The Roman Theatre was built in the early 2nd century CE on the side of one of the Three Hills that make up Old Town. Discovered during construction work in 1972 CE, today the theatre is again used for concerts and plays.

Thracians settled Plovdiv in the 5th century BCE. In 342 BCE it was conquered by Philip II of Macedon who named it Philippopolis. The Romans ruled from the 1st to 4th centuries CE with the population reaching 100,000. Attila’s Huns destroyed the city in 447 CE. Slavs had taken over by the middle of the 6th century CE. Control shifted back and forth between the Bulgarians and the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire) until the city fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1364 CE. Although Bulgaria was liberated from the Ottomans in 1878 CE, geo-political interference delayed Plovdiv’s unification with Bulgaria until 1885 CE. Today Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after the capital of Sofia.

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