Tsarevets () is a medieval stronghold located on a hill with the same name in

Veliko Tarnovo Veliko Tarnovo (, ; "Great Tarnovo") is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. It is the historical and spiritual capital of Bulgaria. Often referred to as the "''City of the Tsars''", Velik ...

in northern

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. Tsarevets is above sea level. It served as the

Second Bulgarian Empire The Second Bulgarian Empire (; ) was a medieval Bulgarians, Bulgarian state that existed between 1185 and 1422. A successor to the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Tsars Kaloyan of Bulgaria, Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II ...

's primary fortress and strongest bulwark between 1185 and 1393, housing the royal and the patriarchal palaces, and it is also a popular tourist attraction.

History

The earliest evidence of human presence on the hill dates from the

2nd millennium BC File:2nd millennium BC montage.jpg, 400x400px, From top left clockwise: Hammurabi, Babylonian king, best known for his Code of Hammurabi, code of laws; The gold Mask of Tutankhamun, funerary mask of Tutankhamun has become a symbol of ancient Egypt ...

. It was settled in the 4th century, and a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

city, tentatively identified with Zikideva, was constructed near the end of the 5th century, on the grounds of which the construction of the Bulgarian stronghold was begun in the 12th century. After the Bulgarian Rebellion and the establishment of the Second Bulgarian Empire with its capital in Veliko Tarnovo, the fortress became the most important one in Bulgaria, often compared with

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

in magnificence. In 1393, the stronghold was besieged by Ottoman forces for three months before finally being conquered and burnt down on 17 July, which marked the fall of the Bulgarian Empire. It has three entrances. The main entrance is located on the easternmost side of the hill. The castle complex is located in the centre, surrounded by an internal stone wall, two battle towers and two entrances - north and south. It consists of a throne hall, a castle church and the king's chamber. The restoration of the fortress Tsarevets began in 1930 and was completed in 1981 in honour of the 1300 anniversary of the establishment of the Bulgarian state. Kings Petar, Asen, Kaloyan and Ivan Asen the second lived there. The castle was the biggest one in the 14th century.

Complex

The whole stronghold is girdled by thick walls reaching up to and was served by three gates. The main gate was at the hill's westernmost part, on a narrow rock massif, and featured a draw-bridge. The second gate is away from the first one and the third one, which existed until 1889, is further. The palace is on the hill's central and plain part, which was a closed complex encircled by a fortified wall, two towers and two entrances, a main one from the north and one from the south. It featured a

throne room A throne room or throne hall is the room, often rather a hall, in the official residence of the crown, either a palace or a fortified castle, where the throne of a senior figure (usually a monarch) is set up with elaborate pomp—usually raised, ...

, a palace church and a royal residential part and encompassed . On the top of the hill is the patriarchate, a complex with an area of about . The Cathedral of the Ascension of the Lord, built on the remains of a late Roman basilica, was reconstructed in 1981 and painted in 1985. The frescoes inside, painted in a striking modernist style rather than in the style of traditional Orthodox frescoes, depict conventional Christian subjects as well as glorious and tragic moments of the Second Bulgarian Empire. The church has not been reconsecrated. Baldwin's Tower (Балдуинова кула), a modern reconstruction of a medieval tower modeled after the tower in Cherven and built in 1930, is in the southeastern part of the fortress. It is at the place of the original medieval tower where Latin Emperor Baldwin I of Constantinople found his death as a prisoner of

Kaloyan of Bulgaria Kaloyan or Kalojan, also known as Ivan I, Ioannitsa or Johannitsa (; 1170 – October 1207), the Roman Slayer, was emperor or tsar of Second Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria from 1196 to 1207. He was the younger brother of Peter II of Bulgaria, Theo ...

. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, residential buildings, craftsman's workshops and numerous churches and monasteries were situated on the slopes of the Tsarevets hill. Archaeologists have discovered 400 residential buildings, differentiated in quarters, over 22 churches and 4 monasteries. Tsarevets hill is also the location of Execution Rock, an outcropping over the Yantra River from which traitors were pushed to their deaths and their bodies fell into the river. There Patriarch Joachim was executed by the Tsar Theodore Svetoslav in the year 1300.

Audiovisual show

The Sound and Light (Звук и светлина, ''Zvuk i svetlina'') audiovisual show is an attraction carried out in the evening that uses three

laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...

s, variegated lights, dramatic music and church bells to tell the story of the fall of Tarnovo to the Ottomans, as well as other key moments of the

history of Bulgaria The history of Bulgaria can be traced from the first settlements on the lands of modern Bulgaria to its formation as a nation-state, and includes the history of the Bulgarian people and their origin. The earliest evidence of hominid occupation ...

. The large-scale show has been organized at Tsarevets since 1985, when the 800-year anniversary of the Uprising of Asen and Peter was celebrated. It was designed and planned by a Bulgarian- Czechoslovak team led by Valo Radev and Jaromir Hnik. Changing of the Guard. A 15-minute ceremonial procession begun 15 April 2011 at 19:30, to be performed each weekend throughout the summer (tourist season).

Honours

Tsarevets Buttress on

Trinity Peninsula Trinity Peninsula is the northernmost part of the Antarctic Peninsula. It extends northeastward for about 130 km (80 mi) to Cape Dubouzet from an imaginary line connecting Cape Kater on the north-west coast and Cape Longing on the sou ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

is named after the site.

Gallery

File:Bal.Kyla.jpg, Baldwin's Tower File:Veliko Tarnovo TodorBozhinov (20).JPG, Gate File:Winter view of Tsarevets (fortress).jpg, Winter view of Tsarevets (31.12.2014) File:Zwiedzanie miasta - Meliko Tarnowo - 002398n.jpg File:Tsarevetz church details.jpg File:Tsarevets Fortress, Veliko Tarnovo - 3 March 2021, rk.aerial.jpg, Aerial view towards the Patriarch church, restored in 1981 (03.03.2021)

Notes

External links

Official Site of the Tourist information centre in Veliko Tarnovo

Tsarevets at the official website of Veliko Tarnovo

BGGlobe page on Tsarevets

''Sound and Light'' show fansite

{{Castles in Bulgaria Castles in Bulgaria Palaces in Bulgaria Royal residences in Bulgaria Buildings and structures in Veliko Tarnovo Tourist attractions in Veliko Tarnovo Province History of Veliko Tarnovo