Memorial complex "Hristo Botev" in Kalofer rises on a hill in the immediate vicinity of the city center and the city square, and from the platform under the statue of Botev a phenomenal panorama of the entire city is revealed.
The Hristo Botev Memorial Complex has been declared an immovable cultural asset (cultural monument) with a category of national importance - historical.
The project for this complex was the work of Prof. Dimitar Daskalov in collaboration with architects Ivan Nikolov and Lachezar Daskalov and was implemented in 1986.
The memorial consists of a full-length figure of Hristo Botev, made of granite. The figure of the poet is 14.4 meters high, and together with the plastic pedestal, also made of granite, the height reaches an impressive 25 meters.
Near the main statue is the composition "200 Rifles" as a tribute to all participants in Botev's Squad.
In the approaches to the Botev monument, there is a 3.2-meter-high relief of a Bulgarian lion, also carved from granite, which significantly enhances the patriotic connotation of the memorial.
Viewed from the square or from the riverbank, the full-length monument to the poet, similar to that of Georgi Benkovski in Koprivshtitsa, creates the feeling of Botev as the guardian of his hometown, a giant who will always be on guard.
From the site of the Botev monument, a beautiful panorama of Kalofer opens up.
The first fact from Hristo Botev's biography that makes a very strong impression is that he became a teacher at only 18 years old. His love for the people and the national cause at this tender age was expressed in love for the Bulgarian children in the village of Zadunaevka, Bessarabia. There, the young Hristo Botev Petkov took his first steps as a teacher and instilled in his students ardent patriotism and sincere patriotism.
A few months later, Botev returned to his hometown to replace his ailing father as a teacher at the Daskal Botev School.
There, in his native Kalofer, on May 11, 1867, Hristo Botev delivered a passionate speech on the occasion of the feast of the Holy Brothers Cyril and Methodius, and because of this speech he was expelled from his fatherland and forced to emigrate.
The next key moment in Botev's biography was the winter of 1868, which he spent in a deserted mill in the vicinity of Bucharest in the company of the Apostle of Freedom.
The meeting with Levski largely shaped the revolutionary views of the freedom-loving young man and attached him to the Bulgarian national liberation movement. Up until that point, Botev had known primarily Russian revolutionary thought, but was not fully aware of the situation in Bulgaria. Levski opened Botev's eyes to a number of extremely important issues and left a lasting mark on the revolutionary poet.
Due to his youth, however, Botev failed to absorb all the lessons of his brilliant teacher and in time he would make mistakes that he would have avoided if he had listened to the Apostle's precepts. The biggest of these mistakes was the organization of the Stara Zagora Uprising. Hristo Botev, as the leader of the Bulgarian Revolutionary Committee, decided to raise an uprising, but without serious preparation, believing that the Bulgarian people were ready to take up arms en masse at just one call. This turned out to be a chimera and after the collapse of the uprising, the Bulgarian Revolutionary Committee disintegrated.
The last heroic moment of Botev's short life occurred in the spring of 1876, when the Bulgarian people were preparing hard for a final, nationwide uprising against the Turkish oppressors. Thus, on May 16, the immortal march of Botev's detachment began. On that day, the Bulgarian chetniks boarded the Austrian ship "Radetzky" from various Romanian ports and at around 11:00 the next day forced the crew to stop on the Bulgarian coast near Kozloduy. There, all the rebels, led by the voivode, swore an oath that they would give their lives for the freedom of their native land and kissed it as if it were their most precious sacred object.
The detachment then headed for Vratsa, a revolutionary center in northwestern Bulgaria. However, Botev and his comrades suffered several disappointments along the way, as in most villages no one would go with them, and in some places there was only one willing one. On May 18, after serious battles with the bashibazouk and the regular Turkish army, the detachment suffered over 30 casualties, but managed to repel the enemy and escape from the encirclement at night.
On May 20, the detachment's last major battles with the Turkish forces were fought, and at the end of the day, the voivode Hristo Botev, who was only 28 years old at the time, was killed.
How to get to the town of Kalofer?
Kalofer is a town in Karlovo Municipality, Plovdiv District.
It is located in South Central Bulgaria near the Sub-Balkan Road*.
*The Republican Road I-6, also known as the Sub-Balkan Road, is a first-class road of the Republican Road Network of Bulgaria with a west-east direction, passing through the territory of nine districts: Kyustendil, Pernik, Sofia Region, Sofia, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Sliven, Yambol and Burgas.
Its total length is 508.5 km, making it the longest republican road in Bulgaria.
Kalofer is located at the foot of the southern slopes of the Stara Planina Mountain.
Kalofer is located:
156 kilometers (about 2 hours and 16 minutes by car) from the capital
66 kilometers (about 1 hour by car) from the city of Plovdiv
330 kilometers (about 4 hours and 17 minutes by car) from the city of Varna
230 kilometers (about 2 hours and 30 minutes by car) from the city of Burgas
17 kilometers (about 17 minutes by car) from the city of Karlovo
How to get to the Hristo Botev Memorial Complex?
The Hristo Botev Memorial Complex is located in the city center.
What to visit in Kalofer?
Entering the city, you should not miss visiting the monument of Kalifer Voivode, the founder of Kalofer.
Nearby is the starting point for the "White River" eco-trail.
In the center of the city there is a Renaissance temple "Holy Assumption of the Virgin Mary", which I recommend you to visit.
Located on the left bank of the Tundzha River, on the spacious and sunny central city square, at the base of the Hristo Botev Memorial Complex and next to the "200 Rifles" composition, rises the graceful white stature of the Daskal Botev School, today transformed into the Museum of Educational Work in Kalofer.
Opposite the museum is the Kalofer Lace Creative Center, which I advise you to check out.
Let your sunny walk in this unique Bulgarian city take you to the Hristo Botev National Museum.
The Church of St. Athanasius the Great is located near the center of Kalofer. It is the only church in Kalofer, located on the right bank (south) of the Tundzha River.
And finally, my dear friends,
you shouldn't miss checking out
the special photo album with moments –
discovered, experienced, filmed and shared with you!
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