Remembering The Past To Shape The Future
Baba Vida is a medieval fortress in the town of Vidin in the northwestern part of Bulgaria and it is the town’s proudest landmark.
It consists of two concentric curtain walls and about nine towers of which three are preserved to their full medieval height, including the original battlements, and is said to be the only entirely preserved medieval castle in the country. Baba Vida was Vidin’s main defensive installation during the Middle Ages and was also the most important defensive point of northwestern Bulgaria. It withstood an eight-month-long siege by Byzantine forces in 1356. Today, Baba Vida castle functions as a museum. Being a popular tourist attraction, the fortress is being kept in repair.
Images by: Wikipedia
3D Model By: rm X.
The construction process of the fortress began in the early 10th century and it took the place of an Ancient Roman watchtower. The legend of how it came to existence tells a story of a Bulgarian king, ruler of the Vidin area, who had 3 daughters – Vida, Kula, and Gamza. Before his death, he decided to split his realm between the three. Vida (the eldest one) was given Vidin and the lands north of the Carpathians. Kula was given Zajecar (currently a Serbian territory) and the Timok Valley, while Gamza was awarded the lands west of Morava. Vida vowed to never get married and instead, build a fortress in which she will live out the rest of her days. However, she fell in love with the architect of the fortress, but because of her vow, she ordered his death after the fortress was built. On the right is a 3D model of the Baba Vida Fortress.
Life Under Siege
(A Digital Recreation Using Unreal Engine)
Baba Vida Fortress is the only medieval fortress in Bulgaria that has been entirely preserved. In fact, the Ottoman would call this fortress the “Virgin Fortress”, not because of the legend of Vida (who vowed to never get married), but because nobody would ever manage to take the fortress. According to the Byzantine chronicles in the year 1003, the fortress withstood an 8-month siege led by Basil II whose nickname was The Bulgarian Slayer. He eventually managed to penetrate the walls of the fortress, but not through strategic prowess, but through cheating and bribing.
My proposition for this project is to recreate what life was like inside the fortress during a time of siege. This specific landmark will be reproduced using 3D (similar to the 3D model shown above) and taken to Unreal Game Engine to create as close to a realistic version of Baba Vida Fortress around that time as possible. The aim of this project is to allow visitors of the page to be able to walk around the fortress as they would in a video game. Additional features might include the creation of NPCs (Non-player characters) which will provide more information about the location that the player/user is currently in. The following video is an example of what such a fortress can look like using Unreal Game Engine and how the player/user will be able to move around.
More Landmarks Around Bulgaria
Magura Cave
Belogradchick Rocks
Ledenika Cave
There is a history in all men’s lives.