Central Southern Bulgaria
Stara Zagora (143 989 inhabitants, 190 meters above sea level) is situated in the northern part of the Gornotrakiiska (Upper Thracian) Lowland, immediately under the southern slopes of Surnena Sredna Gora. Along with Kazanluk and Gabrovo it stands nearly at the ideal centre of the country.
Introduction & History
The town is located at the distance of 231 km east of Sofia, 90 km north-east of Plovdiv, 70 km south-west of Sliven, 48 km north of Dimitrovgrad and 35 km to the south-east of Kazanluk. Apart from being one of the most ancient towns in Bulgaria it is a big and important regional industrial and cultural centre.
History: Mostly due to its central position this town has a rich and most interesting history. In the 6th century BC it was a major Thracian settlement called Beroe. In the 2nd century the Romans built the town and call it Augusta Trayana (to the name of the emperor Trayan), which is soon to become one of the greatest and most famous towns in Roman Thrace. At the beginning of the 6th century the town was destroyed, later on to be populated by incoming Slavic tribes, who named it Vereya. For some time in the mid of 8th century is was conquered by the Byzantine Empire and renamed again, this time in honour of the Empress - Irinopolis. In th 9th century the town became an administrative centre of a vast district under the name of Borui. It was as late as the 12th - 14th century that the district was named Zagore wherefrom much later its contemporary name derived. Under the Turkish Rule it was known as Eski Hisar (old fortress) and after 1488 – as Eski Zaara (“zaara” meaning a fertile area).
During the Revival Stara Zagora is an important economic centre populated by Bulgarians mainly, extremely active in the spheres of the Bulgarian educational revival and national liberation movement. Among the teacher in the five-class primary school of 1859 are the esteemed enlighteners Neofit Rilski, Ivan Bogorov, P. R. Slaveikov and among the pupils one reads the names of Vassil Levski and Raina Popgeorgieva. A revolutionary committee was established in town and it was headed by Kolyo Ganchev, Georgi Apostolov and the Zhekov Brothers under the leadership of Stefan Stambolov and Georgi Ikonomov but due to treason, the planned uprising failed before it was to start. For the third time in its history Stara Zagora was put to the torch and turned to ashes during the Russian-Turkish War of Liberation.
After the Liberation the town was built yet once again in the fashion of straight geometrical system – straight streets crossing in perpendicular. The town plan was worked out by the Czheck urbaniser Loubor Bayer. The principles laid therein are further observed in the construction works, which makes the town unique in Bulgaria.
Stara Zagora is the birthplace of the poets Kiril Hristov, Nikolai Liliev, Vesselin Hanche; of the singer Hristina Morphova; of the painters Anton and Georgi Mitovi, Atanas Mihov, Mario Zhekov. It is commonly known as the “town of lime-trees and poets”.
