The Vladislav Varnenchik Park is located at 55 Ianush Huniadi Street on the site of the former Battle of Varna and was built in honour of the historical battle when the mixed Christian army of Czechs, Poles, Croatians, Papal Knights, Hungarians, Bosnians, Romaninas and Routeni (Old Russian), Ukrainian and Bulgarians under Wladislaw III of Poland (Vladislav Varnenchik) and Janos Hunyadi tried to resist the Muslim Turkish invasion in Europe. A mausoleum to Vladislav Varnenchik was built here in 1934, (at the instigation of Petar Dimkov, 1886 – 1981), on the foundations of an ancient Thracian tomb. There is a museum with Knight's Armour from the XV century, plenty of weapons and accoutrements are exhibited in its halls: armours, chain armours, helmets, swords, spears, halberds, arbalests, maces, shields, etc. a monument of Yan Huniadi, six sarcophagi, a solemn place,  an altar and under the museum there is a Thracian tomb from the IV century B.C.

      Vladislaus III of Varna is known in Polish as Wladyslaw Warnenczyk; in Slovak, Bulgarian and Czech as Vladislav I; in Hungarian, as I. Ulászló; in Lithuanian, as Vladislovas III; in Croatian as Vladislav I. Jagelovic.

This is also known as the "Friendship Between the Peoples since 1444” Museum.

   On May 25th, a plaque was put in the Park in the presence of the Consul General of Ukraine in Varna Mr. Oleg Baranovskiy and the Consul General of Poland in Varna Mr. Kshyshtof Krayevsky. The plaque commemorates the Ukrainian soldiers who died in the battle for Varna against the Turkish invaders.

    In her short speech, the museum scientist Emilia Petkova said that "for the Bulgarian people, the heavy defeat of the united army of the Polish king Vadislav III Yagello, in which many Ukrainians fought, meant 434 long years under the severe Ottoman yoke. And, for the Ukrainian people, the battle on November 10th, 1444 was a tremendous loss of heroes, but in the same time it was incarnation of the moral aspiration for brotherly help and brave death in the name of freedom".

Vladislav Varnenchik Park and Museum

55 Ianush Huniadi Street, Varna.   Tel: 052 74 03 0255   Working time: 09:00-17:00
 

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  For the Bulgarian people, the heavy defeat of the united army of the Polish king Vladislav Varnenchik III meant 434 long years under the severe Ottoman yoke.

    More than half of the soldiers from the united army, together with the king  perished, and many prisoners were slaughtered or sold into slavery.

    The fanatic assassin Kodza Hazâr cut off the king's head and sent it to his master - the sultan. The head of young king became a great attraction in the capital of Ottoman empire where Muslim women and children sang songs, danced and praised Allah at the sight of decapitated head of the young Polish king.

    After the battle the king's body was never found and it probably remained unrecognized and was buried along with the other slain knights. There was a legend that he was buried in an Orthodox church in Varna, which was demolished and replaced in 1602 by the Theotokos Panagia (Virgin Mary Panagia Orthodox) or (Small Virgin Church).

    In the years of the Turkish occupation all Christian temples were built without much noise and in such a manner so that they did not attract attention. They could not be raised above 2 metres and that was why this church was dug deep into the ground, in the Greek quarter, near to the Roman Baths.

    Unusual for this church are its icons, with images facing south, not to the west, which is in contradiction to the usual canons of the church. Experts value these icons as a great treasure, that only  few churches possess.

      Petar Dimkov is best known as a herbal healer, but besides that in his remarkable 95-year-long life he was Commander of Varna Eighth Primorski Regiment, and  founder of the Vladislav Varnenchik Park Memorial and the Honorary Chairman of the City Symphonic Orchestra of Varna.