Voivode Gordyu

Gordyu Voyvoda was a Bulgarian hajduk, born in Zlatograd around 1650 and known as a defender of the Bulgarians in the Rhodope Mountains. A Turkish document from 1720 mentions him as a defender of the region's Bulgarians.

He defended the Bulgarians in the Rhodope Mountains from Turkish plundering, atrocities and the forced conversion of Christians to Islam. With a large group of people, he withdrew into the mountains around Devin, where he fortified his stronghold, later called Gradishte.

The Turks repeatedly attempted to capture his stronghold, but Gordyu Voyvoda defended it successfully. In one battle he protected Bulgarians retreating towards other settlements such as Grohotno, Gyovren and Trigrad. After the battles, the voivode died of his wounds in the Monastery of the Holy Mother of God.

Today a monument to Gordyu Voyvoda stands in Zlatograd. Legends also tell of the stronghold of Zagrad, which Gordyu Voyvoda defended against invaders in 1680. The hajduks refused to surrender and attempted a desperate, partially successful breakout, prompting the Turks to pursue them. According to the legend, those whom the Turks captured alive were thrown into a chasm.

Cavers who entered this chasm, called Chelevchshnitsa, found human and horse remains, along with various weapons and ammunition. The finds were handed over to archaeological museums, where they reveal the historical significance of Gordyu Voyvoda and his struggle for the Bulgarian people's freedom.