Varbitsa ( bg, Върбица ; ; also transliterated ''Vǎrbica'') is a town in eastern

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

, part of

Shumen Province Shumen Province ( bg, Област Шумен, transliterated ''Oblast Shumen'', former name Shumen okrug) is a province in northeastern Bulgaria named after its main city Shumen. It is divided into 10 municipalities with a total population, as ...

. It is the administrative centre of

Varbitsa Municipality Varbitsa Municipality ( bg, Община Върбица) is a municipality ('' obshtina'') in Shumen Province, Northeastern Bulgaria, located in the vicinity of the northern slopes of the Eastern Stara planina mountain to the area of the so-calle ...

, which lies in the southwestern part of Shumen Province. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 3,585 inhabitants.Bulgarian National Statistical Institute - Bulgarian towns in 2009
/ref> Varbitsa is located in the southeastern Danubian Plain, at the foot of the eastern Balkan Mountains, on both banks of the Gerila river. The area was populated in Antiquity by the

Thracians The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

and

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, while the Slavs and Bulgars arrived in the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

. It is thought that the first ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire,

Asparuh Asparuh (also ''Ispor''; bg, Аспарух, Asparuh or (rarely) bg, Исперих, Isperih) was а ruler of Bulgars in the second half of the 7th century and is credited with the establishment of the First Bulgarian Empire in 681. Early life ...

, settled the Severians in the region of the

Varbitsa Pass Varbitsa Pass ( bg, Върбишки проход ) is a mountain pass in the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) in Bulgaria. It connects Shumen and Petolachka crossroads. The famous Battle of Pliska was fought in the pass on July 26, 811 betwe ...

in order to guard it in the 7th century. The pass was the site of the Battle of Pliska on 26 July 811, during which

Krum of Bulgaria Krum ( bg, Крум, el, Κροῦμος/Kroumos), often referred to as Krum the Fearsome ( bg, Крум Страшни) was the Khan of Bulgaria from sometime between 796 and 803 until his death in 814. During his reign the Bulgarian territor ...

's forces routed the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

army, killing and beheading

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, to Fall of Constantinople, its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. On ...

Nikephoros I.

Municipality

Varbitsa municipality includes the following 16 places:

References

External links

Varbitsa municipality website
Towns in Bulgaria Populated places in Shumen Province {{Shumen-geo-stub