On September 6, Bulgarians celebrate Unification Day. This year marks the 140th anniversary of the Unification of the Principality of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia in 1885.

Unification Day is a national public holiday, achieved solely through the efforts of Bulgarian statesmen and defended during the Serbo-Bulgarian War, when the Bulgarian army heroically repelled the treacherous attack of Serbia.

After the signing of the Treaty of Berlin, the Great Powers divided the Bulgarian lands, creating the Principality of Bulgaria, a small state in the northern territories of the Ottoman Empire, and the autonomous region of Eastern Rumelia, which remained directly under the Sultan’s control. Northern Dobruja was given to Romania, Pomoravlje to Serbia, while Macedonia and almost the entire region of Thrace remained under Ottoman rule.

The rapid economic growth, hard work, and the nation’s striving for prosperity, development, and unity led to the historic act of Unification. The Bulgarian Secret Central Revolutionary Committee (BSCRC) played a significant role in organizing the unification of the two Bulgarias. Under the leadership of Zahari Stoyanov, the BSCRC actively promoted the cause through newspaper publications and public demonstrations. The ideas of unification were widely accepted both in the Principality of Bulgaria and in Eastern Rumelia, enjoying massive public support, while the euphoria and readiness for this monumental act continued to grow. | BGNES