Tsarevets Fortress

Location

Tsarevets is a mediaeval stronghold in the old town of Veliko Turnovo in Central Northern Bulgaria and it is one of the most important historical objects n Bulgaria, and very attractive sightseeing for the tourists. Veliko Tarnovo has been the capital of Bulgaria during the second Bulgarian kingdom. It served as the Second Bulgarian Kingdom's primary fortress and strongest bulwark from 1185 to 1393, housing the royal and the patriarchal palaces, and is a popular tourist attraction.

The palace is set 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 palace church and a royal residential part and encompassed 4872 m. On the top of the hill is the patriarchate, a complex with an area of about 3000 m, whose church, built on the grounds of an Early Christian one, was reconstructed in 1981 and painted in 1985. The frescoes inside depict the glorious and tragic moments of the Second Bulgarian Empire. Baldwin's Tower, a modern reconstruction of a medieval tower modelled after the tower in Cherven and built in 1930, is located in the south-eastern part of the fortress. It is situated 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.

Architecture

The whole stronghold is girdled by thick walls (reaching up to 3,6 m) 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 18 m away from the first one and the third one, which existed until 1889, is 45 m further.
During the Middle Ages, 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.

Entertainment

The Sound and Light audiovisual show is an attraction carried out in the evening that uses three lasers, 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 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.