Vratsa (also transliterated as
Vraca or
Vratza, in some languages with a
W; ) is a city in northwestern
BulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a country in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe. Bulgaria borders five other countries: Romania to the north , Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south...
, at the foothills of the
Balkan MountainsThe Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea. The highest peaks of the Stara...
. It is the administrative centre of
Vratsa ProvinceVratsa is a province of north western Bulgaria, that borders with Romania to the north. Its main city is Vratsa, and other municipalities are Borovan, Byala Slatina, Hayredin, Kozloduy, Krivodol, Mezdra, Miziya, Oryahovo, and Roman....
.
The city of Vratsa is a commercial and crafts centre and a railway junction. Vratsa accommodates textile, metal processing, chemical, and ceramics industries. It was an important administrative and garrison city under Ottoman rule (15th–19th century).
Geography
City of Vratsa is one of the most picturesque cities in the Country. It is nestled in the foothills of "Vrachanski Balkan" (Vratsa Mountain), with the Leva River calmly crossing the city, enormous and fearful rocks overhanging the roofs. The city is only 116 km far from the Bulgarian capital
SofiaSofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city by population in the European Union, with 1.4 million people living in the Capital Municipality...
.
The area has diverse and attractive natural features, which together with the opportunities of recreation gives a special charm of the eastern part of the Northwest Bulgaria. Several protected natural attractions and historical monuments are located on the territory of the Vratsa State Forestry.
History
Vratsa is an ancient city found by ancient
ThraciansThe ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes who spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
. Vratsa was called
Valve ("door of a fortress") by the
RomansAncient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea, it became one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
due to narrow passage where the main Gate of the city fortress was located. Nowadays, this passage is the symbol of Vratsa and is presented on the Town's Coat of Arms.
After the fall of Rome, Vratsa became part of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium).
At the end of the 6th century AD, Vratsa was populated by the
South SlavicThe South Slavs are a southern branch of the Slavic peoples that live mainly in the Balkans. Geographically, the South Slavs are native to the southern Pannonian Plain, the eastern Alps and the Balkan peninsula and they speak South Slavic languages...
tribes. Even if they came from
PannoniaPannonia is an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
and
DaciaIn ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land in East-Central Europe inhabited by the Dacians. Ancient Greeks called the same people "Getae"...
on the north, the town reimained under Byzantine rule.
In the 7th century, the
BulgariansThe Bulgarians are a South Slavic people, generally associated with the Republic of Bulgaria and the Bulgarian language. Emigration has resulted in Bulgarian minorities or immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-Ethnogenesis:...
and the Slavs found the
Bulgarian StateThe First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in AD 632 in the lands near the Danube Delta and disintegrated in AD 1018 after its annexation to the Byzantine Empire. At the height of its power it spread between Budapest and the Black Sea and from the Dnieper river in modern...
and the Slavic Vratsa became part of it. The city grew into important strategic location because of its proximity to the South State border. The name of the city was changed from
Valve to the Slavic
Vratitsa, which has the same meaning and is the source of the modern name. Vratsa became famous for its goldsmith's and silversmith's production and trade, high-quality earthenware and military significance.
In the 8th century, the Bulgarian army captured
SofiaSofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city by population in the European Union, with 1.4 million people living in the Capital Municipality...
, which led to the decreasing of Vratsa's importance because of the better strategic position of Sofia, its more developed economy and larger size. But Vratsa was again key for the resistance against the Byzantine,
SerbianSerbs are a South Slavic people living in the Central Europe and the Balkans , between the Balkan- and Carpathian mountains in the east and the Adriatic sea in the west. They are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and, to a lesser extent, in Croatia...
and Magyar invasions in the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
.
Tourism
The mountains and forests are suitable for development of different types of tourism — hunting and fishing, skiing, speleology, delta-gliding, photo-tourism, etc.
Good opportunities exist for exercising different sport activities such as mountaineering, bicycle sport and for those who enjoy being thrilled can go for hanggliding and paragliding, or set out for carting, buggy and motocross racing tracks.
Conditions are provided for rest and entertainment — children's and adults' swimming pools, water
cycles, discos, bars, restaurants, excellent hotel facilities and good service. If you are a fervent admirer of winter sports you will be glad to hear that the rope lines near the Parshevitsa Chalet are working, and the skiing tracks are well maintained.
There exist a Museum of History and an Ethnographic and Revival Complex.
Transport
Vratsa connects to the villages and city within the region and throughout the country by bus and railway transport. There are regular bus lines to Sofia, Pleven, Vidin, Montana, Kozloduy, Oryahovo, Mezdra (at short intervals), as well as to the smaller villages, scattered around the city. The bus station is located on the way between the railway station and the centre of the city. Vratsa is an important railway station along the railway route
MezdraMezdra is a town in northwestern Bulgaria, part of Vratsa Province. It is located on the left bank of the Iskar River just north of its gorge through the Balkan Mountains....
—
BoychinovtsiBoychinovtsi is a town in northwestern Bulgaria, located in the Boychinovtsi Municipality of the Montana Province . It is near the city of Montana....
—
BrusartsiBrusartsi is a town in Northwestern Bulgaria. It is located in Montana oblast and is close to the town of Lom....
—
VidinVidin is a port town on the southern bank of the Danube in northwestern Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Serbia and Romania, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as of the Metropolitan of Vidin...
(
LomLom is a town in northwestern Bulgaria, part of Montana Province, situated on the right bank of the Danube, close to the estuary of the Lom River. It is 162 km north of Sofia, 56 km southeast of Vidin, 50 km north of Montana and 42 km west of Kozloduy...
). The city connects to the national railway network through the railway station of Mezdra. The railway station is located in the northeastern part of the city. There is regular bus transport within the city.
Honour
Vratsa PeakVratsa Peak is a rocky peak rising to 470 m in Breznik Heights, Greenwich Island, Antarctica, situated between Targovishte Glacier and Musala Glacier, and 1 km E of the summit of Viskyar Ridge....
on Greenwich Island in the
South Shetland IslandsThe South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about 120 kilometres north of the Antarctic Peninsula. By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the Islands' sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories and they are free for use by any signatory for non-military...
,
Antarctica| style="border-top:solid 1px #ccd2d9; padding:0.4em 1em 0.4em 0; vertical-align:top;" | 14,000,000 km
2 280,000 km
2 13,720,000 km
2 |-! style="border-top: solid 1px #ccd2d9; padding: 0.4em 1em 0.4em 0; vertical-align: top;...
is named after Vratsa.
Use in popular culture
Vratsa is the home of a professional
QuidditchQuidditch is a fictional sport developed by J. K. Rowling for the Harry Potter book series. It is described as an extremely rough but very popular semi-contact sport played by wizards and witches around the world. Matches are played between two teams of seven players riding flying broomsticks,...
team operating within the fictional
Harry Potter universeThe fictional universe of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series of fantasy novels comprises two separate and distinct societies: the wizarding world and the Muggle world...
. The Vratsa Vultures have won the European Cup seven times.
External links
Pictures of Vratza City