What is Bolghar?

Bolghar (Tatar Cyrillic: Болгар, Latin: Bolğar, Chuvash: Пāлхар), also The Great Bulgar, Shahri Bolghar (Tatar Cyrillic: Шәһри Болгар, Latin: ŞÃ¤hri Bolğar) was the capital (8th-15th century) of Volga Bulgaria, a predecessor state of the Khanate of Kazan, which in turn has cultural links to today's Russian republic of Tatarstan. Today, the capital of Tatarstan is Kazan, but many Tatars consider Bolghar to be their ancient and religious capital and to contain a glimpse of Muslim Bulgar life before the Mongol invasion of the 13th century.

The city was capital of Volga Bulgaria as early as the 8th century. Later, after Russian pressure the capital was moved to Bilar. After the destruction of Bilar during the Mongol invasion, it became capital of the Bulgar Duchy of Volga Bulgaria under Mongol rule. In the 14th and 15th centuries it was endangered by Timur and Russian forces and finally was destroyed in the 15th century by Vassili of Moscow. As a religious center it was preserved until the 15th century when the Khanate of Kazan was conquered by the Russian czar Ivan IV and incorporated into the Russian state.

During the Tsarist rule this city's environs was settled by Russian commoners and it was finally ruined. Peter the Great proclaimed a special Ukase to preserve this ruins and it became one of the first laws to preserve a historical city in Russia.

Bolghar was the center of a local Islamic movement known as The Little Hajj that was popular during the Soviet period. Muslims from Tatarstan and other parts of the Soviet Union could not participate in the hajj to Mecca, and instead travelled to Bolghar.

A nearby small modern town of 8,655 (2002), known as Kuibyshev until 1991, is now officially renamed to Bolgar. It is located at .

See also

• Volga Bulgaria
• Khanate of Kazan