Gorna Oryahovitsa

Gorna Oryahovitsa is situated on a natural geographic crossroad at the northern foot of the Tarnovo hills, just 12 kilometers away from Veliko Tarnovo. The town has excellent transport connections via railway, road and air transport.

History: There are data about settlement life in the region from the second half of the 5th millennium BC. During the 5th - 1st centuries BC there had been an ancient Thracian settlement of the Krobizi tribe, east of the town. Later, the Romans built a fortified settlement of theirs, which became established as a kind of a centre of viticulture and wine making.
During the 2nd - 3rd centuries the Roman province of Lower Wloesia was the only one, profiting from the protection given by the central authorities for the growing of vineyards and the making of high quality wines. The fortress built in the 3th - 4th centuries, during the Middle Ages was called Ryahovets, Rahovets. The fortress was restored and further built and during the 12th-14th centuries it was already a powerful defensive bulwark, safeguarding the capital Turnovgrad. Ryahovets became one of the major medieval town-fortresses in the Bulgarian state of that time. There is information that the fortress had also been used by the Turks, and in 1332-1444, during the Second Crusade of Wladislaw II Jagelo against the Ottoman Empire, it had been taken and consumed by fire. The population left the region and withdrew in the valley. At the end of the 15th and early 16th century, a settlement took shape on the site of the contemprorary town. During the 16tn century Gorna Oryahovitsa was already an economically stable settlement with developed commerce and handicrafts. During that period the crafts that flourished were fur working, home woven frieze tailoring, horse shoeing and iron work, gold jewelry, cart making, and saddle-making, while trade was among the busiest in North Bulgaria. Every Friday a big market of farm animals, farming produce, timber and charcoal took place here.
Today Gorna Oryahovitsa is an important transport centre of local and international significance.

Photos from Gorna Oryahovitsa