Euxinograd ( bg, Евксиноград , also transliterated as ''Evksinograd'') is a late 19th-century

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

n former royal summer palace and park on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...

coast, north of downtown

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city in Bulgaria **Varna Province **Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna **Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis *Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy *Varniai, a city in Lithuania * Varna (Šaba ...

. The palace is currently a governmental and presidential retreat hosting cabinet meetings in the summer and offering access for tourists to several villas and hotels. Since 2007, it is also the venue of the

Operosa Operosa is an annual classical music and opera festival. Devoted mainly to opera, it also includes concerts of orchestral, chamber, vocal and solo instrumental music. Operosa is active in the Balkan region with the main festival event in Herceg ...

opera festival. Euxinograd is situated at an altitude of 49 m.Euxinograd Altitude and Location
/ref> The park and palace were closed until the summer of 2016 due to extensive renovations.

History

Construction of the palace began soon after the Greek bishopric presented the site to

Knyaz , or ( Old Church Slavonic: Кнѧзь) is a historical Slavic title, used both as a royal and noble title in different times of history and different ancient Slavic lands. It is usually translated into English as prince or duke, dependi ...

Alexander Battenberg, the reigning Prince of Bulgaria, on 16 March 1882. At the time the land was occupied by two small monasteries: St. Demetrius and St. Constantine; these were subsequently converted into the first royal residence on the site. This conversion followed plans drawn up by the Viennese

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Viktor Rumpelmayer in 1885. Initially, the palace was named ''Sandrovo'' after the Italian

diminutive A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A (abbreviated ) is a word-formati ...

of Alexander's name — Sandro. Later the knyaz extended the estate to its current area of . However, no further building work took place. The palace as it stands today dates from the reign of Knyaz (later

Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...

) Ferdinand (). Ferdinand brought the pediment and other materials from the right wing of Château de Saint-Cloud (a former French royal residence) in France to Bulgaria and integrated them into his new palace. Ferdinand commissioned

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

architect Hermann Mayer and Bulgarian architect Nikola Lazarov to complete the design of the palace. In 1893, on the insistence of Princess

Marie Louise Marie Louise or Marie-Louise may refer to: People *Marie Louise of Orléans (1662–1689), daughter of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, queen consort of Charles II of Spain *Marie Louise of Hesse-Kassel (1688–1765), daughter of Charles I, Landgrave ...

, Ferdinand's first wife, the palace was renamed ''Euxinograd'' - the name derives from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

term for the

, (''Euxeinos Pontos'', "hospitable sea") and the South Slavic suffix ''–grad'', meaning "town" or, historically, "fortress". Tsar Ferdinand's second wife,

Tsaritsa Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; bg, царица, tsaritsa; sr, / ; russian: царица, tsaritsa) is the title of a female autocratic ruler (mona ...

Eleonore, died in Euxinograd on 12 September 1917. Following the abolition of the monarchy in Bulgaria, the result of a referendum held under the auspices of the Communists in 1946, Euxinograd became a summer residence of the then-

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

authorities. The democratic changes in 1989 made the former royal palace a presidential and governmental residence and it was opened to the public.

Buildings

Euxinograd is often considered to be one of the finest examples of post-

Liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

architecture in Bulgaria. The palace was designed in style of an 18th-century French château style, with a high metal-topped

mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called a French roof or curb roof) is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope, punctured by dormer windows, at a steeper angle than the upper. The ...

, figured brickwork, balconies and a

clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...

Following the demolition of the Château de Saint-Cloud, Ferdinand acquired the

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

of its right wing for the palace in 1890–1891; however, rather than used as an architectural feature for the palace itself, the pediment was incorporated in the foundations of a garden terrace. Euxinograd has three storeys. The first houses the principal reception room, the second: the private apartments of the royal family and the third: the servants. The furniture is made of

mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

and walnut wood. The giant chandelier decorated with a royal crown and gold lilies was a gift from the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spanis ...

. The door handles of the toilets bear the coat of arms of Tsar Ferdinand. The

sundial A sundial is a horological device that tells the time of day (referred to as civil time in modern usage) when direct sunlight shines by the apparent position of the Sun in the sky. In the narrowest sense of the word, it consists of a flat ...

was a gift from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

. The palace's Winery was established in 1891 to meet the requirements of the

Bulgarian Royal Family The last Bulgarian royal family ( bg, Българско царско семейство, Balgarsko tsarsko semeystvo) is a line of the Koháry branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, which ruled Bulgaria from 1887 to 1946. The last tsar, ...

, its cellars take up two floors. The vineyards continue to produce high-quality white wine (twelve varieties) and brandy (seven varieties). The wines are considered amongst the best in Bulgaria. The Euxinograd cellar has been preserving valuable 125-year-old French wines since the Liberation of Bulgaria. In addition, the Euxinograd complex also includes a former royal stable called ''Shtala'' (Щала; from

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

'' Stall'').

Park

The landscaping and design of Euxinograd park, which is surrounded by vineyards, began in 1890, and was executed over several decades. During which time, more than 50,000 trees were purchased from

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

and fertile soil was brought from the mouth of the

Kamchiya River The Kamchiya (also Kamchia and Kamčija, bg, Камчия ) is a river in eastern Bulgaria. From its longest source, Golyama Kamchiya (Big Kamchiya), it has a total length of (. The river Kamchiya proper starts from the confluence of the two ...

. The park is home to over 310 plant varieties from

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and

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, reputed to have been selected by Ferdinand himself, and occupies an area of over 550 decares. The design is a combination of both the English and French landscaping styles, English garden and garden à la française, and was mostly designed by Édouard André. French-made bronze figures and a sculpture of

Neptune Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 times ...

adorn various areas. The tiny Kestrichka Bara River flows through the park, and is spanned by two bridges, one of metal one and one of cement, imitating a fallen tree. The park also features a small lake full of lilies. Contrary to the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Bulgaria, Evksinograd beach is fenced in order to segregate government officials and ordinary citizens.

Gallery

File:Euxinograd Palace - view 1.jpg, View of the palace File:Euxinograd - wine cellar entrance.jpg, The wine cellar File:Euxinograd - park.jpg, The park File:Euxinograd Palace - section.jpg, A section of the building File:Euxinograd - wine bar.jpg, The wine bar File:Euxinograd -panorama.JPG, Panorama view File:BASA-1735K-1-344-6-Euxinograd.jpg, Euxinograd, 1905 File:BASA-1735K-1-344-7-Euxinograd.jpg, Panorama view File:BASA-3K-15-442-8-Euxinograd Palace.jpg, Panorama view

References

Sources

* * * * {{refend

External links

Pictures and History
(in

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

)
Official website

3D Laser scanning of main building
Houses completed in 1891 Palaces in Bulgaria Royal residences in Bulgaria Official residences in Bulgaria Presidential residences Parks in Bulgaria Buildings and structures in Varna, Bulgaria Bulgarian Black Sea Coast Châteauesque architecture Tourist attractions in Varna, Bulgaria Parks in Varna, Bulgaria