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In 1878, besides being the capital of Rumelia, Plovdiv was also the largest and most industrially and culturally developed city in the Bulgarian lands. Over the next two decades, until the end of the 19th century, in this really big Bulgarian city many different things happened, but two remarkable events have significant and crucial importance for its future development – The Unification of Bulgaria in 1885 and the agricultural and industrial exhibition in Plovdiv in 1892. The Unification changed its status from a metropolitan to a provincial city and the exhibition – a demonstration of modernization efforts – presented, albeit in a minimized way, the model of the new urban space and its development perspective. What did Plovdiv look like on the eve of the 20th century – like a European or like an Oriental city? The answer to this question is the aim of this study, based on a multitude of different historical sources.
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The sea salt harvesting is a traditional livelihood in Pomorie. From 1878 when the rebuilding of the Bulgarian state started to 1951, when the salt-works became state property, two of the main tasks of the state and local regulations were the protection of the salt-works and the city from the strong sea storms and the improvement of salt production. In 1936 a situation was reached, which satisfied all participants in this economic activity. The established Pomorie Salt-Works Fund was a successful form of organization which was proven by the results achieved. It combined proper organization, professional management and good financing.
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The article focuses on the military themes presented in the paintings of Russian artists living in the period from the 18th until the early 20th century. Battle scenes painted by the artists highlighted the heroism of the Tsar’s soldiers participating in numerous wars and conflicts pursued by Russia at that time both on land and at sea; these paintings also celebrated the rulers, who expanded the borders of their country. However, the key message of these paintings, which were ordered most frequently by Russian rulers, focused on the aspect of propaganda, because these works were supposed to demonstrate in full the power of the Russian Empire.
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“The Gypsies are our own, domestic problem” is a phrase attributed to the long-term former head of the old communist Bulgarian government, Todor Zhivkov. The government policy towards the Gypsy minority in communist Bulgaria is one of inclusion to the Bulgarian way of life, and its implementation is carefully tailored to the specificities of Bulgaria as a country. It is a little known fact that towards the end of the 40s, the Bulgarian Gypsies suddenly turn from a ‘domestic problem’ to something much larger and thus become part of the great confrontation between the two world political camps divided by the Iron Curtain. This takes place during the migration of the ethnic Turks which starts in 1948, and during which, applications for emigration are filed by both Bulgarian Turks and Muslim Bulgarian Gypsies. This latter ethnic minority becomes the cause for serious conflict between ‘communist Bulgaria’ and ‘capitalist Turkey’. This paper aims at following the events from the end of the 1940s to the end of the 1980s, as well as at analysing the consequences of the confrontation between the two neighbouring Balkan countries.
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The article presents the views of Bulgarian economists about Bulgariaʼs place in the imagined world order and the international market after the Great War, formed before the national collapse. In parti-cular, it examines the opinions of the employees of a very specific structure at the Headquarters of the Acting Army – the Economic Research Section. They presented geo-economic reasons for establishing Bulgaria as a regional factor in Southeastern Europe, which they thought would save the country. The leading idea was that if this goal was not achieved, the Bulgarian national economy would simply not be “large enough, and therefore sustainable, to overcome the storms that the economic war of the future peace bears”. The Neuilly treaty, “legalizing” the Bulgarian national catastrophe with the “right” of power, proved in the long run the validity of this judgment.
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Bogdan Filov (1883–1945) was a Bulgarian archeologist and politician, who studied in Freiburg, Germany. In 1914 he became professor in Sofia, in 1929 – member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. In the years 1938–1940 he was Minister of Education, from 1940 till 1943 he was Prime Minister of Bulgaria. After the unexpected death of king Boris III Filov became one of the three members of the Bulgarian regency instead of Boris´ minor son Simeon. Because of the coalition with Germany during World War II Filov was overthrown in September 1944 after the invasion of Soviet troops and executed by a Popular Court of justice. The scientific researches of Bogdan Filiov in the fields of Bulgarian archeology and history of art were acknowledged not only in Bulgaria, but also in Germany by his election as a foreign member of the academies in Berlin, Göttingen and Munich.
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At the beginning of the 20th century, substantial economic problems accumulating in Russian society brought the country to profound political transformations. Industrialization began at the turn of the century and required substantial financial resources from expanded grain exports, an important export for foreign markets. However, low labor productivity in the Russian agricultural sector, along with unsuccessful reforms and a drastically diminished rural population due to urban migration, temporary harvest failures, and high taxes, squeezed the life of agrarians. Consequently, the food supply in the national economy and foreign markets encountered a harsh challenge. Despite the urgent need to modernize agricultural production, the main aim of Russian industrialization embraced coal production, metallurgy, and transportation, especially railroad construction. Significant dependence on foreign supplies of equipment and tools reduced the rate of Russian economic independence and became one main constraint on economic modernization. Another problem was substantial state financial support for developing industrial and transportation systems, with the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railroad as one of the most financially consuming, contributing to the state budget deficit and corruption. The First World War revealed substantial economic distortions, especially enormous dependence on foreign aid and low productivity. Rapidly spreading economic chaos brought the country to profound political transformations.
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The article examines the stages through which the flour-milling industry passed between the late 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century. Several factors contributed to the upward trend in the milling – the increase in cereal yields, the construction of a railway network and the establishment of new banks. The article details are considered laws encouragement of the Bulgarian industry (1894, 1905) and their application in the milling. It is proved that they contributed to the introduction of new technologies, accelerated the industrialization of the country and expanded the marketability of the economy.
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The article is dedicated to an episode of the cultural relations between Bulgaria and Poland immediately after the First World War. This was the time when their political and ruling elites realized that the two Slavic states would not receive the diplomatic support of the great powers and their neighbors to realize their national ideals. That was why they united around the concept of informal - scientific, personal and collective – contacts as a way to get to know each other and draw closer. This idea was carried out through the exchange of two delegations. On September 5, 1923, a Bulgarian cultural and educational group left Sofia for Poland. Among its members was Dr. Boris Vazov – chairman of „Slavyanska Beseda“, a prestigious journalist and public figure who was committed to sending daily articles covering the trip. In them he dwells on important events in Polish history, life, culture, economy and psychology of the Polish people, shares impressions of the patriotic feelings of Poles and their respect for the heroes who played an important role in national preservation.
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The most influential Protestant society which operated in the Ottoman Empire was the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Its mission station in Monastir (Bitola) was active from 1873 to 1920. There were several aspects of the Protestant activities in the town: evangelistic, educational, literary, medical and relief work. The mission was oriented predominantly towards the Bulgarian population. In addition, the Americans attempted to widen their missionary field, the Albanians being the most responsive. The greatest achievements of the Protestant Mission in Bitola were the establishment of the American Girls’ Boarding School and the Bulgarian Evangelical Church.
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