Razgrad

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Razgrad
Разград

Image:Razgradgerb.gif
Coat of arms

Razgrad

Location of Razgrad

Coordinates: 43°32′N 26°31′E / 43.533, 26.517

Country

Bulgaria

Provinces
(Oblast)

Razgrad

Government

- Mayor

Dencho Boyadzhiev

Elevation

200 m (656 ft)

Population (14.12.2005)

- Total

39,540

Time zone

EET (UTC+2)

- Summer (DST)

EEST (UTC+3)

Postal Code

7200

Area code(s)

084

Website: http://www.razgradnews.com

View of Razgrad

Razgrad at night

Razgrad (Bulgarian: Разград) is a city in northeastern Bulgaria and the capital of Razgrad Province, built upon the ruins of the Ancient Roman town of Abritus on the banks of the Beli Lom. Razgrad has one of the densest Turkish populations in Bulgaria, with 27% of the municipality's citizens declaring to be Turks in 1998. An absolute majority of 69% are Bulgarians, with the remaining 4% being composed for the most part of Roma.

Some of Razgrad's landmarks include the Varosha architectural complex from the 19th century, the ethnographic museum and several other museums, the characteristic clock tower in the centre built in 1864, the St Nicholas the Miracle Worker Church from 1860, the Momina cheshma sculpture, the Mausoleum Ossuary of the Liberators (1879-1880) and the Ibrahim Pasha Mosque from 1530. The mosque is said to be the third largest one in the Balkans,excluding Istanbul - its reconstruction has still not been completed, having begun in Communist times.

In 251, the town was the site of the Battle of Abrittus, during which the Goths defeated a Roman army under the emperors Trajan Decius and Herennius Etruscus. The battle is notable for being the first occasion of a Roman emperor being killed in a battle with barbarians.