![Map of Bulgaria after Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine Tsaribrod region-bg](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Map_of_Bulgaria_after_Treaty_of_Neuilly-sur-Seine_Tsaribrod_region-bg.svg)
The Western (Bulgarian) Outlands () is a term used by
Bulgarians
Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe.
Etymology
Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...
to describe several regions located in southeastern
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
.
The territories in question were ceded by
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 Macedo ...
to the
Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
in 1920 as a result of the
Treaty of Neuilly
The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine (french: Traité de Neuilly-sur-Seine) required Bulgaria to cede various territories, after Bulgaria had been one of the Central Powers defeated in World War I. The treaty was signed on 27 November 1919 at Neuilly ...
, following the
First World War
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 ...
. According to the Serbian census of 2011, two towns in the Western Outlands,
Bosilegrad
Bosilegrad ( sr-cyr, Босилеград; bg, Босилеград) is a town and municipality located in the Pčinja District of southern Serbia. The municipality comprises an area of . According to 2011 census, town has a population of 2,624 i ...
and
Dimitrovgrad, are populated primarily by
Bulgarians
Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe.
Etymology
Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...
.
Internal Western Outland Revolutionary Organization
![Zapadno eho front page 10 September 1928](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Zapadno_eho_front_page_10_September_1928.jpg)
The Internal Western Outland Revolutionary Organization ( bg, Вътрешна западнопокрайска революционна организация, Vatreshna zapadnopokrayska revolyutsionna organizatsiya), IWORO, was a Bulgarian separatist organization active in the Western Outlands between 1921 and 1941 in the
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
Kingdom commonly refers to:
* A monarchy ruled by a king or queen
* Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy
Kingdom may also refer to:
Arts and media Television
* ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...
(until 1929), and then its successor, the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
.
The organization was established in 1921 on the basis of several detachments created straight after the cession of the Western Outlands to
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
in 1920. The IWORO initially concentrated on propaganda and delivery of Bulgarian literature. The period of armed conflict started in 1922 and the organisation carried out numerous assaults on the
Tzaribrod–
Belgrade railway, on bridges, Yugoslav garrisons and barracks until 1941 when the region was occupied by Bulgarian troops.
Unlike the other three Bulgarian revolutionary organizations active in the interwar period — the
Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation
The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO; bg, Вътрешна Македонска Революционна Организация (ВМРО), translit=Vatrešna Makedonska Revoljucionna Organizacija (VMRO); mk, Внатр ...
in
Macedonia, the
Internal Thracian Revolutionary Organisation
The Internal Thracian Revolutionary Organisation ( Bulgarian: Вътрешна тракийска революционна организация, ''Vatreshna trakiyska revolutsionna organizatsiya'', ITRO) was a Bulgarian revolutionary organisatio ...
in
Thrace
Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to ...
and the
Internal Dobrujan Revolutionary Organization in
Dobruja
Dobruja or Dobrudja (; bg, Добруджа, Dobrudzha or ''Dobrudža''; ro, Dobrogea, or ; tr, Dobruca) is a historical region in the Balkans that has been divided since the 19th century between the territories of Bulgaria and Romania. I ...
— IWORO did not put up the tactical slogan demanding autonomy for the region but had an open separatist agenda; it fought “for the liberation of the Western Outlands and their restoration to Bulgaria”.
Controversy
The Serbian state deems the term controversial, considering that referring to parts of a neighboring country's territory as "western outlands" can imply territorial claims, as in the example of
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
regarding
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
.
For this reason, the term has not been used by Belgrade in contacts with Sofia since 1948. It was mentioned once, in the 1947
Bled Agreement by
Josip Broz Tito and
Georgi Dimitrov. This was in the period of discussion for a Communist super-state in the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, the
Balkan Federative Republic
The Balkan Federation project was a left-wing political movement to create a country in the Balkans by combining Yugoslavia, Albania, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey.
The concept of a Balkan federation emerged in the late 19th century from ...
, which was to include
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
,
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
and
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 Macedo ...
. It foresaw the return of the Western Outlands to Bulgaria.
[Искра Баева, Евгения Калинова, Следвоенното десетилетие на българската външна политика, 1944–1955: лекционен курс, Изд-во Полис, 2003, стр. 137.] The BFR idea was abandoned with the
Informbiro
The Informbiro period was an era of Yugoslavia's history following the Tito–Stalin split in mid-1948 that lasted until the country's partial rapprochement with the Soviet Union in 1955 with the signing of the Belgrade declaration. After Wor ...
Resolution of 1948, when the
split between Tito and Stalin occurred. Despite not being used internationally (until the 1990s when it was revived), it is very widely used in internal social and political communication in Bulgaria.
See also
*
Bosilegrad
Bosilegrad ( sr-cyr, Босилеград; bg, Босилеград) is a town and municipality located in the Pčinja District of southern Serbia. The municipality comprises an area of . According to 2011 census, town has a population of 2,624 i ...
*
Dimitrovgrad
*
Bulgarians in Serbia
Bulgarians ( bg, Българи в Сърбия, sr, Бугари у Србији, Bugari u Srbiji) are a recognized national minority in Serbia. According to the 2011 census, there are 18,543 ethnic Bulgarians composing 0.3% of the population of ...
*
Bulgaria during World War I
*
Serbia in World War I
The Serbian campaign was a series of military expeditions launched in 1914 and 1915 by the Central Powers against the Kingdom of Serbia during the First World War.
The first campaign began after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 J ...
References
{{Authority control
Political history of Bulgaria
Politics of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Modern history of Serbia
Historical regions in Bulgaria
Bulgarian-speaking countries and territories