Asenovgrad

Asenovgrad  Municipality occupies the southeast part of the District of Plovdiv. It is situated along the two banks of the Assenitsa (Chepelarska, Chaya) River. It covers a small part of the Thracian Lowland to the north, and encompasses spacious areas of the Rhodope Mountains to the south, as a result of which a substantial part of the terrain is strongly indented and inclined. The municipality's territory is 615 sq. km. That constitutes 10.3% of the District of Plovdiv's territory and 0.55% of the country's territory. It borders the municipalities of Rodopi, Laki, Banite, Parvomay and Sadovo.
The municipal centre -Assenovgrad - is the largest town n the Rhodopes and the second largest in the District of Plovdiv. It is situated at the foot of the mountain at an altitude above sea level about 220 m and is 19 km away from the town of Plovdiv, 85 km away from the town of Smolyan and about 180 km away from the capital Sofia. Assenovgrad has a millennia-old cultural and historical heritage.
The favourable combination of the mountain and the plain, the mild climate, the fertile soil, and also being the entrance of the most convenient pass through the Rhodopes, are the reasons why the Assenovgrad region has been populated since earliest antiquity.
The relief of the Assenovgrad municipality is very varied - plain, hilly and mountain.
The altitude above sea level varies from 200 to 1500 m.
The biggest river flowing the territory of the Assenovgrad municipality is the Cheplelarska (it was called the Chaya up to 1942 and the Assenitsa up to 1945), a right tributary to the Maritsa
There are several small dam lakes on the territory of the Assenovgrad municipality - by the villages of Gornoslav and Dolnoslav (Shoushitsa), Topolovo, Novakovo, Lenovo and Zlatovrah. The dam lake by the village of Gornoslav is mainly used for irrigation of the tobacco plantations.
The settlements  belonging to Asenovgrad Municipality are: Asenovgrad, Bachkovo, Boiantsi, Bor, Vrata, Gornoslav, Dobrostan, Dolnoslav, Zlatovruh, Izbegli, Novi izvor, Kazanovo, Konush, Liaskovo, Mostovo, Muldava, Narechenski bani, Novakovo, Oreshets, Patriarh Evtimovo, Stoevo, Sini Vruh, Topolovo, Tri mogili, Yzynovo, Cherven.
To see the exact location of the Asenovgrad on the map, please click on:http://www.bgmaps.com/map.asp?sid=45bc6c11ff8be5cda6b04c42401e8d26&city=%C0%D1%C5%CD%CE%C2%C3%D0%C0%C4&plz=4230 The town of Asenovgrad was originally founded by the Thracians as Stenimahos around 300-400 BC. In 72 BC the city was captured by the troops of the Roman Empire as part of the Roman expansion towards the Black Sea. After a long period of peace, the town was destroyed by the Goths in 251, but rebuilt later. In 395 the Roman Empire was divided into two and the city fell under Byzantine control. Afterwards, until around 700, the Slavic tribes flooded the region and became the majority of the population.
During the wars between Bulgaria and the Byzantine Empire, the city became a major military stronghold for the Bulgarian rulers. Due to aggravation of the relationships with the Latin Empire, in 1230 Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Asen II strengthened the local fortress Stanimaha and for this reason the city was named after him in 1934 (literally city of Asen). After Bulgaria was occupied by the Turks, Stanimaha was settled by Muslims, who nowadays make up 20% of the town's population, the rest being Eastern Orthodox.
Asenova krepost, a medieval Bulgarian fortress located a few kilometres from Asenovgrad is the symbol of the town.