Location: Sofia Province Map
Koprivshtitsa is a small town in Western Bulgaria located in the valley of Topolnitsa River in the heart of the Sredna Gora mountains. Much of the architecture of Koprivshtitsa belongs to the 19th century and it is of few remaining towns with characteristic Bulgarian architecture. The city took its place in history since this was the place where first shots of the April Uprising of 1876 were fired.
Oslekov House (1853–1856), today an ethnographical museum
Georgi
Benkovski Memorial House (1831)
Lyuben Karavelov Memorial House
complex (1810–1835)
the Dimcho Debelyanov Memorial House (1830)
Todor Kableshkov Memorial House (1845)
Lyutov House (1854)
Nayden Gerov House
Church of the Dormition of the Theotokos (1817)
Church of St Nicholas (1839)
Memorial Ossuary of 20 April
housing the bones of those who died in the April Uprising (1926)
Bridge where the first shot of the uprising was fired in 1878, Kalachev
most (1813)
Hadzhi Nencho Palaveev Community Centre (chitalishte)
(1869)
Sts. Cyril and Methodius School (1837), the first class
school in Bulgaria (1837)
Street of Handicrafts
Monument in memory of those who fought and died for Bulgarian liberation a mausoleum was erected to house the bones of Bulgarian heroes. Large statue on the hill is visible from some part of Koprivshtitsa. Another statue is barely visible, but unique in many ways. A memorial to mothers and wives of those who left and never returned from a battle with Turkish rule is one of its kind.
History
Name
According to most researchers,
the name of the town comes from nettle (or nettle), and Vladimir
Georgiev considers it a translation of an earlier Thracian name (*
Usdik (e), literally “nettle.” Another hypothesis proposed by Vasil
Mikov connects the obsolete form of the name “Koprishitsa” with the
Greek κοπριά (“stable”, “manure”).
Legends of Koprivshtitsa
Historians still do not agree on the establishment of the town of
Koprivshtitsa.
Tradition for the Parish
It is assumed that
the old roads connecting the towns of Zlatitsa, Pirdop and Klisura
with Strelcha and Panagyurishte crossed at the site of today's
Koprivshtitsa. Located in a valley covered with lush green grass,
irrigated by the river Topolnitsa and its tributaries, the place was
suitable for caravans, travelers and traders.
Due to the
favorable natural conditions in the area settled an old Bulgarian
family with their herds - the so-called "parish". They started a new
settlement. As the number of people in the parish increased, the
houses increased and small home communities were formed. Almost
every relative received a nickname - Tihanek, Kozlek, Duplek, Lomek
due to specific traits, activities and events related to him. From
there came the names of the newly created neighborhoods, some of
them remain as surnames to this day.
In support of this
theory is the fact that part of the Lambovska (Cocoon) neighborhood
is still called Zupata. This part is a small square located in the
center of the neighborhood. In 1922, a fountain called "Raina" or
"Rainovets" was erected on the southwest wall surrounding the
square. Its patrons are women from the local Annunciation Society.
This part of the neighborhood is also called "The Burnout".
The boyar from Rila
Another legend tells of a young woman who
settled on the site of today's Koprivshtitsa, as the area seemed
suitable for raising cattle. Shortly after her arrival, she went to
Edirne (present-day Turkey), where she begged the Sultan for a
decree, through which she became ruler of Koprivshtitsa, and the
village received great privileges. In this firman for the first time
the sultan called Koprivshtitsa Avratalan - "women's meadow", a name
that was then often used by the Turks. Legend has it that a Turk
with a shod horse was not allowed to pass through the village, and
its inhabitants were free to carry weapons. Out of gratitude and
respect for the boyar, the people of Koprivshtitsa called her
Sultankata, and her descendants were called Sultanekovi for many
years.
It is possible that these two versions of the creation
of Koprivshtitsa are connected. In the initial period after the
settlement of the old parish, the family ties were very close. For
this reason, people from Koprivshtitsa did not marry each other, but
looked for women from elsewhere. It is possible that one of the
members of the parish of noble origin and prosperity married a girl
of a boyar family.
A city created by refugees
There are
assumptions that after the fall of Bulgaria under Turkish rule in
the area settled refugees - descendants of large Bulgarian families,
merchants, herders with their herds. Among them were three shepherds
- Lambo, Toroman and Arnautin ("Arnauts" called Albanians and
Bulgarians from the Macedonian areas adjacent to Albania). They
created small family communities, which grew over time and gave the
names of the existing neighborhoods in the city - Toroman
neighborhood, Lambovska and Arnaut neighborhood.
In the
middle of the 18th century the inhabitants of Koprivshtitsa sued for
pastures with those of Strelcha. At that time, both settlements
belonged to the waqf of Mihrimah, the deceased daughter of Sultan
Suleiman I.
Legend of the Snotty Stones
In the 18th - 19th
century, when Koprivshtitsa had nearly 12,000 inhabitants, the
management of the then village was in the form of a matriarchy. As
cattle breeding and handicrafts were not a sufficient source of
livelihood, men went abroad en masse. A few kilometers from the
village, the road to Pazardzhik and Plovdiv, leading the emigrants
to Constantinople and the Middle East, before descending to
Strelcha, meanders through an area dotted with stone moraines.
Families have sent fathers and brothers to this place on the long
and risky journey. The separation was difficult and many tears were
shed there for years. Thus the stone heaps acquired their
bitter-ironic name - the Snotty Stones.
History of the city
Under Ottoman rule
Koprivshtitsa (Turkish
Avratalan, Women's Field) is the main military village in Sredna
Gora and is located 10 hours drive from Plovdiv. The legend of the
Rila boyar, who asked the sultan for a settlement, is reflected in
his Ottoman name. Among the great privileges that the village
receives is the prohibition for a Turk not to pass through this
place on horseback, and for the people of Koprivshtitsa to wear
colorful clothes, high hats, to ride good horses and to use good
weapons. These acquisitions undoubtedly confirm the military status
of the village, as the Koprivshtitsa soldiers in the ranks of the
Turkish army reached Offen and Vienna. They lived relatively freely
without paying large taxes like the rest of the population of the
Bulgarian lands and soon the number of inhabitants of the village
reached 10,000 people. Balaban, a hero who showed courage in the
wars with the Austrians, a resident of Koprivshtitsa asked for a new
decree for his hometown, according to which Koprivshtitsa is
directly subordinate to the sultan and that it, except for the
contribution to the Constantinople Fethiye Mosque, is free of any
taxes. ; that local chiefs had the right to wear special hats and
that only a Turkish official subordinate to the chiefs there would
live there.
Due to the privileges enjoyed by the people of
Koprivshtitsa, they maintained their prosperity even after the fall
of Bulgaria under Ottoman rule. The riches of the town attracted the
people of Kardzhali, who three times - in 1793, 1804 and 1809 -
robbed it, burned it and drove out its inhabitants, leaving only the
"Pavlikyanska house" from the first settlement. During the attack in
1793, Koprivshtitsa refugees were scattered from Plovdiv to Edirne
and Dimotika. Thanks to their patriotism, ingenuity and diligence,
the people of Koprivshtitsa managed to revive the city and preserve
its magical charm to this day.
In 1867 around the feast of St.
Trinity Vasil Levski came to Koprivshtitsa and created the first
Revolutionary Committee. Its members are Petko Boyadzhiev, Ivancho
Hristov, Tsoko Budin - a jelepin merchant, Nesho Popbraikov - a
teacher, and others. The committee does not have a precise program
of action, but is guided by apostles through visits or letters. The
Apostle V. Levski wants information about men fit to fight with
weapons, food supplies and hiding places around the village in the
mountains. Thus, the Apostle of Freedom prepares the spirits of the
people of Koprivshtitsa for a future uprising. In 1868 Levski came
again to Koprivshtitsa, and before being captured by the Turks, he
again visited the awake Balkan village. On April 20, 1876, the April
Uprising broke out. Two detachments were quickly formed and sent to
surround the konak and the prisons in it. Here, on the Kalachev
Bridge, the first rifle fires. The group, led by Georgi Tihanek,
accidentally met Kara Hussein Hajduk on the road on the Kalach
Bridge and Tihanek shot him. This is the first Turk killed in the
uprising. The uprising was announced by Todor Kableshkov, and was
led by another Koprivshtitsa resident - Gavrail Hlatev, known for
generations as Georgi Benkovski - the indomitable and ardent leader
of the popular uprising, who died heroically in the Teteven Balkans.
On May 1, the bashibozuk began to gather around Koprivshtitsa,
supported by a regular army that had artillery. The Turks number
about 5,000 people. It is led by Hafez Pasha. He has already
destroyed Panagyurishte and is sending his assistant, Miralay Hassan
Bey, to "take care" of Koprivshtitsa. The rebels were betrayed by
the chorbadjii. They entered into negotiations with Hassan Bey,
handing over even the wooden cannons to the Turks and paying a
ransom. However, the bashibozuk invaded Koprivshtitsa and it was
looted and the inhabitants slaughtered. On May 3, Hassan Bey entered
the devastated village and, on his orders, the captured rebels were
sent to court in Plovdiv. Soon Hafez Pasha arrives and plunders the
city again.
Bulgarian Revival
Establishment of the
Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1817)
Establishment of the school "St. St. Cyril and Methodius ”(1837)
Founding of the Temple of the Father "Our Father Nicholas" (1839)
Establishment of the National Chitalishte (1869) with the author of
the Chitalishte statute teacher Naiden Popstoyanov.
April 20,
1876 - on this date (in the old style) in Koprivshtitsa the April
Uprising was announced.
Georgi Tihanek on "Kalachev Bridge" fired
the first shot of the uprising.
Todor Kableshkov wrote the famous
Bloody Letter.
Naiden Gerov, "Dictionary of the Bulgarian
Language with Interpretation of Speeches in Bulgarian and Russian"
(1895 - 1904).
Archimandrite Euthymius, compiler. "Jubilee
collection on the past of Koprivshtitsa" (1926)
After the
Liberation
The first museum in Koprivshtitsa was arranged in
1930 in the community center. This is a general museum collection
with different departments: history, ethnography, revolutionary
movement, prominent citizens of Koprivshtitsa, etc. In 1935, the
museum, already significantly enriched, was located on the first
floor of the Kableshkova House, and the first "full-time" museum
worker was appointed.
The Koprivshtitsa anarcho-communist
detachment operated in the town and the region, organized the attack
in Arabakonak, as well as the partisan brigade "Georgi Benkovski".
The destruction of the city was stopped with the declaration of
Koprivshtitsa as a city museum in 1952. In 1971 it received the
status of an architectural and historical reserve, and in 1978 - a
national architectural reserve of international importance and a
settlement for international tourism. Dimcho Debelyanov's first
cousin - arch. Velyo Debelyanov and Petko Teofilov.
In 1956 in
Koprivshtitsa a Directorate of Museums was established in order to
preserve, preserve and promote the cultural and historical heritage
of the city.
In the 1970s, a significant restoration and
conservation of museums, cultural monuments, and the streets of the
city, which was declared a national historical reserve, was
undertaken. The decision was made on June 29, 1971 by the Second
Government of Todor Zhivkov. In ten years, the state has invested
BGN 28 million in the construction of 400 new houses and 100 new
sites. The most significant monument built as a result of this
decision is that of Georgi Benkovski.