Baldwin's Tower (Bulgarian: Балдуинова кула, Balduinova kula) is a tower house located in the Tsarevets fortress in the Bulgarian town of Veliko Tarnovo.[1] The tower's name originates from Baldwin IX of Flanders, who was imprisoned in the tower after his capture in the Battle of Adrianople. It overlooks the Frankish Quarter (Frenkhisar)[1] and Frenkishar Gate[2] which is located southeast of the fortress wall of the Tsarevets fortress.[1] The Sofia Globe regarded it as one Bulgaria's biggest historical tourism spots.[3]
History
[edit]The tower's name originates from Baldwin IX of Flanders, one of the leaders of the Fourth Crusade which sacked Constantinople and first emperor of the Latin Empire after their conquest of the Byzantine Empire.[3] In 1205, Baldwin led a Crusader force against Bulgarian emperor Kaloyan and was captured after the Battle of Adrianople. It is commonly said that Baldwin was imprisoned in, and eventually died in, the tower.[a][2][5] The tower survived until 1913 when it was destroyed by an earthquake.[6] It was restored in either 1930,[3] 1933,[1] or 1938[6] by archaeologist and architect Alexander Rashenov[1] based on the preserved medieval tower in the Cherven fortress near Rousse.[1][3]
On February 29, 2013, the Bulgarian National Television reported that Baldwin's Tower was in critical need of repair, alongside concerns it may be too dangerous for visitors. The reason for the damage was that tourists would pick stones out of the tower’s walls and floors, either as mementos or to throw them from the cliff into the nearby Yantra River. The cost of repairs was estimated to be 15,000 leva, which was expected to come from entrance fees paid by tourists visiting Tsarevets.[3]
Footnotes
[edit]Explanatory
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g "Archaeologist Uncovers 13th Century Monastery Dining Room in Bulgaria's Veliko Tarnovo". Orthodox Christianity. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
- ^ a b c Bousfield, Jonathan; Richardson, Dan (2002). Bulgaria (4th ed.). London: Rough Guides. ISBN 978-1-85828-882-6. OCLC 49989328. OL 9003821M.
- ^ a b c d e f "Veliko Turnovo's landmark Baldwin's Tower in dire need of repair – report". The Sofia Globe. 19 February 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
- ^ Bradshaw, George (20 January 2013) [1913]. Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide . London: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-908402-69-1.
Baldwin's Tower
- ^ Miller, William (1923) [1896]. The Balkans: Roumania, Bulgaria, Servia and Montenegro, with New Chapter Containing Their History from 1896 to 1922 (3rd ed.). T. F. Unwin. p. 173.
- ^ a b Bogdanov, Ivan (1967). Veliko Turnovo. Foreign Languages Press. p. 24.
[Baldwin's Tower] survived up to 1913, when it was destroyed by an earthquake. Restored with part of the fortress in 1938, it is visited today by tourists as one of the interesting spots on Tsarevets.