The liberation of Bulgaria through the lens of Carol Szathmari

The founder of Romanian photography, the artist Carol Popp de Szathmari was a contemporary of the Bulgarian National Revival period. He had the opportunity to take photographs of and leave as documentary images famous personalities and events from the Bulgarian struggle for independence. About Satmari and its participation in the Russian-Turkish liberation war of 1877-78, we talk with Dr. Aneta Mihailova from the Institute of Balkan Studies at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.‎

Carol Popp de Szathmari was a Hungarian from Cluj in Transylvania. Born in 1812, he was the son of a pastor from a noble family. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna yet he did not complete his studies. Instead, he indulged in travel and toured Europe. He crossed the Carpathians several times, settling in Bucharest - the capital of Wallachia, explains Dr. Mihailova. He was a very elegant and pleasant conversationalist, he spoke several languages. He soon became famous as an author of portraits, landscapes and was appointed a court painter. He was fascinated by photography. ‎In 1850 he opened the first photographic atelier in Bucharest.

"He is connected with the history of Bulgaria because he photographed the Bulgarian revolutionaries. We know that at that time Bucharest was the center of the Bulgarian emigration. He made two portraits of Levski. The first is from 1868. Most likely the uniform was a prop from the studio of Szathmari when compared to other similar photos.

Levski's second portrait dates back to April, probably 1872. This is the last photo of Levski, which was unfortunately used to catch him. The Crimean War brought Szathmari great fame. Then he went to the front with an improvised van, in which he made a dark room to process the photos. After the end of the war, he made an album of 200 photographs, which were presented at the Paris Exhibition. The album was a sensation. After it, Queen Victoria invited him to an audience, Napoleon III too. He made several such albums, also presented to the Russian Emperor Alexander II. He received many awards and with this participation as a military photographer during the initial stage of the Crimean War established himself as the first military photographer in the world. In fact, there were very few photographers at that time in all of Europe - about a dozen in total."‎

At the age of 65, quite an advanced age for a war correspondent, Szathmari went to cover the Russo-Turkish war, which was liberating for Bulgaria and brought independence to Romania from the Ottoman Empire. ‎

"The 19th century also saw the first illustrated magazines, especially numerous in the 1940s and 1950s, and they all sent their correspondents to the frontlines. As far as I know, there were about 80 correspondents assigned to both sides. Most of them were English. At that time, in addition to accompanying the king and the Romanian army, Szathmari was employed as an official correspondent of the German publication "Illustrierte Zeitung", and throughout the war he sent them sketches of the main battle locations or from what he found interesting. He sent many such sketches and photographs to an English publication, The Illustrated London News, where in fact we find in the January 1878 issue some very interesting images from Pleven."‎

Black-and-white drawings from Pleven of Szathmari

Szathmari was one of the few correspondents who was present at the surrender of Osman Pasha and the fall of the besieged Pleven. After the failure of the assaults in the autumn of 1877, most journalists lost interest and withdrew. But images taken by Szathmari show the starving Ottoman soldiers in the city, which forced the garrison to surrender. ‎

"Yes, in addition to losing interest, the photographers did not have access because this was considered a very important strategic battle. Szathmari had the fortune or, how should I say, the favour as a court photographer and artist to accompany the Romanian army and the Romanian prince throughout the fighting, so he had direct access to the events. He was an eyewitness to them, directly, which for us is very important. Because if there is any element of artistic subjectivity in artistic images, then the photograph is an accurate reflection of a moment. Adding to the fact that he was very good at what he did, his images and photographs from that time are invaluable to our history."‎

Immediately after the end of the Russo-Turkish War, an album of Szathmari's photographs, called "Souvenir des Razboiul 1877 – 78" ("Souvenirs of the War 1877 – 78"), with 50 photographs, was printed in Bucharest. It is believed that among them there are also works by Franz Dušak, his student, who also photographed during the war. ‎

"For Romania in the 19th century, or at least in the second half of the 19th century, Szathmari is of exceptional importance, because he was an eyewitness and documented - whether with a pencil, a brush or a lens - the most important moments of this period. Although ethnically Hungarian, he closely linked his fate with the history of Romania. He died in Bucharest in 1887 and is greatly revered. His date of birth is celebrated as photography day in Romania. I sincerely I hope that someday the Bulgarian public will be able to see these photos and paintings, which reflect not only the Russo-Turkish war. He has many photos and watercolors from Bulgaria which are just as interesting", says D-r Aneta Mihaylova in conclusion.