Name

Current Name

Ancient Name

Medieval Name

History of the name

Country

Geopolitical Unit

Administrative subdivision

Location

Foudation Date

Current condition

History

SO FAR THERE ARE FINDS FROM HELLENISTIC (LATE 4TH-2ND C. BC); LATE ANTIQUE (4TH - ERALY 7TH C. AD) AND MEDIAEVAL AGE (12TH - 14TH C.) DISCOVERED AT THE SITE. THE HELLENISTIC SETTLEMENT HAS NOT BEEN LOCATED YET BUT A FEW DOZEN OF FINDS OF LATE 4TH-2ND C. BC INCLUDING BRONZE COINS OF ODESSOS AND A GOLD COIN OF LYSIMACHOS OF THAT TIME AND A HELLENISTIC GRAVE DISCOVERED ARE GOOD PROOF ABOUT ITS EXISTENCE.
THE LATE ANTIQUE TOWN WAS ESTABLISHED IN LATE 4T-EARLY 5TH C. AD AND IN 5TH C. AD IT WAS FORTIFIED BY A CA 200 M LONG WALL RUNNING EAST-WEST, WHICH CUTED THE CAPE THE TOWN & ITS PORT WERE QUITE ACTIVE UNTIL AD 614. THEN IT WAS DEVASTATED AND PUT ON FIRE BY THE AVAR-SLAV INVASION OF THE SAME YEAR. 
THE MEDIEVAL TOWN WAS ESTABLISHED OVER THE RUINS OF THE LATE ANTIQUE ONE. MOST PROBABLY IN LATE 12TH OR EARLY 13 C. ACCORDING TO THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS. IN LATE 13TH C.  IT WAS FORTIFIED, USING WELL THE REMAINS OF THE LATE ANTIQUE FORTIFICATION SYSTEM OF WALL AND TOWERS, OVERBUILDING- AND PARTLY EXTENDING IT. SOMETIME LATER TWO MORE TOWERS WERE ADDED AND NEXT TO THE EAST END OF THE FORTRESS- WALL A CITADEL WAS CONSTRUCTE. THIS WAS MADE PROBABLY DUE TO THE EXPANSION OF THE VENETIAN AND GENOVESE MERCAHNTS ALONG THE BALCK SEA COAST AT THE TIME. PROBABLY THEN A SHORT EXTENSION OF THE WALL SOUTHWARDS OF THE WESTERN CORNER OF THE FORTRESS WAS ERECTED IN ORDER TO PROTECT THE PORT. FOR SAME REASON IN THE SECOND HALF OF 14TH C. IN THE SOWTHWESTERN CORNER A LARGE (10 X 10 M) TOWER WAS ERECTED WHICH SERVED TO CONTROL THE ACCESS TO THE PORT. MAYBE A LATER ERECTED LARGE TOWER SERVED AS A TRADE FACTORY OF THE GENOVESE MERCHANTS IN THE TOWN. IN EARLY 90-IES OF 14TH C. THE FORTESS  BECAME PART OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
IN EARLY 15TH C., DURING THE CIVIL WAR IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE BETWEEN THE OTTOMAN EMIR SULEIMAN AND HIS BROTHER EMIR MUSA, THE FORTRESS WAS CAPTURED AND DEVASTATED MOST PROBABLY BY THE LATER ONE. IT SEEMS THAT BEFORE THIS EVENT TOOK PART, THE LOCAL POPULATION LEFT THE TOWN AND TOOK REFUGEE IN THE NEAREST STRONGHOLD – VARNA. NO FURTHER LIFE HAS BEEN TRACED ON THE SITE AFTERWARDS.
HOWEVER, IT WAS MENTIONED ONCE MORE AS “MACROPOLIS” IN A DESCRIPTION OF THE RAID TOWARDS VARNA OF THE LAST CRUSADER’S CAMPAIGN IN 1444 LEAD BY THE POLISH-HUNGARIAN KING WLADISLAW III JAGIELO HELD AGAINST THE OTTOMANS. BY THAT TIME THE TOWN DID NOT EXHIST ANYMORE.
APART FROM THE THAT UNKNOWN FROM OTHER WRITTEN SOURCES NAME GIVEN IN THAT DESCRIPTION, ANOTHER PROOF ABOUT THE TOTAL DEVASTATION OF KASTRITSI IN EARLY 15 C. IS THE ABSENCE OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATA OF LATER TIMES THAN FIRST DECADES OF 15TH C. WHEN THE TOWN WAS PUT ON FIRE.. ABSOLUTELY NO FINDS OR COINS LATER THAN 1411 WERE DISCOVERED DURING THE EXCAVATION OF THE SITE WHICH CONITINUE UNTIL NOW.

Description

 NOW A LARGE PART OF THE 200 M LONG FORTRESS WALL OF 5TH- 6TH C. AD AND 13TH - 15TH C.WITH FIVE SEMICIRCULAR-, ONE TRIANGULAR- AND THREE RECTANGULAR IN SHAPE TOWERS ARE HAS BEEN EXCAVATED AND CLEARLY VISIBLE.
THE LARGE TOWER AT THE SOUTHWESTERN CORNER WITH REMAINS OF A CHAPEL INSIDE IS ALSO ACCESIBLE.  SEVERAL LIVING QUARTERS OF THE MEDIEVAL TOWN WITH NARROW STREETS, OCCASIONALLY PAVED BY IRREGULAR STONES REVEALED THE LAYOUT OF MEDIAEVAL TOWN KASTRITSI. ALONG WITH THE EXCAVAATED HOUSES OF VARIOUS DIMENSONS AND A LITLLE CHURCH, ALL OF 13-14 C. DATE, THEY ARE FORMING AN OPEN-AIR MUSEUM AT THE SITE.
EXCAVATION AT THE SITE STARTED EIGHT YEARS AGO CONDUCTED BY V. PLETNYOV AND THEY ARE STILL IN PROGRESS IN THE MEANTIME THE EXCAVATED FORTIFICATION AND VARIOUS BUILDINGS HAVE BEEN CONSERVATED.IN ORDER TO PROTECT THEM FROM CLIMATIC CHANGES..

Harbor

NOWADAYS, THERE EXIST A NEW YACHT- AND BOAT HARBOR AND KAY CONSTRUCTED IN LATE 20TH C. NEAR A LITTLE BEACH TO SERVE BOATS AND SMALL SHIPS FOR THE PEOPLE RECREATING AT EUXINOGRAD PALACE. IT IS NOT ACCESIBLE FOR THE SAILING VESSELS IN GENERAL BUT IT IS USED ONLY FOR THE NEEDS OF MEMBERS.OF BULGARIAN GOVERNMENT- AND PARLIAMENT. UNFORTUNATELY, THE CONSTRUCTED IN1970-IES LONG STONE MOLE ENLARGED THE BEACH BUT BLOCKED AND COVERED WITH SAND THE ANCIENT- AND MEDIEVAL BAY & HARBOUR
  
THE FIRST PERIOD OF PROSPERITY OF THE HARBOUR WAS 5TH-6TH C. AD WHEN EVIDENCED BY ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS AT THE SITE THERE WERE REGULAR TRADE CONNECTIONS WITH CONSTANTINOPOLE, ASIA MINOR AND OTHER PARTS OF THE ERALY BYZANTINE EMPIRE. THIS HAS BEEN PROVED BY THE DISCOVERED IMPORTED BRONZE VESSELS FROM THE IMPERIAL CAPITAL AND “LATE ROMAN C” RED-SLIP POTTERY FROM ASIA MINOR.WINE WAS ALSO WIDELY IMPORTED SOME OF THE AMPHORA TYPES BEING OF NORTH AFRICAN ORIGIN TOO. ANOTHER PROOF ABOUT THE WIDELY OPEND TRADE OF THE TOWN- AND HARBOR IS THE NUMEROUS FINDS OF COINS OF 5TH- ERALY 7TH C. AD, ISSUED BY VARIOUS MINTS IN THE EMPIRE.
THE SECOND PERIOD OF PROSPERITY WAS 13TH- EARLY 15TH C., WHEN MOST OF THE TIME KASTRITSI BELONGED TO THE BULGARIAN KINGDOM. THE EXPORT GOODS FROM BULGARIA AT THE TAIME WAS MAINLY GRAIN, ANIMAL SKINS AND FURS, WAX, TIMBER AND WOOD AS WELL AS OTHER RAW MATERIALS.
HE IMPORTS INCLUDED FINE GLAZED “SGRAFFITO” POTTERY, GLASS AND LITURGICAL BRONZE VESSELS, FINE FABRICS AND SILVER & GOLD JEWELLERY FROM CONSTANTINOPLE, WINE FROM AEGEAN REGION AND CRIMEA (KAFA), ETC. RICHLY DECORATED BY SILVER GILT APPLIQUES MALE BELTS WERE ALSO IMPORTED FROM DUBROVNIK (RAGUZA) OR GENOA IN LATE 13TH- 14TH C. EXCLUSIVE FOR BULGARIA FINDS ARE TWO BRONZE CHINESE- AND GOLD HORDE MIRRORS, WHICH EXTEND THE TRADE CONNECTIONS OF THE PORT ALSO FAR AWAY TO ASIA.
BRONZE, SILVER AND GOLD COINS OF 13TH- EARLY 15TH C. MINTED MAINLY IN BULGARIA AND BYZANCE BUT ALSO IN, THE GOLDEH HORDE AND TARTAR KHAGANAT; VENICE, MOLDOVA AS WELL AS IN THE EARLY OTTOMAN EMPIRE.HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED IN NUMBERS IN KASTRITSI. THEY AND THE MEDIEVAL BRONZE BALANCES AND WEIGHTS OF 13TH-14TH C. EVIDENCED FOR THE WIDE TRADE CONNECTIONS TOO.
Past: prosperity period, findings on site, description of the                     
medieval harbor etc. Imported - exported products, trade relations at medieval era)

Fortification

THE FIRST FORTRESS OF KASTRITSI (IT’S ACTUAL NAME THEN BEING UNKNOWN, POSSIBLY: POLIS KASTRON) WAS ERECTED IN 5TH C. AD AS PART OF THE EARLY BYZANTINE FORTIFICATION SYSTEM ON THE WESTERN BLACK SEA COAST. IT WAS CA 200 M LONG AND 2 M WIDE. SMALL IN SCALE RECONSTRUCTION HAS BEEN UNDERGONE PROBABLY IN 6TH C. AD AND IN EARLY 7TH C. AD IT WAS ABANDONED FOR A LONG TIME.
IN 13TH C., BEING PART OF THE BULGARIAN KINGDOM, A THE FORTRESS WAS RE-ERECTED AND AT CERTAIN PARTS MADE WIDER - UP TO 3 M. NEW TOWERS AND A CITADEL AS WELL AS AN EXTENTION OF THE WALL TO THE HARBOR WERE CONSTRUCTED. IN LATE 13 C. A LARGE TOWER FOR PROTECTION OF THE HARBOR WAS ERECTED TOO. NOWADAYS, ALMOST THE ENTIRE FORTIFICATION HAS BEEN EXCAVATED AND IS NOW VISIBLE. DURING LAST FEW YEARS SOME CONSERVATION WORKS AT CERTAIN AREAS OF THE WALL DESTRUCTED IN LATE 19TH-20TH C. TOOK PART TOO.

Medieval Sites

THE ENTIRE FORTIFICATION OF 13-EARLY 15TH C. OVERLAPING THE LATE ANTIQU/ ERALY BYZANTINE ONE OF 5TH-ERALY 7TH C. AD ALONG WITH ITS EIGHT ROUND-, SQUARE- AND TRIANGULAR IN SHAPE TOWERS AND THE CITADEL IN THE SOUTHWETERN CORNER STILL EXIST. THE SITE IS NOT VISITED YET BY THE GENERAL PUBLIC DUE TO ITS RESTRICTED STATUS OF ACCES AS BEING PART OF THE GOVERNMENTAL RESIDENCE.
A LITTLE MUSEUM EXHIBITION SHOWING PART OF THE FINDS FROM EXCAVATION CONDUCTED IN LAST FEW YEARS HAS BEEN DISPLAYED IN ONE LARGE ROOM IN ONE OF THE LATE 19TH C. BUILDINGS OF THE RESIDENCE.
RECENTLY, SOME MEASURES HAVE BEEN TAKEN BY THE VARNA REGIONAL MUSEUM AUTHORITIES IN ORDER TO HELP OPENING THE SITE AND THE MUSEUM EXHIBITION FOR GENERAL PUBLIC AND VISITING IT BY ORGANIZED GROUPS.

Textual Sources

PORTОLAN IN GREEK LANGUAGE TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN OF CA 14TH C. PUBLISHED IN VENICE  IN 1573 (THE ORIGINAL TEXT DISCOVERED IN 1559 LATER VANISHED) – See: Б. Димитров. Българските пристанища в ХІІІ и ХІV в. според два средновековни портолана – Археология ХХІ, 1, 1979, с. 22-28 (WITH FULL TRANSLATION IN BULGARIAN AND COMMENTS);

PHILIPPI CALLIMACHI HISTORIA DE REGE VLADISLAO. Edit Ir. Lichonska. Varsoviae, MCMLXI (Resided in Bulgarian with large comments by Хр. Коларов. Хрониката на Калимах – важен извор за варненската битка от 1444 г. – Известия на Народния музей – Варна, ХХІVр 1973, с. 248.

Bibliography

К. Иречек. Пътувания из България. София, 1974, с. 896;
Хр. Коларов. Хрониката на Калимах – важен извор за варненската битка от 1444 г. – Известия на Народния музей – Варна, ХХІVр 1973, с. 241-253;
Б. Димитров. Българските пристанища в ХІІІ и ХІV в. според два средновековни портолана – Археология ХХІ, 1, 1979, с. 21-28;
Ал. Кузев. Кранеа и Кастрици. – В: Български средновековни градове и крепости ) ред. Ал. Кузев, В. Гюзелев). Варна, 1981, с. 289- 292;
В. Плетньов. Крепостта Кастрици. – В: Татгра. Сборник в чест на 70- годишнината на акад. Васил Гюзелев. София, 2006, с. 451-464.

Links

NO LINKS DESCRIBING THE SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE TIME BEING DUE TO THE SPECIAL STATUS OF THE SITE AS PART OF THE GOVERNMENTAL RESIDENCE.

Visual Material

Writer / Date

Multimedia