Varna, a seaport town of European Turkey, in Bulgaria, near the N. E. spurs of the Balkan mountains, on the W. coast of the Black sea, 160 m. N. N. W. of Constantinople; lat. 43° 12' N., Ion. 27° 56' E.; pop. about 20,000, of whom one half are Christians. It occupies an elevated position on the N. W. side of a bay in the gulf of Varna, formed by two rocky promontories, and is defended by a stone wall, batteries, and outworks. It is the seat of a Greek bishop, and contains five churches and eight mosques. The bay is sheltered on the north and northeast from the dangerous winds of the Black sea. The entrances of steamers in 1873 were 255, and the clearances 404; aggregate tonnage, 343,402; the inward and outward sailing-vessels comprised 803 small craft with an aggregate tonnage of 89,864. The imports, chiefly manufactured and colonial goods, salt, and coal, amounted to $2,250,000, and the exports, mainly wheat, maize, barley, wool, and tallow, to $2,700,000. The town is connected by rail with Rustchuk and Shumla. - Varna occupies the site of ancient Odessus, a Greek city said to have been founded by the Milesians, and which exercised authority over Tomi, Calatis, Mesembria, and Apollonia, situated on the same coast.

Under the Romans it was a town of Lower Moesia. In the 7th century it fell into the hands of the Bulgarians. Its strategic importance has from the earliest times made it a scene of war. Hunyady and King Ladislas of Poland and Hungary were overwhelmed, and the latter perished, in the battle fought here with Sultan Amurath II., Nov. 10, 1444. In 1610 the Dnieper Cossacks took the town and rescued several thousand Christians from Turkish bondage. Varna resisted the Russians in 1783, although the fortifications proved even at that time inefficient. They have been since greatly improved. In 1828 it surrendered to the Russians after a siege of three months. It was restored to Turkey in September, 1829. In August, 1854, while Varna was occupied as a base of operations against the Crimea by English, French, and Turkish troops, a conflagration destroyed almost half of the town.