History of Plovdiv since 1886), supported by the Greek state and nationalistic organizations, was also the forum of the Greek communities of the wider region. The city was captured from the Ottomans during the Battle of Philippopolis in 1878. According to the Treaty of San Stefano on 3 March 1878 the Principality of Bulgaria included the lands with predominantly Bulgarian population. Plovdiv was selected as a capital of the restored country and as a seat of the Temporary Russian Government. Great Britain and Austria-Hungary, however, did not approve that treaty and the final result of the war was concluded in the Congress of
Plovdiv institution outside the United States, the American College of Sofia, was founded in Plovdiv in 1860 and later moved to Sofia. On 5 September 2014, Plovdiv was selected as the Bulgarian host of the European Capital of Culture 2019. This happened with the help of the Municipal Foundation "Plovdiv 2019″, a non-government organization, which was established in 2011 by Plovdiv's City Council whose main objectives were to develop and to prepare Plovdiv's bid book for European Capital of Culture in 2019. Plovdiv was given various names throughout its long history. The Odrysian capital "Odryssa" () is suggested to have been