The cape si a a narrow rocky peninsula, headed to south, falling about 2 km into the sea.
Bordered by vertical purple rocks, the Cape Kaliakra enters two kilometers into the sea and closes a large horseshoe-shaped promontory. Its view becomes even more magical when it is lit by 98 projectors and 30 powerful lamps..
The east coast is inaccessible, vertical, being subjected to the destructive power of waves generated by strong northeast winds, which collide with power from shore. Despite the hardness of rocks, the sea grinds the shore slowly, but constantly, forming cutouts, abrasion niches and caves. When they lose the support (especially during earthquakes) large boulders collapse into the sea and shore retreats to the land, becomning more steep and inaccessible. The Devil flow coming from the north, removes the fine material and deposites it in the quiet bays on the southern coast of Bulgaria.
The west bank of the Cape Kaliakra is steep with lots of cave entrances. It is moist and protected from cold winds from the northeast. Therefore, it is covered with small groves of wild fig trees – here is the northern limit of their habitat in Bulgaria. The surface peninsula is flat ( is a part of Dobrogea Plateau), rocky, and strongly karstic.
The natural and archeological rezervation Cape Kaliakra, founded in 1960, occupies 687.5 acres and includes wild steppes and impressive cliffs up to 70 m high. The Flora includes over 400 species. Of these, 47 are endemic, rare and endangered species. Here nest, Phalacrocorax aristotelis and dolphins can be seen. The natural and archeological rezervation Cape Kaliakra is, until now, the only port waters protected along the Bulgarian coast. The rezervation is the only one where steppe relict species are preserved (Small iris, Paeonia tenuifolia L., poppy hybrid, etc) and some endemic species such as Silene caliacrae. Rare and valuable birds are nesting in the Cape of Kaliakra – the black Ruddy, Pastor roseus, owl and others.
Here is the only nesting place of the middle cormorant, and until recently, the reefs at the foot of the head were the refuge for monk seal, the only occupant of the Black Sea coast. The Cape Kaliakra ends with a vertical slope of 70 m high. It It consists of limestone and purple conglomerate because of the rocks saturated with iron oxides.
This beautiful place, inaccessible from three sides, has been inhabited since the time of the Thracians. They raised a stone wall to the north to block the only access to the head. They named the fortress Tirizis after their tribe name – tirizi. In the Roma times the fort became known as Accra (From Acros Castellum – “fortified head”) being built aqueducts, churches, baths and fortress walls, most of them preserved until today.
In the Roman province of Scythia Minor (Dobrogea), only Tomis (Constanta) and Dionisopolis (Balchik) were more important than this.

In late antiquity, the town was called Acre Castellum and was one of 15 cities in the province of Scythia that was on the territory of Dobrogea of today. In this period, it was an important point on Via Pontica.
In the sixth century, the Byzantines built a new fortress wall, even more powerful and have established here a large garrison. In the city a large and rich population has lived. After 681, Bulgarians conquered the fortres and expanded the fortified area, building another fortress wall to the north, with a north parapet. In the XIIIth century the fortress appeared as Kaliakra in the Italian marine maps. In Greek this name means “beautiful head”.
Kaliakra lives the most flowering period in the second half of the XIVth century, when it is the capital of the so-called Despotate of Dobrogea. It included the Bulgarian northeastern territories, detached from the central government.
When in XIVth century the Second Bulgarian Empire has devided into three parts, the Kaliakra became the center of the east, whose first leader is called Balik. m despot Dobrotitsa, son of the Byzantine empress Anna Savoy, the Eastern Bulgaria gets its name – Dobrogea, and Kaliacra Kaliacra lives his heydays as its capital.
The Dobrotitsa despot heir – Ivanko, his son, managed to conclude a contract of mutual trade privileges with Republic of Italy – Genova. Written reports speak of a powerful medieval town where the leader beat its own currency and transforms the city into a religious center wih the right of monastic stavropegial.
Kaliakra became an major international trading harbor, which is attaested by the numerous discoveries of Western European currencies. Kaliakra isi remain independent until 1444 and is the last Bulgarian fortress captured by the Turks.
Recent information about Kaliakra are associated with bay naval battle of Admiral Ushakov and and Turkish fleet in 1791 where the Russian army defeat.
In 2004, the B. Petrunova team, during the excavations in Podgradieto, between ancient and medieval city walls, the the archaeologists came across a stone tomb built in the third century of the Scythian Sarmatian tribe. Over the Sarmatian tomb are burried two Bulgarians. The Bulgarians came here in these places in VIIth century.
Interesting: At the beginning of VI sec, the Accra city was inhabited by the Huns and Bulgarians. They were federates (allies) of the Byzantine empire, with the task of guarding its borders. In 513, the federations rebelled against Emperor Anastasius. He tried to bribe the rebel leader Vitilian, but failed. Then he sent sent an army against them, but it was defeated before the walls of Acre. According to chronicles, the holes in the city were full with corpses of imperial soldiers. To explain the defeat somehow, the Byzantines shamans spread the legend that Bulgarians have caused sudden darkness, which is why the soldiers were terrified and go mad and threw themselves into pits, alone.
The decline of the fortress occurred with its conquest by the Ottomans.
In the popular memory remained two legends of Cape Kaliakra.
Legend
After the capture of the city by Turkish invaders, 40 Bulgarian brave girls intertwined their hair in a plait and jumped off the steep cliffs to avoid receiving the Turkish faith. They preferred marine abyss against scorn of oppressors. The first of girls was Kaliakra and, therefore, the cape bears her name.
Legend
When St. Nicholas was followed by the Turks, he started to run towards the sea and the earth began to expand under his feet. Thus the head formed. THe head ends there where the Turks reached the holy and have it cut. In the caves near the end of the cape is the tomb of St. Nicholas. Now, on this place stands a chapel with the name of the saint.