Bulgaria

Ottoman Bulgaria

The history of Ottoman Bulgaria spans nearly 500 years, from the conquest of the smaller kingdoms emerging from the disintegrating Second Bulgarian Empire by the Ottoman Empire in the late 14th century to the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878. The Ottomans administered territories through provincial governors and local administrators, maintaining stability through a blend of religious tolerance and social organization.

However, this system also led to occasional conflicts, uprisings, and tensions between different ethnic and religious groups. The brutal suppression of the Bulgarian Uprising of 1876 and the public outcry led to the Constantinople Conference, where the Great Powers tabled a joint proposal for the creation of two autonomous Bulgarian vilayets, largely corresponding to the ethnic boundaries which have drawn with the establishment of the Bulgarian Exarchate. The sabotage of the Conference led to the Russo-Turkish War which took place between 1877 and 1878.

Principality of Bulgaria

After the Russo-Turkish War ended with a Russian victory, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed by Russia and the Ottoman Empire on 3 March 1878. Under this, a large Bulgarian vassal state was agreed, which was significantly larger. However, the United Kingdom and Austria-Hungary were against the establishment of such a large Russian client state in the Balkans, fearing it would shift the balance of power in the Mediterranean. Due to this, the Great Powers convened and signed the Treaty of Berlin, superseding the Treaty of San Stefano, which never went into effect. This created a much smaller principality, alongside an autonomous Eastern Rumelia within the Ottoman Empire.

The Bulgarian principality won a war against Serbia (Serbo-Bulgarian War) and incorporated the semi-autonomous Ottoman territory of Eastern Rumelia in 1885, proclaiming itself an independent state on 5 October 1908.

Third Bulgarian State

In the years following independence, Bulgaria became increasingly militarized as it became involved in three consecutive conflicts between 1912 and 1918 which are two Balkan Wars and World War I. After a disastrous defeat in the Second Balkan War, Bulgaria found itself again fighting on the losing side as a result of its alliance with the Central Powers in World War I. The war resulted in significant territorial losses and almost 100.000 soldiers killed. Hundreds of thousands of refugees from the lost territories immigrated to Bulgaria from 1912 to 1929, placing additional strain on the already ruined economy.

The resulting political unrest led to the establishment of a royal authoritarian dictatorship by Tsar Boris III. Bulgaria entered World War II in 1941 as a member of the Axis. With the sudden death of Boris III in 1943, Bulgaria was pushed into political turmoil as the war turned against Germany, and the communist guerrilla movement gained momentum. The government of Bogdan Filov failed to achieve peace with the Allies while Bulgaria did not comply with Soviet demands to expel German forces from its territory. This resulted in a declaration of war and an invasion by the USSR in 1944. The communist-dominated Fatherland Front took power, ended participation in the Axis, and joined the Allied side until the war ended.

The left-wing coup d'état in 1944 led to the abolition of the monarchy. But it was not until 1946 that a one-party people's republic was instituted following a referendum. It fell into the Soviet sphere of influence under the leadership of Georgi Dimitrov, who established a repressive, rapidly industrializing Stalinist state.

The Communist Party was forced to give up its political monopoly in 1989 under the influence of the Revolutions of 1989. Zhivkov resigned and Bulgaria embarked on a transition to a parliamentary democracy. The first free elections in June 1990 were won by the Communist Party which is now renamed as the Bulgarian Socialist Party. A new constitution that provided for a relatively weak elected president and for a prime minister accountable to the legislature was adopted in July 1991.

After 2001, economic, political, and geopolitical conditions improved greatly. It became a member of NATO in 2004. After several years of reforms, Bulgaria joined the European Union and the single market in 2007, despite EU concerns over government corruption.