Architecture of the Tarnovo Artistic School
Encyclopedia
The Architecture of the Tarnovo Artistic School is a term for the development of architecture
during the Second Bulgarian Empire
(1185–1396). In the 13th and 14th centuries the capital Tarnovo
determined the progress of the Bulgarian architecture with many edifices preserved or reconstructed which show the skills of the Medieval Bulgaria
n architects and the construction and decorative techniques they used. With its diverse architecture, the Tarnovo School may be separated into several branches according to the function of the buildings.
During the Second Bulgarian Empire the churches did not have huge or complicated design because they were intended to be a place of penance. Typical of the Tarnovo School of Architecture were relatively small cruciform
dome churches or basilica
s. At the expense of its small length and width, the churches rose to height. They were often built over a stone base around one meter high. As a principle the main entrance was located to the west. After the doorway followed the pritvor (narthex), the naos
and the altar. A small rectangular bell-tower sometimes rose above the narthex ("St Dimitar of Solun" in Tarnovo, the Church in the Asenova krepost
in Asenovgrad
, the Church of Christ Pantocrator
in Nessebar and others). The naos could be separated into naves (in the basilicas) with columns or pillars. According to the number of naves the churches were one-naved ("St Dimitar of Solun" in the Asen's Neighbourhood, Tarnovo, Boyana Church
), two-naved ("St Ivan of Rila" in Trapezitsa, Tarnovo) and three-naved (SS. Forty Martyrs Church in Tarnovo, "St Nicola" in Melnik
). In the cruciform dome churches (Church of St John Aliturgetos
and Church of Christ Pantocrator, both in Nessebar) the dome lied over four columns which were connected to the walls with arches. The altar was formed by a semicircular or polygonal apse. In some churches the altar was separated into three parts and the external ones (called bema and diakonnik) were used for safe-keeping of the church plates, garments and books. In that case there was usually a triple apse. The design was complicated by a pre-apse space. The vaults were semicircular and built of bricks. Some churches had outhouse parts such as galleries (SS. Forty Martyrs Church and "St Peter and Pavel" in Tarnovo), chapels (Boyana Church), ossuaries and others. The Church "St Virgin Maria of Petrich" in the Asenova krepost has two stories and the lower one served as an ossuary.
A peculiar type of Christian churches were those with a triconch plan. They are small, one-naved with or without a narthex. Their main peculiarity were the three conchas (apse
s) placed in the eastern, southern and northern walls of the naos. The small dome is laid directly on the walls. The conchal churches can be found mainly in the monasteries and are not so exquisite. Examples include the church in the "St Archangels" Monastery in Tran
, "St Nicola Mrachki" in the Peshterski Monastery and others.
The main feature of the Tarnovo School of Architecture is the rich decorative ornamentation in exterior of the edifices. The technique that was used was called mixed construction in which belts of stone and bricks alternated with each other. That method was a heritage from the Roman architecture
(opus mixtum) but in that case it had lost its initial constructive application and was used mainly with artistic purpose. The wide plaster fugues also had decorative purpose. The builder chose different types of stone (limestone
, travertine
, marble
, granite
), and the bricks had varied shape and dimensions and were put in different positions forming decorative ornaments and monograms. A cell type method was sometimes used in which each stone block was completely surrounded by bricks. The bricks were painted in red in order to increase the contrast. The facades of the churches were segmented by deep niches (ofter with two steps) decorated with flying buttresses and archvaults. Unlike the churches in Constantinople
the niches from the Tarnovo School of Architecture do not respond to the interior (pseudo constructive niches) and were used for purely decoratve purpose. As an additional decoration rows of clay circles and four-leaves glazed in green, brown, yellow or orange were used. The origins of that type of decoration are in the Arab architecture. The Nessebar churches "St John Aliturgetos" and "Christ Pantocrator" have especially sumptuous decoration.
Sometimes the architects used painting to decorate certain elements. The lunettes of the niches of St Dimitar of Solun Church in the capital were plastered up and painted with rhomboid patterns. High on the walls in some churches consoles were built in on which laid small decorative arches. The roofs were covered with tiles or lead plates (the initial cover of St Peter and Pavel in Tarnovo), the dome was narrow and high with circular or polygonal shape. The polygonal domes were characterized with small columns on the corners. The appearance of the churches was complemented with sculptures and paintings.
in Athon; Bachkovo Monastery
near Asenovgrad or the Rila Monastery
. Although destroyed several times, the overall plan of the later follows the traditions of the Second Bulgarian Empire.
With the growing influence of the Hesychasm
, during the 14th century the rock monasteries became widespread. The monk's dwelling and the churches were directly hewn into the rocks. Wooden balconies and stairs were added from which only the cradles in the rocks have survived. That type of monasteries were mainly built in north-eastern Bulgaria along the rivers Ruse Lom, Black Lom and White Lom.
The largest concentrations of monasteries in medieval Bulgaria were in northern Stara Planina especially around the capital; in the areas to the north and south Sofia
; the southern Black Sea
coast; the area around Pirot
and in Macedonia
. Many of these were called the small Mount Athon.
. The walls of the fortresses were built from stones welded together with plaster; they had two faces and the space between them was filled with a mixture of gravel and plaster (blockage). A wooden scaffolding was built from the inside which protected the walls from collapse until the blockage dried up. The height and thickness of the walls varied depending on the terrain and in the different parts of one castle complex they could vary. The top of the walls and the towers had pinnacles. Counterforts were used as additional protection from landslip.
The tower varied in shape: square, rectangular (the tower in Cherven
), circular, oval, triangular, horseshoe-shaped or with irregular shape. Depending on their position and functions they were: entrance, defense, edge or water towers. The later were towers-wells, located in the immediate vicinity of a river in such a way that their foundations soaked up water. The immense fortress Tsarevets
in Tarnovo had such water towers. They could be reached by vertical walls from the main stronghold with secret galleries. They were extremely useful during long sieges. In the most difficult place to access in the fortress stood the citadel: a separate rampart in case the outer areas were overrun by the enemy. Examples of such citadels can be found in the castles of Shumen
, Lovech
, Cherven, Ohrid
, Devol
and others. As an additional defense some castles had water-filled moats. A fine example of this is Baba Vida
in Vidin
. In many cases such moat were of no need due to the fine positioning of the fortress. The Yantra
river makes double curve around the two main fortresses in the capital Tarnovo, Tsarevets and Trapezitsa and served as a natural water obstacle. Many other castles were protected in a similar way such as Cherven or Prosek
. Some seaside strongholds (Kaliakra
, Nessebar) also had a natural water barrier.
Sometimes the steep rocks were enough defense and walls were built only in vulnerable places. An example of such type of fortress is the Belogradchik Fortress
. Often these ramparts looked like ordinary plateaus or hills and hence they were called "hidden fortresses". Many strongholds if that type guarded the mountain passes of Stara Planina between Moesia
and Thrace
.
A peculiar type of defensive facility was the pirgos (a single tower) called in Western Europe
dungeon
. It was built inside the fortress without any links to the other edifices. It served as a last refuge for the defenders in case the other parts of the fortress had fallen. Examples for pirgos in the country are the ruins in Matochina
(near the Tundzha
river), the tower in the Sadovo monastery and the Tower of Hrelyo in the Rila monastery built in 1335 which is completely preserved. It is 23,60 meters high and has five storeys. A cellar is located in its foundations. There was also a well which supplied the defenders with fresh water during sieges. Reinforced counterforts supported the tower. They merge with brick arches and serve as a base for the Transfiguration of God Chapel located at the top of the tower. Most of the pirgos usually had four or five storeys. In the monastery pirgos the most valuable objects (the treasury and the donations) were kept as well as the library
.
Military architecture had purely functional purpose. The builder did not follow aesthetic criteria and rarely constructed decorative elements on the fortifications. In fact many castles were part of large defensive systems which covered the frontier regions or ran along the middle of the country. The most important fortification systems were along the Danube to the north, Stara Planina in the Middle, Black Sea to the east, the Rhodopes to the south and Macedonia to the south-west. Apart from the capital Tarnovo, the major Bulgarian fortresses included Vidin, Silistra
, Shumen, Cherven, Lovech
, Sofia, Plovdiv, Lyutitsa
, Ustra, Ohrid, Skopie, Bitola
and many others.
Тhe defensive system of Tarnovo was impressive. The Medieval capital had three fortified hills: Tsarevets, Trapezitsa and Momina Krepost (Devingrad). Numerous monasteries nestled on the Sveta Gora heights. Between the hills were situated several neighbourhoods: the New City (Asenova mahala); the quarter of the foreign merchants (Frazgrad) and the Jew quarter; they were all surrounded by walls. The palaces of the Emperors and the Patriarch were located on the most heavily fortified hill, Tsarevets and both resembled a small citadel in way.
Тhe Imperial Palace was initially a bolyar castle and underwent two major reconstruction under Ivan Asen II
(1218–1241) and Ivan Alexander
(1331–1371). In its final appearance it was a small fortress with approximately oval shape. The thickness of its walls reached two meters. The entrance gates were guarded by round and rectangular towers, the main entrance was located in the round tower of the northern facade. The north-western edge tower was particularly massive. From the inside the edifices were built around an inner yard with richly decorated royal church in the middle. Due to the rugged terrain some buildings had two and others had three storeys.
The Patriarch Palace rising on the highest point of Tsarevets dominated the city. Its plan resembled those of the Imperial Palace. Thick walls surrounded the patio in which the cruciform dome Ascension of God Church was situated. The foundations of two round towers have been excavated one in the northern and the other in the southern parts of the palace. The main entrance was in the western rectangular tower. A four-cornered bell-tower was adjoined to the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Holy Ascension of God
whose architecture design is unique for South-eastern Europe. The residential and office sections were located in the southern part.
The construction of the palaces was from stone soldered with plaster. Large stone blocks were used only in some places unlike the buildings from Pliska and Preslav. From the outside they had austere and monumental appearance. For the imposing edifices the architects used mixed construction methods and decorative elements similar to those from the churches. Unfortunately due to the heavy damage they suffered, it is not possible to be restored the overall appearance of the palaces for certain. Some premises were richly decorated with mosaic
s and mural paintings and probably served for audiences and Royal apartments. The using of stone inscriptions from Antiquity
which were embedded into the walls was characteristic for the Architecture of the Tarnovo School of Architecture. Most of the came from the ancient Roman town of Nicopolis ad Istrum
located at 18 km to the north of Tarnovo. That feature impressed the Bulgarian Catholic
archbishop
Peter Bogdan who wrote and interesting description of Tsarevets in 1640.
On the hill there were also shops, workshops, warehouses and dwelling which probably belonged to the craftsmen and the servants. The narrow streets were covered with cobbles. The foundations of churches, water tanks and bolyar houses have been excavated. The walls which are 12 meters high follow the crown of the hill. The main gate was situated in the western section of the fortress and was defended by a complex fortification which included three towers, three gates and a drawbridge above the steep cliffs. Tsarevets had five more gates. There were also secret underground passages. Below the heights, along the river was built a second wall ring which surrounded the hill. In the vicinity of the Great Lavra monastery were discovered the foundations of a stone bridge which spanned over the Yantra river.
In a similar way was organized the defensive system of the other large hill Trapezitsa. It was surrounded by thick walls and many tower and had six gates. The foundations of a pirgos and 17 churches have been found during excavations.
During the 13th and 14th centuries Tarnovo had around 30,000 inhabitants and was the second largest city in the Balkan peninsula after the Byzantine
capital Constantinople.
The general type of the bolyar houses between the 13th and 14th centuries is difficult to determine because of the lack of enough architecture data. To the north of the Royal Palace in Tsarevets were excavated the foundations of a bolyar house from the beginning of the 13th century. Its general plan was Г-shaped and consisted of residential and еconomic part. High stone walls closed the yard from the other sides. The residential edifice had two floors. The first floor was built of stone and separated into three identical rooms, the middle of which looked towards the yard; there was the door. The marble bases of the two columns which supported the second floor and parts of the staircase have been preserved. The second floor was with bow-windows and the room in the middle was probably open-air. The economic section had one floor and was segmented into several parts and had veranda looking to the yard. In the south-western edge are visible the foundations of a small family church with one nave. The bolyar house in Melnik has a similar plan and is also dated from the 14th century.
From the Second Bulgarian Empire there are basically two types of mass dwellings: semi-dug houses (semi dug-out) and overground houses. The semi-dug dwelling can be also divided into two types: evenly dug in (around 150 cm) and dug in inclined terrain, in that cases the rear was fully under the ground and the front was exposed. The first type was built with timber and covered with straw or reed. Similar dwellings were known from the First Bulgarian Empire too. The senond type of houses were built of stones soldered with mud (in the parts over the ground) and the roof was made of timber. The depth of dug-in reached two meters and the door was from the exposed part. The floor was covered with bricks or plastered up with clay. A furnace was used for heating and the smoke came out from an opening on the roof. Such dwellings are found in the western slopes of Momina Krepost and on the slopes of the Tsarevets hill. These houses had a very slow evolution, their root were from 8th to 12th century and continued to be used during the period of the Ottoman
domination. A variety of that type are the semi-dug houses built entirely of stone which had a second floor. The most common type of houses in the Medieval Bulgarian towns were the overground houses. Their ruins have been found in Tarnovo, Shumen, Lovech, Cherven. They were usually with two storeys and one or two rooms. They were built on a previously leveled ground closely adjoining each other and were usually without yards. They were built of stones soldered with mud or plaster. The roof was probably made of timber. Their inhabitants were probably craftsmen or servants of the aristocracy
. The ground floors were used for shops and workshops.
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
during the Second Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...
(1185–1396). In the 13th and 14th centuries the capital Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists...
determined the progress of the Bulgarian architecture with many edifices preserved or reconstructed which show the skills of the Medieval Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n architects and the construction and decorative techniques they used. With its diverse architecture, the Tarnovo School may be separated into several branches according to the function of the buildings.
Design
Cruciform
Cruciform means having the shape of a cross or Christian cross.- Cruciform architectural plan :This is a common description of Christian churches. In Early Christian, Byzantine and other Eastern Orthodox forms of church architecture this is more likely to mean a tetraconch plan, a Greek cross,...
dome churches or basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
s. At the expense of its small length and width, the churches rose to height. They were often built over a stone base around one meter high. As a principle the main entrance was located to the west. After the doorway followed the pritvor (narthex), the naos
Cella
A cella or naos , is the inner chamber of a temple in classical architecture, or a shop facing the street in domestic Roman architecture...
and the altar. A small rectangular bell-tower sometimes rose above the narthex ("St Dimitar of Solun" in Tarnovo, the Church in the Asenova krepost
Asenova krepost
Asen's Fortress , identified by some researchers as Petrich , is a medieval fortress in the Bulgarian Rhodope Mountains, 2-3 km south of the town of Asenovgrad, on a high rocky ridge on the left bank of the Asenitsa River....
in Asenovgrad
Asenovgrad
Asenovgrad is a town in central southern Bulgaria, part of Plovdiv Province.-History:Asenovgrad was founded by the Thracians as Stenímachos around 300–400 BC. In 72 BC the city was captured by the troops of the Roman Empire as part of the Roman expansion towards the Black Sea. After a long period...
, the Church of Christ Pantocrator
Church of Christ Pantocrator, Nessebar
The Church of Christ Pantocrator is a medieval Eastern Orthodox church in the eastern Bulgarian town of Nesebar , on the Black Sea coast of Burgas Province. Part of the Ancient Nesebar UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Church of Christ Pantocrator was constructed in the 13th–14th century and is best...
in Nessebar and others). The naos could be separated into naves (in the basilicas) with columns or pillars. According to the number of naves the churches were one-naved ("St Dimitar of Solun" in the Asen's Neighbourhood, Tarnovo, Boyana Church
Boyana Church
The Boyana Church is a medieval Bulgarian Orthodox church situated on the outskirts of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, in the Boyana quarter...
), two-naved ("St Ivan of Rila" in Trapezitsa, Tarnovo) and three-naved (SS. Forty Martyrs Church in Tarnovo, "St Nicola" in Melnik
Melnik
-Places:Bulgaria* Melnik, Bulgaria, a town in Bulgaria* Shiroka Melnishka Losa, a Bulgarian wine grape also known as MelnikCzech Republic* Mělník, a townUnited States* Melnik, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community...
). In the cruciform dome churches (Church of St John Aliturgetos
Church of St John Aliturgetos
The Church of St Ioan Aliturgetos is located in Nesebar, Bulgaria.The church was not consecrated, hence the name - "aliturgetos" is the Greek for "not consecrated". The legend says that one of the builders fell down and got killed. The church canon did not allow a place where a man had been killed...
and Church of Christ Pantocrator, both in Nessebar) the dome lied over four columns which were connected to the walls with arches. The altar was formed by a semicircular or polygonal apse. In some churches the altar was separated into three parts and the external ones (called bema and diakonnik) were used for safe-keeping of the church plates, garments and books. In that case there was usually a triple apse. The design was complicated by a pre-apse space. The vaults were semicircular and built of bricks. Some churches had outhouse parts such as galleries (SS. Forty Martyrs Church and "St Peter and Pavel" in Tarnovo), chapels (Boyana Church), ossuaries and others. The Church "St Virgin Maria of Petrich" in the Asenova krepost has two stories and the lower one served as an ossuary.
A peculiar type of Christian churches were those with a triconch plan. They are small, one-naved with or without a narthex. Their main peculiarity were the three conchas (apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
s) placed in the eastern, southern and northern walls of the naos. The small dome is laid directly on the walls. The conchal churches can be found mainly in the monasteries and are not so exquisite. Examples include the church in the "St Archangels" Monastery in Tran
Tran
Tran or TRAN may refer to:* Tran, Bulgaria, a small town in Pernik Province, western Bulgaria* Trần , a Vietnamese surname spelled as Chan in Cantonese or Chen in Mandarin. This is one of the most populated surname in both Vietnam and China. As the descendent of Han Chinese, many immigrated to...
, "St Nicola Mrachki" in the Peshterski Monastery and others.
Decorative ornaments
Roman architecture
Ancient Roman architecture adopted certain aspects of Ancient Greek architecture, creating a new architectural style. The Romans were indebted to their Etruscan neighbors and forefathers who supplied them with a wealth of knowledge essential for future architectural solutions, such as hydraulics...
(opus mixtum) but in that case it had lost its initial constructive application and was used mainly with artistic purpose. The wide plaster fugues also had decorative purpose. The builder chose different types of stone (limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, travertine
Travertine
Travertine is a form of limestone deposited by mineral springs, especially hot springs. Travertine often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, and cream-colored varieties. It is formed by a process of rapid precipitation of calcium carbonate, often at the mouth of a hot...
, marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
, granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
), and the bricks had varied shape and dimensions and were put in different positions forming decorative ornaments and monograms. A cell type method was sometimes used in which each stone block was completely surrounded by bricks. The bricks were painted in red in order to increase the contrast. The facades of the churches were segmented by deep niches (ofter with two steps) decorated with flying buttresses and archvaults. Unlike the churches in Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
the niches from the Tarnovo School of Architecture do not respond to the interior (pseudo constructive niches) and were used for purely decoratve purpose. As an additional decoration rows of clay circles and four-leaves glazed in green, brown, yellow or orange were used. The origins of that type of decoration are in the Arab architecture. The Nessebar churches "St John Aliturgetos" and "Christ Pantocrator" have especially sumptuous decoration.
Monasteries
During the 13th and especially during the 14th centuries the construction of monasteries thrived. Small monasteries such as the SS Forty Martyrs Monastery as well as large monastery complexes were constructed. Due to the troubled times many monasteries resembled fortresses. They usually had rectangular shape, the buildings surrounded a yard in which the main church was located. From the outside they had high stone walls reinforced with counterforts, and from the inside there were galleries with several stores which led towards the dwellings of the monks. The monastery complexes also included farm buildings, stores and workshops. Examples of that type are the Zograf MonasteryZograf Monastery
The Saint George the Zograf Monastery or Zograf Monastery is a Bulgarian Orthodox monastery on Mount Athos in Greece...
in Athon; Bachkovo Monastery
Bachkovo Monastery
The Bachkovo Monastery , archaically the Petritsoni Monastery or Monastery of the Mother of God Petritzonitissa in Bulgaria is an important monument of Christian architecture and one of the largest and oldest Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Europe...
near Asenovgrad or the Rila Monastery
Rila Monastery
The Monastery of Saint Ivan of Rila, better known as the Rila Monastery is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the southwestern Rila Mountains, south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River at an elevation of above sea level...
. Although destroyed several times, the overall plan of the later follows the traditions of the Second Bulgarian Empire.
With the growing influence of the Hesychasm
Hesychasm
Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches, such as the Byzantine Rite, practised by the Hesychast Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches,...
, during the 14th century the rock monasteries became widespread. The monk's dwelling and the churches were directly hewn into the rocks. Wooden balconies and stairs were added from which only the cradles in the rocks have survived. That type of monasteries were mainly built in north-eastern Bulgaria along the rivers Ruse Lom, Black Lom and White Lom.
The largest concentrations of monasteries in medieval Bulgaria were in northern Stara Planina especially around the capital; in the areas to the north and south Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
; the southern Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
coast; the area around Pirot
Pirot
Pirot is a town and municipality located in south-eastern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the town has a total population of 38,432, while the population of the municipality is 57,911...
and in Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
. Many of these were called the small Mount Athon.
Military architecture
During the Second Empire the fortresses were usually built on locations which were difficult to access (hills or plateaus) and thus they sharply differed from the monumental construction in the north-east of the country from the period of the First Bulgarian EmpireFirst Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
. The walls of the fortresses were built from stones welded together with plaster; they had two faces and the space between them was filled with a mixture of gravel and plaster (blockage). A wooden scaffolding was built from the inside which protected the walls from collapse until the blockage dried up. The height and thickness of the walls varied depending on the terrain and in the different parts of one castle complex they could vary. The top of the walls and the towers had pinnacles. Counterforts were used as additional protection from landslip.
The tower varied in shape: square, rectangular (the tower in Cherven
Cherven (fortress)
The stronghold of Cherven was one of the Second Bulgarian Empire's primary military, administrative, economic and cultural centres between the 12th and the 14th century...
), circular, oval, triangular, horseshoe-shaped or with irregular shape. Depending on their position and functions they were: entrance, defense, edge or water towers. The later were towers-wells, located in the immediate vicinity of a river in such a way that their foundations soaked up water. The immense fortress Tsarevets
Tsarevets
Tsarevets is a medieval stronghold located on a hill with the same name in Veliko Tarnovo in northern Bulgaria. It served as the Second Bulgarian Empire's primary fortress and strongest bulwark from 1185 to 1393, housing the royal and the patriarchal palaces, and is a popular tourist...
in Tarnovo had such water towers. They could be reached by vertical walls from the main stronghold with secret galleries. They were extremely useful during long sieges. In the most difficult place to access in the fortress stood the citadel: a separate rampart in case the outer areas were overrun by the enemy. Examples of such citadels can be found in the castles of Shumen
Shumen
Shumen is the tenth-largest city in Bulgaria and capital of Shumen Province. In the period 1950–1965 it was called Kolarovgrad, after the name of the communist leader Vasil Kolarov...
, Lovech
Lovech
Lovech is a town in north-central Bulgaria with a population of 36,296 as of February 2011. It is the administrative centre of the Lovech Province and of the subordinate Lovech Municipality. The town is located about 150 km northeast from the capital city of Sofia...
, Cherven, Ohrid
Ohrid
Ohrid is a city on the eastern shore of Lake Ohrid in the Republic of Macedonia. It has about 42,000 inhabitants, making it the seventh largest city in the country. The city is the seat of Ohrid Municipality. Ohrid is notable for having once had 365 churches, one for each day of the year and has...
, Devol
Devol
Devol can refer to:*George Devol, inventor of the first industrial robot*Frank Denny De Vol, sometimes known simply as DeVol, was an American arranger, composer and actor*Devol, Oklahoma*Devoll or Devolli, a river in southern Albania...
and others. As an additional defense some castles had water-filled moats. A fine example of this is Baba Vida
Baba Vida
Baba Vida is a medieval fortress in Vidin in northwestern Bulgaria and the town's primary landmark. It consists of two fundamental walls and four towers and is said to be the only entirely preserved medieval castle in the country....
in Vidin
Vidin
Vidin is a port town on the southern bank of the Danube in northwestern Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Serbia and Romania, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as of the Metropolitan of Vidin...
. In many cases such moat were of no need due to the fine positioning of the fortress. The Yantra
Yantra
Yantra is the Sanskrit word for "instrument" or "machine". Much like the word "instrument" itself, it can stand for symbols, processes, automata, machinery or anything that has structure and organization, depending on context....
river makes double curve around the two main fortresses in the capital Tarnovo, Tsarevets and Trapezitsa and served as a natural water obstacle. Many other castles were protected in a similar way such as Cherven or Prosek
Prosek
Prosek , also known as Stenae, is an archaeological site located in the Demir Kapija Canyon, in Republic of Macedonia. This ancient settlement had an excellent strategical and war position. It was discovered in 1948...
. Some seaside strongholds (Kaliakra
Kaliakra
Kaliakra is a long and narrow headland in the Southern Dobruja region of the northern Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, located 12 km east of Kavarna and 60 km northeast of Varna. The coast is steep with vertical cliffs reaching 70 m down to the sea....
, Nessebar) also had a natural water barrier.
Sometimes the steep rocks were enough defense and walls were built only in vulnerable places. An example of such type of fortress is the Belogradchik Fortress
Belogradchik Fortress
The Belogradchik Fortress , also known as Kaleto , is an ancient fortress close to the northwestern Bulgarian town of Belogradchik and the town's primary cultural and historical tourist attraction, drawing, together with the Belogradchik Rocks, the main flow of tourists into the region...
. Often these ramparts looked like ordinary plateaus or hills and hence they were called "hidden fortresses". Many strongholds if that type guarded the mountain passes of Stara Planina between Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
and Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
.
A peculiar type of defensive facility was the pirgos (a single tower) called in Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
dungeon
Dungeon
A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period...
. It was built inside the fortress without any links to the other edifices. It served as a last refuge for the defenders in case the other parts of the fortress had fallen. Examples for pirgos in the country are the ruins in Matochina
Matochina
Matochina is a small village in southeastern Bulgaria, part of Svilengrad municipality, Haskovo Province. Matochina lies in the southernmost ridges of the Sakar Mountain, from the municipal centre Svilengrad and from the provincial capital Haskovo; it is located just west of the Bulgaria–Turkey...
(near the Tundzha
Tundzha
The Tundzha is a river in Bulgaria and Turkey and the most significant tributary of the Maritsa, emptying into it on Turkish territory near Edirne....
river), the tower in the Sadovo monastery and the Tower of Hrelyo in the Rila monastery built in 1335 which is completely preserved. It is 23,60 meters high and has five storeys. A cellar is located in its foundations. There was also a well which supplied the defenders with fresh water during sieges. Reinforced counterforts supported the tower. They merge with brick arches and serve as a base for the Transfiguration of God Chapel located at the top of the tower. Most of the pirgos usually had four or five storeys. In the monastery pirgos the most valuable objects (the treasury and the donations) were kept as well as the library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
Military architecture had purely functional purpose. The builder did not follow aesthetic criteria and rarely constructed decorative elements on the fortifications. In fact many castles were part of large defensive systems which covered the frontier regions or ran along the middle of the country. The most important fortification systems were along the Danube to the north, Stara Planina in the Middle, Black Sea to the east, the Rhodopes to the south and Macedonia to the south-west. Apart from the capital Tarnovo, the major Bulgarian fortresses included Vidin, Silistra
Silistra
Silistra is a port city of northeastern Bulgaria, lying on the southern bank of the lower Danube at the country's border with Romania. Silistra is the administrative centre of Silistra Province and one of the important cities of the historical region of Southern Dobrudzha...
, Shumen, Cherven, Lovech
Lovech
Lovech is a town in north-central Bulgaria with a population of 36,296 as of February 2011. It is the administrative centre of the Lovech Province and of the subordinate Lovech Municipality. The town is located about 150 km northeast from the capital city of Sofia...
, Sofia, Plovdiv, Lyutitsa
Lyutitsa
Lyutitsa is one of the largest and best preserved castles in the easternmost part of the Eastern Rhodopes, located 3.5 hours' walk south-west of Ivaylovgrad, in southernmost Bulgaria. It is also known as the "Marble City" because of its walls made of white marble.The fortress occupies an area of...
, Ustra, Ohrid, Skopie, Bitola
Bitola
Bitola is a city in the southwestern part of the Republic of Macedonia. The city is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational centre. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba and Nidže mountains, 14 km north of the...
and many others.
Palace construction and urban planning
Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria
-Early rule:He was a son of Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria and Elena . Elena, who survived until after 1235, is sometimes alleged to be a daughter of Stefan Nemanja of Serbia, but this relationship is questionable and would have caused various canonical impediments to marriages between various descendants...
(1218–1241) and Ivan Alexander
Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria
Ivan Alexander , also known as John Alexander, ruled as Emperor of Bulgaria from 1331 to 1371, during the Second Bulgarian Empire. The date of his birth is unknown. He died on February 17, 1371. The long reign of Ivan Alexander is considered a transitional period in Bulgarian medieval history...
(1331–1371). In its final appearance it was a small fortress with approximately oval shape. The thickness of its walls reached two meters. The entrance gates were guarded by round and rectangular towers, the main entrance was located in the round tower of the northern facade. The north-western edge tower was particularly massive. From the inside the edifices were built around an inner yard with richly decorated royal church in the middle. Due to the rugged terrain some buildings had two and others had three storeys.
Patriarchal Cathedral of the Holy Ascension of God
The Patriarchal Cathedral of the Holy Ascension of God is a former Eastern Orthodox cathedral in the city of Veliko Tarnovo, in north central Bulgaria...
whose architecture design is unique for South-eastern Europe. The residential and office sections were located in the southern part.
The construction of the palaces was from stone soldered with plaster. Large stone blocks were used only in some places unlike the buildings from Pliska and Preslav. From the outside they had austere and monumental appearance. For the imposing edifices the architects used mixed construction methods and decorative elements similar to those from the churches. Unfortunately due to the heavy damage they suffered, it is not possible to be restored the overall appearance of the palaces for certain. Some premises were richly decorated with mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
s and mural paintings and probably served for audiences and Royal apartments. The using of stone inscriptions from Antiquity
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
which were embedded into the walls was characteristic for the Architecture of the Tarnovo School of Architecture. Most of the came from the ancient Roman town of Nicopolis ad Istrum
Nicopolis ad Istrum
Nicopolis ad Istrum was a Roman and Early Byzantine town founded by Emperor Trajan around 101–106, at the junction of the Iatrus and the Rositsa rivers, in memory of his victory over the Dacians. Its ruins are located at the village of Nikyup, 20 km north of Veliko Tarnovo in northern Bulgaria...
located at 18 km to the north of Tarnovo. That feature impressed the Bulgarian Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
Peter Bogdan who wrote and interesting description of Tsarevets in 1640.
On the hill there were also shops, workshops, warehouses and dwelling which probably belonged to the craftsmen and the servants. The narrow streets were covered with cobbles. The foundations of churches, water tanks and bolyar houses have been excavated. The walls which are 12 meters high follow the crown of the hill. The main gate was situated in the western section of the fortress and was defended by a complex fortification which included three towers, three gates and a drawbridge above the steep cliffs. Tsarevets had five more gates. There were also secret underground passages. Below the heights, along the river was built a second wall ring which surrounded the hill. In the vicinity of the Great Lavra monastery were discovered the foundations of a stone bridge which spanned over the Yantra river.
In a similar way was organized the defensive system of the other large hill Trapezitsa. It was surrounded by thick walls and many tower and had six gates. The foundations of a pirgos and 17 churches have been found during excavations.
During the 13th and 14th centuries Tarnovo had around 30,000 inhabitants and was the second largest city in the Balkan peninsula after the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
capital Constantinople.
Residential architecture
The abodes during the Second Bulgarian Empire can be generally separated into two major types depending on the social status of their inhabitants.Bolyar houses
Mass dwelling
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
domination. A variety of that type are the semi-dug houses built entirely of stone which had a second floor. The most common type of houses in the Medieval Bulgarian towns were the overground houses. Their ruins have been found in Tarnovo, Shumen, Lovech, Cherven. They were usually with two storeys and one or two rooms. They were built on a previously leveled ground closely adjoining each other and were usually without yards. They were built of stones soldered with mud or plaster. The roof was probably made of timber. Their inhabitants were probably craftsmen or servants of the aristocracy
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
. The ground floors were used for shops and workshops.