Batak, Bulgaria
Encyclopedia
Batak is a town in Pazardzhik Province
, Southern Bulgaria
, not far from the town of Peshtera
. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Batak Municipality. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 3,498 inhabitants.
, at 1036 m above sea level. It is surrounded by many peaks, clad with century-old pine and spruce forests. The climate is temperate continental with a characteristic southern warm wind. Batak was pronounced town in 1964 and has a population of 4,019 people. Batak is a centre of one of Bulgaria's largest municipalities by terms of territory - 667 km2 or 15% of the Pazardzhik Province area - as well as one of the most sparsely populated ones including only the town itself and two villages - Fotinovo and Nova Mahala. Ninety percent of the municipal area is covered with thick forests.
Batak is situated at 15 km to the south of Peshtera
and 33 km to the south of the regional centre Pazardzhik
. The nearest railway station is in Peshtera.
There are numerous archaeological monuments of most ancient times in the region of Batak. A find of the Old Stone Age was discovered in 1958. Tools, objects, ceramic vessels, ornaments as well as bones of rhinoceros
were found which proves that the climate was warmer in the Quaternary
. Twenty Thracian
, Thraco-Roman
, Byzantine
and Slavic fortresses, churches and monasteries, as well as Thracian mounds, Roman bridges, mines, mills and other archaeological sites were registered.
in the valley of Chepino in 16th century today is rejected because it is believed that the settlement is much older. This is justified by an inscription on the fountain of Virgin Mary Monastery of Krichim built by the people of Batak in 1592, a writ of the feudal possessions of Sultan Suleiman I (1520–1566), in which the village of Batak is also mentioned, as well as the remnants of many churches and monasteries burnt down by the Ottomans during the conversion into Islam in this region. The origin of the name of Batak is not certain, too. In the old legends it is related to the Tsepino chieftain Batoy, while the history professors Yordan Ivanov and Vasil Mikov suppose that Batak was Potok, a settlement of Cuman
origin existing between the 11th and the 13th century. It is, however, certain that the name of the village is Bulgarian, not Turkish as some authors assert.
s in the region of Batak took revenge from the Turks for the outrages upon Bulgarian people – Strahil Voivoda, Deli Arshenko Payaka, Gola Voda, Todor Banchev, Beyko, Yanko Kavlakov, Mityo Vranchev, etc. From these times have remained the old rebel names, such as Haydushka Skala, Haydushka Polyana, Haydushko Kladenche (spring), Sablen Vrah ("Sabre Peak"), Karvav Chuchur ("Bloody Spout"), as well as many legends.
Woodworking, trade and innkeeping were developed in Batak during the National Revival
. The prosperity of the population was conducive to the prosperity of education — a secular school was opened in 1835 and the St. Nedelya Church was built in 1813 at the Todor Balinov place (mayor of the village at the time), donated by him specifically for the construction of the church. Built for 75 days with the work of citizens of Batak.. Batak has given many eminent figures of the Bulgarian Revival, such as clerics like archimandrite Yosif, Nikifor, Kiril and others, who worked in the Rila Monastery
, a centre of the Bulgarian National Revival
. Famous men of letters are Georgi Busilin and Dragan Manchov.
of 1876. The people of Batak rebelled on 22 April under the leadership of voivoda Petar Goranov. On 30 April the village was surrounded by Ottoman army units and irregulars called bashi-bozouk. The battles were carried on for five days. The last stronghold of the rebels was the St. Nedelya Church.
At the end five thousand people were killed
and the village was burned down to ashes. News of the atrocities spread around the world, aided in large part by Januarius MacGahan
's writing for the London Daily News. The public outcry created favourable conditions for Russia to declare war on Turkey. On 20 January 1878 the people of Batak who had survived the uprising enthusiastically met the advancing Russian army.
.
on Smith Island
, South Shetland Islands
is named after Batak.
Pazardzhik Province
Pazardzhik Province is a province in Southern Bulgaria, named after its administrative and industrial centre - the town of Pazardzhik. It embraces a territory of 4,456.9 km² that is divided into 11 municipalities with a total population of 290,614 inhabitants, as of December 2009.-History:The...
, Southern 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...
, not far from the town of Peshtera
Peshtera
Peshtera is a town in southwestern Bulgaria, part of Pazardzhik Province, located in the Upper Thracian Lowlands at the foot of the Western Rhodopes. It takes its name from the many caves found in the vicinity. The town is the administrative centre of the homonymous Peshtera Municipality...
. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Batak Municipality. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 3,498 inhabitants.
Geography
Batak is situated in the northwestern slopes of the Rhodope MountainsRhodope Mountains
The Rhodopes are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, with over 83% of its area in southern Bulgaria and the remainder in Greece. Its highest peak, Golyam Perelik , is the seventh highest Bulgarian mountain...
, at 1036 m above sea level. It is surrounded by many peaks, clad with century-old pine and spruce forests. The climate is temperate continental with a characteristic southern warm wind. Batak was pronounced town in 1964 and has a population of 4,019 people. Batak is a centre of one of Bulgaria's largest municipalities by terms of territory - 667 km2 or 15% of the Pazardzhik Province area - as well as one of the most sparsely populated ones including only the town itself and two villages - Fotinovo and Nova Mahala. Ninety percent of the municipal area is covered with thick forests.
Batak is situated at 15 km to the south of Peshtera
Peshtera
Peshtera is a town in southwestern Bulgaria, part of Pazardzhik Province, located in the Upper Thracian Lowlands at the foot of the Western Rhodopes. It takes its name from the many caves found in the vicinity. The town is the administrative centre of the homonymous Peshtera Municipality...
and 33 km to the south of the regional centre Pazardzhik
Pazardzhik
Pazardzhik is a city situated along the banks of the Maritsa river, Southern Bulgaria. It is the capital of Pazardzhik Province and centre for the homonymous Pazardzhik Municipality...
. The nearest railway station is in Peshtera.
Antiquity
Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros , also known as rhino, is a group of five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. Two of these species are native to Africa and three to southern Asia....
were found which proves that the climate was warmer in the Quaternary
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
. Twenty Thracian
Thracians
The ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
, Thraco-Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
and Slavic fortresses, churches and monasteries, as well as Thracian mounds, Roman bridges, mines, mills and other archaeological sites were registered.
Origin of the settlement and medieval history
The exact origin of Batak is unknown, since there is a lack of historical data. The earlier view that the settlement was founded by Bulgarians who escaped from the forced mass conversion into IslamIslam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
in the valley of Chepino in 16th century today is rejected because it is believed that the settlement is much older. This is justified by an inscription on the fountain of Virgin Mary Monastery of Krichim built by the people of Batak in 1592, a writ of the feudal possessions of Sultan Suleiman I (1520–1566), in which the village of Batak is also mentioned, as well as the remnants of many churches and monasteries burnt down by the Ottomans during the conversion into Islam in this region. The origin of the name of Batak is not certain, too. In the old legends it is related to the Tsepino chieftain Batoy, while the history professors Yordan Ivanov and Vasil Mikov suppose that Batak was Potok, a settlement of Cuman
Cumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...
origin existing between the 11th and the 13th century. It is, however, certain that the name of the village is Bulgarian, not Turkish as some authors assert.
Ottoman rule
During the centuries of Ottoman rule, many hajdukHajduk
Hajduk is a term most commonly referring to outlaws, highwaymen or freedom fighters in the Balkans, Central- and Eastern Europe....
s in the region of Batak took revenge from the Turks for the outrages upon Bulgarian people – Strahil Voivoda, Deli Arshenko Payaka, Gola Voda, Todor Banchev, Beyko, Yanko Kavlakov, Mityo Vranchev, etc. From these times have remained the old rebel names, such as Haydushka Skala, Haydushka Polyana, Haydushko Kladenche (spring), Sablen Vrah ("Sabre Peak"), Karvav Chuchur ("Bloody Spout"), as well as many legends.
Woodworking, trade and innkeeping were developed in Batak during the National Revival
Bulgarian National Revival
The Bulgarian National Revival , sometimes called the Bulgarian Renaissance, was a period of socio-economic development and national integration among Bulgarian people under Ottoman rule...
. The prosperity of the population was conducive to the prosperity of education — a secular school was opened in 1835 and the St. Nedelya Church was built in 1813 at the Todor Balinov place (mayor of the village at the time), donated by him specifically for the construction of the church. Built for 75 days with the work of citizens of Batak.. Batak has given many eminent figures of the Bulgarian Revival, such as clerics like archimandrite Yosif, Nikifor, Kiril and others, who worked in 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...
, a centre of the Bulgarian National Revival
Bulgarian National Revival
The Bulgarian National Revival , sometimes called the Bulgarian Renaissance, was a period of socio-economic development and national integration among Bulgarian people under Ottoman rule...
. Famous men of letters are Georgi Busilin and Dragan Manchov.
April Uprising and Ottoman war-crimes
The population of Batak took part in the April UprisingApril Uprising
The April Uprising was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876, which indirectly resulted in the re-establishment of Bulgaria as an autonomous nation in 1878...
of 1876. The people of Batak rebelled on 22 April under the leadership of voivoda Petar Goranov. On 30 April the village was surrounded by Ottoman army units and irregulars called bashi-bozouk. The battles were carried on for five days. The last stronghold of the rebels was the St. Nedelya Church.
At the end five thousand people were killed
Batak massacre
Batak massacre refers to the massacre of Bulgarians in Batak by Ottoman irregular troops in 1876 at the beginning of the April Uprising. The number of victims ranges from 3,000 to 5,000, depending on the source.- The Massacre :...
and the village was burned down to ashes. News of the atrocities spread around the world, aided in large part by Januarius MacGahan
Januarius MacGahan
Januarius Aloysius MacGahan was an American journalist and war correspondent working for the New York Herald and the London Daily News...
's writing for the London Daily News. The public outcry created favourable conditions for Russia to declare war on Turkey. On 20 January 1878 the people of Batak who had survived the uprising enthusiastically met the advancing Russian army.
Batak today
Today Batak is a renovated modern town famous for its historical monuments and a resort and tourist centre. A key hydro power system — Batashki Vodnosilov Pat — with five dams and three hydroelectric stations was constructed in the 1950s. Rest houses, tourist complexes and villas have been built along the banks of the Batak DamBatak Dam
The Batak Reservoir is located in the Rhodope Mountains and is the third largest in Bulgaria. It attracts many tourists and fishermen, and the resort Tsigov Chark was built on its shore. The lake is situated just above the historic town of the same name....
.
Honour
Batak PointBatak Point
Batak Point is a point on the northwest coast of Smith Island, South Shetland Islands situated 7 km north-northeast of Cape James, 2.5 km south-southwest of Lista Point and 1.7 km northwest of Organa Peak. Bulgarian early mapping in 2009. Named after the town of Batak in southern...
on Smith Island
Smith Island (South Shetland Islands)
Smith Island is long and wide, lying west of Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands of the British Antarctic Territory. Surface area ....
, South Shetland Islands
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, with a total area of . By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the Islands' sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories and they are free for use by any signatory for...
is named after Batak.