As a state established by khan Asparouh, Bulgaria has been existing for more than 13 centuries. Thracians were the first settlers in the Bulgarian lands and their civilisation is evidenced by the numerous archaeological finds, uncovered tombs, discovered gold and silver treasures. Testimonies for the presence of life in the pre-historic ages have been preserved in the best-preserved Neolithic housings discovered world-wide – namely those off the town of Stara Zagora, in the “Bacho Kiro” cave off the town of Dryanovo and in the Magurata cave – close to the town of Belogradchik. The first written reference where the name Bulgarians is to be found is in an anonymous Roman chronograph of 452 AD.

Bulgaria is known as the country of roses, the country of musicians, the country at the crossroads. In the course of its centuries long history, the Bulgarian state has always provided the link between Eastern and Western civilisation, and this fact has cultivated the extraordinary tolerant spirit and a very specific type of vitality are the inherent features of Bulgarian national character that helped our people to survive all vagaries of history. Today, in the beginning of the third millennium, Bulgaria due to its rich historic heritage and its contribution to global culture, is an integral part of Modern World, of human civilisation, the mission of which is to preserve spirituality and humanism.


The history of Bulgaria goes back more than 3,000 years. In antiquity, Bulgaria, the land of Orpheus and Spartacus, belonged to the empire of Alexander the Great. By 46 BC, the Romans had conquered the whole peninsula, which they inhabited until invasions by Thraco-Illyrian tribes left the area a devastated wasteland. Peaceful Slavic farmers grazed in during the 6th century. In 679, the Bulgars, a fierce Turkic tribe, crossed the Danube to found the First Bulgarian Empire; they then expanded south at Byzantium's expense before finally conquering Macedonia in the 9th century. The Bulgars were eventually assimilated by the more numerous Slavs, and adopted their language and way of life.

A succession of various civilisations, Thracian, Roman, and Byzantine, the Bulgarian state has existed for 13 centuries now on the Balkan Peninsula, which has long been a meeting place and a melting-pot of tribes and nations. The Bulgarian state was founded in 681 AD, when Slavs and Proto-Bulgarians were brought together under the sceptre of the khan. In 865 a Byzantine monk who painted a picture of hell on the palace walls managed to frighten Tsar Boris I into accepting Orthodox Christianity. In 870 the Bulgarian Church became independent with its own patriarch. The First Bulgarian Kingdom or the "Golden Age" emerged under Tsar Simeon I in 893-927 and was expanded through Serbia to the Adriatic Sea. Simeon's kingdom shrank again when he overstretched his covetous hands toward the Byzantine crown. This weakened Bulgaria, making it susceptible to the Byzantine emperor, Basil II, who had the eyes of 15,000 Bulgarian soldiers put out after a decisive victory in 1014. Bulgaria passed to Byzantine rule four years later.
The Second Bulgarian Empire (1185-1396) was founded after two brothers, Asen and Peter, led a general uprising against Byzantium. Swollen with renewed confidence, the new empire covered all of Thrace, Macedonia and Albania. It was gnawed away over the next two centuries by the Tatars and then the Turks. By the end of the 14th century, the Turks controlled all of Bulgaria, beginning five centuries of Ottoman rule.