location and general information

Silistra is a port city of northeastern Bulgaria, lying on the southern side 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 Dobruja.

The relief in Silistra District is predominantly plain. Rivers, which flow through the region, are small and they often run dry in summer. The landscape is agricultural; grain and technical crops are generally grown. Conditions related to natural climate and soil in the region are extremely conducive to developing modern farming. There are no century-old forests. The scenery is varied by forest shelterbelts.

Natural and historical realities of the region enable the development of cognitive, cultural, ecological, rural and hunting tourism. The most interesting natural site in the region is Lake Srebarna. It is located in the south-western part of the plain and is part of the Srebarna Biosphere Reserve, included in the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage. Several islands have been formed in the Danube, some of which are suitable for recreational and tourist purposes. The Karakuz natural game preserve provides opportunities for hunting tourism and the nature reserves of Malak Preslavets (a lake with water-lilies) and Srebarna are convenient places for ecotourism. There are numerous archeological artifacts throughout the region - Thracian mounds, remnants of fortresses, the unique Silistra sepulcher. Due to the strategic location of the region, fortresses have been built there until the 19th century. Houses and churches from the National Revival period have been preserved and the fishermen's neighbourhood (Ribarskata mahala) in Tutrakan is the only architectural complex of this kind in Bulgaria. The economic and cultural development of the region has been heavily influenced by the Romanian occupation of South Dobrudzha. After the Balkan War of 1913 the town of Silistra has been taken in Romanian possession and was regained by Bulgaria in 1940. Amongst the historical landmarks are Kyuchuk Kainardzha drinking fountain (Kyuchukkainardzhiiska cheshma) in the village of Kainardzha, where a peace treaty between Russia and Turkey was signed in 1774, and the Military Tomb Memorial Complex near the village of Shumentsi, in memory of those who died in 1916 for the liberation of Dobrudzha.

History

The Romans built a fortress in 29 AD on the site of an earlier Celtic settlement and kept its name, Durostorum (or Dorostorum). It became an important military centre of Moesia and grew into a city at the time of Marcus Aurelius. In 388, Durostorum became the seat of a Christian bishopric and a centre of Christianity in the region, and Roman general Flavius Aëtius was born in the town in 396. After the Roman Empire was split, the town became part of the Byzantine Empire.

Around the end of the 7th century, the town was incorporated in the First Bulgarian Empire and the bishop of Drastar was proclaimed the first patriarch of Bulgaria. The town was captured by the forces of Sviatoslav I of Kiev in 969, but two years later it was besieged by the Byzantines during the Battle of Dorostolon. Having been ceded to the Byzantines, it was renamed Theodoropolis, after the reigning empress. In 976, Tsar Samuil restored Bulgarian rule in the region until 1001, when it was once again incorporated within the bounds of the Byzantine Empire.

In 1186, after the Vlach-Bulgarian Rebellion, the town became part of the Second Bulgarian Empire until the Ottoman conquest of Bulgaria in 1396.

During Ottoman rule, Silistra (Silistre in Ottoman Turkish) was part of Rumelia Province and was the administrative centre of the Silistra sanjak. This sanjak was later upgraded to become the Silistra Province (eyalet) that stretched over most of the western Black Sea littoral. The town was captured by Russian forces numerous times during the Russo-Turkish Wars.

In 1878, following the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, Silistra was included in the newly autonomous Principality of Bulgaria, which became the Kingdom of Bulgaria in 1908.

Following the Second Balkan War, the Treaty of Bucharest (1913) granted Silistra and the whole of Southern Dobruja to Romania. Although Bulgaria regained the town during World War I with the Treaty of Bucharest (1918), in which Romania surrendered to the Central Powers (including Bulgaria), the Treaty of Neuilly (1919) following World War I returned it to Romania. Silistra remained a part of Romania until the Axis-sponsored Treaty of Craiova of 1940, when the town once again became part of Bulgaria, a transfer confirmed by the Paris Peace Treaties of 1947.

Tourism

Natural and historical realities of the region enable the development of cognitive, cultural, ecological, rural and hunting tourism. The most interesting natural site in the region is Lake Srebarna. It is located in the south-western part of the plain and is part of the Srebarna Biosphere Reserve, included in the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage. Several islands have been formed in the Danube, some of which are suitable for recreational and tourist purposes. The Karakuz natural game preserve provides opportunities for hunting tourism and the nature reserves of Malak Preslavets (a lake with water-lilies) and Srebarna are convenient places for ecotourism. There are numerous archeological artifacts throughout the region - Thracian mounds, remnants of fortresses, the unique Silistra sepulcher. Due to the strategic location of the region, fortresses have been built there until the 19th century. Houses and churches from the National Revival period have been preserved and the fishermen's neighbourhood (Ribarskata mahala) in Tutrakan is the only architectural complex of this kind in Bulgaria. The economic and cultural development of the region has been heavily influenced by the Romanian occupation of South Dobrudzha. After the Balkan War of 1913 the town of Silistra has been taken in Romanian possession and was regained by Bulgaria in 1940. Amongst the historical landmarks are Kyuchuk Kainardzha drinking fountain (Kyuchukkainardzhiiska cheshma) in the village of Kainardzha, where a peace treaty between Russia and Turkey was signed in 1774, and the Military Tomb Memorial Complex near the village of Shumentsi, in memory of those who died in 1916 for the liberation of Dobrudzha.

Sources: Official web-site of Silistra, internet page Wikepedia.bg.