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The stronghold of Cherven (Bulgarian: ×åðâåí, 'red') was one of the Second Bulgarian Empire's primary military, administrative, economic and cultural centres between the 12th and the 14th century. The riuns of the fortress are located near the village of the same name 30-35 km south of Rousse, northeastern Bulgaria.

The town was a successor to an earlier Byzantine fortress of the 6th century, but the area has been inhabited since the arrival of the Thracians. Cherven was first mentioned in the 11th century in an Old Bulgarian apocryphal chronicle. It gained importance after 1235, when it became the seat of the medieval Bulgarian Orthodox Bishopric of Cherven.

The remains of the medieval town of Cherven are an archaeological site of great importance to the research of Bulgarian culture of the Middle Ages. The first excavations were carried out in 1910-1911 under professor Vasil Zlatarski, while regular research on the site began in 1961.