Description of the attraction
The Church of the Forty Martyrs is a temple in Veliko Tarnovo, which is one of the medieval buildings of the city. Located at the very foot of the ancient fortification Tsarevets. This temple was declared a cultural monument in 1964 and is an integral part of the history of Bulgaria.
The construction of the church and the rich painting characteristic of the interior decoration were associated with the heroic victory of Tsar Asen II, when he defeated the Epirus despot T. Komnin near the town of Klokotnitsa on March 22, 1230.
Visually, the church is divided into two parts - an oblong basilica with six columns and an extension, made later on the western side of the temple. The columns inside the church have kept records of some of the key events in the history of the state. One of the columns was made directly during the construction of the church; an inscription about the deeds of Tsar Asen II has been preserved on it. Two more columns were moved to Veliko Tarnovo from Pliska. Among the surviving murals, the most interesting are the images above the entrance of St. Elizabeth, holding the baby John in her arms, and St. Anne.
Historians suggest that closer to the end of the 13th century, representatives of the Asenei dynasty erected a monastery surrounding the church, and it was considered one of the holiest places in the vicinity of Tarnovo. In ancient sources of the XIII-XIV centuries, he figured under the names "Great Lavra" and "Tsar's Monastery". Subsequently, the monastery fell into disrepair due to the capture of the city by the Turks. The Bulgarian nobility, which financially supported the church and monastery, disappeared, and the number of Christians decreased markedly. In this quarter, the nourishment of Christians lasted only until the XIV century. Then the temple was turned into a mosque. However, it was this that saved the church from total destruction, which happened to many other holy buildings on the Bulgarian land during that period. In 1878 the temple was returned to Christians.
Many Bulgarian rulers are buried in the Church of the Forty Great Martyrs - Kaloyan, Ivan Asen II, St. Savva of Serbia, as well as Queen Anna Maria and Irina Komnina.
