Harmanli ( bg, Харманли , tr, Harmanlı) is a town in

Haskovo Province Haskovo Province ( bg, Област Хасково - ''Oblast Haskovo'', former name ''Haskovo okrug'') is a province in southern Bulgaria, neighbouring Greece and Turkey to the southeast, comprising parts of the Thracian valley along the river ...

, south-central

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 Mac ...

. It is the administrative centre of the eponymous Harmanli Municipality. Near the site of Hamanli in

Late Antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English has ...

, during the early 4th-century Cibalensean War, the

Battle of Mardia The Battle of Mardia, also known as Battle of Campus Mardiensis or Battle of Campus Ardiensis, was probably fought at modern Harmanli (Bulgaria) in Thrace,N.E. Lenski 2006, p.74 in late 316/early 317 between the forces of Roman Emperors Const ...

was fought between the Roman emperors

Licinius Valerius Licinianus Licinius (c. 265 – 325) was Roman emperor from 308 to 324. For most of his reign he was the colleague and rival of Constantine I, with whom he co-authored the Edict of Milan, AD 313, that granted official toleration to ...

and

Constantine the Great Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

. Harmanli was founded 1510 along the road connecting

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the ...

and

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The r ...

Geography

Its territory spreads over some parts of the

Upper Thracian Lowlands The Upper Thracian Plain ( bg, Горнотракийска низина, ''Gornotrakiyska nizina'') constitutes the northern part of the historical region of Thrace. It is located in southern Bulgaria, between Sredna Gora mountains to the north ...

between the oblique south slopes of the

Sredna Gora Sredna Gora ( bg, Средна гора ) is a mountain range in central Bulgaria, situated south of and parallel to the Balkan Mountains and extending from the Iskar to the west and the elbow of Tundzha north of Yambol to the east. Sredna Gora i ...

and precipitous north slopes of the

Rhodope Mountains The Rhodopes (; bg, Родопи, ; el, Ροδόπη, ''Rodopi''; tr, Rodoplar) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder i ...

. The south boundary of the

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

lowlands is outlined by the north Rhodope foot, along which it leans close on the north Rhodopes, between the lower end of the Momina Klisura

defile Defile may refer to: * To make dirty or impure * Defile (geography), in geography, a narrow pass or gorge between mountains * Defile (military), to march off in a line * The Defile, a pass between Suess Glacier and Nussbaum Riegel in Victoria ...

(at 300 m elevation) and the beginning of the Harmanli defile (at 80 m elevation). The

Maritsa Maritsa or Maritza ( bg, Марица ), also known as Meriç ( tr, Meriç ) and Evros ( ell, Έβρος ), is a river that runs through the Balkans in Southeast Europe. With a length of ,Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. ...

History

The first historical records of it date back to 1530, with the memoirs of Benedit Kuripešič, who would sojourn there as an interpreter in his mission. Skilful masters built a solid on the right bank of the Harmanli river (then Oludere). In order to facilitate travelers and tradesmen, a vaulted bridge was built in 1585 by the order of the Ottoman administrator Siyavuş Pasha. The marble inscription on the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

reads as follows: "The world is a bridge, across which the way of the king and the poor man passes." The humpbacked bridge has been saved almost intact to this day. At

Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 ( tr, 93 Harbi, lit=War of ’93, named for the year 1293 in the Islamic calendar; russian: Русско-турецкая война, Russko-turetskaya voyna, "Russian–Turkish war") was a conflict between th ...

, there was the Harmanli massacre.

Culture

A historic fountain was built in the place called White-legged Girl's Spring (Turkish: ''Ak baldır çeşmesi''), half an hour way from the bridge. The legend about Gergana was celebrated in a

poem Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings ...

by Petko Slaveikov. Another legend revolves about the story of

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgaria, Russia, Wallachia and Moldavia, and later Romania, Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. Boyars were s ...

Valkashin or Vukasin, father of the legendary Krali Marko, who was killed near this spring fighting the Ottoman sultan Murad.

Tourist attractions

The municipality area has a number of

waterfalls A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several w ...

in the areas of Kyumyurluka and Kuru Dere and the protected area of Defileto, as well as the historic spots the Karakolyuvata Kashta

Cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

, Hades Forest and Haidushkata Dupka, a small

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

Roads

Two transcontinental corridors intersect the municipality. The first one is from West and Central Europe, through

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. ...

- Harmanli -

Svilengrad Svilengrad ( bg, Свиленград; el, Σβίλενγκραντ; ota, Cisr-i Mustafapaşa) is a town in Haskovo Province, south-central Bulgaria, situated at the border of Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece. It is the administrative centre of the h ...

and

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

(

European route E80 European route E 80, also known as Trans-European Motorway or TEM, is an A-Class West-East European route, extending from Lisbon, Portugal to Gürbulak, Turkey, on the border with Iran. The road connects 10 countries and has a length ...

or І-8), and the second one is from northern

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

through Ruse -

Haskovo Haskovo ( bg, Хасково ) is a city in the region of Northern Thrace in southern Bulgaria and the administrative centre of the Haskovo Province, not far from the borders with Greece and Turkey. According to Operative Program Regional D ...

- Harmanli and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on th ...

, on which basis Pan-European Corridor IX will be developed in the future.

Honours

Harmanli Cove in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

is named after the town.Harmanli Cove.
SCAR

Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica The Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica (CGA) of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) is the authoritative international gazetteer containing all Antarctic toponyms published in national gazetteers, plus basic information about ...

Gallery

Image:MaricaRiveratHarmanli.jpg, Spring

Freshet The term ''freshet'' is most commonly used to describe a spring thaw resulting from snow and ice melt in rivers located in upper North America. A spring freshet can sometimes last several weeks on large river systems, resulting in significant i ...

of Marica River at Harmanli Image:Harmanli-Surroundings.jpg, Harmanli Surroundings Image:Harmanli-Surroundings2.jpg, Rocks Near The City Image:Harmanli-Gurbav_most.jpg, Humpback bridge Image:Izvora_na_belonogata04.jpg, The Spring of the White-Legged

Notes

External links

Harmanli Info Portal

References

* {{Authority control Towns in Bulgaria Populated places in Haskovo Province Place names of Turkish origin in Bulgaria