Bukelon Fortress

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Matochina is a village settlement on the bank of the Tundzha river, some 40 kilometers north-east of Svilengrad, in close proximity to the border with Turkey. From the nearby Fortress only the citadel remains. Best preserved are the defence tower near the entrance, and a piece of double fortress wall near the door, rising to 18 meters above ground. From the outer fortification only slight traces remain.

Archeologists have dated the fortress to be from the Roman epoch and concluded that those are the remains of the famous Bukelon Fortress, where the glorious battle for Adrianopol between Emperor Valent’s troops and the Goths was held in 378. The Roman army was crashed and the emperor perished in battle. The fortress was used and reconstructed over the centuries.

The place also relates to another epic battle from the Bulgarian history. Here in 1205 the troops of Tsar Kaloyan defeated the Knights Army of the Latins and took their Emperor Baldwin of Flanders prisoner near the fortress at Matochina.