The city tells its legends
We often walk around our city without noticing the buildings and other sites. Some of them are beautiful and preserved, others neglected and abandoned, others new and modern, eclecticism reigns, but in general they are just the background, the decor of our life here and now. Rarely do we ask ourselves what the architectural style of this building is, who designed it, what story it tells. And when we are visitors to a city and no one explains it to us, we don't bother to find out for ourselves unless we take a city tour.
With this text, we will give you a map to Old Sofia and, of course, to part of its current manifestation, because, as the motto of our capital says, it grows but does not age. To your attention a few of the most important places around Sofia along with the legends surrounding them.
Tolerance Square
It is actually a polygon of temples that are within walking distance of each other. In the center of today's Sofia, temples of different communities have been concentrated, little by little, over the centuries. Two of them are Christian - the Orthodox St. Nedelya Cathedral and the Catholic St. Joseph Cathedral. Not far from them are the Banya Bashi Mosque and the Sofia Synagogue.
St. Nedelya, together with Banski Square, are the two oldest places in our capital. the Banski mineral spring began to be used as early as the 3rd-3rd centuries and quickly became a place for relaxation and healing procedures, while St. Nedelya Square was the first place to be used for healing. Nedelya", besides being the seat of the town administration, also the two main thoroughfares pass through. There, in Roman times, was the marketplace, where trade was conducted in small shops. Later, when Christianity decisively intervened, the first Christian temples were built in the square.
Until the middle of the 19th century, St. Nedelya was a small building with stone foundations and wooden walls. In 1856, construction began on a new church on its site, which was consecrated in 1867. In the 19th and early 20th centuries it was also popularly known as St. King's Church, as it had held the relics of the Serbian King St. Stefan Uros II since the early 18th century. Legend has it that they have healing powers and protect against disease.
The date April 16, 1925 marked forever "St. Sunday". In an attack during a service, part of the church was destroyed. Under the dome of the cathedral 193 people died and 500 were wounded. It is still one of the largest terrorist acts in terms of casualties in history. The municipality at the time proposed that the cathedral should be demolished and a memorial to the dead erected in its place. The priests eventually persuaded the authorities to rebuild it. They erected it bigger and different compared to the previous churches.
Moving a little away from the square, we see the beautiful Sultan-type mosque, Banya Bashi, built by the famous Turkish architect Sinan in the 16th century. Among the four temples mentioned in the centre of Sofia, it is the oldest surviving one. Legend has it that the mosque was built by Mullah Effendi in memory of his deceased wife.
Not far from it rises another building remarkable for its beauty - the Sofia Synagogue, the largest in the Balkans and the third in Europe after those in Budapest and Amsterdam. The idea for its construction originated in 1903 - on the site of a smaller synagogue that existed until then. The building was constructed according to a design by Friedrich Grünanger. The Austrian architect created it in the style of the Vienna synagogue, which was later destroyed by the Nazis. The style of the building is described as Spanish-Moorish with Byzantine overtones.
A stone's throw from the synagogue is the Catholic Cathedral of St. Joseph, the largest Catholic church in Bulgaria. The idea for its construction was born in 1875 and construction began in 1878.
The entire complex was completed during World War II and destroyed in the bombing of March 1944. Only the concert hall survived. In 2002, in the presence of Pope John Paul II, the first stone was laid for the construction of a new church on the site of the destroyed one. Construction, designed by architects Kosyo Peev and Stoyan Yanev, lasted 4 years and was financed by donations from Catholics around the world.
City Garden - National Theatre
Let's continue our walk to the nearest green point, which is also the oldest park in Sofia, located in the city center in front of the former royal palace. It was officially opened on 4 April 1878 and was originally called Alexandrovska Garden. And it keeps a moment of history related to violence. In 1891, an assassination attempt was made on Prime Minister Stefan Stambolov at the eastern entrance of the Garden facing Vasil Levski Street, killing Finance Minister Hristo Belchev.
But let us return to the spiritualising power of beauty. To this day an architectural jewel shines in this garden - the building of the National Theatre.
The decision was taken by the National Assembly and a decree of Prince Ferdinand I expropriated a plot of land on the site of the former wooden theatre "Grounds". In June 1904, construction of the building designed by the Viennese architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer was underway. The famous Viennese artist Rudolf Fuchs was commissioned to paint the ceiling and walls of the auditorium, which seats 848. The National Theatre opened on 3 January 1907 with a special performance.
In the 1920s, a fire broke out in the building, many perplexities and difficulties related to the performances followed, they were moved to different stages, even to other cities.
Eventually, the National Theatre building was reconstructed between 1924 and 1928, designed by the German architect Martin Dulfer and the Bulgarian civil engineer who graduated in Munich, Kiril Chaparov. Stage equipment was also supplied from Germany, manufactured by the companies Krupp and MAN, which only the best theatres in European capitals possess. This equipment has been in operation since 1929 and is used in all performances on the Grand Stage of the theatre.
During the Second World War the theatre was again suppressed, but it was rebuilt at the end of the war. Today's overall artwork is the work of the artists Dechko Uzunov, Georgi Chapkanov and Ivan Kirkov, who is also the author of the theatre's curtain - the Undying Phoenix.
Knyazheski / Royal Palace
It has already been mentioned, but let's tell a little more about this building, formerly inhabited by the royal family and nowadays turned into the National Art Gallery. The palace was built immediately after the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman domination (1878) and the election of Sofia as the capital (1879).
Construction was carried out in two stages. The beginning was made by the first Bulgarian prince Alexander I Battenberg, who commissioned the Viennese architect Victor Rumpelmeier to design the reconstruction of the former Turkish Konak into a representative palace. Only the stone foundations have been preserved and the façade has acquired a completely new look, in the spirit of the modern mix of neostyles of the time.
The second stage of construction is connected with the name and activity of the next Bulgarian prince - Ferdinand I Saxe Coburg of Gotha. Arch. Friedrich Grünanger was the chief architect. He designed the three-storey north-eastern wing of the palace, intended for the apartments of the grand princely family. There are also a library, study halls, play and entertainment rooms, a dining room and reception room, a special covered entrance for carriages and two conservatories. On the top floor and attic floors there are guest apartments, staff rooms, and work rooms. A lift is also installed in this part of the building.
The architecture, external and internal, is cleverly combined with the old wing. Particularly impressive are the flowing facades, well integrated into the surrounding parkland.
Although the Sofia Palace is being built in two phases, the overall external view gives the impression of a building with a single volume. It is no coincidence that in this form the building serves as a measure and scale for all public and residential buildings in Sofia until the 1920s.
After 9 September 1944, the functions and appearance of the palace were completely changed for the purposes of the BPC.
Alma Mater
We continue our city tour along the yellow pavements. According to legend, they were a gift for the wedding of Tsar Ferdinand, and according to the facts, they were imported from Austria-Hungary on the initiative of the then mayor of Sofia Martin Todorov. We are walking towards one of the most iconic buildings. No, we will not stop in front of the National Assembly, of which only the facade remains, but where people acquire knowledge and become personalities.
Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" is the oldest and largest university in Bulgaria. The University was established on 1 October 1888 as the Higher Pedagogical Course. The central part of the building of the Sofia University worth 6 million gold leva was built with a donation of the brothers Evlogy and Hristo Georgiev, whose sculptures adorn its facade.
The history surrounding the construction of this monolithic building is quite interesting and at times tragic. In 1906 a competition was announced for the building of a state university. The French architect Jacques Breasson emerged as the winner. Initially, the project was an ensemble of a dozen buildings to be located on the current site of the university, the former royal manege (today there is the National Library) and the Doctor's Garden. The complexity and scale of the project make its realisation impossible.
In the First World War Bulgaria found itself on the losing side, experiencing a national catastrophe and forced to abandon the grandiose architectural projects. In 1920, the architect was commissioned with the task of designing a new building. Yordan Milanov to revise the original plans. In 1924, with the ceremonial laying of the foundation stone, Arch. Milanov began construction. But in the meantime the renounced arch. Breasson sought justice and filed a lawsuit, which he won for copyright infringement and received compensation.
The Bulgarian arch. Milanov fully commits himself to the project and its realization. He worked literally until his last breath. Struck down by a severe cold, the architect died on the construction site on 8 February 1932. The building was solemnly consecrated on 16 December 1934. The varied decoration of the building was the work of sculptors Mikhailo Parashchuk, Lyuben Dimitrov and Lyubomir Dalchev. World War II caused a delay in the expansion of the architectural complex. In the 1950s construction activities were resumed, and it was not until 1985 that the north wing was finally completed.
The Old Zoo
The city walk also needs a break in the greenery, which Sofia has. But let's tell you about this place - legendary from times gone by... The Sofia Zoo has existed since 1888 thanks to Tsar Ferdinand's great interest in wildlife and especially birds. Initially he collected animals in the palace courtyard. As the number of animals increased sharply with vultures, bears and deer, he set aside a part of the royal botanical garden, located at that time at the edge of the city, for their shelter. Now it is a part of the park between Blvd. Evlogi and Hristo Georgiev (Perlovska Reka), ul. Gurko and Blvd. Vasil Levski .
The king continues with the enrichment of the animal collection. His interests also extend beyond the borders of Bulgaria. Including bringing lions, which in the first year give offspring. Several pink pelicans swim in the pool he built, and a one-backed camel walks beside them.
After managing to preserve the garden and the animals during World War II, by 1950 it was home to over 2,000 animals. The site became bored and in 1983 a new zoo was built in a more remote area of the city.
It is impossible to cover all the interesting places, let alone tell in detail about a city with more than 7,000 years of history. But since we are in the ninth month of the year, we should mark its day - September 17, when we celebrate the Christian feast of the holy martyrs Faith, Hope and Love and their mother Sophia.
And let us wish: faith to lead, hope to sustain, love to overcome and wisdom to watch over them!
author of the article
Beloslava Dimitrova is a journalist and loves to tell stories. She writes and edits for the Seen platform. She has her own show "Urban Legends" on Radio Sofia and is part of the team of the radio show "Moleskine".