Although
Romans, Slavs, Byzantines and the Ottoman Turks have all ruled the
region, no civilisation has had a greater influence on Bulgaria's
history than the Proto-Bulgarians, whose leader Khan Asparuh founded
the first Bulgarian Empire in the 7th
Century (610-1018). His
rule continued to expand until it encompassed the eastern part of the
Balkan Peninsula and present day Macedonia (Macedonians are still
considered Bulgarians by the Bulgarian nationalists).
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Leader Khan Asparuh founded the first Bulgarian Empire |
In
865, under Tsar Boris I, the Bulgarian's accepted Orthodox
Christianity as the nations official religion. In 870, the Bulgarian
Church became independent with its own patriarch, which encouraged
Tsar Simeon (893-927) to expand his kingdom through Serbia to the
Adriatic Sea. Simeon's kingdom shrank once again however when he
overstretched his hands towards the Byzantine crown. This weakened
Bulgaria, making it an easy target for the Byzantine emperor, Basill
II, who successfully conquered Bulgaria a short time later in 1014.
To celebrate his victory, Basill II ordered the eyes of over 15 000
Bulgarian soldiers to be removed. Within four years, Bulgaria was
completely under Byzantine rule.
The
second Bulgarian Empire (1185-1396) was founded after two brothers,
Asen and Peter, led a general uprising against the Byzantine rule.
Surging with a renewed confidence, the new Bulgarian empire soon covered all of Thrace, Macedonia and Albania. However by the end of
the 14th
century, the Turks controlled all of Bulgaria, beginning five
centuries of Ottoman rule.
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By the end of the 14th century, all of Bulgaria was held by the Turks |
As
repressive regimes go, the Turks were not too bad, making no
systematic attempts to convert the Bulgarians to Islam or to
eradicate their language and customs. It was only as the Turkish
power weakened in the 18th
century that Bulgarians began to suffer rising taxes and inflation as
the Turkish attempted to retain control of the country after a series
of unsuccessful wars against the Austrians and Russians. Resentment
brewed amongst the Bulgarian population and the Turks responded by
introducing reforms aimed at assimilating the Bulgarians, but it was
too late.
In
the early 19th
century, popular customs and folklore blossomed during this national
revival period, while underground revolutionaries plotted to rid
Bulgaria of the Turks once and for all. When a revolt broke out
prematurely at the village of Koprivshtitsa in April 1876, the Turks
suppressed it with unprecedented brutality.
Russian
troops came to Bulgaria's rescue in the late 1870's and as the
Russian army advanced within 50kms of Istanbul, Turkey conceded 60%
of the Balkan Peninsula to Bulgaria. The modern history of Bulgaria
and the Bulgarian “little brother” complex in relation to Russia
dates back to this 1878 liberation. Bulgaria sided with Germany at
the outbreak of WWII but Tsar Boris III refused to declare war on
Russia.
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Tsar Boris III refused to declare war on ally Russia during WWII |
Under
the communist Todor Zhivkov, Bulgaria's leader from 1954-1989,
Bulgaria fell badly behind the other Eastern European countries. The
collapse of communism in 1989 left industry exposed and the
transition to democracy has been a troubled one. The renamed
communist party (now the Bulgarian Socialist Party) managed to
control the direction of a newly democratic Bulgaria. In June 2001,
the Bulgarian monarchy made an unprecedented comeback when former
King Simeon II was elected Prime Minister. Progress continues under
the current government and Bulgaria has since qualified for
membership of both NATO and the EU.
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Communist Leader of Bulgaria from 1954-1989, Todor Zhivkov |