The town of Russe is the centre of the district and has a population of 159 000 inhabitants. The town lies at a distance of 305 km from Sofia. It is situated at the lower current of the Danube River at the mouth of the Russenski Lom River at an altitude of 100 m. Russe is the municipal administrative centre of 11 settlements. The town is the biggest river port in Bulgaria.

On the site of the present-day town there has existed a 5 000 year-old settlement. It has had well-structured housing and public buildings, streets and quarters. There are remains of this period which are kept in the history museum in Russe. During 69-79 at the time of the Roman emperor Vespasian is built the fortress Seksaginta Prista. It is located on the main Danube road connecting Bulgaria to present-day Belgrade. The name of the fortress is met in three different variants: Seksaginta Prista, Seksanta Prista or only Prista. In translation the ancient name of the town means -the port of the 60 ships. In the town are dislocated the Roman military forces. The fortress Prista is demolished during the invasions of Avars and Slavs at the end of VI c. and the beginning of VII c. A.D. Later in IX-X c. over its ruins is founded a Bulgarian settlement which turns into a fortress on the bank of the river. The name of the settlement comes from the cult to the holiday of Russalii - Russi - Russe. After the mass conversion to Christianity of the Bulgarian population in IX c. Saint Georgi has been chosen as the town's patron and it is named after him Gyurgevgrad. At the end of XIII c. a fore-bridge is built on the left bank of the river (in present-day Romania, which has been part of the Bulgarian state at that time) and new two names of the town appear Golyamo and Malko Gyurgevo and sometimes Russe and Gyurgevo.

After the fall of Bulgaria under the Ottoman yoke the town is known with the name of Ruschuk. In Ruschuk are the headquarters of Kapudan pasha - the commander of the Danube navy. After the Krim's War a new country appears on the map of Europe after the merging of the principalities of Vlashko and Moldova - Romania. The town of Bucharest is the capital of Romania and lies at a distance of 70 km from Russe. At the time of Midhat pasha - the governor of the Russe vilayet/Ottoman province/- the town is modernized and are built modern streets with sidewalks and street lamps, numbers are placed on the houses etc. The embassies of Prussia, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and other countries are opened in the town. The town changes its outlook significantly and in 1878 after the Liberation it turns into a modern town with European outlook. More than 200 buildings are architectural monuments. The town of Russe is the birth place of the Nobel price bearer Elias Kaneti.

The tourist sights of the town are: the history museum, the museum of the town's lifestyle from the end of XIX c., the museum of transport, the house-museum of Zahari Stoyanov, the museum of Baba Tonka, the temple "Sveta Troitza" /Holy Trinity/(1632) and others.

Other landmarks on the territory of Russe District are: the Ivanvovo rocky monastery included in the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List, the rocky monastery "St. Dimiter Besarabovski", the medieval fortress Cherven, the old theatre etc.

In the region are also located the "Russenski Lom" natural park, the "Beli Lom" reserve, the rocky phenomena - "Mamulya", "Stalpishte" and the cave "Orlova Chuka".

Tourist sights

The History Museum in Russe keeps the Borovo Thracian treasure, the silver treasure of Cherven, collections of coins, porcelain, traditional costumes from the region. The building of the history museum is proclaimed for a monument of culture.

The Museum of the town's lifestyle is located in a Revival period house with rich decorations. The exhibition represents the lifestyle of the urban population from the end of XIX c. The visitors can see typical interiors of a living room, a parlour, a bedroom and a music hall.

The church "Sveta Troitza" /Holy Trinity/ is built in 1632 and is reconstructed several times after that. The murals are painted in 1797 and the iconostasis is from the beginning of the XIX c. The icons in the church are made in Moskva from representatives of the Troitzko-Sergeev's monastery.

The old theatre is built under a project of the architect Paul Blank. The building is in the "neoclassical" style with opportunities to house theatrical performances, concerts, a library and other cultural performances.

The monument of liberty in Russe is built in 106 from the Italian architect Arnaldo Dzoki. The statue is 3,75 m high with a sward in the left hand and raised right arm. On the platform of the statue there are also two bronze lions.

The Pantheon of the Revival-period prominent figures is a mausoleum in which are preserved the bones of great Bulgarians such as Angel Kunchev, Lyuben Karavelov, Zahari Stoyanov, Stefan Karadzha, Panayot Hitov, Tonka Obretenova and her children, Panayot Volov.

The Ivanovo rocky monastery at the village of Ivanovo lies at a distance of 12 km south of the district centre. It is built with the funding and support of King Ivan Shishman II in 1218-1241. The Ivanovo Rocky Monastery is a network of small rocky churches, chapels and cells dug into the rocks. They are at a height of 32 m above the level of the water. The cells are grouped around seven rocky churches. The oldest part of the monastery consists of the monks' cells around the "Buried church" and the "Baptizing church". They have characteristic smooth, carefully hewn walls and are interconnected through a system of paths and stairs. The second group of cells is by the church "Gospodev Dol" and to the east of them is the complex around the "Demolished Church". To the southwest of the "Pismata" site is "The Church". It is the most well-preserved in the monastery complex. In both parts of the rocky church there are depicted dozens of evangelical scenes- predominantly scenes from Christ's suffering. The rocky churches in the complex have been 40 and the other buildings about 300.

The Ivanovo rocky monastery is included in the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List. The murals in the complex with rich colours and compositions date back to XIII - XIV c. and have a high artistic value.

The rocky monastery "St. Dimiter Besarbovski" at the village of Besarabovo is dug into the protruding rocks in XV c. It is the only active rocky monastery.

The medieval fortress Cherven at the village of Cherven is the most well-preserved medieval fortress in Bulgaria. The remains of the fortress are located on a rocky hill. The medieval town has been a significant military-administrative, economic and religious centre of the Second Bulgarian State. Cherven is the successor of an early-Byzantine fortress from VI c. which has been established by a Thracian settlement. The significance of the town grows after 1235 when it becomes the centre of the medieval Cerven bishopric. The medieval town has had an "internal town" over a huge rocky ridge in the meanders of the Cherni Lom River and an "external town" at the foot of the rocky ridge. The town has had a complex fortification system and has been densely built up. In XIV c. it has been a big craftsman's centre with well-developed iron-production, iron-processing, goldsmith's trade, construction works, artistic and other crafts.