bg Ruse

Former Hotel Bristol

- Han Kubrat Square 1 -
The construction of the commercial building began in 1905 and was completed in 1907 and was the work of the Bulgarian architect Todor Petrov. It was built by the Ruse Wakif Board who built it as an income building accommodating a hotel and shops. Shortly after its construction, the premises was leased to a hotel called Bristol, which was known by this name until the 1940s. Shortly after the , it accommodated soldiers from Italy and France, and with them, for the first time Africans from the colonies, Algerians and Senegalese, appeared in the city.

After the nationalization, there was a fire, during which the mansard roof of the building was destroyed. There was a project for its complete demolition, but , secretary of the District Committee of the Communist Party, opposed these plans for the demolition of the hotel and the new construction in its place. During its existence as a hotel, it changed its name multiple times from Bristol to the Republika, to Moskva, to Balkan.
An old postcard showing the building
The symmetrical Neo-Classical building features five tower like structures that can be seen within the scaly sheet metal mansard roof, one of which with a on top of it. A straight is placed above the windows on the second floor, all of which are supported by three . Above the pediments on the north side of the building, you can see a , which is embellished with palm twigs, a decorative shell, and a . More cartouches can be admired above and on the bottom of the . The , which is located between the first and second floor, is supported by pairs of corbels. On the west side of the building, just above the main entrance, you can see a small balcony with a stone balustrade that's adorned with . The three corbels that support the balcony are adorned with foliage.
The tower like structure with a spire on top of it