Bulgaria (buhl-GAR-ee-yah), republic (1993 population 8,459,763; 2004 estimated population 7,517,973), 42,823 sq mi/110,912 sq km, SE Europe, on the E Balkan Peninsula.
Geography
It is bounded by the Black Sea on the E, by Romania on the N, by Serbia and Macedonia on the W, by Greece on the S, and by European Turkey on the SE; (cap.) Sofia. Other important cities are Varna and Burgas (the main Black Sea ports of Bulgaria), Plovdiv and Ruse. Central Bulgaria is traversed from E to W by ranges of the Stara Planina Mountains (“Old Mountains” in Bulgarian). A fertile plateau runs N of the Stara Planina Mountains to the Danube River, which forms most of the N border. In the S is the Rodopi range. The Rila Mountains in the SW include Bulgaria’s highest point, Musala mountain (9,592 ft/2,924 m). The Thracian plain lies S of the Stara Planina Mountains and N of the Rodopi. The Danube, the Iskur, the Maritsa, and the Struma are the principal rivers.
Economny
Bulgaria’s chief mineral resources include brown coal (lignite), iron ore, copper, zinc, lead, and oil and natural gas. There are many mineral springs. Traditionally an agricultural country, Bulgaria has been considerably industrialized since World War II. Until 1989, Bulgaria had a Soviet-style economy in which nearly all agriculture and industrial enterprises were state controlled. A stagnant economy, shortages of food, energy, and consumer goods, an enormous foreign debt, and an obsolete and an inefficient industrial complex instigated attempts at market-oriented reform in the 1990s. The leading industries are food processing, engineering, metallurgy, ferrous and non-ferrous steel, and the production of chemicals and electronics. Agriculture accounts for about 15% of the GNP and occupies about 20% of the work force. The principal crops are wheat, corn, barley, tobacco, sunflowers, and sugar beets. Grapes and other fruit, as well as roses, are grown, and wine and brandy production is important. Most of the land was collectivized by 1958, but much is now being restored to private ownership. More than 80% of Bulgaria’s trade has been with former Soviet-bloc countries.
Population
The population consists chiefly of Bulgars (83.9%) and Turks (9.4%), with smaller minorities of Gypsies (9.4%), Tatars, Jewish, Armenian, Circassian, and Gagaouz. Bulgaria, with its historic claim to Macedonia, does not recognize Macedonians as distinct from Bulgarians. About 27% belong to the Orthodox Eastern Church, and 7% are Muslims. In 1953 the Bulgarian patriarchate was reestablished; it had been disestablished in 1946. Institutions of higher education include the universities of Sofia, Plovdiv, Veliko Turnovo, Varna, and several new universities, including the American University in Blagoevgrad.
History to 1100
Ancient Thrace and Moesia, which modern Bulgaria occupies, were settled (6th century A.D.) by Slavic tribes. In 679–680, Bulgar tribes from the banks of the Volga crossed the Danube, subjugated the Slavs, and settled permanently in the territory of Bulgaria. The language and culture remained Slavic, and by the 9th century the Bulgars had fully merged with the Slavs. The First Bulgarian empire (681–1018), established by Han Asparuh, or Isperih (ruled 680–701), and his successor, Tervel (ruled 701–718), soon emerged as a significant Balkan power and a threat to Byzantium. In 809 the Han Krum (ruled 803–814) captured Sofia from the Byzantines, defeated (811) Emperor Nicephorus I, besieged Constantinople, and withdrew only after obtaining yearly tribute. In the 9th century Bulgaria became the arena of political and cultural rivalry between Constantinople and Rome. In 865, Tsar Boris I adopted Christianity, and in 870 Constantinople recognized the independence of the Bulgarian church. Bulgaria received Byzantine culture through the Slavic literary language developed by St. Cyril and St. Methodius in Moravia and brought to the Balkans by their disciples. The first Bulgarian empire reached its height under Simeon I (893–927), who took the title of tsar. After his death the country was rent by the heresy of the Bogomils. In the 10th century Bulgaria crumbled under the attacks of a reinvigorated Byzantium, and in 1018 it was annexed by Emperor Basil II. Byzantine domination was weakened by the invasions of the Pechenegs and Cumans and by internal disorders at Constantinople.
History - 1018 to 1800
The second Bulgarian empire (1186–1396) rose in 1186 when Ivan Asen (Ivan I) was crowned tsar at Veliko Turnovo. His son, Kaloyan, crowned in 1204 with the approval of the pope, defeated (1205) Emperor Baldwin I of Constantinople. The height of Bulgar power was reached under Ivan Asen II, whose rule (1218–1241) extended over nearly the whole Balkan Peninsula except Greece. His successors could not maintain his empire. In 1330, Macedonian Bulgaria was conquered by Serbia. After the battles of Kosovo (1389) and Nikopol (1396) Bulgaria was absorbed into the Ottoman Empire. Turkish rule was often oppressive, and rebellions were frequent. By recognizing the authority of the Orthodox Eastern Church in Constantinople over all Christians in their empire, the Turks undermined the basis of Bulgarian culture. A determined effort was made to destroy Bulgarian Christianity and the Bulgarian language. The role of the Phanariots was particularly resented.
History - 1800 to 1990
Although the administration (1864–1869) of Midhat Pasha made Bulgaria briefly a model province, by then Bulgarian nationalism was strong. The Mount Athos monastery had continued to use Bulgarian; there, in 1762, a monk had written a history, the first modern literary work in Bulgarian. Bulgarian schools were allowed to open in 1835. In 1870 the Bulgarian Church was reestablished. In 1876 a rebellion, led by Stefan Stambolov, broke out. The subsequent Turkish reprisals (famous as the “Bulgarian atrocities”) provided a reason for the Russians to liberate (1877–1878) their neighbors. The Treaty of San Stefano created a large autonomous Bulgaria within the Ottoman Empire—a Bulgaria that Russia expected to dominate. In order to avert the expansion of Russian influence in the Balkans, a European congress was called to revise the treaty. By the new terms Bulgaria was reduced to the territory between the Danube and the Balkans, while present-day S Bulgaria—then called Eastern Rumelia —became a separate autonomous province, and Macedonia remained under direct Turkish rule. Alexander (Alexander of Battenberg), first prince of Bulgaria, annexed (1885) Eastern Rumelia and repulsed a consequent Serbian attack.
History - 1900 to 1940
His successor, Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, profiting from the revolution of the Young Turks in the Ottoman Empire in 1908, proclaimed Bulgaria independent with himself as tsar. Bulgaria was victorious against Turkey in the first (1911–1912) of the Balkan Wars, but claims to Macedonia involved it in the second Balkan War with its former allies Greece and Serbia, and it was soon defeated. By the Treaty of Bucharest (1913), Bulgaria lost S Dobrudzha and a large part of Macedonia. The Macedonian issue was largely responsible for the entry in 1915 of Bulgaria into World War I on the side of Germany and Austria-Hungary. There was much domestic opposition to the war, and when Bulgaria’s military position crumbled, Ferdinand fled and Boris III succeeded (1918). In the peace Bulgaria was forced to pay reparations and lost its outlet to the Aegean Sea to Greece and some territory to Yugoslavia; S Dobrudzha was confirmed in Romanian possession. The Agrarian party cabinet established (1919) by Stamboliiski held power until overthrown (1923) in a bloody coup. An era of political confusion ensued, dominated by the violent activities of an irredentist Macedonian terrorist group. The world economic crisis of 1929 had a disastrous impact on impoverished Bulgaria as markets for agricultural exports shrunk. In 1934, Kimon Georgiev became premier with the help of the army and ended constitutional government, but he was ousted in 1935 by Boris III, who established his personal dictatorship.
History - 1940 to 1960
Bulgaria saw in an alliance with Germany in World War II an opportunity to satisfy its territorial claims. In 1940, Germany forced Romania to restore to Bulgaria S Dobrudzha. In 1941, Bulgaria occupied parts of Yugoslavia and Greece (including Macedonia), and declared war on Great Britain and the U.S.—but not the USSR , because the populace was pro-Russian. The child Simeon II succeeded when Boris died mysteriously (1943). In 1944 the USSR declared war on Bulgaria, and Soviet troops entered the country (September). Pro-Allied political forces (Communists, Agrarians, and the pro-Soviet army officers), headed by Georgiev, seized power immediately. Bulgaria declared war on Germany, and an armistice with the USSR followed (October). After a short period of coalition rule, the Communists succeeded in taking over the government The monarchy was abolished, and in 1946 Bulgaria was proclaimed a republic with Georgi Dimitrov as premier. The peace treaty with the Allies (1947) allowed Bulgaria to keep S Dobrudzha, but no gains were made in Macedonia. Dimitrov proceeded to eliminate possible opponents. The Agrarian leader Nikola Petkov was executed (1947). A new constitution was enacted, and Bulgaria became a one-party state. Industry was nationalized and farms collectivized. Bulgaria closely followed the Soviet Union in its domestic and foreign policies; after the expulsion of Yugoslavia from the Cominform in 1948, Bulgaria sided with the USSR. Dimitrov’s successor, Vulko Chervenkov, massively purged the Communist party (1950). In 1951–1952, Bulgaria deported to Turkey some 160,000 citizens of Turkish origin. Relations with Greece and Turkey improved somewhat after 1954. Bulgaria joined (1949) the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance and in 1955 became a member of the Warsaw Treaty Organization and the UN. In the mid-1950s the government loosened its grip somewhat. Stalinists fell from power and purge victims were rehabilitated (posthumously in some cases).
History - 1960 to Present
In 1965 army officers and party officials unsuccessfully attempted a coup. Bulgaria aided the USSR in the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. In the mid-1980s, a re-naming campaign was launched against the nearly 800,000 ethnic Turks. The Turks were forced to adopt Bulgarian names, and Turkish language broadcasts and publications were halted. In 1986, Zhivkov experimented with limited economic reforms such as a “self-management” program for industrial workers. Zhivkov’s ouster in November 1989 set off a year of social and political turmoil. In 1989, 300,000 Turks left for Turkey, but many have returned following reforms. Bulgaria joined the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) military alliance on March 29, 2004.
Government
The first non-Communist leader in forty years, Zheliu Zhelev, was elected president in August 1990. Economic reforms were introduced and the writing of a new constitution was completed. Democratic forces assumed initial electoral leadership, but socialists assumed power in elections in December 1994. Bulgaria has a 240 seat National Assembly with representatives elected by popular vote to 4-year terms. Georgi Purvanov was elected president in January 2002.
