The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1924-11-02
CELEBRATES ITS
=ANNIVERSARY0F
18TH CENTURY
Bulgarian City To OBJ
serve Its Founding Date
$500 Years Ago

A modest celebration in Varna, Bull
saria, recently marked the two thou
sand five hundreth anniversary OF
its first settlement as city. Varna
doesn't know it's exact age, but the
round numbers suffice to place il
Bmong the really ancient cities OF
Europe; neither recorded nor legend
AIRY history would withhold from it such
renerability.
: Cyrus took Babylon, Egypt was
made Persian province, reformed
Athenian constitution was pleaded for
by Scion and the Roman republic was
founded in the century that saw the
birth of Varna. 1t was a fluorishing
Town when London, Moscow, Berlin and
Paris were undreamed of. 1T was hav'
ing its three hundreth birthday" a
bulletin of the National Geographic so.
tiety state, when a strip of territory
later comprised in Bulgaria and Serbia
was known as Moesia, a not very con.
spicuous province of the Roman en-
pire.'
= Odessus Its Earlier Name
: In ancient geography, Moesia, on
the Danube river, is reputed to have
been occupied by Thracians who in
is B. c., were defeated on the field
nf battle by forces under G.. Scribonius
Curio, pro-consul of Macedonia. and
Finally subdued about 20 B. c., in
the reign of Augustus, by Nj. Licinius
Crassus, who also handled Macedonia
for Rome. Several years passed before
Moesia was organized into a province
At that time Varna was known as
Colossus.
"A colony of Milesans is supposed
to have been established in the region,
the geographic society's bulletin con-
tinues "Since the Milesians in legend
AIRY history were an early Irish race,
yarna might appropriately have invited
an Irish delegation to help her cele-
brate.
ITO Bulgarians today, Varna is in a
Sery literal sense what Plymouth and
Jamestown, Americas youthful 300
year-Old towns, are to people of the
United States. Along with the Slavs
and the Avars the Bulgars swarmed
into Europe in the sixth century and
the Bulgars formed a thriving kingdom
in south Russia between the VOlga and
the Danube. In that same century a
colony of Bulgars pressed on south of
the Danube and established themselves
Mt Varna. Like the Franks, in Gaul,
they gave their name to the country
They founded, but, as pure stock, they
disappeared. And like the Normans in
Sngland, the conquerors were absorbed
by the conquered. Today they are ac-
counted Slavic people.
AT Varna, in 1444, the romantic
ANladislaus III, king of Poland and
Hungary, was slain by the fanatical
Murad II because he regarded a treaty
as a scrap of paper. In 1915, Varna
was bombarded by Russian fleet"
= Five centurieh of Turkish rule from
1896 to 1878, formed dark epoch in
Bulgarian history, invaders constantly
applying the torch and welding the
sword throughout the land. Murad II
was the Ottaman sultan for most of
the years between 1927 to 1851, and
maintained long struggles against the
Bosnians and Hungarians. Serbia was
bone of contention, but in 1444 he
signed treaty by which he renounced
claim OF it; but in the same year he
was forced to go to war again, and the
battle of Varna was a decisive victory
for him. 1t wah at this time Waldislaus
was killed.
= The Bulgars, when they settled their
region first, were a horde of wild horse
men who ruled despotically and loved
10 fight. Their life consisted chiefly of
warfare. Between the time the country
gained an autonomous identity in 1873,
and the loss of the rich Dobrudja region
to Rumania in the Second Balkan war
in 1913, Varna was conspicuous CEN
ter in Bulgaria's stirring military his
tory it formed corner of the so-called
4'Varna quadrilateral," which comprised
its own fortress and the strategically
Situated cities of Shumla, Rustchul
and Silistria, the last named place now
being Rumania. Varna retained its
military Importance in the World war
as signified by Russia's bombardment
Third City In Size
A seaport of equal Importance with
Burgas, and the Kingdoms third city il
population, after Sofia and Philippe
polls, Varna nestles on the hilly north
shore of the bay of Varna, an inlet Of
The Black sea, near the Rumanian Dor
der. Its harbor is deep and capacious
its shipping facilities up-to-date. The
work of many of its 10000 or so in
7habitants is connected with its export
business, the trade stuffs consisting
of cattle and dairy produce, grain, lamt
and goat skins and a rough cloth. shay
nix.
Most of the modern part of Varna
has been constructed since 1873, wher
the treaty of Berlin. There are sew
eral handsome buildings of the late
type, including the post office, public
library, college for girls and the Ma
tional bank. But for all the newness
ho Of &c