Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

European Network of Places of Peace is holding its general meeting in Bulgaria

Author:
Photo: Kaynardzha Municipality
The municipality of Kaynardzha, located in northeastern Bulgaria as part of the ‎Silistrа region, is hosting the next general meeting of the European Network of ‎‎Places of Peace (ENPP) (October 27, 2023). It unites 14 settlements from 10 ‎European countries in which peace treaties have been signed. Its activity is ‎aimed at preserving the historical and architectural heritage in these settlements ‎and promoting the culture of peace nowadays. ‎

"Our goals are to spread the idea of a peaceful life and that everything can be ‎achieved through diplomacy. We are horrified by what is happening in ‎Ukraine, in Israel, and in every part of the planet where such a fire is burning," ‎says Bonka Yordanova, deputy mayor of Kaynardzha.‎


In 2015, Kaynardzha became the first Bulgarian administrative center to join ‎the European "Places of Peace". The invitation to the Bulgarian settlement is not ‎accidental. In 1774, the Kyuchuk Kaynardzha Peace Treaty between Russia ‎and the Ottoman Empire was signed there. ‎

‎"At this place (on July 21, 1774, at the end of the fifth Russo-Turkish war in ‎a row - note ed.) the good finale of a long war, which lasted from 1768 to ‎‎1774 with the signing of the Kyuchuk Kaynardzha peace treaty, was put", recalls the deputy mayor of Kaynardzha Municipality, Bonka Yordanova. -"In ‎‎1773, the Russian army won a victory over the Ottoman army precisely at ‎Kaynardzha. Then fierce military actions developed, the population of ‎Kaynardzha also suffered a lot from these battles. It is no coincidence that ‎many Bulgarians emigrated from our territories at that time and settled in the ‎lands of today's Ukraine and Moldova. After the victory of the Russian army, ‎peace talks were proposed, which lasted from the beginning of January until ‎the middle of July 21, when the peace treaty between the two empires was ‎concluded".‎

The place where the Kyuchuk Kaynardzha Peace Treaty was signed

The treaty provided for the cession of Kerch and several other Black Sea ports ‎on the Crimean Peninsula to Russia, and the rest of the Crimean Khanate was ‎declared independent. Russian merchant ships received permission to sail in ‎Turkish waters. The principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia were restored ‎under the sultan's suzerainty, but Russia acquired the right to intervene in the Sublime Porte (the court of the sultan) on their behalf. ‎

The agreement facilitated Russia's annexation of Crimea in 1783 and was the ‎basis for Russia's later claims as protector of Christians and Christianity in the ‎Ottoman Empire. ‎

At the place where the contract was signed, today a fountain stands, around ‎which a 32-acre nature park and a tourist center have been built. ‎

The historic fountain built in 1892
‎"The fountain was built in 1892. In 1973, on the occasion of the 200th ‎anniversary of the signing of the peace treaty, the Municipal Council of ‎Kaynardzha decided to turn the place into a park. In 2014, as part of a rural ‎development program project, we managed to build and equip a tourist center ‎with an exhibition and conference hall for events with up to 50 participants.‎

Tourist Information Centre in Kaynardzha

A permanent exhibition in the center tells about the peace treaty signed here, ‎about the protected natural areas in the area and about the lifestyle of local people.


Photos: Kaynardzha Municipality, Silistra Municipality


Compiled by Joan Kolev (based on an interview of Aishe Lyatish from BNR's Radio Shumen)


Translated and published by Rositsa Petkova



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Happy 89th, Radio Bulgaria!

On February 16, Radio Bulgaria celebrates its 89th anniversary . Throughout these years, our multilingual media has been not only a channel of information, but also an invaluable link with our audience around the world. Today, Radio Bulgaria offers rich..

published on 2/16/25 7:35 AM

Todor Tokin: BNR's Foreign Broadcasts was not a channel of communist ideology, on the contrary!

At various times in its existence, the BNR's Directorate of Foreign Language Broadcasts, now known as Radio Bulgaria, the multimedia multilingual platform of Bulgarian National Radio, was more than just a workplace for a number of popular journalists...

published on 2/16/25 7:15 AM
Кирил Вълчев

BTA unveils a unique font on its anniversary

February 16, 2025 marks the 127th anniversary of the first bulletin of the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency, signed by its first director Oscar Iskander. The agency was established in 1898 by a decree of Prince Ferdinand I. Just like 127 years ago, today the..

published on 2/16/25 6:10 AM