Fortress & castleNorthern Bulgaria & the Danube

Shumen Fortress, the Hilltop Stronghold above Shumen

Shumen Fortress is a ruined medieval and ancient stronghold on the Shumen Plateau, a few kilometres from the city of Shumen in north-eastern Bulgaria. Thracians, Romans, Byzantines and Bulgars all built walls here, and one of the best-studied archaeological sites in the country lies inside a nature park. It is a rewarding detour for anyone interested in castles and hidden gems in Bulgaria.

This hill fortress was inhabited for roughly a thousand years, yet it never became a capital: its grand neighbours Pliska and Preslav stole the glory while it quietly guarded them.

WhereShumen Plateau, on a hill a few kilometres from the city of Shumen, north-eastern Bulgaria

TypeAncient and medieval hilltop fortress and archaeological reserve

Best forHistory and castle lovers, walkers, and anyone tracing the early Bulgarian state

Getting thereBy road from Shumen, then on foot along tracks in the Shumen Plateau Nature Park

The history of Shumen Fortress

The plateau above today's Shumen stands at a crossroads of routes that linked the Danube bank near Silistra with Adrianople and Constantinople, and the northern Black Sea coast with the western Bulgarian lands. Thracians, probably of the Getae tribe, settled the hill in the distant past, and a first defensive wall, thought to date from around the fifth century BCE, has not survived. After the Romans took the Danubian plain at the start of the first millennium CE, they raised a new mortared wall with rectangular and U-shaped towers. The Goths destroyed the fortress around 250 CE, but it was soon rebuilt. In Roman times it served mostly as a military post and lagged behind nearby Marcianopolis and Abritus in wealth.

When the empire split in 395, the Byzantines built a new wall with pentagonal towers, shaped so that stone-throwing machines would find them harder to hit. In the early Byzantine period the fortress grew into a real production and trading centre; 158 coins of that age show contacts with the far corners of the empire. Barbarian invasions from the second half of the fifth century to the middle of the seventh then ruined the ancient town and emptied it.

After Asparuh's Bulgars arrived in 680–681, the area became part of the First Bulgarian State. Dugout dwellings appeared among the ruins in the eighth century, and by the ninth and tenth centuries the settlement was being rebuilt as a fortress, with some of the towers remade in a triangular shape and a citadel for the governors. Close to the capitals Pliska and Preslav, it played an important military role but was far less wealthy. Byzantium took it in 1001, and in the 1030s or 1040s Pecheneg raids destroyed it, before it was restored again.

The greatest age followed the Asen uprising in the late twelfth century. In the Second Bulgarian State, Shumen became one of the most developed towns in medieval Bulgaria, known for farming, pottery (especially sgraffito ware), stonework and metalwork. Under Tsar Ivan Alexander there was a mint, and in the fourteenth century three rings of fortifications protected the town, with a governor's palace turned into a donjon and six churches in the inner town. Tsar Ivan Shishman visited, and an inscription from his time is the one that records the name of the city as Shumen.

The Ottomans took the fortress in 1388 during the campaign of Çandarlı Ali Pasha; the Ottoman layer lies directly on the Bulgarian one, so it is assumed that it fell without a fight. The end came in 1444, in the context of the crusade of King Władysław III of Poland, which ended at the Battle of Varna. The fortress was taken, burned and destroyed, and it was never inhabited again. Systematic excavations from 1957 to 1987, led by Vera Antonova, uncovered three walls, twelve churches and much more; partial restoration was carried out in 2012–2015.

Curious facts about Shumen Fortress

The Shumen inscription of Tsar Ivan Shishman, found here, is the document that spells the name of the city exactly as Shumen.
Among the finds is a small plaque of a dancing man, possibly an early Bulgar shaman, though the question is still open.
An inscription reading “Ostro… bogoin” is regarded by the excavator Vera Antonova as the first Cyrillic inscription found in Bulgaria; some researchers also see it as the oldest Cyrillic text.
In the “cult centre” of the site, the foundations of four churches stand side by side.
A bronze seal with a double-headed eagle has been attributed to Tsar Ivan Alexander, and a limestone block carved with a double-headed eagle and a three-pointed crown may recall a royal visit.
From the fortress you can see Madara to the east and, to the north-west, the direction of Pliska, the first Bulgarian capital.

Tours near Shumen Fortress

Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:

Shumen Fortress Self-Guided

1 h

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ATV/QUAD Off-Road Tour in Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi

★ 5 (61 reviews) · 1.5 h

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Discover cliffs and myths of Bulgarian Northern Black Sea coast

★ 5 (36 reviews) · 8 h

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Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi day tour from Sofia with pickup

★ 4.9 (19 reviews) · 10 h

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Visiting Shumen Fortress: what to expect

The reserve is part of the Hundred National Tourist Sites of Bulgaria, and a museum belongs to it; check the current opening hours before you go.
Look for the three layers of walls, Roman, early Byzantine and medieval Bulgarian, each with its own tower shapes, as well as the church ruins and the citadel.
The restoration completed in 2015 added walking paths around the walls and artistic lighting; the fortress sits inside the Shumen Plateau Nature Park.
On the way you pass the “Creators of the Bulgarian State” monument of 1981 and an information centre, from where a track of about 3 km leads to the fortress.
The Tombul Mosque stands in Shumen itself, and the Great Basilica of Pliska and the Round Church of Preslav are reachable in a day trip.

Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.

Map: where Shumen Fortress is

Photos of Shumen Fortress

Questions

What is Shumen Fortress?

Shumen Fortress is an ancient and medieval hilltop stronghold above the city of Shumen in north-eastern Bulgaria. It is one of the best-studied archaeological monuments in the country.

Where is Shumen Fortress and how do I get there?

It stands on the Shumen Plateau, a few kilometres from the city of Shumen, inside the Shumen Plateau Nature Park. It can be reached by road and then on foot along tracks.

Who built Shumen Fortress?

Several peoples left their mark: Thracians, Romans, Byzantines and Bulgars. Three successive walls, Roman, early Byzantine and from the Second Bulgarian State, have been uncovered.

When was Shumen Fortress abandoned?

It was destroyed in 1444 during the crusade of King Władysław III of Poland, the year of the Battle of Varna, and was never settled again.

What was found during the excavations?

Archaeologists uncovered twelve churches, an early Byzantine bath, two water reservoirs, a citadel, coins, sgraffito pottery and several famous inscriptions.

What else is worth seeing near Shumen Fortress?

The Tombul Mosque in Shumen is the closest sight. The Great Basilica of Pliska, the Round Church of Preslav and the Palace of Omurtag lie within roughly 25 km.