Varna was founded in 585 BCE as a [[Greece|Greek]] settlement named Odyssos, and was a prosperous port for the [[Roman Empire]]. In 586 it was sacked by [[Avar]] attackers, and repopulated by [[Slavs]] who named it ''Varna'' ('Black One'). In the nineteenth century, as the terminus of Bulgaria's first railway, and hence a gateway city to the country, it became an important and cosmopolitan port. It served as a port of embarcation for [[British]] and [[French]] troops serving in the [[Crimean War]] of 1854-56. | Varna was founded in 585 BCE as a [[Greece|Greek]] settlement named Odyssos, and was a prosperous port for the [[Roman Empire]]. In 586 it was sacked by [[Avar]] attackers, and repopulated by [[Slavs]] who named it ''Varna'' ('Black One'). In the nineteenth century, as the terminus of Bulgaria's first railway, and hence a gateway city to the country, it became an important and cosmopolitan port. It served as a port of embarcation for [[British]] and [[French]] troops serving in the [[Crimean War]] of 1854-56. |