A Cultural Tour in Bulgaria

A Cultural Tour in Bulgaria

Breseya Clark (MT) I remember a few years ago when my mother and I went to visit my grandparents in Bulgaria, the idea of a trip was brought up, so I could see more of my family’s home country.

Our destination was Hisarya, a town in Plovdiv province known for the healing properties of its freshwater springs and its roman ruins.

The most notable thing I remember was how every morning and evening the people of the city would emerge to fill big blue canisters with fresh mineral water from a community fountain. The water is also safe to swim in, so every day the swimming pools were chock-full of people, an echo of the centuries of this town’s rich history.

Image: The fountain in Hisarya For your own benefit I will provide you with some background of this history. The first human remains discovered in Bulgaria date back to 45,000 years ago. Very little is known about these people, other than that their remains were discovered with “incised bones”, showing ritualistic behaviour. Though these specific people were very isolated, probably seeking refuge in a cave during some migration, other Neolithic peoples are known to have populated Hisarya and neighbouring Chernichevo, leaving behind a burial mound and various stone tools and ceramic pots.

Fast forward a few thousand years, and the Thracians arrive in Bulgaria, a group of Indo-European people who lived in the Balkans around the 6th century BC. These were some of the first people to show interest in Hisarya and its mineral waters, and they left their mark in the stones of the surrounding area.

Pictured are two rock niches cut out of a cliff, either used to disperse the ashes of the dead or as a way of mapping gold deposits in the Rhodope mountains around 91 miles away. Next were the Bulgars, a group of semi-nomadic people who lived, fought, and kept horses around the 7th century. These people, however, did not really make any noticeable mark on Hisarya.

Then come the Romans, who defeated the Thracians and surely became the grandest group to pass through Hisarya. The first Romans to settle there named the place “Augusta”, presumably after their emperor. In the third century the Goths (a group of Germanic people) razed the town to the ground in rebellion against However, emperor Diocletian restored Hisarya, promptly naming it Diocletian, after himself. The emperor also furnished the city with the latest roman architecture, including a system for drinking water and new baths complete with a water-cooling system as well as the odd amphitheatre and the best preserved city walls in Bulgaria.

What I remember the most of all this architecture is the southern gate of the city dubbed “Kamilite”, in other words, The Camels. This name was due to the appearance of the gate when the top of it collapsed to look like two camels looking at each other, before some of it was restored in the 1900s.

When the Roman Empire fell, Bulgaria became part of Byzantium before becoming increasingly Christian and entering a “golden age” of expansion and prosperity. Hisarya unfortunately did not share this blessing, declining until only a few families called it home. Then Bulgaria falls suddenly into slavery under the Turkish, and Diocletian finally becomes Hissar, meaning “fortress”. The waters, and much else to do with the city continued to fall into shadow. However, after the Liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman Empire, the mineral water was rediscovered and allowed the town to grow and prosper once more until it was officially named a city in 1964.

My memories of this city are of hot summer days and curiosity, being eager to learn more about the rich history of Bulgaria. On one of the many walks around the area though, it was clear that some of the ruins were truly becoming ruined.

One Roman bath sat at the bottom of a small hill, filled with cloudy green water, looking dejected. Even the Camels had a few stones sitting at their base. It only served as a reminder of how long Hisarya had stood tall and proud for generations of visitors. I will not forget my own visit, and I hope I have piqued your interest. Perhaps you may even visit one day and see this ancient city too.

Did you Know?

Fascinating history fact: Mary, Queen of Scots spent 18 years under house arrest in England before her execution in 1887 - but her living conditions were anything but meagre.

According to new financial records released by the British Library, the royal prisoner was waited upon by a large household, and had two courses at both lunch and dinner.

Each came with a choice of 16 dishes, including veal, partridge and oysters, along with exotic foreign imports like olives and figs. And the meals were “richly scented with spices” of cinnamon, ginger and the Tudor delicacy saffron. Visit the Treason People, Power and Plot exhibition at the National Archives at Kew.

See some fascinating original documents charting the development of the treason laws through the ages. Best of all, it’s free!

Upcoming History Department Events Lent Term 2023

Friday 24th February Sixth Form event for students of History, Religious Studies and English on Etty Hillesum, with Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury and other scholars. Etty was a first-hand witness to the Holocaust in Amsterdam in the Second World War, which she recorded in her diaries. Malthouse Theatre 2-4pm

March 22nd – 23rd Sixth Form trip to Auschwitz with Holocaust Awareness

Events in Cooperation with Canterbury Historical Association

Thursday19th January 7.00pm The Schoolroom What’s missing from the Bayeux Tapestry? Professor Michael Lewis, Head of Portable Antiquities & Treasure at the British Museum

Thursday 9th February 7.00pm Claggett Auditorium, Canterbury Cathedral Aphra Behn, Canterbury, and Women at the Court of Charles II, Charlotte Cornell former King’s teacher and now at Kent University

Thursday 9th March 7.00pm The Schoolroom Smashing up the Cathedral: Image breaking in Canterbury and Kent from the Reformation to the Civil Wars, Professor Jackie Eales, Canterbury Christ Church University

Junior History Society Wednesday at 4.30pm in Lardergate 6 with Mr Harrison Talks by pupils on an area of history they find fascinating. If you are in Shell, Remove or Fifth and love history then come along! All welcome. Contact gwhh@king-school.co.uk for more information