Tourist attractions
Both municipalities have rich cultural, historical and natural heritage – protected areas, nature reserves and landmarks. Main cultural and natural sites and tourist attractions in the cross-border region:
– in Murfatlar City – Rock Monastery / Complex / – National Monument of Culture; Wine Museum, founded in 1970; Fontanita-Murfatlar Nature Reserve and Cretaceous Lake; The estate of Michael Kogalnicanu; Danube Canal – Black Sea; Cultural Center; Two temples and cultural monuments.
– In the Municipality of General Toshevo – History Museum – General Toshevo, with two branches – Museum collections “Yordan Yovkov” – Krasen village and “Dora Gabe” – Dubovik village; The Church of St. Nicholas Summer opened its doors in 1860 and the church of St. Dimitar; 6 cultural centers; Cultural Memorial – Jordan Yovkov High School, opened in 1909; 7 protected areas and Natura 2000 sites – Rositsa – Loznitsa, Bezhanovo, Kardam, Kraymorska Dobrudzha, Chairya, Dryan Dam; Registered houses for rural and eco tourism.
The chalk churches
The chalk churches is an archaeological site and a cave complex particularly important for the history of Christianity in our country. It is believed that Basarabi Cave Complex houses the first church and the first cells of a monastery, from Romania.
Kogălniceanu Mansion
In 1885 the Murfatlar estate came into the possession of the family of the political man Mihail Kogălniceanu following the acquisition of the building, made by him from a member of a prosperous family from Constanta: Hagi Me (h) met Aralam bey. Other documents talk about buying the house from the Turkish Cuciuk Murfat, in the desire to leave her daughter's niece, Lucia liteanu.
At the mansion is established the son of the politician, Vasile M Kogălniceanu who carried on from here, the activity of domain inspector in Dobrogea, respectively administrator of the Mangalia Square. He attended the courses of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences in Grignon (France), after completing the high school courses in Berlin. Interested in the village world, Vasile M. Kogălniceanu was known for his sharp analytical spirit, manifested mainly in research the problems of peasant life. He supported the Agrarian Reformation of 1923 and the appropriation of the poor peasants.
The building returned to the landlord Luca Oancea, to Th. Miulescu, being subsequently nationalized, with the allocation to the Agriculture School and then to IAS, during which time he suffered serious degradation. Not long ago, the mansion building was rehabilitated to become a kindergarten. The process of reconditioning and refurbishing was carried out in good conditions, which also favored the preservation of several objects and decorations specific to the building. The building has some bodies added by the owners who took it in time (cellar, warehouse).
In the courtyard / park that surrounds the building, besides the secular trees of species known to the place, there is still the trolley base that was erected in 1943 in memory of the heroes on the front.
Murfatlar vineyard
Benefiting from one of the most suitable natural sites, the Murfatlar vineyard is located in the southeast of Romania, between the Danube and the Black Sea, in the center of the Dobrogea Plateau. It is the place where the vines have lived for thousands of years. Here the sun shines brighter than anywhere, the vines grow vigorously in the arid soil specific to the region, and the rainfall is reduced. All this justifies to say that "Murfatlar is a blessed place".
The Romanian wine culture has existed for almost 6,000 years. Legend has it that the god of wine Dionysus himself, would have been born on these wonderful lands belonging to ancient Thrace.
After Dacia was conquered by the Romans in 106 AD, on the coins beaten by the conquerors, the new province was represented by a woman whose two sons offered her grapes.
Murfatlar vineyard is considered to be one of the oldest in Europe.
The fame of the vineyard and of the Murfatlar wine has far exceeded the borders of our country, the wines are awarded at a number of international competitions, obtaining over 190 medals over the years.
In 1907 at the initiative of two Romanian wine growers Gheorghe Nicoleanu and Vasile Brezeanu, noble varieties of western European vineyards are planted, initially for experimental purposes. Gradually the area cultivated with vines expanded to about 3,000 ha.
The Church "Birth of the Virgin Mary"
The Church of the Mother of God was founded in 1906, when the Romanian people celebrated the 40th anniversary of His Majesty Carol I of Romania and Dobrogea's attachment to the mother country following the 1877 war of independence.
The construction of the church began in 1903, built of stone, with tall towers according to the plan of the architect D. Bănescu, the painter for catapeteasma C. Bobie, and for the walls Petru Serafim. It was worked for 3 years, so that in the summer of 1906 it was completed. The dome of the church was damaged in the great earthquakes, especially the tower that was and is built of brick and not of stone like the rest of the building. Currently the church is included in the list of historical monuments.
The church is built in the form of a ship symbolizing Noah's Ship that saved mankind from the flood, combining the form of a cross, which symbolizes the cross of the Savior Jesus Christ who saves us from all worldly temptations.
The feast of the church is celebrated on September 8, the day of the birth of the Holy Sea.
Murfatlar Railway Station (Basarabi)
During the period when Dobrogea was under Ottoman occupation, the Constanta Port-Cernavodă Port railway was the first railroad of the Ottoman empire. It was inaugurated on October 4, 1860 and was made according to norms and with English resources. The route followed the edge of the city of Constanta, zigzagging up to its western station, passing Murfatlar and Medgidia, then the Carasu valley and reaching Cernavoda (total length 64.6 km). Its technical performances referred to the 30 degree slope from the entrance to the port and to the annex lines that reached to the present Mamaia resort.
The permission to build the railway and to operate the ports and stations, especially for commercial activities, was based on an agreement dating from September 1, 1857, between a London group of investors (represented by Sir John Trevor Barkley) and the Ottoman government. The document was signed by Sultan Abdul Mejdid himself. The act stipulated the 99-year concession for administration by the builder, the English part defending under the name "Compagnie du chemin de ferre Imperial Ottoman du Danbe et de la Mer Noire", subsequently replaced by the name "Danube and Black Sea Railway Kustendje Harbor Company Limited" In the same year, a small station was erected, which subsequently disappeared during the floods of 1924.
This railway line gained full use for the region after the completion of the Russian-Turkish war (1877-1878) and after the construction of Anghel Saligny's bridge from Cernavoda. The current assembly consists of the station building and the water tower that fed the steam locomotives (each of these objectives is individually classified), being built after 1900. Near the tower there are two constructions that housed the pumps necessary for the tower's operation, which did not have have been classified in LMI, although they have similar architectural features.
The English company that built the railway made in 1860 and the Murfatlar station in a form of "small building and hardly room for staff" (M.D. Ionescu). She was also serving goods and passengers and had no stores and outbuildings. It also seems that the original station was at a distance of about 500 m from the present one, its disappearance being a consequence of the catastrophic floods of 1924.
The year of construction / inauguration of the monument-railway station in Basarabi / Murfatlar is not exactly accurate, but it is obvious that this type of railway station belongs to the "CFR-style" railway program (according to the type-morphological classification made by Arch Toader Popescu in the work "The Romanian Railway Project (1842-1916)" published in 2014). In the context of the mentioned work, the visual analysis of the Basarabi / Murfatlar station is included in "Family 5") Tipu] 5.C.), "the last reinterpretation of the CFR style before the national style fully encapsulates this architecture program (stations), as it will with most public programs by the end of the 3rd decade of the 20th century. " These are "medium, symmetrical stations, with a main body and two side wings, one level, with brick facades; the type is used for intermediate stations".
Currently, the exterior image of the station expresses a relatively good state of maintenance. However, the railway traffic was considerably reduced, so that the station is not used to its capacity, which leads to the risk of physical degradation of the building. In addition, the lack of a properly sized, regulated and eested protection area favored the parasitization of the monument's environment.
Fântanița - Murfatlar Nature Reserve
Put under protection in 1932, the reservation is located 1 km south of the city of Murfatlar, on the left side of the road Constanța - Ostrov and occupies an area of 82.74 ha, being included in the Murfatlar forest, whose area is 771 ha.
Since 1962, the reserve is protected by law and houses a number of rare species of plants and animals.
With the arrival of spring, the steep coast is covered by the richness of the colors of the many flowers that can arouse the envy of any landscape painter. Thus, the spring brandy, the wild irises, the dedications, the wild smiles, the Russels are a real delight for those who visit this reservation. In the valleys that cross the slope and which borders a natural forest, the violins and drummers are among the first announcers of the spring. In fact, from the "Fântânița" reservation, many new plants for science have been described, most of which carry the specific epithet, derived from the name of Murfatlar locality: ruscuța, colilia, Murulat violin thistles. The woody vegetation on the reservation valleys is composed of fluffy oak, Balkan oak, brumariu oak, mackerel, honeysuckle, jugas and Tartar maple. The multitude of studies carried out led to the description in the reserve territory of about 515 species of plants, as well as numerous species of animals characteristic of the Dobrogean steppe areas. Among them we mention two species of ferrets: the ferrets of the steppe and the ferrets and a species of small rodent, the greyhound. Also, the presence of the Dobrogea turtle, whose spreading area in our country is limited to a few points in the Dobrog steppe, especially on the forested streams of the reserve, as well as the river snake, the largest and fastest snake has been reported. from our fauna, along with numerous lizards that populate the sunny coast in the center of the reservation. Among the birds we can see a close relative of the drop, but much smaller, protected by the law: the hornbill. Among the many species of invertebrates, we must first mention the presence of two species of snails resistant to the summer heat of the Dobrogean steppe: zebrine detrita and helicella candicans.
The numerous floristic species and the landscape value of the area make this reservation an important attraction for tourists.
The chalk lake
Few are those who, on their way to the sea, make a right from the center of Murfatlar to see - at least 5 minutes - a place from another world.
The place can be easily found: as you cross the bridge over the Danube-Black Sea channel, in a curve to the right (with a continuous line, be careful!), You make a country road to the left, which goes up the hills. You can already see on the left that it is a quarry, apparently of stone, in fact lime and chalk. If you take that road, about 200 meters above you can stop the car and then get down on your own feet to admire the view of another world: a chalk world, seemingly unfit for any form of life and in which you could film successfully a science-fiction movie scene.
The lake at the bottom of the quarry, however, shows you that you are on Earth, and if you stay there for more than 10 minutes you start to see that the area is still a part of life, all kinds of insects, lizards and other tiny creatures making their way through the hot white desert. of Sun. Memorable.
Heroes Monument
The monument of Murfatlar heroes was erected in memory of those who fought during the First World War from 1916 to 1918.
Romania's participation in the First World War includes all the measures, actions and political, diplomatic and military actions carried out by the Romanian state, alone or together with the allies, between July 28, 1914 and November 11, 1918, in order to achieve the main political purpose of participating in the war - the achievement of the Romanian unitary national state. The international system was marked at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century by the rivalry between the great powers for the control of the extra-European world. In Europe, Germany had become the main power and its behavior on the continent led to an extraordinary disintegration and rebuilding of alliances compared to previous decades.
From a military point of view, Romania was coming after a victory without glory in the Second Balkan War, the euphoria of victory making it easy to overcome the shortcomings manifested in the field of military leadership, organization and training of troops and especially the endowment with weaponry and fighting technique. modern.
Although linked to the Austro-Hungarian Empire by a secret treaty of alliance, since 1883, Romania chooses to declare itself neutral at the outbreak of hostilities, in July 1914, prevailing over the interpretation of the clauses relating to "casus foederis".
In August 1916, Romania receives an ultimatum to decide whether it wants to join Antantha "now or never". Under the pressure of the ultimate demand, the Romanian government accepts to enter the war on the part of Antanta, although the situation on the battle fronts was not favorable.
After a series of rapid tactical victories in Transylvania over numerically overwhelmed Austro-Hungarian forces, the Romanian army will suffer in the fall of 1916 a series of crushing defeats, which will force the state authorities to take refuge in Moldova, allowing the enemy to occupy two thirds of the national territory, including the capital Bucharest.In the winter of 1916 and the spring of 1917, under the leadership of a new military "leadership" (Generals Prezan, Christescu, Grigorescu, Averescu, Văitoianu, etc.) and with the substantial support of the French Military Mission led by General Henri Berthelot, the Romanian Army was reorganized. and trained on modern bases adapted to the requirements of war.
The campaign of the summer of 1917 was a successful one, succeeding, in the initial phase, in defeating the troops of the Central Powers in the battles of Mărăști, Oituz and Mărășești. The Romanian military planners intended to continue to develop this offensive to begin the liberation of the occupied territory, but the outbreak of the revolution in the Russian Empire led to the abandonment of these plans and the transition to strategic defense again.
The situation on the eastern front evolved in a negative way, so that after Russia concluded the peace from Brest-Litovsk with the Central Powers, Romania was forced to demand the armistice and then be forced to exit the war and sign a war. separate peace in humiliating conditions, in the spring of 1918. Fortunately, the refusal of King Ferdinand, who has postponed the formal gesture to sign this treaty, has made it possible to resume hostilities in the last two days of the war, thus preserving Romania's status. belligerent state at the Paris Peace Conference.
