Varbitsa Pass

Varbitsa Pass (Bulgarian: Върбишки проход [vɐrˈbiʃki ˈprɔxot]) is a mountain pass in the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) in Bulgaria. It connects Shumen and Petolachka crossroads.

Varbitsa Pass
Elevation	900 m (2,953 ft)
Traversed by	Road
Location	Bulgaria
Range	Balkan Mountains
Coordinates	42°55′39″N 26°40′6″E

The famous Battle of Pliska was fought in the pass on July 26, 811 between the armies of Bulgarian Empire led by Khan Krum and the Byzantine Empire under Nicephorus I which ended with a decisive Bulgarian victory and the death of the Byzantine Emperor.^[1][2]

References

1. Zlatarski, Vasil N. (1918). Medieval History of the Bulgarian State, Vol I: History of the First Bulgarian Empire, Part I: Age of Hun-Bulgar Domination (679-852) (in Bulgarian). Sofia: Science and Arts Publishers, 2nd Edition (Petar Petrov, Ed.), Zahari Stoyanov Publishers, 4th Edition, 2006. ISBN 954-739-928-4.
2. Runciman, Steven (1930). A History of the First Bulgarian Empire. G. Bell & Sons, London.