Corridor: Danube Road, Western Trans-Balkan Road
Country: Bulgaria, Vidin
Type: Fortress
Epoch: Middle Ages
Theme: Fortresses
World Heritage:

The Medieval fortress in the town of Vidin, situated on the Danube, is the best-preserved Medieval castle in Bulgaria. On the site of the present town, during the 1st – 6th c. there was the Roman fortress Bononia – the remains of one of its towers were discovered in the foundations of the Medieval fortress. Th erection of the “Baba Vida” fortress began in the 10th c. and was completed in the 14th c. during the reign of tsar Ian Srazimir. The castle had irregular rectangular plan with two concentric fortification walls, with no building in between. The inner fortification wall had four towers in the corners, orientated to the four cardinal points, and five side towers. The outside defence wall had only one entrance tower. The ditch in front of the castle was filled by water from the Danube, and could be passed over only by the wooden drawbridge, guarded by the entrance tower. During the Ottoman domination the castle was converted into a defence fortress and was adapted for using of firearms. In the 18th c. the inner defence wall was overbuilt with bricks and the towers were covered.

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