Send Gift Baskets to Stara Zagora, Bulgaria

The oldest known settlement in the region may have been in a Thracian castle from the 5th to 4th centuries. Founded by Philip II of Macedon in 342 BC, the city has stood the test of time. Under the Roman empire, it was renamed ‘Ulpia Augusta Traiana’ (named after emperor Trajan) and reached its geographical and economical peak under Marcus Aurelius (161-180). It became the second most important city in Thrace after Philippopolis. The importance of this temple is shown by the visits to it made by emperors such as Septimius Severus (193-211), Caracalla (211-217), and Diocletian (294-305).

The Battle of Beroe took place near the city 250 years ago, resulting in victory for the Goths. The doubling of the city walls may have been carried out following this event, a practice also seen elsewhere in the region. The city was an important place in the 2nd-3rd century and had a coin mint of its own. In 377 AD, during the Gothic War, the Goths marched on Beroe to attack Roman General Frigiderus. However, his scouts detected their invasion and he promptly withdrew to Illyria. The city was destroyed but rebuilt by Justinian. John’s Byzantine army, many of the captives, and many of the new settlers were settled within the Byzantine frontier.

In 1208, the Bulgarians defeated the Latin Empire in the battle of Boruy. The Ottoman Empire conquered Stara Zagora in 1371. A grade school was built there in 1840 and the city’s name was changed to Zheleznik (A Slavic translation of Beroe) in 1854 instead of the Turkish Eskizağra (Also called Zağra-i Atik), but it was renamed. It is an administrative center in Zağra-i Atik before 1878. After being liberated from Ottoman rule in 1878, Eastern Rumelia became a federal administrative division and Bulgaria finally merged in 1886 after being independent since 1878.