1.
Bulgaria
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Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, with a territory of 110,994 square kilometres, Bulgaria is Europes 16th-largest country. Organised prehistoric cultures began developing on current Bulgarian lands during the Neolithic period and its ancient history saw the presence of the Thracians, Greeks, Persians, Celts, Romans, Goths, Alans and Huns. With the downfall of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1396, its territories came under Ottoman rule for five centuries. The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 led to the formation of the Third Bulgarian State, the following years saw several conflicts with its neighbours, which prompted Bulgaria to align with Germany in both world wars. In 1946 it became a one-party socialist state as part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc, in December 1989 the ruling Communist Party allowed multi-party elections, which subsequently led to Bulgarias transition into a democracy and a market-based economy. Bulgarias population of 7.2 million people is predominantly urbanised, most commercial and cultural activities are centred on the capital and largest city, Sofia. The strongest sectors of the economy are industry, power engineering. The countrys current political structure dates to the adoption of a constitution in 1991. Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic with a high degree of political, administrative. Human activity in the lands of modern Bulgaria can be traced back to the Paleolithic, animal bones incised with man-made markings from Kozarnika cave are assumed to be the earliest examples of symbolic behaviour in humans. Organised prehistoric societies in Bulgarian lands include the Neolithic Hamangia culture, Vinča culture, the latter is credited with inventing gold working and exploitation. Some of these first gold smelters produced the coins, weapons and jewellery of the Varna Necropolis treasure and this site also offers insights for understanding the social hierarchy of the earliest European societies. Thracians, one of the three primary groups of modern Bulgarians, began appearing in the region during the Iron Age. In the late 6th century BC, the Persians conquered most of present-day Bulgaria, and kept it until 479 BC. After the division of the Roman Empire in the 5th century the area fell under Byzantine control, by this time, Christianity had already spread in the region. A small Gothic community in Nicopolis ad Istrum produced the first Germanic language book in the 4th century, the first Christian monastery in Europe was established around the same time by Saint Athanasius in central Bulgaria. From the 6th century the easternmost South Slavs gradually settled in the region, in 680 Bulgar tribes under the leadership of Asparukh moved south across the Danube and settled in the area between the lower Danube and the Balkan, establishing their capital at Pliska
2.
Merlot
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Merlot is a dark blue-colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name Merlot is thought to be a diminutive of merle and its softness and fleshiness, combined with its earlier ripening, makes Merlot a popular grape for blending with the sterner, later-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon, which tends to be higher in tannin. Merlot is also one of the most popular red wine varietals in many markets and this flexibility has helped to make it one of the worlds most planted grape varieties. As of 2004, Merlot was estimated to be the third most grown variety at 260,000 hectares globally and this puts Merlot just behind Cabernet Sauvignons 262,000 hectares. While Merlot is made across the globe, there tends to be two main styles, the earliest recorded mention of Merlot was in the notes of a local Bordeaux official who in 1784 labeled wine made from the grape in the Libournais region as one of the areas best. In 1824, the word Merlot itself appeared in an article on Médoc wine where it was described that the grape was named after the black bird who liked eating the ripe grapes on the vine. Other descriptions of the grape from the 19th century called the variety lou seme doù flube with the thought to have originated on one of the islands found along the Garonne river. By the 19th century it was being planted in the Médoc on the Left Bank of the Gironde. It was first recorded in Italy around Venice under the synonym Bordò in 1855, the grape was introduced to the Swiss, from Bordeaux, sometime in the 19th century and was recorded in the Swiss canton of Ticino between 1905 and 1910. In the 1990s, Merlot saw an upswing of popularity in the United States, the popularity of Merlot stemmed in part from the relative ease in pronouncing the name of the wine as well as its softer, fruity profile that made it more approachable to some wine drinkers. In the late 1990s, researchers at University of California, Davis showed that Merlot is an offspring of Cabernet Franc and is a half-sibling of Carménère, Malbec, as the connection to Merlot became known, the grape was formally registered under the name Magdeleine Noire des Charentes. Through its relationship with Magdeleine Noire des Charentes Merlot is related to the Southwest France wine grape Abouriou, grape breeders have used Merlot crossed with other grapes to create several new varieties including Carmine, Ederena, Evmolpia, Fertilia, Mamaia, Nigra, Prodest and Rebo. Over the years, Merlot has spawned a color mutation that is used commercially, Merlot grapes are identified by their loose bunches of large berries. The color has less of a blue/black hue than Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and with a thinner skin and it normally ripens up to two weeks earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon. Also compared to Cabernet, Merlot grapes tend to have a sugar content. Ampelographer J. M. Merlot thrives in soil, particularly ferrous clay. The vine tends to bud early which gives it some risk to cold frost, if bad weather occurs during flowering, the Merlot vine is prone to develop coulure. The vine can also be susceptible to mildew and to infection by leafhopper insect varieties
3.
Cabernet Sauvignon
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Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the worlds most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Canadas Okanagan Valley to Lebanons Beqaa Valley. Cabernet Sauvignon became internationally recognized through its prominence in Bordeaux wines where it is blended with Merlot. For most of the 20th century, it was the worlds most widely planted red wine grape until it was surpassed by Merlot in the 1990s. Familiarity and ease of pronunciation have helped to sell Cabernet Sauvignon wines to consumers and its widespread popularity has also contributed to criticism of the grape as a colonizer that takes over wine regions at the expense of native grape varieties. The classic profile of Cabernet Sauvignon tends to be full-bodied wines with high tannins, in more moderate climates the blackcurrant notes are often seen with black cherry and black olive notes while in very hot climates the currant flavors can veer towards the over-ripe and jammy side. In parts of Australia, particularly the Coonawarra wine region of South Australia, for many years, the origin of Cabernet Sauvignon was not clearly understood and many myths and conjectures surrounded it. The word Sauvignon is believed to be derived from the French sauvage meaning wild, until recently the grape was rumored to have ancient origins, perhaps even being the Biturica grape used to make ancient Roman wine and referenced by Pliny the Elder. This belief was widely held in the 18th century, when the grape was known as Petite Vidure or Bidure. There was also belief that Vidure was a reference to the wood of the vine. Another theory was that the grapevine originated in the Rioja region of Spain, the first estates known to have actively grown the variety were Château Mouton and Château dArmailhac in Pauillac. The grapes true origins were discovered in 1996 with the use of DNA typing at the UC Davis Department of Viticulture and Enology, by a team led by Dr. Carole Meredith. The DNA evidence determined that Cabernet Sauvignon was the offspring of Cabernet franc, in 2016 scientists at the UC Davis announced they had sequenced a draft of the whole genome of the Cabernet Sauvignon grape, the first genome of a commercial wine-producing grape to be sequenced. While not as prolific in mutating as Pinot noir, nor as widely used in production of offspring, in 1961, a cross of Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache produced the French wine grape Marselan. Cygne blanc is a seedling of Cabernet Sauvignon that was discovered in 1989 growing in a garden in Swan Valley. Cabernet blanc is a crossing of Cabernet Sauvignon and a hybrid grape variety that was discovered in Switzerland in the late 20th century. In 1977 a vine producing bronze grapes was found in the vineyards of Cleggett Wines in Australia and they propagated this mutant, registered it under the name of Malian, and sold pale red wines under that name. In 1991 one of the Bronze Cabernet vines started producing white grapes, Cleggett registered this White Cabernet under the name of Shalistin
4.
Balkan Mountains
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The 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 Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea, the highest peaks of the Balkan Mountains are in central Bulgaria. The highest peak is Botev at 2,376 m, which makes the range the third highest in the country, after Rila. The mountains are the source of the name of the Balkan Peninsula, the mountain range forms the watershed between the Black Sea and Aegean Sea catchment areas, with the exception of an area in west, where it is crossed by the spectacular Iskar Gorge. The karst relief determines the number of caves, including Magura, featuring the most important and extended European post-Palaeolithic cave painting, Ledenika, Saeva dupka, Bacho Kiro. The most notable formation are the Belogradchik Rocks in the west. There are several important protected areas, Central Balkan National Park, Vrachanski Balkan Nature Park, Bulgarka Nature Park and Sinite Kamani Nature Park, the Balkan Mountains are remarkable for their flora and fauna. Edelweiss grows there in the region of Kozyata stena, some of the most striking landscapes are included in the Central Balkan National Park with steep cliffs, the highest waterfalls in the Balkan Peninsula and lush vegetation. There are a number of important nature reserves such as Chuprene, Kozyata stena, most of Europes large mammals inhabit the area including the brown bear, wolf, boar, chamois and deer. The Balkan Mountains played a role in the history of Bulgaria since its foundation in 681 AD. It is believed the name was brought to the region in the 7th century by Bulgars who applied it to the area, in Bulgarian, the word balkan means mountain. It may have derived from the Persian bālkāneh or bālākhāna, meaning high, above, the name is still preserved in Central Asia with the Balkan Daglary and the Balkan Province of Turkmenistan. In Turkish balkan means a chain of wooded mountains In the Antiquity and the Middle Ages the mountains were known by their Thracian name, scholars consider that Haemus is believed that the name is derived from a Thracian word *saimon, mountain ridge. The name of the place where the range meets the Black Sea, other names used to refer to the mountains in different time periods include Aemon, Haemimons, Hem, Emus, the Slavonic Matorni gori and the Turkish Kodzhabalkan. Geologically, the Balkan Mountains are a part of the Alp-Himalayan chain that stretches across most of Europe. It can be divided into two parts, the main Balkan Chain and the Pre-Balkans to the north, which intrude slightly into the Danubian Plain, the range consists of around 30 portions called mountains. The Eastern Balkan Mountains from the Vratnik Pass to Cape Emine with a length of 160 kilometres, the eastern Balkan Mountains forms the lowest part of the range. The Balkan Mountains form a divide between the rivers flowing to the Danube in the north and those flowing to the Aegean Sea in the south
5.
South Shetland Islands
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The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about 120 kilometres north of the Antarctic Peninsula, with a total area of 3,687 square kilometres. By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the islands sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories, the islands have been claimed by the United Kingdom since 1908 and have been part of the British Antarctic Territory since 1962. They are also claimed by the governments of Chile and by Argentina, several countries maintain research stations on the islands. Most of them are situated on King George Island, benefitting from the airfield of the Chilean base Eduardo Frei, there are sixteen research stations to date in different parts of the islands, with Chilean stations being the greatest in number. Research is often a shared duty of nations, with the Chilean-United States Shirreff Base being one example, the Dutchman Dirck Gerritsz in 1599, or the Spaniard Gabriel de Castilla in 1603, supposedly sailed south of the Drake Passage in the South Shetland Islands area. In 1818 Juan Pedro de Aguirre obtained permission from the Buenos Aires authorities to establish a base for sealing on some of the islands near the South Pole. Thus Livingston Island became the first land discovered south of the 60th southern latitude. Smith revisited the South Shetlands, landed on King George Island on 16 October 1819, meanwhile, the Spanish Navy ship San Telmo sank in September 1819 whilst trying to go through the Drake Passage. Parts of her wreckage were found months later by sealers on the north coast of Livingston Island. From December 1819 to January 1820, the islands were surveyed and mapped by Lieutenant Edward Bransfield on board the Williams, the discovery of the islands attracted British and American sealers. The first sealing ship to operate in the area was the brig Espirito Santo, the ship arrived at Rugged Island off Livingston Island, where its British crew landed on Christmas Day 1819, and claimed the islands for King George III. A narrative of the events was published by the master, Joseph Herring. The Espirito Santo was followed from the Falkland Islands by the American brig Hersilia, commanded by Captain James Sheffield, having circumnavigated the Antarctic continent, the Russian Antarctic expedition of Fabian von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev arrived at the South Shetlands in January 1821. The Russians surveyed the islands and named them, landing on both King George Island and Elephant Island, the name New South Britain was used briefly, but was soon changed to South Shetland Islands. The name South Shetland Islands is now established in international usage, both island groups lie at a similar distance from the South Pole and North Pole respectively, but the South Shetlands are much colder. Seal hunting and whaling was conducted on the islands during the 19th, from 1908 the islands were governed as part of the Falkland Islands Dependency, but they have only been occupied since the establishment of a scientific research station in 1944. The archipelago, together with the nearby Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia, is a popular tourist destination during the austral summer. As a group of islands, the South Shetland Islands are located at 62°0′S 58°0′W and they are within the region 61° 00–63°37 South, 53° 83–62°83 West
6.
Sofia
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Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. The city has a population of 1.26 million, while 1.68 million people live in its metropolitan area, the city is located at the foot of Vitosha Mountain in the western part of the country, within less than 50 kilometres drive from the Serbian border. Its location in the centre of the Balkan peninsula means that it is the midway between the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea, whereas the Aegean Sea is the closest to it, Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. Being Bulgarias primate city, Sofia is a hometown of many of the local universities, cultural institutions. Sofia is one of the top 10 best places for business in the world. Sofia is Europes most affordable capital to visit as of 2013, for the longest time the city possessed a Thracian name, derived from the tribe Serdi, who were either of Thracian, Celtic, or mixed Thracian-Celtic origin. It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made during his reign, during the Romans civitas Serdenisium was mentioned the brightest city of the Serdi in official inscriptions. The city was major throughout the past ever since Antiquity, when Roman emperor Constantine the Great referred to it as my Rome, other names given to Sofia, such as Serdonpolis and Triaditza, were mentioned by Byzantine Greek sources or coins. The Slavic name Sredets, which is related to middle and to the citys earliest name, the city was called Atralissa by the Arab traveller Idrisi and Strelisa, Stralitsa or Stralitsion by the Crusaders. The name Sofia comes from the Saint Sofia Church, as opposed to the prevailing Slavic etymology among Bulgarian cities and towns. It is ultimately derived from the Egyptian Kemetic word sbÅ, meaning star, door, teaching and wisdom and this was a tradition of collection of wise literature, shared between Mediterranean cultures, which was called sophia in Greek. In these documents the city is called Sofia, but at the time the region and the citys inhabitants are still called Sredecheski. The city became popular to the Ottomans by the name Sofya. In 1879 there was a dispute about what the name of the new Bulgarian capital should be, the citys name is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the o, in contrast with the tendency of foreigners to place the stress on i. The female given name Sofia is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the i, Sofia has an area of 492 km2, while Sofia City Province has an area of 1344 km2. Sofias development as a significant settlement owes much to its position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by the Balkan mountains to the north. The valley has an altitude of 550 metres
7.
Plovdiv
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Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, with a population of 341,567 inhabitants as of 2015, while 544,628 live in its urban area. It is an important economic, transport, cultural, and educational center, Plovdiv has evidence of habitation since the 6th millennium BC when the first Neolithic settlements were established. It is said to be one of the oldest cities in the world, Plovdiv was known in the West for most of its recorded history by the name Philippopolis as Philip II of Macedon conquered it in the 4th century BC and gave his name to it. The city was originally a Thracian settlement, later being invaded by Persians, Greeks, Celts, Romans, Goths, Huns, Bulgarians, Slav-Vikings, Crusaders, on 4 January 1878, Plovdiv was liberated from Ottoman rule by the Russian army. It remained within the borders of Bulgaria until July of the same year, in 1885, Plovdiv and Eastern Rumelia joined Bulgaria. Plovdiv is situated in a region of south-central Bulgaria on the two banks of the Maritsa River. The city has developed on seven syenite hills, some of which are 250 metres high. Because of these hills, Plovdiv is often referred to in Bulgaria as The City of the Seven Hills, Plovdiv is host to cultural events such as the International Fair Plovdiv, the international theatrical festival A stage on a crossroad, and the TV festival The golden chest. There are many remains preserved from antiquity such as the ancient Plovdiv Roman theatre, Roman odeon, Roman aqueduct, Roman Stadium, the archaeological complex Eirene, and others. The oldest American educational institution outside the United States was founded in Plovdiv in 1860, on 5 September 2014, Plovdiv was selected as the Bulgarian host of the European Capital of Culture 2019. This happened with the help of the Municipal Foundation Plovdiv 2019″ - a non-government organization which was established in 2011 by Plovdivs City Council, the main objectives were to develop and to prepare Plovdivs bid book for European Capital of Culture in 2019. The organization has a board of directors, which consists of 9 members, the foundation also has a Public Council, chaired by the mayor of the city, and a Control Board supervises the organizations activities. The main objective of the foundation is strategic development and implementation of the bid book, Plovdiv was given various names throughout its long history. The Odrysian capital Odryssa is suggested to have been modern Plovdiv by numismatic research or Odrin, Philippopolis was identified later by Plutarch and Pliny as the former Poneropolis. Strabo identified Philip IIs settlement of most evil, wicked as Calybe, kendrisia was an old name of the city. An assumed name is the 1st century Tiberias in honor of the Roman emperor Tiberius, after the Romans had taken control of the area, the city was named in Latin, TRIMONTIUM, meaning The Three Hills, mentioned in the 1st century by Pliny. At times the name was Ulpia, Flavia, Julia after the Roman families, Ammianus Marcellinus wrote in the 4th century that the then city had been the old Eumolpias/Eumolpiada, i. e. the earliest name in chronological terms. In the 6th century Jordanes wrote that the name of the city was Pulpudeva
8.
Varna
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Varna is the third largest city in Bulgaria and the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. Situated strategically in the Gulf of Varna, the city has been a major economic, Varna, historically known as Odessos, grew from a Thracian seaside settlement to a major seaport on the Black Sea. Varna is an important centre for business, transportation, education, tourism, entertainment, the city is referred to as the maritime capital of Bulgaria and headquarters the Bulgarian Navy and merchant marine. In 2008, Varna was designated seat of the Black Sea Euro-Region by the Council of Europe, in 2014, Varna was awarded the title of European Youth Capital 2017. The oldest gold jewelry in the world, belonging to the Varna culture, was discovered in the Varna Necropolis, theophanes the Confessor first mentioned the name Varna, as the city came to be known with the Slavic conquest of the Balkans in the 6th to 7th century. The name could be of Varangian origin, as Varangians had been crossing the Black Sea for many years, in Swedish, the meaning of värn is shield, defense – hence Varna could mean defended, fortified place. Perhaps the new name applied initially to an adjacent river or lake, a Roman military camp, or an inland area, the latter is often said to be of Carian origin, though no modern scholarship supports this. Varna Peninsula on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Varna, Varna, Illinois, a small town of 400 people, was named in this citys honour. The War of Varna was going on at the time, the settlement and district centre of Varna in the Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia is named in commemoration of the taking of Varna by the Russian army during the 1828–1829 Russo-Turkish War. Varna Drive, in Toronto, Canada, is named after Varna, since late Bronze Age the area around Odessos had been populated with Thracians. BC local Thracians had active commercial and cultural contacts with people from Anatolia, Thessaly, Caucasus and these links were reflected in some local productions, for example, forms of bronze fibula of the age, either imported or locally made. There is no doubt that interactions occurred mostly by sea and the bay of Odessos is one of the places where the took place. Some scholars consider that during the 1st millennium BC, the region was settled by the half-mythical Cimmerians. An example of their, probably accidental, presence, is the tumulus dated VIII-VII c, BC found near Belogradets, Varna Province. The region around Odessos was densely populated with Thracians long before the coming of the Greeks on the west seashore of the Black Sea. Pseudo-Scymnus writes, “. Around the city lives the Thracian tribe named Crobises. ”This is also evidenced by various ceramic pottery, made by hand or by a Potters wheel, bronze ornaments for horse-fittings and iron weapons, all found in Thracian necropolises dated VI-IV c. BC near the villages of Dobrina, Kipra, Brestak and other, the Thracians in the region were ruled by kings, who entered into unions with the Odrysian kingdom, Getae or Sapaeans - large Thracian states existing between V-I c. Between 336-280 BC these Thracian states along with Odessos were conquered by Alexander the Great, archaeological findings in the past years have indicated that the population of North-East Thrace was very diverse, including the region around Odessos
9.
Burgas
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It is the capital of Burgas Province and an important industrial, transport, cultural and tourist centre. The city is surrounded by the Burgas Lakes and located at the westernmost point of the Black Sea, the LUKOIL Neftochim Burgas is the largest oil refinery in southeastern Europe and the largest industrial enterprise. The Port of Burgas is the largest port in Bulgaria, Burgas is the center of the Bulgarian fishing and fish processing industry. A similar literal composition have the cities Burgos in Spain and numerous cities containing the Germanic burg city such as Hamburg,15 centuries later, the settlement was mentioned by the Byzantine poet Manuel Phil as Pyrgos, a word identical in meaning with the Greek word for tower. There are several explanations for the names origin. By one of them, the name comes from Gothic name baurgs as meaning signified consolidated walled villages. Kiril Vlahov, the name of the city comes from the Thracian word pyurg as meaning fortification of wooden beams and it is also suggested that the name ultimately comes from the name of khan Burtaz. Burgas is situated in the westernmost point of the bay of the same name, Burgas is located 389 kilometres from Sofia,272 km from Plovdiv, and 335 km from Istanbul. To the west, south and north, the city is surrounded by the Burgas Lakes, Burgas, Atanasovsko and Mandrensko, pan-European corridor 8 passes through the city, the European routes E87 and E773, and the longest national rout I/6. The St. Anastasia Island is a part of the city, Burgas has a humid subtropical climate, with some continental influences. The summertime in Burgas lasts about five months from mid-May until late September, average temperatures during high season is 24 °C. Summertime sea temperatures stay around 23 °C-24 °C at sunrise and go up to 29 °C-30 °C at dawn, winters are milder compared with the inland part of the country, with average temperatures of 4 °C-5 °C and below 0 °C during the night. Snow is possible in December, January, February and rarely in March, snow falls in winter only several times and can quickly melt. The highest temperature was recorded in August 2003, at 42.8 °C, the Burgas Wetlands are highly recognized for their significance to biodiversity and as a resource pool for products used by people. Lake Burgas is Bulgarias largest lake and is in the middle of the city and it is important for migrating birds. Over 250 species of birds inhabit the area,61 of which are endangered in Bulgaria and 9 globally. The lakes are home to important fish and invertebrates. In the site have been recorded several IUCN Red-Listed species of animals —5 invertebrates,4 fish,4 amphibians,3 reptiles,5 birds and 3 mammals
10.
Pleven
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Pleven is the seventh most populous city in Bulgaria. Located in the part of the country, it is the administrative centre of Pleven Province. It is the biggest economic center in Northwestern Bulgaria, at the end of 2015 its population is 99628. The name comes from the Slavic word plevnya or from plevel, meaning weed, Pleven is located in an agricultural region in the very heart of the Danubian Plain, the historical region of Moesia, surrounded by low limestone hills, the Pleven Heights. The citys central location in Northern Bulgaria defines its importance as a big administrative, economic, political, cultural, Pleven is located 170 kilometres away from the capital city of Sofia,320 km west of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and 50 km south of the Danube. The river Vit flows near the town and the tiny Tuchenitsa river crosses it, winters are cold with much snow, sometimes temperatures fall below −20 °C. Springs are warm temperatures around 20 °C. Summers are very hot and temperatures can exceed 38–40 °C, the average annual temperature is around 13 °C. http, //www. stringmeteo. com The earliest traces of human settlement in the area date from the 5th millennium BC, the Neolithic. Numerous archaeological findings, among them the Nikolaevo treasure found in Bulgaria, evidence for the culture of the Thracians. In the beginning of the new era, the became part of the Roman province of Moesia. It later evolved into a fortress, one of the most valued archaeological monuments in Bulgaria from the period is the Early Christian basilica from the fourth century discovered near the modern city. During the Middle Ages, Pleven was a stronghold of the First. During the Ottoman rule, Pleven, known as Plevne in Ottoman Turkish, preserved its Bulgarian appearance, many churches, schools and bridges were built at the time of the Bulgarian National Revival. In 1825, the first secular school in the town was opened, followed by the first girls school in Bulgaria in 1840, Pleven was the place where the Bulgarian national hero Vasil Levski established the first revolutionary committee in 1869, part of his national revolutionary network. The city was a battle scene during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 that Russian Tsar Alexander II held for the purpose of the liberation of Bulgaria. It cost the Russians and Romanians 5 months and 38,000 casualties to take the town after four assaults, without this fortress slowing the Russian onslaught, which gave the Great Powers time to intercede, Constantinople would have been repossessed by a Christian army once more. The events of the Russo-Turkish War proved crucial for the development of Pleven as a key town of central northern Bulgaria, the town experienced significant demographic and economic growth in the following years, gradually establishing itself as a cultural centre of the region. The Bulgarian Agrarian National Union, a leading interwar party representing the Bulgarian peasantry, was founded in the town in December 1899, prior to the Bulgarian orthographic reform of 1945, the name of the town was spelled Плѣвенъ in Cyrillic
