HISTORY

Momchilgrad exists as a village and has its origin from the Middle Age. The city is mentioned in almost all the yearbooks and records of the Ottoman Empire in the second half of the nineteenth century.The old name of Momchilgrad is Mastanli. There are several myths and stories about Momchilgrad—named for an incredibly beautiful girl, Mestanie, who protected people in the valley; for Mestan, who opened shop in the valley and the local residents were able to buy salt, cloaks, and guns from him....
The first historical data about Momchilgrad was recorded by the French explorer Auguste Vinnkel ."Mastanli ,was the center of a region (kazaa) which is called Sultan Yeni, and was formed by a detachment of the Gyumyurginska region (kazaa). Now it is a part of Plovdiv/Philibe/ district/sandzhak/. This village, which became the seat of the region, is situated at the foot of the mountains in a small area at a height of 250m. It consists of 300-400 houses inhabited by Bulgarians and Muslims and many inns, relatively well-maintained.
The Balkan Wars proved to be crucial for the town, region, and the whole of the population. November 4, 1912 is the date of the beginning of the territorial, economic, social and cultural inclusion of the town to the Bulgarian State /Republic of Bulgaria. At the end of the First World War throughout Gyumyurdzhinski Sandzak, the district came to be under the Bulgarian name Gyumyurdzhinski district.
Under the strength of the new administrative unit in 1920, the Mastanliyski District, which covers most of the area in Eastern Rhodope, was formed. Districts belonging to it include Mastanliyska, Egriderska, Koshukavashka, and Kardzhali Ortakyoska joined in 1925. The town of Mastanli gives the name of the new administrative units, but due to a lack of suitable buildings, it is not turned into their governing center. During 1934, the town was formally renamed to Momchilgrad and it developed as an economic center.
The first urban plan is from 1927. Тhen began the shaping of the urban downtown with two perpendicular streets, the main street on the route of Kardzhali-Makaza and street leading to railway station. The village was electrified in the 1930, and the first water-main from the spring of the village of Patevets was built in 1930. The strong impetus to promote trade in the city resulted in building a railway line; Rakovski-Haskovo-Mastanli. The first train was met at the station in Mastanli on 4 .12.1932 and so the town grew as an important trading center and crossroads junction between central Bulgaria and the Rhodope region
The needs of the secular, spiritual and cultural life demanded the creation of several cultural and educational institutions. The building of Mastanliyskoto private secular school was built in 1922. During 1926 a community center called "Nov jivot", which is translated as "New Life," was established, and in 1934 the newly built primary school in the city was consecrated. Large-scale construction continued with the construction of Saint Tsar Boris I Church between the period of 1938 to 1939. Mastanliyski County existed until 1934, when its territory entered into the newly-created region of Stara Zagora. Later it was a part of the structure of the Kardzhali district, which for many years has been the center of the settlement system, and from 1987 until now is a municipal center.
Economic and socio-political changes after 9.09.1944 have affected the lives of the local people. The process of withdrawal of property, on the one hand,
catalyzes one of the serial mass migrations in the Republic of Turkey, which continued in the 60's and 70's On the other hand, the creation of agricultural cooperatives in 1957 continued the tradition of the promotion of tobacco as a major livelihood of the farming population of the region
Today Momchilgrad is developing as a modern community center, and the area of the municipality is developing with its rich cultural, historical and natural attractions in the region, which attract tourists.