Oryahovo ( ) is a port city in northwestern Bulgaria, part of Vratsa Province. It is located in a hilly area on the right bank of the Danube, just east of the mouth of the river Ogosta, a few more kilometres downstream from where the Jiu flows into the Danube on Romanian territory. The town is known for the ferry service that connects it to the Romanian town of Bechet across the river. There are also plans by local private companies for a bridge across the Danube. History Ancient history and Middle Ages The town's name has evolved through the course of history, with names such as Vrhov, Orezov, Oreov and Rahovo being mentioned in documents until the current one was officially established in 1886. The area around Oryahovo has been inhabited since ancient times, as archaeological research has proven with findings from the early Neolithic to the Late Middle Ages. A fortress called Kamaka (), which existed from the 9th to the 14th century, is located east of Oryahovo. In 1396, the city, already controlled by the Ottoman Turks, was sacked and its Ottoman civilian inhabitants killed while the prisoners were massacred by French crusaders heading towards Nicopolis to participate in the Battle of Nicopolis. The troops of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund and Polish King Władysław III of Varna passed through the fortress during their unsuccessful crusades (the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396 and the Battle of Varna in 1444, respectively) against the Ottoman Empire. Bulgarian National Revival During the Bulgarian National Revival, Oryahovo established itself as an economic and industrial centre and a key point for the supply of the Ottoman Empire with goods through the Danube. The town was mentioned as an important Danube port in a 1762 book printed in Brussels. The St George Church was opened in 1837, a secular school was built in the town in 1857 and a community centre (, ) followed in 1871. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, the town was liberated on 21 November 1877 by Romanian forces after three-day fighting. A memorial by Italian sculptor Arnaldo Zocchi was erected in their honour. Liberated Bulgaria After the liberation, Oryahovo was known for the lively trade and rich cultural life. A provincial centre for three months, it became the centre of an okrag, an administrative division, for 10 years (1877–1882 and 1884–1889). The architecture from the period is typically influenced