History of Plovdiv it was re-conquered by George Terter II of Bulgaria in 1322. Byzantine rule was restored once again in 1323, but in 1344 the city was surrendered to Bulgaria by the regency for John V Palaiologos as the price for Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria's support in the Byzantine civil war. In 1364 the Ottoman Turks under Lala Shakhin Pasha seized Plovdiv. The Turks called the city "Filibe". It was the capital of Rumelia until 1382 when the Ottomans captured Sofia, which became the main city of the province. Plovdiv survived as one of the major cultural centers for Bulgarian culture and
Plovdiv European mosque outside Moorish Spain. The Sephardic Plovdiv Synagogue is at Tsar Kaloyan Street 13 in the remnants of a small courtyard in what was once a large Jewish quarter. Dating to the 19th century, it is one of the best-preserved examples of the so-called "Ottoman-style" synagogues in the Balkans. According to author Ruth E. Gruber, the interior of the Plovdiv Synagogue is a "hidden treasure…a glorious, if run-down, burst of color." An exquisite Venetian glass chandelier hangs from the center of the ceiling, which has a richly painted dome. All surfaces are covered in elaborate, Moorish-style, geometric designs in