One of the oldest capital cities in Europe, the history of
Sofia dates back to the 8th century BC, when Thracians established a settlement there.
Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence, and remnants of the city's millenary history can still be seen today alongside modern landmarks.
Sofia's development as a significant settlement owes much to its central position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the northern foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by mountains on all sides. Three mountain passes lead to the city, which have been key roads since antiquity, connecting the Adriatic Sea and Central Europe with the Black and Aegean Seas.
A number of low rivers cross the city, including the Vladayska and the Perlovska. The Iskar River in its upper course flows near eastern
Sofia. The city is known for its numerous mineral and thermal springs. Artificial and dam lakes were built in the last century.
It is located 150 km (90 miles) northwest of Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second largest city, 390 km west of Burgas, 472 km (294 miles) west of Varna, Bulgaria's major port-cities on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast.
Antiquity
The Neo-Renaissance National Assembly of Bulgaria edifice in central
Sofia Sofia has been a centre of Christianity since the times of the Roman Empire
A view of
Sofia with the snow-capped peaks of Vitosha rising in the background
The Monument to the Tsar Liberator was inaugurated in 1907
The LargoSofia was originally a Thracian settlement called Serdica, named after the Thracian tribe Serdi. Around 500 BC another tribe settled in the region, the Odrysi, known as an ethnos with their own kingdom. For a short period during the 4th century BC, the city was possessed by Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great.
Around AD 29, Sofia was conquered by the Romans and renamed Ulpia Serdica. It became a municipium, or centre of an administrative region, during the reign of Emperor Trajan (98-117). The first written mention of Serdica was made by Ptolemy (around 100 AD). The city expanded, as turrets, protective walls, public baths, administrative and cult buildings, a civic basilica and a large amphitheatre called Bouleutherion, were built. When Emperor Diocletian divided the province of Dacia into Dacia Ripensis (on the banks of the Danube) and Dacia Mediterranea, Serdica became the capital of Dacia Mediterranea. The city subsequently expanded for a century and a half, which caused Constantine the Great to call it "my Rome".
Serdica was of moderate size, but magnificent as an urban concept of planning and architecture, with abundant amusements and an active social life. It flourished during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, when it was surrounded with great fortress walls whose remnants can still be seen today.
The city was destroyed by the Huns in 447 but was rebuilt by Justinian and renamed Triaditsa.
[edit] Middle Ages
Sofia first became part of the First Bulgarian Empire during the reign of Khan Krum in 809. Afterwards, it was known by the Slavic name Sredets and grew into an important fortress and administrative centre.
After a number of unsuccessful sieges, the city fell to the Byzantine Empire in 1018, but once again was incorporated into the restored Bulgarian Empire at the time of Tsar Ivan Asen I.
From the 12th to the 14th century,
Sofia was a thriving centre of trade and crafts. It was renamed Sofia (meaning "wisdom" in Greek) in 1376 after the Church of St.
Sofia. However, it was called both
"Sofia" and "Sredets" until the 16th century, when the new name gradually replaced the old one.
[edit] Ottoman rule
Sofia was conquered by the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Murad I in 1382, becoming the capital of the Ottoman province (beylerbeylik) of Rumelia for more than 4 centuries.
In 1610 the Vatican established the See of Sofia for Catholics of Rumelia, which existed until 1715 when most Catholics had emigrated. [1]
[edit] Liberated Bulgaria
Sofia was liberated by Russian forces in 1878, during the Russo-Turkish War, 1877-78, and became the capital of the autonomous Principality of Bulgaria in 1879, which became Kingdom of Bulgaria in 1908.
During World War II,
Sofia was bombed by Allied aircraft in late 1943 and early 1944, as well as later occupied by the Soviet Union. Bulgaria's regime, which allied the country with Nazi Germany, was overthrown and Sofia became capital of the Communist-ruled People's Republic of Bulgaria (1944–1989).
Source:
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