The Birth of the Third Bulgarian Kingdom

After the Russo-Turkish war of 1878, with the Treaty of Berlin, the Bulgarian ethnic land was divided. Northern Dobrudja was handed over to Romania, and Nis and Pirot regions - to Serbia. The Principality of Bulgaria, a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, and the autonomous region of Eastern Rumelia, under the full authority of the Sultan, were created. Macedonia, Belomorie region and Odrin Thrace remained in the Ottoman Empire. The unification of the Principality and Eastern Rumelia in 1885 did not formally violate the Treaty of Berlin. The Principality of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia continued to owe their suzerain tributary contributions and payments on the Ottoman state debt to Western creditors every year. The Bulgarians also did not have the right to an independent foreign policy and trade agreements, applying the entire regime of capitulations, i.e. non-taxation of imported industrial goods from Europe, which ruined Bulgarian producers.

The year 1908 turned out to be extremely favourable for the proclamation of Bulgarian independence. The British and Russian empires were negotiating spheres of influence in Asia. This is how the Entente was formed - the agreement of Russia, France and Great Britain for common actions in defense of their interests. Already in the past was the "Union of the Three Emperors" between Germany, Russia and Austria-Hungary, which was the leading coalition in solving the Balkan issues.

At the beginning of July 1908, the Young Turks and the Unities and Progress (Edinenia i progress) committees carried out a military coup in the Ottoman Empire. The authorities in Sofia were aware that the new power in Constantinople would intensify the terror against the Bulgarians in Macedonia and Thrace and would halt the processes of reforms pushed by the great powers in defense of the rebelling local population. Therefore, the Bulgarian politicians and Prince Ferdinand decided to declare the independence of the Principality of Bulgaria, which by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin was subordinate to the Turkish Sultan.

Postcard in honour of the Hürriyet, in the middle - Sultan Abdoul Hamid II, on the left - Enver Pasha, on the right - Nyazi Bey, leader of

Austria-Hungary also saw in the events an opportunity to violate Art. 25 of the Treaty of Berlin. In 1908, it had to return to Turkey the region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, occupied for a period of 30 years, where half the population was Serbian. In Belgrade, they feared that the next step of the Habsburgs would be the occupation of Serbia itself.

Austria-Hungary agreed with Italy to recognize the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In return, Rome received approval to occupy the Ottoman protectorate of Libya. Germany, which held strong positions with Abdoul Hamid II, convinced the Sultan that if the Turks accepted the Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, they would get back control of the Novopazar Sanjak (“sanjak” was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire), which was populated by Muslim Bosniaks.

Russia, having recently lost a clash with Japan, was afraid of being embroiled in war again. Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister Alois von Aehrenthal invited his Russian counterpart Alexander Izvolsky to a meeting in Buchlov. On September 15, they agreed that Russia would accept the accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Austria-Hungary. In return, Saint Petersburg would also break the Berlin Treaty ban on Russian warships passing freely through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. The two ministers also agreed not to object if Bulgaria declared independence.

In order to overcome the resistance of France and Great Britain, Aehrenthal wanted Bulgaria to set a precedent and formally be the first to violate the Berlin Treaty. Already on September 10, the Bulgarian Prince Ferdinand met with Kaiser Franz Joseph. It was agreed that Bulgarian independence would be declared first, before the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On September 22, the Principality of Bulgaria declared itself an independent kingdom.

Alois Lexa von Aehrenthal and Alexander Izvolsky

On October 5, Vienna announced the occupation of disputed Bosnia and Herzegovina. On October 6, Serbia and Montenegro announced mobilization and readiness for war. On October 8, Germany declared that in the event of war it stood behind Austria-Hungary. France and Great Britain believed that they had no direct interests in Bosnia and Herzegovina and for them it was more important that the disputed issues be resolved through negotiations.

Bulgaria took advantage of the lack of desire among the great powers at this time for war. The Bulgarian Prime Minister Alexander Malinov sent the Minister of Trade, Transport and Agriculture Andrey Lyapchev to negotiate with the Sublime Porte. In order to give greater weight to the Bulgarian campaign, he announced a partial mobilization of the army.

A detachment of machine gunners of the Bulgarian infantry, 1908.

A long negotiation began as to what money Sofia should pay to the Ottoman Empire as compensation for its lost revenues and property in the Third Bulgarian Kingdom. Until that moment, Turkey received income from taxes and fees in the vassal Bulgarian principality. The Sublime Porte wanted 572 million gold leva. (At that time, 1 gold lev was equal to 1 gold franc.) The Bulgarians offered 10 million. They gradually gave way to 82 million, but even that was little for Constantinople.

Fearing war, in March Foreign Minister Izvolsky proposed that Bulgaria pay 125 million, but this would be offset from the Turkish debt for reparations for the Russo-Turkish War of 1878. In return, Turkey would renounce all claims and recognize the Bulgarian independence. Separately, Bulgaria and Russia had to agree on the payment of this 125 million BGN.

Tsar Ferdinand with the government of Alexander Malinov

In parallel, while the negotiations with Bulgaria were ongoing, the crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina continued. The Russian proposal to convene a diplomatic conference was rejected. On March 2, London, Paris, Petersburg, Berlin and Rome, with a joint demarche, demanded that Belgrade recognize the new status of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On March 10, Serbia rejected the annexation, despite Russia's insistence that it was not ready for a two-front war against Germany and Austria-Hungary. On March 22, Germany issued an ultimatum that if Russia did not recognize the status quo, Serbia would be attacked. Prime Minister Stolypin threatened to resign. On March 23, Emperor Nicholas II telegraphed to Kaiser Wilhelm I that he accepted the German note. On March 31, Serbia also recognized the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The European diplomats in Belgrade suggested to the Serbian side that because of the loss of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it could hope for compensation in the Bulgarian-populated Macedonia.

At the beginning of April 1909, a riot of dervishes and religious students broke out in Constantinople against the Young Turks. They were supported by soldiers who started pogroms against the officers. The Young Turks, aided by the extreme left in the VMRO, organized a counter-coup and deposed Sultan Abdoul Hamid II. Ahmed Tevfik Pasha, a Muslim from Yambol, was appointed Grand Vizier - Prime Minister. His brother Rifat Pasha became foreign minister. The new government wanted a quick settlement of the Bulgarian question. On April 6 in Constantinople, Andrey Lyapchev, in the presence of Prime Minister Alexander Malinov, signed a protocol with the Sublime Porte which recognized Bulgarian independence and the Third Bulgarian Kingdom.

At the request of Austria-Hungary and Germany, an article providing compensation for depositors, mainly German banks, in the "Eastern Railways" was included in the protocol. The company's lines and assets were handed over to Bulgaria. Separately, Sofia paid Constantinople for the acquisition of the telegraph, post offices, lighthouses and sanitary services. Bulgaria undertook to guarantee the free practice of Islam and the equality of Muslims with other citizens. Negotiations were promised, but never started, on the Bulgarian requests to negotiate the rights and protection of the Bulgarians in the empire, the recognition of the Bulgarian Exarchate, the laying of a railway to Skopje and Macedonia and the creation of a customs union. Quickly, after April 6, all the great powers recognized the newly proclaimed Bulgarian kingdom.

The outbreak of world war due to the "Balkan powder keg" was avoided in 1908-1909, because then no one was ready for war. Bulgaria became independent diplomatically, managing to take advantage of the crisis with Bosnia and Herzegovina. In practice, Sofia paid nothing for its independence under the debt to Russia. After a series of tumultuous events - the Balkan Wars in 1912-13, the First World War, the October Revolution and the Bolshevik coup in 1917, the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty was signed in 1918. Then Bolshevik Russia renounced all claims to the return of Bulgarian obligations for the declaration of independence.

Photos: nationallibrary.bg, bg.wikipedia.org, m5dergi.com, bulgarianhistory.org, archive

Translated and published by Rositsa Petkova

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The Birth of the Third Bulgarian Kingdom

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