Pleven
Encyclopedia
Pleven is the seventh most populous city in Bulgaria
. Located in the northern part of the country, it is the administrative centre of Pleven Province
, as well as of the subordinate Pleven municipality
. As of February 2011, the city has a population of 106,011 inhabitants.
Internationally known for the Siege of Plevna of 1877, it is today a major economic centre of the Bulgarian Northwest and Central North and the third largest city of Northern Bulgaria after Varna
and Rousse
.
, the historical region of Moesia
, surrounded by low limestone hills, the Pleven Heights. The city's central location in Northern Bulgaria defines its importance as a big administrative, economic, political, cultural and transport centre. Pleven is located 170 km away from the capital city of Sofia
, 320 km west of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast
and 50 km south of the Danube
.
The river Vit
flows near the town and the tiny Tuchenitsa river (commonly known in Pleven as Barata, literally "The Streamlet") crosses it.
, the Neolithic
.
Numerous archaeological findings, among them the Nikolaevo treasure found in Bulgaria
, evidence for the rich culture of the Thracians
, who inhabited the area for thousands of years.
In the beginning of the new era, the region became part of the Roman province
of Moesia
, and a road station called Storgosia
arose near present-day Pleven on the road from Oescus
(near modern Gigen
) to Philippopolis
(now Plovdiv
). It later evolved into a fortress. One of the most valued archaeological monuments in Bulgaria from the period is the Early Christian basilica from the 4th century discovered near the modern city.
, Pleven was a well-developed stronghold of the First
and the Second Bulgarian Empire
. When Slavs populated the region, they gave the settlement its contemporary name (Pleven is derived either from the Slavic
word "plevnya" ("barn") or from "plevel", meaning "weed", which share the same root). The name was first mentioned in a charter by Hungarian king Stephen V
in 1270 in connection to a military campaign in the Bulgarian lands.
, preserved its Bulgarian appearance and culture. Many churches, schools and bridges were built at the time of the Bulgarian National Revival
. In 1825, the first secular school in the town was opened, followed by the first girls' school in Bulgaria in 1840, as well as the first boys' school a year later. Pleven was the place where the Bulgarian national hero
Vasil Levski
established the first revolutionary committee in 1869, part of his national revolutionary network
.
Alexander II
held for the purpose of the liberation of Bulgaria. The joint Russia
n and Romania
n army paid dearly for the victory, but it paved the path to the defeat of the Ottoman Empire
in this war, the restoration of Bulgaria as a state and the independence of Romania from Ottoman Empire. It cost the Russians and Romanians 5 months and 38,000 casualties to take the town after four assaults in what was one of the decisive battles of the war. The siege is remembered as a landmark victory of the Romanian War of Independence
as on 28 November 1877 the Plevna citadel capitulated, and Osman Pasha surrendered the city, the garrison and his sword to the Romanian Colonel Mihail Cerchez.
The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
of 1911 concluded its lengthy entry on Pleven (transcribed as Plevna) with the memorable dictum:
On the other hand, Siege of Plevna stands out among other countless sieges and military actions in the region because of its significance. Without this fortress slowing the Russian onslaught, which gave the Great Powers time to intercede, Constantinople would have been repossessed by a Christian army once more.
The Bulgarian Agrarian National Union
, a leading interwar party representing the Bulgarian peasantry, was founded in the town in December 1899.
Prior to the Bulgarian orthographic reform of 1945, the name of the town was spelled Плѣвенъ (with yat
) in Cyrillic.
and 5% Roma, with other ethnic groups being represented by about 1%. The number of the residents of the city reached its peak in the period 1988-1991 when exceeded 135,000. The following table presents the change of the population after the liberation of the country in 1878.
An overwhelming majority of 90% of Pleven's residents are Eastern Orthodox Christian, while 5% of the population follows Islam
. The Diocese of Nikopol
, of which Pleven is part, is one of the two Roman Catholic dioceses in Bulgaria, and another 5% of the residents are Roman Catholic by faith, a significant number compared to other Bulgarian cities.
Pleven has three Eastern Orthodox churches, the Bulgarian National Revival
St Nicholas Church (1834) that was constructed at the place of a chapel from the Second Bulgarian Empire
, the St Paraskeva Church (1934) and the Holy Trinity Church, built in 1870 at the place of a church mentioned as early as 1523 and inaugurated by Exarch Antim I
. As of 2005, a new Eastern Orthodox church is being built in the Strogoziya quarter.
The construction of a large Roman Catholic church of Our Lady of Fatima
began in 2001. A mosque also exists in the town to serve the needs of the Muslim population, as well as a Methodist church that is situated on the site of the former local puppet theatre.
prior to 1989, and had experienced a slump in the following years, is on the rise again. Other economic branches have also improved in the 2000s. The unemployment has fallen from 17% in 2000 to 7.5% in 2005 and continues to decrease.
The city has seen a number of major foreign investments in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Particularly noticeable is the mass construction of hypermarkets, with three Billa, two Kaufland
, two Carrefour
(in construction- first one to open in MALL PLEVEN in 2011), twopenny market
(1 in construction), DM
, Plus
(in construction), ELEMAG, METRO
, two LIDL (in construction) stores, a Praktiker
, bauMax
and a number of other hypermarkets being opened . The Pleven City Center
and central mall pleven mall was opened in 2008. In 2005, the investments in the economy of Pleven amounted to around 250 million leva
(around €
125 million).
The inner city transportation in Pleven is maintained mainly by trolleybuses. There are 14 trolleybus lines and 75 km trolleybus network and also 14 bus lines. The trolleybus fleet consist of 70 ZIU-682 trolleybuses produced 1985–1988. A project for 12 km trolleybus routes extension, was announced by the Pleven municipality and expected to start 2009.
Near Pleven, there is a large facility for medium wave and short wave broadcasting. Pleven medium wave transmitter, working on 594 kHz, uses as antenna two 250 metres tall guyed mast radiators insulated against ground. These masts belong to the tallest structures of Bulgaria.
in honour of the many Russian and Romanian soldiers who lost their lives during the Siege of Plevna and the ossuary
in Skobelev Park
. Another popular attraction is Pleven Panorama
, created after (and reputedly larger than) the Borodino Panorama
in Russia
on the occasion of the anniversary of the Siege of Plevna.
is another popular tourist attraction, while the Svetlin Rusev Donative Exhibition
, situated in the former public baths, exhibits works by Bulgarian artists, as well as noted Western European art figures like Pablo Picasso
, Francisco Goya
, Honoré Daumier
, Marc Chagall
, Maurice Denis
, Pierre-Auguste Renoir
, Salvador Dalí
, Renato Guttuso
and Eugène Delacroix
, Auguste Rodin
and Edgar Degas
.
The Ivan Radoev Dramatic Theatre
is the centre of theatrical life in Pleven. A number of community centres (chitalishta) are also active in the city.
and Galabin Boevski
. The sports school in Pleven is thought of as one of the most prominent in the country.
The city hosts two football clubs, Spartak Pleven and Belite orli, which have separate stadiums. Both teams play in the second Bulgarian league and haven't had any major successes in the past, although Spartak Pleven has been the first team for a couple of former Bulgarian internationals
such as Plamen Getov
.
Spartak Pleven is also a basketball team, a national championship winner in 1995 and national cup winner in 1996 (then named Plama Pleven). Other than that, the team is a regular first league participant.
Pleven is famous for its Kaylaka
(where the ruins of the Storgosia fortification can be found) and Skobelev
parks. The latter is home to the Pleven Panorama and is situated on the original location of the battle during the Russo-Turkish War.
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...
. Located in the northern part of the country, it is the administrative centre of Pleven Province
Pleven Province
Pleven Province is a province located in central northern Bulgaria, bordering the Danube river, Romania and the Bulgarian provinces of Vratsa, Veliko Tarnovo and Lovech. It is divided into 11 subdivisions, called municipalities, that embrace a territory of 4,333.54 km² with a population, as...
, as well as of the subordinate Pleven municipality
Pleven Municipality
Pleven Municipality is a municipality in Pleven Province, Northern Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative centre - the city of Pleven which is also the capital of the Province....
. As of February 2011, the city has a population of 106,011 inhabitants.
Internationally known for the Siege of Plevna of 1877, it is today a major economic centre of the Bulgarian Northwest and Central North and the third largest city of Northern Bulgaria after Varna
Varna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
and Rousse
Rousse
Ruse is the fifth-largest city in Bulgaria. Ruse is situated in the northeastern part of the country, on the right bank of the Danube, opposite the Romanian city of Giurgiu, from the capital Sofia and from the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast...
.
Geography
Pleven is located in an agricultural region in the very heart of the Danubian PlainDanubian Plain (Bulgaria)
The Danubian Plain constitutes the northern part of Bulgaria, situated north of the Balkan Mountains and south of the Danube. Its western border is the Timok River and to the east it borders the Black Sea. The plain has an area of . It is about long and wide.The relief of the Danubian Plain is...
, the historical region of 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...
, surrounded by low limestone hills, the Pleven Heights. The city's central location in Northern Bulgaria defines its importance as a big administrative, economic, political, cultural and transport centre. Pleven is located 170 km away from the capital city of 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...
, 320 km west of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast
Bulgarian Black Sea Coast
The Bulgarian Black Sea Coast covers the entire eastern bound of Bulgaria stretching from the Romanian Black Sea resorts in the north to European Turkey in the south, along 378 km of coastline. White and golden sandy beaches occupy approximately 130 km of the 378 km long coast...
and 50 km south of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
.
The river Vit
Vit
The Vit also Vid is a river in central northern Bulgaria with a length of 18 km. It is a tributary of Danube. The source of the Vit is in Stara Planina, below Vezhen Peak at an altitude of 2,030 m, and it empties into the Danube close to Somovit...
flows near the town and the tiny Tuchenitsa river (commonly known in Pleven as Barata, literally "The Streamlet") crosses it.
Climate
The climate is temperate continental, with cold winters (down to –15°C) and hot dry summers (up to +35-44°C).Prehistory and antiquity
The earliest traces of human settlement in the area date from the 5th millennium BC5th millennium BC
The 5th millennium BC saw the spread of agriculture from the Near East throughout southern and central Europe.Urban cultures in Mesopotamia and Anatolia flourished, developing the wheel. Copper ornaments became more common, marking the Chalcolithic. Animal husbandry spread throughout Eurasia,...
, the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
.
Numerous archaeological findings, among them the Nikolaevo treasure found in 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...
, evidence for the rich culture of the Thracians
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...
, who inhabited the area for thousands of years.
In the beginning of the new era, the region became part of the Roman province
Roman province
In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and, until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of Italy...
of 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 a road station called Storgosia
Storgosia
Storgosia was a road station of Ancient Rome located in the vicinity of modern Pleven, nort central Bulgaria, in the modern Kaylaka Park. It accommodated detachments of Legio I Italicas Novae garrison. The station grew to become a fortress in Late Antiquity due to Gothic and other Barbarian raids...
arose near present-day Pleven on the road from Oescus
Oescus
Oescus, or Palatiolon Palatiolum, was an ancient town in Moesia, northwest of the modern Bulgarian city of Pleven, near the village of Gigen. It is a Daco-Moesian toponym. Ptolemy calls it a Triballian town, but it later became Roman...
(near modern Gigen
Gigen
Gigen is a village in northern Bulgaria, part of Gulyantsi Municipality, Pleven Province. It is located near to the Danube River, close to the place where the Iskar River empties into it, opposite the Romanian town of Corabia....
) to Philippopolis
Plovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
(now Plovdiv
Plovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
). It later evolved into a fortress. One of the most valued archaeological monuments in Bulgaria from the period is the Early Christian basilica from the 4th century discovered near the modern city.
Middle Ages
During the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, Pleven was a well-developed stronghold of the First
First 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...
and 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...
. When Slavs populated the region, they gave the settlement its contemporary name (Pleven is derived either from the Slavic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
word "plevnya" ("barn") or from "plevel", meaning "weed", which share the same root). The name was first mentioned in a charter by Hungarian king Stephen V
Stephen V of Hungary
Stephen V , was King of Hungary from 1270 to 1272.-Early years:...
in 1270 in connection to a military campaign in the Bulgarian lands.
Ottoman rule
During the Ottoman rule, Pleven, known as Plevne in Ottoman TurkishOttoman Turkish language
The Ottoman Turkish language or Ottoman language is the variety of the Turkish language that was used for administrative and literary purposes in the Ottoman Empire. It borrows extensively from Arabic and Persian, and was written in a variant of the Perso-Arabic script...
, preserved its Bulgarian appearance and culture. Many churches, schools and bridges were built at the time 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...
. In 1825, the first secular school in the town was opened, followed by the first girls' school in Bulgaria in 1840, as well as the first boys' school a year later. Pleven was the place where the Bulgarian national hero
Folk hero
A folk hero is a type of hero, real, fictional, or mythological. The single salient characteristic which makes a character a folk hero is the imprinting of the name, personality and deeds of the character in the popular consciousness. This presence in the popular consciousness is evidenced by...
Vasil Levski
Vasil Levski
Vasil Levski, born Vasil Ivanov Kunchev, , is a Bulgarian revolutionary and a national hero of Bulgaria. Dubbed the Apostle of Freedom, Levski ideologised and strategised a revolutionary movement to liberate Bulgaria from Ottoman rule...
established the first revolutionary committee in 1869, part of his national revolutionary network
Internal Revolutionary Organisation
The Internal Revolutionary Organisation or IRO was a Bulgarian revolutionary organisation founded and built up by Bulgarian revolutionary Vasil Levski in the period between 1869 and 1871. The organisation represented a network of regional revolutionary committees which were governed by a Central...
.
Siege of Plevna
The city (then mostly known as Plevna outside Bulgaria) was a major battle scene during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 that Russian TsarTsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Alexander II
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
held for the purpose of the liberation of Bulgaria. The joint Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n and Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n army paid dearly for the victory, but it paved the path to the defeat of the Ottoman Empire
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...
in this war, the restoration of Bulgaria as a state and the independence of Romania from Ottoman Empire. It cost the Russians and Romanians 5 months and 38,000 casualties to take the town after four assaults in what was one of the decisive battles of the war. The siege is remembered as a landmark victory of the Romanian War of Independence
Romanian War of Independence
The Romanian War of Independence is the name used in Romanian historiography to refer to the 1877-1878 Russo-Turkish war, following which Romania, fighting on the Russian side, gained independence from the Ottoman Empire...
as on 28 November 1877 the Plevna citadel capitulated, and Osman Pasha surrendered the city, the garrison and his sword to the Romanian Colonel Mihail Cerchez.
The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition is a 29-volume reference work, an edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. It was developed during the encyclopaedia's transition from a British to an American publication. Some of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of the time...
of 1911 concluded its lengthy entry on Pleven (transcribed as Plevna) with the memorable dictum:
On the other hand, Siege of Plevna stands out among other countless sieges and military actions in the region because of its significance. Without this fortress slowing the Russian onslaught, which gave the Great Powers time to intercede, Constantinople would have been repossessed by a Christian army once more.
Modern history
The events of the Russo-Turkish War proved crucial for the development of Pleven as a key town of central northern Bulgaria. The town experienced significant demographic and economic growth in the following years, gradually establishing itself as a cultural centre of the region.The Bulgarian Agrarian National Union
Bulgarian Agrarian National Union
Bulgarian Agrarian National Union also tiranslated to English as Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union is a political party devoted to representing the causes of the Bulgarian peasantry. It was most powerful between 1900 and 1923. In practice, it was an agrarian movement...
, a leading interwar party representing the Bulgarian peasantry, was founded in the town in December 1899.
Prior to the Bulgarian orthographic reform of 1945, the name of the town was spelled Плѣвенъ (with yat
Yat
Yat or Jat is the thirty-second letter of the old Cyrillic alphabet. Its name in Old Church Slavonic is jěd’ or iad’ . In the common scientific Latin transliteration for old Slavic languages, the letter is represented by e with caron: .The yat represented a Common Slavic long vowel...
) in Cyrillic.
Demographics and religion
According to census 2011, Pleven has a population of 106,011 inhabitants as of February 2011. The ethnic breakdown is 94% BulgariansBulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
and 5% Roma, with other ethnic groups being represented by about 1%. The number of the residents of the city reached its peak in the period 1988-1991 when exceeded 135,000. The following table presents the change of the population after the liberation of the country in 1878.
An overwhelming majority of 90% of Pleven's residents are Eastern Orthodox Christian, while 5% of the population follows Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. The Diocese of Nikopol
Nikopol, Bulgaria
Nikopol is a town in northern Bulgaria, the administrative center of Nikopol municipality, part of Pleven Province, on the right bank of the Danube river, 4 km downstream from the mouth of the Osam river. It spreads at the foot of steep chalk cliffs along the Danube and up a narrow valley...
, of which Pleven is part, is one of the two Roman Catholic dioceses in Bulgaria, and another 5% of the residents are Roman Catholic by faith, a significant number compared to other Bulgarian cities.
Pleven has three Eastern Orthodox churches, 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...
St Nicholas Church (1834) that was constructed at the place of a chapel from 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...
, the St Paraskeva Church (1934) and the Holy Trinity Church, built in 1870 at the place of a church mentioned as early as 1523 and inaugurated by Exarch Antim I
Antim I
Antim I , born Atanas Mihaylov Chalakov , was a Bulgarian education figure and clergyman, and a participant in the Bulgarian liberation and church-independence movement. He was the first head of the Bulgarian Exarchate, a post he held from 1872 to 1877...
. As of 2005, a new Eastern Orthodox church is being built in the Strogoziya quarter.
The construction of a large Roman Catholic church of Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
began in 2001. A mosque also exists in the town to serve the needs of the Muslim population, as well as a Methodist church that is situated on the site of the former local puppet theatre.
Economy
A major centre of oil processing, metalworking, machinery construction, of light and food industries in Socialist times, after 1989 Pleven found itself in an economic crisis, with many of the major enterprises (such as the Plama oil refinery) closing or practically ceasing to work. However, the late 1990s and early 2000s saw a revival of light industry and the development of branches such as knitwear and store clothes production. Tourism, which had attracted many people from the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
prior to 1989, and had experienced a slump in the following years, is on the rise again. Other economic branches have also improved in the 2000s. The unemployment has fallen from 17% in 2000 to 7.5% in 2005 and continues to decrease.
The city has seen a number of major foreign investments in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Particularly noticeable is the mass construction of hypermarkets, with three Billa, two Kaufland
Kaufland
Kaufland is a German hypermarket chain part of the same group as Lidl and Handelshof. It opened its first store in 1984 in Neckarsulm and quickly expanded to become a leader in what was formerly East Germany...
, two Carrefour
Carrefour
Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...
(in construction- first one to open in MALL PLEVEN in 2011), twopenny market
Penny Market
Penny Market is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany, which operates 3,000 stores in Europe. It is owned by Rewe Group.-Competitors:* Aldi * Lidl * Netto * Plus...
(1 in construction), DM
DM
-Academia:* Doctor of Management, an academic management degree* Doctorate in Medicine, an academic medical degree* Doctor of Music, an academic music-performance degree, also known as D.M.A-Science:* Adamsite, a chemical agent used in riot control...
, Plus
Plus (supermarket)
Plus was a German supermarket chain founded in 1972. It operated 2,840 stores in Germany with an approximate 27,000 employees and about 1,200 stores in several other European countries...
(in construction), ELEMAG, METRO
Metro Cash and Carry
-Romania:METRO Cash and Carry was one of the first international food and non-food retail chains to enter the Romanian market, opening its first store in 1996 in Bucharest, near Henri Coandă International Airport....
, two LIDL (in construction) stores, a Praktiker
Praktiker
Praktiker is a German hypermarket chain offering home improvement and do-it-yourself goods. It is based in Kirkel, Saarland, and opened its first store in 1978. Initially owned by ASKO, the chain became a division of Metro AG after the merger of ASKO with Metro Cash & Carry in 1995...
, bauMax
BauMax
bauMax is an Austrian hypermarket chain offering home improvement and do-it-yourself goods. It is based in Kindberg, Austria, and opened its first store in 1976.-Baumax in Europe:...
and a number of other hypermarkets being opened . The Pleven City Center
Mania Tower
Mania Tower is a high-rise building located in the center of Pleven, Bulgaria. The basement and the two lowest floors contain the City Center Pleven shopping mall, while the tower is used as a business center. The building was built as Hotel Pleven. In 2006, the building was reconstructed and...
and central mall pleven mall was opened in 2008. In 2005, the investments in the economy of Pleven amounted to around 250 million leva
Bulgarian lev
The lev is the currency of Bulgaria. It is divided in 100 stotinki . In archaic Bulgarian the word "lev" meant "lion".It is speculated that Bulgaria, as a member of the European Union will adopt the Euro in 2015 .- First lev, 1881–1952 :...
(around €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
125 million).
Transport
The international railway Sofia — Bucharest — Moscow runs through Pleven. The international road E 83 passes just north of the city. The national A2 Hemus highway Sofia — Varna is projected to pass 16 km south of Pleven.The inner city transportation in Pleven is maintained mainly by trolleybuses. There are 14 trolleybus lines and 75 km trolleybus network and also 14 bus lines. The trolleybus fleet consist of 70 ZIU-682 trolleybuses produced 1985–1988. A project for 12 km trolleybus routes extension, was announced by the Pleven municipality and expected to start 2009.
Transmitter
Main sights
Most of the sights of the town are related to the Russo-Turkish War. The monuments related to the war alone are about 200. Some of the more popular include the St George the Conqueror Chapel MausoleumSt George the Conqueror Chapel Mausoleum
The St George the Conqueror Chapel Mausoleum is a mausoleum or ossuary and memorial Bulgarian Orthodox chapel, as well as a major landmark of Pleven, Bulgaria.Built between 1903 and 1907 in the Neo-Byzantine style by the architect P...
in honour of the many Russian and Romanian soldiers who lost their lives during the Siege of Plevna and the ossuary
Ossuary
An ossuary is a chest, building, well, or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains. They are frequently used where burial space is scarce. A body is first buried in a temporary grave, then after some years the skeletal remains are removed and placed in an ossuary...
in Skobelev Park
Skobelev Park
Skobelev Park is a museum park in the vicinity of Pleven, Bulgaria. It was built between 1904 and 1907 on the very battlefield of the Siege of Plevna during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, specifically the third assault of General Mikhail Skobelev's detachment between 30 August and 11 September...
. Another popular attraction is Pleven Panorama
Pleven Panorama
Pleven Epopee 1877, more commonly known as Pleven Panorama, is a panorama located in Pleven, Bulgaria, that depicts the events of the Russian-Turkish War of 1877–78, specifically the five-month Siege of Plevna which made the city internationally famous and which contributed to the Liberation of...
, created after (and reputedly larger than) the Borodino Panorama
Poklonnaya Hill
Poklonnaya Gora is, at 171.5 metres, one of the highest spots in Moscow. Its two summits used to be separated by the Setun River, until one of the summits was razed in 1987...
in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
on the occasion of the anniversary of the Siege of Plevna.
Culture
The Pleven Regional Historical MuseumPleven Regional Historical Museum
The Pleven Regional Historical Museum , founded in 1953, is one of the largest museums in Bulgaria. The museum is situated in a two-story edifice near the centre of Pleven that is a monument of culture of national importance and has an area of 7,000 m²...
is another popular tourist attraction, while the Svetlin Rusev Donative Exhibition
Svetlin Rusev Donative Exhibition
The Svetlin Rusev Donative Exhibition is a permanent art exhibition in Pleven, Bulgaria, including over 400 works of Bulgarian and foreign art donated by the noted Bulgarian artist and collector Svetlin Rusev....
, situated in the former public baths, exhibits works by Bulgarian artists, as well as noted Western European art figures like Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
, Honoré Daumier
Honoré Daumier
Honoré Daumier was a French printmaker, caricaturist, painter, and sculptor, whose many works offer commentary on social and political life in France in the 19th century....
, Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall Art critic Robert Hughes referred to Chagall as "the quintessential Jewish artist of the twentieth century."According to art historian Michael J...
, Maurice Denis
Maurice Denis
Maurice Denis was a French painter and writer, and a member of the Symbolist and Les Nabis movements. His theories contributed to the foundations of cubism, fauvism, and abstract art.-Childhood and education:...
, Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty, and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that "Renoir is the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to...
, Salvador Dalí
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domènec Felip Jacint Dalí i Domènech, Marquis de Púbol , commonly known as Salvador Dalí , was a prominent Spanish Catalan surrealist painter born in Figueres,Spain....
, Renato Guttuso
Renato Guttuso
Renato Guttuso was an Italian painter.His best-known paintings include Flight from Etna , Crucifixion and La Vucciria . Guttuso also designed for the theatre and did illustrations for books...
and Eugène Delacroix
Eugène Delacroix
Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school...
, Auguste Rodin
Auguste Rodin
François-Auguste-René Rodin , known as Auguste Rodin , was a French sculptor. Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture, he did not set out to rebel against the past...
and Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas[p] , born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, was a French artist famous for his work in painting, sculpture, printmaking and drawing. He is regarded as one of the founders of Impressionism although he rejected the term, and preferred to be called a realist...
.
The Ivan Radoev Dramatic Theatre
Ivan Radoev Dramatic Theatre
The Ivan Radoev Dramatic Theatre is a theatre in Pleven, Bulgaria. Its edifice in the centre of the city was designed by an Austro-Hungarian architect and built 1893-1895. The theatre was founded in 1918 as the Pleven Municipal Theatre, the first premiere being Kean by Alexandre Dumas, père...
is the centre of theatrical life in Pleven. A number of community centres (chitalishta) are also active in the city.
Sport and recreation
Pleven is often regarded as an important centre of sports in Bulgaria, with many noted Bulgarian sportspeople having been born and/or trained in the town, including Tereza MarinovaTereza Marinova
Tereza Moncheva Marinova is a Bulgarian athlete who competed in long jump and triple jump. In her younger days she became both European and World Junior champion, and she still holds the world junior record at triple jump. At the 2000 Summer Olympics she won the gold medal with a personal best...
and Galabin Boevski
Galabin Boevski
Galabin Boevski is a Bulgarian weightlifter. He was born in Knezha, and was both World Champion and Olympic Champion. He was later suspended for eight years after failing drug tests. He is now in a Brazilian prison awaiting a trial for an alleged cocaine trafficking...
. The sports school in Pleven is thought of as one of the most prominent in the country.
The city hosts two football clubs, Spartak Pleven and Belite orli, which have separate stadiums. Both teams play in the second Bulgarian league and haven't had any major successes in the past, although Spartak Pleven has been the first team for a couple of former Bulgarian internationals
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
such as Plamen Getov
Plamen Getov
Plamen Getov is a retired Bulgarian footballer who played as either an attacking midfielder or a striker.A skillful free-kick taker, he scored numerous goals from different positions, in a career which spanned almost 20 years...
.
Spartak Pleven is also a basketball team, a national championship winner in 1995 and national cup winner in 1996 (then named Plama Pleven). Other than that, the team is a regular first league participant.
Pleven is famous for its Kaylaka
Kaylaka
Kaylaka is a large park and protected area south of Pleven, Bulgaria, situated in a Karst valley. The park is spread over 10 km² and is surrounded by sheer cliffs that suggest favourable conditions for rock climbing...
(where the ruins of the Storgosia fortification can be found) and Skobelev
Skobelev Park
Skobelev Park is a museum park in the vicinity of Pleven, Bulgaria. It was built between 1904 and 1907 on the very battlefield of the Siege of Plevna during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, specifically the third assault of General Mikhail Skobelev's detachment between 30 August and 11 September...
parks. The latter is home to the Pleven Panorama and is situated on the original location of the battle during the Russo-Turkish War.
Military
The Reserve Officers' School was located in Pleven from 1961 to its closing on May 28, 2008.Notable natives
- Iliya Beshkov, artist
- Dionisii DonchevDionisii DonchevDionisii Donchev is one of the prominent Bulgarian fine artists. Honorary citizen of his home town of Pleven, Bulgaria, where he still lives and works. He graduated from the National Academy of Arts in Sofia in professor Ilia Petrov's class. He took active part in the creation of the famous epic...
, artist - Lucy Diakovska, singer
- Emil DimitrovEmil DimitrovEmil Dimitrov was a popular Bulgarian singer. He made his debut in 1960 and recorded about 30 albums altogether. In the 60s Lili Ivanova and Emil Dimitrov were the most popular singers of modern songs...
, singer and composer - Silvia DimitrovaSilvia DimitrovaSilvia Dimitrova in Pleven) is an icon painter. She won a place at the prestigious School of Applied Arts at Troyan at the age of 13. She graduated in 1989...
, artist - Tereza MarinovaTereza MarinovaTereza Moncheva Marinova is a Bulgarian athlete who competed in long jump and triple jump. In her younger days she became both European and World Junior champion, and she still holds the world junior record at triple jump. At the 2000 Summer Olympics she won the gold medal with a personal best...
, triple jumpTriple jumpThe triple jump is a track and field sport, similar to the long jump, but involving a “hop, bound and jump” routine, whereby the competitor runs down the track and performs a hop, a bound and then a jump into the sand pit.The triple jump has its origins in the Ancient Olympics and has been a...
athlete, 2000 Summer Olympics2000 Summer OlympicsThe Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
gold medalGold medalA gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
list - Svetlin RusevSvetlin RusevSvetlin Rusev is a famous artist and one of the greatest Bulgarian collectors of creations of art. He is very famous for the Svetlin Rusev Donative Exhibition, a permanent art exhibition in Pleven, including over 400 works of Bulgarian and foreign art donated by him.-References:...
, artist - Krassimir Rangelov, sculptor
- Slavi Trifonov, popular showmanShowmanShowman can have a variety of meanings, usually by context and depending on the country.- Australia :Travelling showmen are people who run amusement and side show equipment at regional shows, state capital shows, events and festivals throughout Australia...
Twin cities
| Brest Brest, Belarus Brest , formerly also Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk , is a city in Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the city of Terespol, where the Bug River and Mukhavets rivers meet... , Belarus Jinzhou Jinzhou Jinzhou , is a prefecture-level city of Liaoning province, China. It is a geographically strategic city located in the "Liaoxi Corridor" , which connects land transportation between North China and Northeast China. Jinzhou is China's northernmost seaport and the coastal economic center of West... , People's Republic of China Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern is a city in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate forest . The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, and from Luxembourg.Kaiserslautern is home to 99,469 people... , Germany Edessa Edessa, Greece Edessa , is a city in northern Greece and the capital of the Pella regional unit, in the Central Macedonia region of Greece. It was also the capital of the defunct province of the same name.-Name:... , Greece Volos Volos Volos is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about 326 km north of Athens and 215 km south of Thessaloniki... , Greece 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... , Republic of Macedonia Kavadarci Kavadarci Kavadarci is a town located in the Tikveš region of the Republic of Macedonia. Situated in the heart of Macedonia’s wine country, it is home to the largest winery in south-eastern Europe, named after the Tikveš plain. The town of Kavadarci is the seat of Kavadarci Municipality... , Republic of Macedonia Agadir Agadir Agadir is a major city in southwest Morocco, capital of the Agadir province and the Sous-Massa-Draa economic region .-Etymology:... , Morocco |
Guimarães Guimarães Guimarães Municipality is located in northwestern Portugal in the province of Minho and in the Braga District. It contains the city of Guimarães.The present Mayor is António Magalhães Silva, elected by the Socialist Party.-Parishes:-Economy:... , Portugal Moscow Central Administrative Okrug, Russia Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don -History:The mouth of the Don River has been of great commercial and cultural importance since the ancient times. It was the site of the Greek colony Tanais, of the Genoese fort Tana, and of the Turkish fortress Azak... , Russia Brăila Braila Brăila is a city in Muntenia, eastern Romania, a port on the Danube and the capital of Brăila County, in the close vicinity of Galaţi.According to the 2002 Romanian census there were 216,292 people living within the city of Brăila, making it the 10th most populous city in Romania.-History:A... , Romania Gornji Milanovac Gornji Milanovac Gornji Milanovac is a town and municipality located in Serbia at 44.012691° North, 20.273572° East. Its name means "Upper Milanovac" while Milanovac stems from name "Milan" in the Serbian language. The population of town is 24,048.The city was founded in 1853... , Serbia Bursa, Turkey Bodrum Bodrum Bodrum is a port city in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of Turkey. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova. The site was called Halicarnassus of Caria in ancient times and was famous for housing the... , Turkey Chernivtsi Chernivtsi Chernivtsi is the administrative center of Chernivtsi Oblast in southwestern Ukraine. The city is situated on the upper course of the River Prut, a tributary of the Danube, in the northern part of the historic region of Bukovina, which is currently divided between Romania and Ukraine... , Ukraine Charlottesville Charlottesville, Virginia Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for... , United States |
Honours
- A city in KansasPlevna, KansasPlevna is a city in Reno County, Kansas, United States. It is named after the historical city of Pleven in Bulgaria. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 98.-Geography:Plevna is located at...
and a town in MontanaPlevna, MontanaAs of the census of 2000, there were 138 people, 63 households, and 40 families residing in the town. The population density was 301.4 people per square mile . There were 81 housing units at an average density of 176.9 per square mile . The racial makeup of the town was 97.83% White and 2.17% Asian...
in the United States, as well as a village in OntarioPlevna, OntarioPlevna is a village in eastern Ontario, Canada, part of North Frontenac Township. It is located approximately southwest of Ottawa, and is situated in prime cottage country with many lakes surrounding it...
, CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
were named after Pleven, or more precisely its historical name in English Plevna, the reason for which is the battle in 1877.
- A road in Hampton, Middlesex, London is named Plevna, adjoining another called Varna Road both made up of Victorian terraced housing built in 1870s and named after the battles in Bulgaria of the period.
- Pleven SaddlePleven SaddlePleven Saddle is a deep saddle of elevation 500 m in Friesland Ridge, Tangra Mountains, Livingston Island, Antarctica, bounded by MacKay Peak to the west-southwest and Tervel Peak to the east-northeast, with two conspicuous rocks rising on it...
on Livingston Island in the South Shetland IslandsSouth Shetland IslandsThe 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...
, Antarctica is named after Pleven.
- In other countries there are five cities and towns named after Plevna, and eighteen Plevna streets in Britain alone