Etropole

Etropole Етрополе
Etropole Town-hall
Coat of arms
Etropole Location of Etropole
Coordinates:42°50′N24°0′E
Country	Bulgaria
Province (Oblast)	Sofia
Government
• Mayor	Milcho Tsatsov (NMSII)
Elevation	618 m (2,028 ft)
Population (13.09.2005)
• Total	12,218
Time zone	UTC+2(EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3(EEST)
Postal Code	2180
Area code	0720

Etropole(Bulgarian:Етрополе,pronounced[ˈɛtropolɛ])is a townin westernBulgaria,part ofSofia Province.It is located close to the northern slopes of theBalkan Mountainsin the valley of theIskar River,80 km (49.71 mi) fromSofia.

History

The area was first settled by theThraciantribe of theTriballiin the 7th or 6th century BC due to its position as an important crossroad connecting theDanubewithMacedoniaandThraceclose to two key Balkan passes. The forces ofPhilip II of Macedon(339 BC),Alexander the Great(335 BC), theCeltsand theRoman legionspassed through the valley in the Antiquity. The region developed as a centre of trade and economy, as evidenced by findings ofMacedonianandGreekcoins, Greek ceramics, luxurious items and decorations.

The ore ledges broughtSaxonminers to the town in the 16th century. They introduced thesamokovhammer technology and helped for the area's establishment as a centre of craftsmanship and mining, withgold,copper,silverandironbeing extracted in the 16th and 17th centuries. Handicrafts such as iron-, gold- and coppersmithing and cutlery prospered. The economic upsurge of the settlement aided the development of culture and education in the nearbyEtropole Monasteryin the period, where biblical andliturgical bookswere copied in a specific originalcalligraphicstyle, of which 76 hand-written volumes were preserved.

A monastery school was established in 1613 and a public one (yet still monastery) followed in 1811. One of the first school buildings in Bulgaria was constructed in 1828-1830 by merchants and rich craftsmen from Etropole. A revolutionary committee part ofVasil Levski'sInternal Revolutionary Organizationwas founded in Etropole in 1870 in order to help theLiberation of BulgariafromOttoman rule.The town was liberated on 24 November 1877 byRussianforces underJoseph Vladimirovich Gourkoduring theRusso-Turkish War of 1877-78and served as a governing centre for the 40-day winter march of the Balkan Mountains of theImperial Russian Army.

Etropole PeakonLivingston Islandin theSouth Shetland Islands,Antarcticais named after Etropole.

Places of interest

The Clock tower

The clockwork tower of Etropole built in 1710 is one of the oldest in Bulgaria. It originally served as a defensive structure until in 1821 a master builder by the name of Dido reconstructed it as a clock tower. With its height at about 20 metres (66 ft) it stands above most of the buildings in the small town. The clockwork tower is one of the100 Tourist Sites of Bulgariaalong with the Monastery of the Holy Trinity and the History museum of Etropole.

TheEtropole Monastery,also known as Varovitets, is located 5 km (3 mi) from the town. It is a Bulgarian Orthodox monastery and was founded in the 12th or 13th century.The monastery is also the home of the spectacularEtropole Waterfall“Varovitets”.

To learn more about the history of Etropole you can visit the Historical Museum of Etropole.The History Museum in Etropole launched its first exhibition in 1958. Ten years later, in 1968, the second exhibition of the museum was opened in the restored building of the former Turkish police office. The museum of Etropole is still housed there. The building was constructed in the period 1853 – 1870. This is the second public building in Etropole after the Clock Tower (1710) that has survived to this day. The ten halls of the museum tell about the past of the Etropole Region.

The village of Lopyan (Лопян) is located in the Etropole municipality and is situated at the foot of the northern slopes of the Central Balkan Mountain. It is one of the oldest villages in the region and its story began at the time of the Thracians, when the territory was inhabited by the tribe Luposi from where name of the village most likely origins. Three kilometres from Lopyan are the remains of the Thracian fortress Chertigrad (built in 4th or 3rd centuries BC and probably functioned until the 6th century AD).

Notable people

Brass band Etropole

• Todor Peev(1842–1904) - revolutionary
• Hristo Yasenov(1889–1925) - poet
• Sofi Marinova- singer ofRomadescent

International relations

See also:List of twin towns and sister cities in Bulgaria

Twin towns — sister cities

Etropole istwinnedwith:

• Feres,Greece
• Mozhaysk,Russia
• Bela Palanka,Serbia

Gallery

• 
  Historical Museum (built 1853–1870)
• 
  Courthouse
• 
  Etropole Monastery of the Holy Trinity
• 
  Etropole Monastery Church
• 
  Hristo Botevschool
• 
  Varovitets Waterfall

External links

• Nikola Gruev's gallery of Etropole Monastery
• Etropole Home Page