Asen's Fortress

Asen's Fortress
Asen's Fortress
Асенова крепост
Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars

Asen's Fortress (

Asenitsa River. Asen's Fortress is 279 metres (915 ft) above sea level.^[1]

History

The earliest archaeological findings date from the time of the

Ancient Roman and Early Byzantine period. The fortress gained importance in the Middle Ages, first mentioned in the statute of the Bachkovo Monastery as Petrich in the 11th century. The fortress was conquered by the armies of the Third Crusade

.

In 1205 the Latin Duke of Philippopolis, Renier of Trit, fled from Philippopolis, which was under pressure from Tsar Kaloyan of Bulgaria, and took refuge in Asen's Fortress (at the time called Stanimaka). Renier of Trit would be besieged in the fortress for eleven months with just 40 knights before being relieved by the army of Latin Emperor Henry of Flanders.^[2]

It was considerably renovated in the 13th century (more precisely 1231) during the rule of

Bulgarian tsar Ivan Asen II to serve as a border fortification against Latin

raids, as evidenced by an eight-line wall inscription. The foundations of fortified walls—the outer ones being 2.9 metres (9.5 ft) thick and preserved up to a height of 3 metres (10 ft), originally 9 to 12 metres (30 to 39 ft) high—a feudal castle, 30 rooms and 3 water repositories have been excavated from this period.

The best preserved and most notable feature of Asen's Fortress is the

Bulgarian Orthodox

church.

In the following years after Ivan Assen II's death the castle switch hands between the Bulgarians and Byzantines for decades.The fortress was once again in Bulgarian hands at the time of

rule of Bulgaria

.

The town of Asenovgrad takes its modern name from the fortress, formerly being named Stanimaka.