"Bulgarian history - 15th-19th c." Department
The chronological scope of the period determines the study of a large range of issues related to the historical development of the town and the region under the circumstances of foreign political and religious domination.
The 18th c. and the 19th c. are of particular interest, since at that time Vratsa was one of the leading towns in the period of “The Revival” in the Bulgarian lands – with its developed crafts, its trade reaching far beyond the borders of the Ottoman Empire, the first rudiments of capitalist manufacturing (silk-spinning looms), and its political and cultural potential that manifested itself in the opening of a secular school as early as in 1822 and the religious strife that grew into a struggle for a Bulgarian bishop and an independent Bulgarian church – the area of Vratsa is inextricably bound up with the history and the exploit of Botev’s detachment.
The issues relating to the religious strife and the national struggles for freedom, educational work, the national liberation movement, the Bulgarian national revival culture and the arts constitute the essence of the activities performed by the Department’s curators who are concerned with collecting material evidence, carrying out scientific research and raising the awareness of the public.
The Department preserves collections of “old-printed” literature, icons, and weapons. The documentary archive of the Hadjitoshevs family is of particular significance and value as it extends over a considerable period of time within the 18th – 20th c. and contains evidence of the diverse nature of a number of Bulgarian towns, which makes it a primary source of national importance.