On 3 March Bulgaria celebrates its National Day. On this day in 1878 in San Stefan near Istanbul a peace treaty was signed to finalize the 1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War that had opened the way for the Bulgarian state to get resurrected after five centuries of Turkish rule.

Signing the San Stefano Peace Treaty - an etching, detail

March 3 arrived following more than a century of National Revival and liberation struggles. The Bulgarian liberation movement peaked during the April Uprising in 1876 “The uprising was a very clear manifestation to the world that Bulgarians had the resolve to break free from the power of the sultan”, said in an interview for Radio Bulgaria Dr. Vladimir Stanev from the Faculty of History at St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia. “It was brutally crushed and regardless of the efforts of the Sublime Porte (the Ottoman government) to cover up atrocities, the truth surfaced. American diplomat Eugene Schuyler, Russian diplomat Aleksey Tseretelev, journalist Januarius MacGahan toured the regions of the uprising and reported on what they saw there. Great British politician William Gladstone circulated widely information about atrocities committed by the Turks in crushing the uprising. At the end of the day, the role of the April Uprising in a historical perspective was closely bound to the reaction it produced in Western Europe and Russia. The message that came across to the Great Powers was that the Bulgarian nation – one of the last Christian nations suffering under foreign religious and political oppression - was in need of support and assistance. It is not by accident that the chief leader of the uprising Georgi Benkovski while watching the flames licking the rebellious town of Panagyurishte, said, “My goal has been achieved. I have opened up a huge wound in the very heart of the tyrant that will never heal. And Russia – it is now welcome.”

Benkovski's Flying Squad by Dimitar Gyudjenov

In the wake of a major defeat in the Crimean War (1853-1856) Russia went through a very hard period. The country carried out historic reform – it abolished serfdom, the administration was modernized as well as the economy and the military sector.

“Russia was trying to avoid the war, so as to prevent a new defeat. For this reason it concluded various agreements – with Austria-Hungary and with Britain”, Vladimir Stanev goes on to say. “However, the attempts to find a peaceful solution with the involvement of all Great Powers were abortive. The international conference in Constantinople in December 1876 tried to press the sultan to give autonomy to the Bulgarian lands. Once all peaceful attempts crashed and burned, Russia decided to wage a war.”

In April 1877 Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire. There were a few dramatic moments in its course – the battles near Stara Zagora, for the Shipka Pass, near Pleven, as well as the hard winter passage of the Balkan Range. The Russian army that apart from Russian soldiers included also Ukrainians, Byelorussians, Finns, Poles and other nationalities, displayed large-scale heroism and gave numerous victims. Romania, Serbia and Montenegro joined in as Russia’s allies. A Bulgarian voluntary corps was recruited as well.

“Originally it was devised with purely security functions – it was to guard the transport units, and the rear of the Russian army”, Dr. Stanev explains. “However in the course of the war, and largely due to the commander of the volunteer corps Gen. Stoletov, it did join military operations. Thus it was given the chance to prove that it was a veritable combat unit. During the defense of Stara Zagora, and more notably in the hostilities at the Shipka Pass the Bulgarian volunteers fought with remarkable skill and bravery.”

Meeting the Russian troops - etching

The help that came from civilians was not unimportant during the Russo-Turkish War of Liberation.
“This is indeed an aspect that is often neglected”, Vladimir Stanev admits. “The role of Bulgarian civilians was important. Unfortunately, it can hardly be measured in quantitative terms. It is a known fact that one of the Turkish commanders, in notorious Suleiman Pasha who attacked Stara Zagora and then failed to break through the Russian siege of the Shipka Pass stated that he was defeated because not a single Bulgarian had come to his rescue. In contrast, in his rear the Russians had a very reliable source of information – the Bulgarian civilians. They acted in small reconnaissance units during the winter of 1877 when the Balkan Range had to be crossed – a major challenge. Besides Bulgarians helped in providing supplies to the Russian army, took care of the wounded soldiers and set up field hospitals and storehouses. The well-to-do Bulgarian businessmen donated money. It was an all-national campaign and everybody was trying to help. This was one of the bright examples of spontaneous patriotism, because people clearly saw the chance of Bulgaria to get liberated.”

Under the San Stefano Treaty the boundaries of modern Bulgaria should include all territories populated by Bulgarians in the main. The treaty however was only a draft and had to be coordinated with the Great Powers. A few months later they revised it at a congress in Berlin. Northern Bulgaria plus the Sofia Sanjak (region) represented the Principality of Bulgaria. The territory to the south of the Balkan Range would now be known as Eastern Rumelia, an autonomous territory within the Ottoman Empire. The lands in Macedonia and Aegean Thrace were returned under full jurisdiction of the sultan. Uniting all Bulgarians into a single state emerged as a national ideal. Seven years after the end of the Russo-Turkish War the Unification of Northern and Southern Bulgaria took place. During the 20 c. this country got involved in several wars led by that same national ideal, and went through ups and downs. The War of Liberation however was the great event that opened up the way to a modern Bulgaria that belonged to Europe. In 1879 this country already had its parliament and a democratic constitution, and its administration started to emerge. Factories, highways and railroads were built, and the agriculture was significantly modernized. European-style educational and cultural institutions were created.

Remebering the dead - by Vasily Vereshchagin

The Russo-Turkish War of Liberation, a remarkable event in Bulgarian and European history, was recreated by many generations of artists in both Bulgarian and Russian art. World-renowned Russian artist Vasily Vereshchagin volunteered in the war. Here is how he explained his decision: “I should not fear sacrificing my flesh and blood; otherwise my paintings will not come worthy.” His brother Sergey – another volunteer – died in combat during the third raid of Pleven. The third brother, Alexander, was adjutant to Gen. Skobelev and was wounded in the war. The celebrated artist painted some of the war’s most dramatic moments: the battle for Pleven, the winter passage of the Balkan Range, the defense of the Shipka Pass. He depicted the heroism and suffering and the war’s numerous victims. After the end of the war the great artist displayed his impressive works in Paris, Vienna and London. The message he communicated was simple: peace.

One of the most famous works of art dedicated to the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878 was created in 1893 by Russian painter Aleksey Popov. It is Eagle’s Nest, featuring the courageous defense of the Shipka Pass when ban volunteers and Russian troops repulsed the Turks who exceeded them several fold. Its copy is kept at the National Museum of Military History in Sofia. The canvas Shipka was painted in 1935 by great Bulgarian artist Iliya Petrov. The master of Bulgarian historical painting Dimitar Gyudjenov recreated the meeting of Gen. Gurko’s troops in Sofia and the battle near Sheinovo. The winter passage of the Balkan Range has inspired other Bulgarian artists – Ioan Leviev and Tsviatko Dochev.

The Samara Flag, a most emblematic work of art , was painted in 1911 by Jaroslav Vesin, a Czech artist who used to live and work in Bulgaria. It depicts an elderly Bulgarian volunteer holding the flag that was made in the Russian town of Samara for the Bulgarian volunteer corps. It is unique being the only Bulgarian flag awarded with an order for valor. During the battles for Stara Zagora several standard-bearers died saving it from Turkish captivity. The Bulgarian volunteers have been portrayed in works by artists Ivan Yonkov and Kalina Taseva. The injured and the nurses have also been portrayed. Russian countess Julia Vrevskaya came to Bulgaria as a volunteer in the war. She became a medical nurse and worked in a few hospitals. She contracted typhus and died in the early 1878. Artist Mila Peykova has dedicated one of her works to Julia Vrevskaya.

In the summer of 2008 an international plein air event was held to mark the 130th anniversary of the War of Liberation. Painters and sculptors from Russia, Bulgaria, Israel and USA visited the places related to the war. Later they displayed what they had created – a contemporary and talented contribution into the art recreating this historic event.

At Shipka Peak everything is quiet - a painting by Grigorii Firer

Translated by Daniela Konstantinova