Momchil's Fortress

The remains of the medieval fortress of Podvis stand in the Gradishteto locality southwest of Gradat village, Smolyan Municipality, on a high rocky summit 1,215 m above sea level. The fortress occupies a strategic position in the Cherna River valley and offers excellent views in every direction. Its carefully chosen location, allowing observation and control, proved strategically important.
The fortress's name is associated with the independent Rhodope ruler Momchil, a Bulgarian by origin who became involved in struggles for the Byzantine throne in the first half of the fourteenth century. Empress Anna of Savoy granted him the title of despot and possession of the fortresses of Podvis and St Irene. He captured another fortress, Xanthi, and made it his residence. Momchil successfully fought Ottoman invaders and won a battle at Abdera. His tragic fate ended in his death fighting the Ottomans at Peritheorion Fortress on the Aegean coast on 7 July 1345.
Momchil the Hero became a figure in the epic traditions of Bulgarians, Serbs and Herzegovinians, symbolising resistance to Ottoman rule.
Investigations of Momchil's Fortress began in the late nineteenth century, and in 1966 it was declared an archaeological cultural monument of national significance. Archaeological research intensified in 1986.