On 22 September 1908 Bulgaria declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire, three decades after the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878 that brought the country its liberation. Yet just a few months after it was over, the Treaty of Berlin signed by the Great Powers dismembered the lands inhabited predominantly by Bulgarians. The first successful step towards national reunification was taken in 1885 - the reunification of the Principality of Bulgaria, a vassal state of the Sultan with the autonomous  province of the Ottoman Empire, Eastern Rumelia. Macedonia and Eastern Thrace remained under the Sultan. Bulgarians had two objectives - national reunification and sovereignty. Through the years there had been several attempts at declaring independence. Yet this only came about in 1908 with the breakout of the revolution of the Young Turks in Istanbul which sapped the strength of the Ottoman Empire, forcing it to face its own, domestic problems. Here is historian Prof. Lyudmil Spassov with more:

“At the beginning of September Sultan Abdul Hamid organized a big diplomatic reception to mark the anniversary of his ascension to the throne. But adhering strictly to the Treaty of Berlin, the Young Turks did not invite the Bulgarian diplomatic agent Ivan Stefanov Geshov to the reception. The reason - they did not consider him to be part of the diplomatic corps as he represented a vassal state and his only contacts should have been with the Turkish interior minister. This elicited a very sharp reaction from the Bulgarian government - it recalled Ivan Stefanov Geshov from Istanbul, which meant severing diplomatic relations.“

Another landmark event, Prof. Spassov points out, is the strike that broke out in the Eastern Railways - a western concession company operating in the vassal lands of the Ottoman Empire. The company managament asked the Bulgarian government for Bulgarian staff so the line could be kept running. There came a time however, that this same management realized it had handed the company over to the Bulgarian state and demanded that the Bulgarian staff be withdrawn. A major controversy ensued that was joined by the Sublime Porte. What this dispute in fact boiled down to was the independence of Bulgaria. And the third major event: on 16 September 1908 a meeting of the foreign ministers of Austria-Hungary and Russia took place. At this meeting, they came to an agreement not to oppose a proclamation of independence by Bulgaria. Austria-Hungary was out to annex Bosnia and Herzegovina which it had temporarily occupied under the Treaty of Berlin, whereas Russia wanted the Treaty revised where the Black Sea was concerned.  From that time on the Bulgarian government can be said to have had its hands free but it had to be careful of its timing in the series of diplomatic contacts it conducted. Its efforts were 100 percent succesful, getting in a one day head start before Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina. Just one more day and Crete rejected the vassalage of the Sultan. So it came about that Bulgaria's decision became part of an international campaign for altering the status quo in Southeast Europe.

In an endeavour to show up the grandeur of the Medieval Bulgarian state, the country's political elite decided to have independence proclaimed in the old capital Veliko Turnovo:

“Independence was proclaimed on 22 September at the 40 Holy Martyrs church. Ferdinand was proclaimed tsar of all Bulgarians. Note: not of Bulgaria but of all Bulgarians - inside the country and outside it. Herein lies the idea of national unification,” says Lyudmil Spassov.

The manifesto was then read out from Tsarevets hill in Veliko Turnovo. The city was jubilant, a military parade was organized, thousands of rallies were held nationwide. Because of the impeccable diplomatic work, there was no need of upholding independence by military means as had been the case with the country's reunification in 1885. Yet the battle on the diplomatic front was no easy thing and there followed more negotiations between Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and some of the Great Powers to have the country's independence recognized and to settle other emerging problems. For example, the Eastern Railways grid that had become Bulgarian property. What were the benefits of the declaration of independence and what were the prospects opening up before the country? Prof. Spassov:

“The prospects wereastounding.Bulgaria could now conduct and maintain equitable diplomatic relations with the rest of the world. Until that time, we could only dispatch diplomatic agents to other countries and open diplomatic agencies. Now, after the proclamation of independence they were promoted to the rank of legations. And our agents - to ministers plenipotentiary. But there was more - the so-called capitulations regime was lifted, a regime that had been a dire burden on the Bulgarian economy. It had been imposed on the Ottoman Empire before the liberation of Bulgaria and by force of the Berlin Treaty was transferred onto Bulgaria as well. The regime meant importing industrial commodities from Western Europe with very low customs duties imposed and that was ruination for Bulgarian trade, putting a spoke in the wheels of the development of a national industry. But if the country had no industry of its own, there was no way it could take an equitable part in economic life.”

Being a sovereign state Bulgaria was able, for example, to benefit from preferential loans and develop its economy more energetically. And that meant the nation's confidence grew - entailing the development of culture and other spheres as well.

English version: Milena Daynova