Anarchism in Bulgaria first appeared in the 1860s, within the national movement seeking independence from the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, strongly influenced by the Russian revolutionary movement. Anarchism established itself as a distinct political movement at the end of the 19th century. It developed further in the 20th century, so much so that Bulgaria was one of the few countries in Eastern Europe where the organized anarchist movement enjoyed a real establishment throughout the country, until the seizure of power by the
Bulgarian Communist Party
The Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP; bg, Българска Комунистическа Партия (БКП), Balgarska komunisticheska partiya (BKP)) was the founding and ruling party of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from 1946 until 198 ...
. Under the
People's Republic of Bulgaria
The People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB; bg, Народна Република България (НРБ), ''Narodna Republika Balgariya, NRB'') was the official name of Bulgaria, when it was a socialist republic from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the ...
, the anarchist movement survived underground, but was the victim of severe repression. From 1989, anarchism has been freely reconstituted.
History
Although some elements of anarchist teaching can be found in the sources of medieval
Bogomilism
Bogomilism (Bulgarian and Macedonian: ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", bogumilstvo, богумилство) was a Christian neo-Gnostic or dualist sect founded in the First Bulgarian Empire by the priest Bogomil during the reign of Tsar Pete ...
, the beginning of the organized anarchist protests in Bulgaria is generally considered to be
Spiro Gulabchev's "
siromakhomilstvo" movement, inspired by
populism
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
and
Russian nihilism
The Russian nihilist movementOccasionally, ''nihilism'' will be capitalized when referring to the Russian movement though this is not ubiquitous nor does it correspond with Russian usage. was a philosophical movement, philosophical, cultural ...
.
Hristo Botev
Hristo Botev ( bg, Христо Ботев, ), born Hristo Botyov Petkov (Христо Ботьов Петков; – ), was a Bulgarian revolutionary and poet. Botev is considered by Bulgarians to be a symbolic historical figure and nationa ...
had friends among Russian anarchists, the most important of which was
Sergei Nechayev
Sergey Gennadiyevich Nechayev (russian: Серге́й Генна́диевич Неча́ев) ( – ) was a Russian communist revolutionary and prominent figure of the Russian nihilist movement, known for his single-minded pursuit of revolution ...
, and was strongly influenced by their teachings.
During the
April Uprising of 1876
The April Uprising ( bg, Априлско въстание, Aprilsko vastanie) was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876. The regular Ottoman Army and irregular bashi-bazouk units brutally su ...
,
Georgi Benkovski
Georgi Benkovski ( bg, Георги Бенковски) (1843 – 12 May 1876) was the pseudonym of Gavril Gruev Hlatev (Гаврил Груев Хлътев), a Bulgarian revolutionary and leading figure in the organization and direction of the Bu ...
led guerrillas in the capture of
Panagyurishte
Panagyurishte ( bg, Панагюрище, also transliterated ''Panagjurište'', ) is a town in Pazardzhik Province, Southern Bulgaria, situated in a small valley in the Sredna Gora mountains. It is 91 km east of Sofia, 43 km north of P ...
and ran the city as a commune, influenced by the
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871.
During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defended ...
. All
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...
were brought under
common ownership
Common ownership refers to holding the assets of an organization, enterprise or community indivisibly rather than in the names of the individual members or groups of members as common property.
Forms of common ownership exist in every economi ...
, food was handed out for free and money was abolished, while non-essential goods were distributed by a system of
labour voucher
Labour vouchers (also known as labour cheques, labour notes, labour certificates and personal credit) are a device proposed to govern demand for goods in some models of socialism and to replace some of the tasks performed by currency under capi ...
s. But the implementation of a truly
self-managed economy
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the eco ...
was halted after 10 days, when the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
re-captured the city from the Bulgarians.
In the wake of the uprising's suppression, a number of Bulgarian anarchists, including
Mile Popyordanov, took an active part in popular struggles against
Ottoman rule
Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to:
Governments and dynasties
* Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924
* Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...
and during the period of the
principality of Bulgaria
The Principality of Bulgaria ( bg, Княжество България, Knyazhestvo Balgariya) was a vassal state under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire. It was established by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878.
After the Russo-Turkish War ende ...
.
In April 1907, an anti-anarchist law was adopted, which resulted in the dissolution of legal anarchist groups, the banning of their written press and the arrest of certain militants.
The strongest period of anarchism in Bulgaria followed the end of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The need for coordination of the many groups led to the founding, in June 1919, of the
Federation of Anarchist-Communists in Bulgaria (FACB). Although it was only legal for a very short period of its existence, the organization held regular congresses, published printed publications and more.
After the
1923 Bulgarian coup d'état
The 1923 Bulgarian coup d'état, also known as the 9 June coup d'état ( bg, Деветоюнски преврат, ''Devetoyunski prevrat''), was a coup d'état in Bulgaria implemented by armed forces under General Ivan Valkov's Military Union ...
, the anarchists entered into a direct confrontation with the
authorities. They thus partook in the
September Uprising
The September Uprising ( bg, Септемврийско въстание, ''Septemvriysko vastanie'') was a 1923 communist insurgency in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP) attempted to overthrow Alexander Tsankov's new government e ...
, alongside the
Bulgarian Communist Party
The Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP; bg, Българска Комунистическа Партия (БКП), Balgarska komunisticheska partiya (BKP)) was the founding and ruling party of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from 1946 until 198 ...
and the
, forming their own anarchist fighting groups. The libertarian movement was subsequently the target of political persecution by the
new regime.
After the
1944 Bulgarian coup d'état
The 1944 Bulgarian coup d'état, also known as the 9 September coup d'état ( bg, Деветосептемврийски преврат, Devetoseptemvriyski prevrat), was the forcible change of the government of Kingdom of Bulgaria carried out ...
, the FACB could once again act legally on the political scene and began active propaganda among the population. At the beginning of 1946, the new
communist authorities began to indiscriminately persecute the anarchists, this vast repression led to the destruction of the anarchist movement organized in the country until 1989. According to State Security, the various
anarcho-communist
Anarcho-communism, also known as anarchist communism, (or, colloquially, ''ancom'' or ''ancomm'') is a political philosophy and anarchist school of thought that advocates communism. It calls for the abolition of private property but retains resp ...
,
anarcho-syndicalist
Anarcho-syndicalism is a political philosophy and anarchist school of thought that views revolutionary industrial unionism or syndicalism as a method for workers in capitalist society to gain control of an economy and thus control influence i ...
and other
libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
organizations had 2,917 members at the time of their liquidation.
In 1990, the FACB was re-established under the name
Federation of Anarchists in Bulgaria (FAB). Other anarchist or anarchist-like organizations, such as the informal AnarchoResistance group formed in 2001, have also been established.
In 2019, the
Autonomous Workers' Confederation was established, with sections in several Bulgarian cities.
See also
*
Boatmen of Thessaloniki
*
Manol Vassev
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
Анархопорталof the Federation of Anarchists in Bulgaria
Официален уебсайтof the informal AnarchoResistance Group
Автономнаof the Autonomous Workers' Confederation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulgaria, Anarchism in
Anarchism
Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessa ...
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...