conference , where the Great Powers tabled a joint proposal for the creation of two autonomous Bulgarian vilayets, largely corresponding to the ethnic boundaries drawn
14238-658: Was a set of confessional communities in the Ottoman Empire . It referred to the separate legal courts pertaining to "personal law" under which religious communities were allowed to rule themselves under their own system. The Sultan regarded the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Constantinople Patriarchate as the leader of the Orthodox Christian peoples of his empire. After the Ottoman Tanzimat (1839–76) reforms, Nationalism arose in
14364-512: Was ambushed and soundly defeated by the Bulgarians in the battle of the Gates of Trajan . The city eventually fell to the Byzantine Empire in 1018, following the Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria . Sredets joined the uprising of Peter Delyan in 1040–1041 in a failed attempt to restore Bulgarian independence and was the last stronghold of the rebels, led by the local commander Botko. During
14490-652: Was built. The patriarch of Bulgarian literature Ivan Vazov taught in this school from 1872 to 1873. In 1870 the Zvezda Chitalishte opened its doors. Another Revival teacher - Peter Stanchov , became the godfather of the city. The settlement began to be called so only in 1913. On the way to Constantinople, famous Bulgarian revolutionaries, educators and revivalists - Georgi Rakovski , Petko Slaveykov , Hristo G. Danov , Dragan Tsankov , Konstantin Velichkov - passed and stayed here. Vasil Levski also came to
14616-478: Was made up of Tatars who willingly arrived to begin a settled life as farmers, the second one a tribe of nomads that had run afoul of the Ottoman administration. Both groups settled in the Upper Thracian Plain , in the vicinity of Plovdiv. Another large group of Tatars was moved by Mehmed I to Thrace in 1418, followed by the relocation of more than 1000 Turkoman families to Northeastern Bulgaria in
14742-537: Was making itself felt in the area. The Russians, as fellow Orthodox Slavs, could appeal to the Bulgarians in a way that the Austrians could not. The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca of 1774 gave Russia the right to interfere in Ottoman affairs to protect the Sultan's Christian subjects. The Bulgarian National Revival was a period of socio-economic development and national integration among Bulgarians under Ottoman rule. It
14868-710: Was marked by a wave of persecutions against the Bulgarian Christians, a total of nine became New Martyrs in Sofia and were sainted by the Orthodox Church, including George the New (1515), Sophronius of Sofia (1515), George the Newest (1530), Nicholas of Sofia (1555) and Terapontius of Sofia (1555). When it comes to the cityscape, 16th century sources mention eight Friday mosques , three public libraries, numerous schools, 12 churches, three synagogues, and
14994-412: Was originally proposed in the Treaty of San Stefano . The effect of the Ottoman conquest on Bulgarian demography is uncertain and subject to much contention. However, the population of present-day Bulgaria in the 1450s is estimated to have hit a low of 600,000 people, divided into approx. 450,000 Christians and 150,000 Muslims (or a Christian-to-Muslim ratio of 3:1 or 75 per cent to 25 per cent) following
15120-508: Was proposed as a capital by Marin Drinov and was accepted as such on 3 April 1879. By the time of its liberation the population of the city was 11,649. Most mosques in Sofia were destroyed in that war, seven of them destroyed in one night in December 1878 when a thunderstorm masked the noise of the explosions arranged by Russian military engineers. Following the war, the great majority of
15246-615: Was recognised by the Ottomans as a voyvoda of the Sofia region in 1413, but later he turned against them and is regarded as the first hayduk in Bulgarian history. More than a century later, two Tarnovo uprisings occurred - in 1598 ( First Tarnovo Uprising ) and 1686 ( Second Tarnovo Uprising ) around the old capital Tarnovo . Those were followed by the Catholic Chiprovtsi Uprising in 1688 and insurrection in Macedonia led by Karposh in 1689, both provoked by
15372-598: Was reincorporated by the reborn Bulgarian Empire . Sredets became a major administrative, economic, cultural and literary hub until its conquest by the Ottomans in 1382. From 1530 to 1836, Sofia was the regional capital of Rumelia Eyalet , the Ottoman Empire's key province in Europe. Bulgarian rule was restored in 1878. Sofia was selected as the capital of the Third Bulgarian State in the next year, ushering
15498-479: Was reversed. Non-Muslims did not serve in the Sultan's army. The exception to this were some groups of the population with specific statute, usually used for auxiliary or rear services, and the infamous blood tax (кръвен данък), also known as devşirme , where young Christian Bulgarian boys were taken from their families, enslaved and converted to Islam and later employed either in the Janissary military corps or
15624-542: Was seized by the Ottoman Empire in the course of the Bulgarian-Ottoman Wars by Lala Şahin Pasha , following a three-month siege . The Ottoman commander left the following description of the city garrison: "Inside the fortress [Sofia] there is a large and elite army, its soldiers are heavily built, moustached and look war-hardened, but are used to consume wine and rakia —in a word, jolly fellows." From
15750-580: Was temporarily moved there. In the second half of 10th century the city was ruled by Komit Nikola and his sons, known as the " Komitopuli ". One of them was Samuil , who was eventually crowned Emperor of Bulgaria in 997. In 986, the Byzantine Emperor Basil II laid siege to Sredets but after 20 days of fruitless assaults the garrison broke out and forced the Byzantines to abandon the campaign. On his way to Constantinople, Basil II
15876-539: Was the largest import-export-base in modern-day Bulgaria for the caravan trade with the Republic of Ragusa . In the 15th and 16th century, Sofia was expanded by Ottoman building activity. Public investments in infrastructure, education and local economy brought greater diversity to the city. Amongst others, the population consisted of Muslims , Bulgarian and Greek speaking Orthodox Christians , Armenians , Georgians , Catholic Ragusans, Jews ( Romaniote , Ashkenazi and Sephardi ), and Romani people . The 16th century
#346653