The town of Montana has a population of 47 800 inhabitants and is the municipal centre of 23 settlements. The town is located on the bank of the Ogosta River in the western part of the Fore-Balkan.

The territory of the Ogosta River has been populated for millennia. In the lower parts of the forests of the region have been discovered pottery vessels, iron and bone tools, flat miller's stones dating from more than 6 000 years ago. During the early Iron Age here has existed a Thracian settlement with fortified walls. The discovered paintings of the most widely cherished Thracian gods Heros, Benedita and Dionysius tell about the cultural life of the Thracian people from this region.

In the year 29 the region becomes part of the Roman Empire and is included in the Mizia Province. Three years later the Sygambrian horse troops are dislocated here and remain for more than a century. The town of Montana becomes one of the big centres of the Mizia Province. The name of the town is preserved on an inscription from II c. The presence of the Roman legions in the region contributed to the economic development of the town. There have existed two sanctuaries for the gods Diana and Apollonius in the town. The invasions of the Gothes tribes break the period of the town's flourish. After the fall of the Roman Empire the settlement becomes part of the Byzantine Empire. At the end of VI c. and the beginning of VII c. Montana disappears from the maps. Later on the Slavs found a settlement with the name of Kutlovitza. The name of the Augustus River is changed to Ogosta and is preserved till present days. Kutlovitza is on the territory of the First Bulgarian State. However, this period of the settlement's history is unknown due to the lack of information. During the Ottoman yoke the settlement is described with the name of Kutlovitza in 1575

After the Liberation of Bulgaria Kutlovitza becomes the district centre and a craftsman's centre. At the beginning of XX c. its population has been about 49 000 inhabitants. On 2 December 1891 the settlement's name is changed to Ferdinand in honour of the Bulgarian king Ferdinand. The construction of a railway line connecting Boychinovtzi and Berkovitza contributes to the development of the town. During the period of 1946-1990 the town has the name of Mihailovgrad and since 1992 till present days it is known with its ancient name of Montana.

The tourist sights of the town are: the history museum, the art gallery, the archaeological exhibition and the remains of the ancient fortress Montana.

Other historic and cultural monuments in the district are: the Chiprovtzi Monastery, the Klissura Monastery, The Lopushantzi Monastery, Berkovitza and Chiprovtzi.

On the territory of the Montana District are situated the following natural landmarks: the reserves "Gorna Koria", "Ibisha" and the protected sites of "Kopren" and "Ravno Buche" as well as the Kopren's eco-path.

Among the more important ornithological sites are: the Danube Islands, the "Ibisha" reserve/ included in the Corine Project/ and the "Funiyata" site.

The best wineries of the region are: Lom, Borovtzi and Berkovitza.

Tourist sights

The History Museum of Montana has 50 000 exhibits. There are interesting collections of marble and metal plastics, jewelry from the Chiprovtzi's goldsmith's school, coins and old-print books.

The Lapidarium is situated in the region of the ancient Montana fortress. It is in a park and represents many epigraphic monuments from the Roman Epoch.

The Chiprovtzi Monastery is situated at a distance of 6 km northeast of the town of Chiprovtzi. It dates back to X c. and is one of the monasteries in Bulgaria which contributed a lot to the development of the Christian belief on the Bulgarian lands. For centuries on end it has been an important educational centre. The Monastery is the main support centre of the Chiprovsko Rebellion from XVII c. After the rebellion it is demolished and plundered. The monastery complex consists of a church (129), a two-floor housing building with balconies, and a tower-tomb where the bones of the rebellion's victims are preserved.

The Katerina's House in the town of Chiprovtzi is a demonstration place for carpet-weaving techniques. In the yard of the house are grown the trees and the medicinal herbs from which are obtained the dyes for the traditional Chiprovtzi carpets.

The Lopushanski Monastery in the village of Georgi Damyanovo lies at a distance of 20 m from the district centre. The monastery is at the site of a previous monastery, which has been completely demolished. The monastery's church has been built in 1853. Some of the icons are painted by Stanislav Dospevski.