Bulgaria - WORLD GUIDE - Blogcu
16.5 Guide-books 17 External links. [edit] Geography Main article: Geography of Bulgaria Geographically and in terms of climate, Bulgaria features notable ...
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Bulgaria - WORLD GUIDE - Blogcu Bulgarians, in common with citizens of other European Union member-states, also use the .eu domain. Black Sea defines the extent of the country to the east.Bulgaria comprises the classical regions of Thrace, Moesia, and Macedonia. Second Bulgarian Empire (1185 - 1396/1422), the country came under Ottoman rule for five centuries. Bulgaria as a constitutional monarchy in 1878, with the Treaty of San Stefano marking the birth of the Third Bulgarian Kingdom. Bulgaria became a communist state and part of the Eastern Bloc.Currently, Bulgaria ********s as a parliamentary democracy under a unitary constitutional republic. mountainous southwest of the country has two alpine ranges — Rila and Pirin — and further east stand the lower but more extensive Rhodope Mountains. mountains runs west-east through the middle of the country, north of the famous Rose Valley. Black Sea coast in the east, and along Bulgaria's main river, the Danube in the north. several large lakes on the Black Sea coast and more than 2,200 dam lakes. mountains.Bulgaria has a temperate climate, with cool and damp winters, very hot and dry summers, and Mediterranean influence along the Black Sea coast. Mountains influences climate throughout the country: northern Bulgaria gets slightly cooler and receives more rain than the southern regions. Bulgaria averages about 630 millimetres per year. mountains Rila and Stara Planina receive the highest levels of precipitation. Bulgaria often exceed 40 degrees Celsius, but remain cooler by the coast. Plovdiv.The country possesses relatively rich mineral-resources, including vast reserves of lignite and anthracite coal; non-ferrous ores such as copper, lead, zinc and gold. easefire allowed the Thracians to keep all their privileges and religious freedoms in exchange for accepting Roman administration. BulgariaIn 632 the Bulgars, led by Khan Kubrat, formed an independent state called Great Bulgaria, bounded by the Danube delta to the west, the Black Sea to the south, the Caucasus to the southeast, and the Volga River to the east. Bulgaria in the second half of the seventh century. Bulgarian language, fostered the intellectual written language (lingua franca) for Eastern Europe, known as Church Slavonic. Serbian rebellions sponsored by Byzantine gold, and by disastrous Magyar and Pecheneg invasions,[17]) Bulgaria collapsed in the face of an assault of the Rus' in 969-971.[18]The Byzantines then began campaigns to conquer Bulgaria. seized the capital Preslav and captured Emperor Boris II.[19] Resistance continued under Tsar Samuil in the western Bulgarian lands for nearly half a century. Skylitzes, ChronicleIn the first decade after the establishment of Byzantine rule, no evidence remains of any major attempt at resistance or any uprising of the Bulgarian population or nobility. Bulgarian nobility in order to gain their obedience. place, Basil II guaranteed the indivisibility of Bulgaria in its former geographic borders and did not abolish officially the local rule of the Bulgarian nobility that now became part of Byzantine aristocracy as archons or strategs. posed a constant threat to Byzantine Bulgaria. hese too were crushed at Levounion and again in c. ease their influence beyond the Danube river; John Comnenus' campaigns along the Danube eventually drove back the Hungarians as well by c.1140. based in Veliko Turnovo and under the Asen dynasty, this empire fought for dominance in the region against the Byzantine Empire, the Crusader states and Hungary, reaching its zenith under Ivan Asen II (1218–1241). Bulgaria regained its strength, but by the end of the fourteenth century the country had disintegrated into several feudal principalities, which the Ottoman Empire eventually conquered. Varna.During the 13th and 14th centuries Bulgarian culture flourished. Bulgaria's fall under Turkish rule ushered in the grimmest period in the history of the Bulgarian people, a period of almost 500 years of foreign domination. Bulgarians as a nationality was threatened as a result of their extermination, eviction and assimilation and the brutal oppression and exploitation to which they were subjected by the Turkish conquerors. severed the Bulgarians' contacts with all other nations and put an end to their free cultural development. towns and villages and eviction of the population. towns and villages were reduced to ruins and the land was turned into a desert. seek refuge in the mountains and in remote areas far away from any roads and communications. pose of this imagined past was to mobilize Bulgarians against Ottoman rule and to promote a Bulgarian nation state. second-class status in Ottoman society, those precepts and traditions offered them a certain measure of religious toleration, administrative autonomy, and economic well-being that was exceptional for non-aristocratic society in the rest of Europe. cuse the excess it perhaps goes some way to explain it. lised and random, the result usually of a peculiar combination of personal, political, social or economic factors. orsening in the overall situation of the Ottomans’ non-Muslim subjects that continued through the 18th century. Bulgarian principality comprising Moesia and the region of Sofia. Bulgarian army, but a conflict over the division of Macedonia arose amongst the victorious allies. Second Balkan War (1913) pitted Bulgaria against Greece and Serbia, joined by Romania and Turkey. osses (the Western Outlands to Serbia, Western Thrace to Greece and the re-conquered Southern Dobrudzha to Romania). Bulgarian refugees from Macedonia, Eastern and Western Thrace and Southern Dobrudzha. hese numbers increased in the 1930s following Serbia's state-sponsored
aggression against its native Bulgarian population.[citation needed][edit] The interwar years Ferdinand proclaimed himself Tsar of Bulgaria in 1908. September 1918 Tsar Ferdinand abdicated in favour of his son Boris III in order to head off revolutionary tendencies. Bulgaria ceded its Aegean coastline to Greece, recognized the existence of Yugoslavia, ceded nearly all of its Macedonian territory to that new state, and had to give Dobrudzha back to the Romanians. Bulgarians generally refer to the results of the treaty as the "Second National Catastrophe".Elections in March 1920 gave the Agrarians a large majority, and Aleksandar Stamboliyski formed Bulgaria's first peasant government. asses, the landlords and the officers of the army remained powerful. iyski signed an agreement with the Kingdom of Yugoslavia recognising the new border and agreeing to suppress Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (VMRO), which favoured a war to regain Macedonia for Bulgaria. [[Bulgarian coup d'état of 1923| coup d'état of 9 June 1923]] eventually resulted in Stamboliykski's assassination. nised Agrarians won elections in 1931 under the name Popular Bloc.In May 1934 another coup took place, removing the Popular Bloc from power and establishing an authoritarian military régime headed by Kimon Georgiev. Bulgaria to occupy parts of Greece and of Yugoslavia, including territories long coveted by the Bulgarians. Bulgarian authorities did send Jews in territories newly-acquired from Greece and Yugoslavia to death-camps at Germany's request. September 1944 the Soviet army entered Bulgaria, eventually enabling the Bulgarian Communists to seize power and to establish a Communist state. Bulgaria's forces were turned against its former German ally (a 450,000 strong army in 1944, reduced to 130,000 in 1945). Bulgarian soldiers and officers died in the war.[edit] The People's Republic of BulgariaAfter World War II Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. Bulgaria from 1943 to 1946), won a narrow victory in democratic elections. seats in Parliament and overturned the two pre-existing political parties. seek a coalition.Since 1989 Bulgaria has held multi-party elections and privatized its economy, but economic difficulties and a tide of corruption have led over 800,000 Bulgarians, most of them qualified professionals, to emigrate. Bulgaria The Largo, the home of the Presidency and of the Council of Ministers The Parliament BuildingBulgaria joined NATO on March 29, 2004 and signed the European Union Treaty of Accession on 25 April 2005. serves as the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Sergey Stanishev as Prime Minister has chaired the Council of Ministers, the principal body of the executive branch, which presently consists of 20 ministers. selection and dismissal of the Prime Minister and other ministers, declaration of war, deployment of troops outside of Bulgaria, and ratification of international treaties and agreements.The most recent elections took place in June 2005. place in summer 2009.The Bulgarian judicial system consists of regional, district and appeal courts, as well as a Supreme Court of Cassation. Bulgaria has a Supreme Administrative Court and a system of military courts. rosecutor General, from among its members; the President of the Republic then appoints those elected. serve for a nine-year term.The territory of the Republic of Bulgaria subdivides into provinces and municipalities. Bulgaria has 28 provinces, each headed by a provincial governor appointed by the government. municipalities.[edit] MilitaryMain article: Military of Bulgaria A Bulgarian Air Force MiG-29The military of Bulgaria consists of three services: the Bulgarian Land Forces, the Bulgarian Navy and the Bulgarian Air Force. Bulgarians celebrate his feast day, 6 May nationally as Valour and Army Day. Bulgarian forces have never lost a flag.[28]Bulgaria first became a major military power in Europe under Khan Krum and Tsar Simeon I, in a series of wars with the Byzantine Empire for control of the Balkan Peninsula, in the late ninth century. use of approximately 12,000 heavy cavalry in tactics representing those of feudal knights, Simeon I's forces were able to reach as far as the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, in AD 896 . several major defeats of the Byzantines including one of the bloodiest battles in the Middle Ages at Anchialus in AD 917 . Asen dynasty, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Bulgaria became the first European country to defeat the Crusader knights. Bulgaria has been a small European country, frequently included in plans and wars of the Great Powers. Bulgarian forces introduced aviation bombardment, in the siege of Odrin. series of reductions beginning in 1989, the active troops of Bulgaria's army number as many as 68,450, today. Reserve forces include 303,000 soldiers and officers. Bulgaria's armed forces, aims to better meet the military needs of NATO and the European Union.Bulgarian military personnel have participated in international missions in Cambodia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. Bulgaria will completely abolish compulsory military service. rises mainly Soviet-era ships, and two submarines. Bulgaria does not regard assault by sea as a major risk. urse of recent modernization efforts, one new frigate was purchased from Belgium, and the navy is finalizing a deal with French company DCN for the acquisition of four Gowind corvettes. use a large amount of Soviet equipment. ease in the inflation rate to 12,5% for 2007. apsed due to lack of international economic support and an unstable banking system. rise by 11.9% from the previous year, and by 15.2% in 2006. services 65.9%.[edit] AgricultureAgricultural output has decreased overall since 1989 but production has grown in recent years and together with related industries like food-processing —it still plays a key role in the Bulgarian economy. started on a second plant, the Belene Nuclear Power Plant with a projected capacity of 2,000 MW. (see Energy in Bulgaria).Ferrous metallurgy has major importance. place in Kremikovtsi and Pernik, with a third metallurgical base in Debelt. Bulgaria ranks first in South Eastern Europe.About 14% of the total industrial production relates to machine-building, and 24% of the people work in this field. eased since 1989.Electronics and electric equipment-production have developed to a high degree. Sofia, Plovdiv and the surrounding area, Botevgrad, Stara Zagora, Varna, Pravets and many other cities. hese plants produce household appliances, computers, CDs, telephones, medical and scientific equipment.Many factories producing transportation equipment are currently not working at full capacity. (Sofia), trolleys (Dupnitsa), buses (Botevgrad), trucks (Shumen), motorcars (automotive assembly plant in Lovech). Ruse serves as the main centre for agricultural machinery. Bulgaria (Kazanlak, Sopot, Karlovo).Foreigners seeking additional homes have recently boosted the Bulgarian property-market. d[citation needed] network of service-centers throughout the country, constantly[citation needed] growing in number and quality. Bulgarians[33] own mobile cellular phones. towns can access the Internet, and recently most villages have acquired fast connectivity and VoIP; BTK offers DSL connection in larger cities. s.Bulgaria supplied many scientific and research instruments for the Soviet space-program, and also sent two men into space: Georgi Ivanov on Soyuz 33 (1979) and Alexander Alexandrov on Soyuz TM-5 (1985). Bulgarian American inventor and scientist Peter Petroff became best known for his work in NASA. served as a major crossroads between Europe, Asia and Africa. Bulgaria's roads have a total length of 102,016 km (63,390 mi), 93,855 km (58,319 mi) of them paved and 416 km (258 mi) of them motorways. Sofia and Vidin, a link between the Struma and Trakiya motorways south of Rila Mountain, a link between Rousse and Veliko Tarnovo, and the Sofia ringroad. Plovdiv-Kapitan Andreevo railway.Air transportation has developed relatively comprehensively. Sofia, Burgas, Varna, Plovdiv, Rousse and Gorna Oryahovitsa. hose of Vidin, Pleven, Silistra, Targovishte, Stara Zagora, Kardzhali, Haskovo and Sliven. used as the importance of domestic flights declined. Varna and Burgas are by far the most important and have the largest turnover. Nesebar and Pomorie are big fishing ports. nised public transport in the cities and in many smaller towns. buses, trolleys (in about 20 cities) and trams (in Sofia). rises some 40 smaller minorities, most prominently in numbers the Russians, Armenians, Vlachs, Jews, Crimean Tatars and Karakachans. thnicity in the latest census in 2001.The ethnic separateness of the Slavic Macedonians living in Bulgaria remains a matter of debate in many circles.96.3% of the population speak Bulgarian as their mother-tongue. losely to ethnic proportions.The country has a Roma population estimated at between 200,000 and 450,000.[36]Most Bulgarians (82.6%) belong, at least nominally, to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the national Eastern Orthodox church. Bulgaria has had one of the slowest population growth-rates in the world. rised 9,009,018 people, in 2001 7,950,000 and in 2008 7,277,856. Bulgaria suffers a severe demographic crisis[citation needed]. resorts exist on the Black Sea at Sozopol, Nessebur, Golden Sands, Sunny Beach, Sveti Vlas, Albena, Saints Constantine and Helena and many others. resorts such as Bankya, Hisarya, Sandanski, Velingrad, Varshets and many others attract visitors throughout the year. ause of the quality of the resorts and prices below those found in Western Europe.Bulgaria has enjoyed a substantial growth in income from international tourism over the past decade. h-resorts attract tourists from Germany, Russia, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Bulgarian fans closely follow the top Bulgarian league, the Bulgarian "A" Professional Football Group; as well as the leagues of other European countries. Bulgaria national football team achieved its greatest success with a fourth-place finish at the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States.Dimitar Berbatov currently ranks as the most popular[citation needed] Bulgarian footballer. Bulgarians have won the European top scorers' Golden Boot award: Stoichkov and Petar Jekov. Sofia, PFC Litex Lovech, PFC Cherno More Varna and PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv. Bulgarian competitor in Artistic Gymnastics. Serafim Barzakov, Armen Nazarian, Plamen Slavov, Kiril Sirakov and Sergey Moreyko rank as world-class wrestlers. s.Bulgarians have made many significant achievements in athletics. resently, Bulgaria takes pride in its sprinters, especially Ivet Lalova and Tezdzhan Naimova.Volleyball recently experienced a big resurgence. Bulgarian national volleyball team,one of the strongest teams in Europe, currently ranks fifth in the FIVB ranklist. Bulgaria, as well as the junior world champion.Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviski have won the ISU world figure skating championships twice in a row (2006 and 2007) for ice-dance.Bulgaria also has strengths in shooting sports. ovska won the Olympic gold in biathlon in the 1998 Winter Olympic games.Petar Stoychev set a new swimming world record for crossing the English Channel in 2007.The country has strong traditions in amateur boxing and in martial-arts competitions. Bulgarian Orthodox Church has had autocephalous status since 927. Bulgarian Patriarchate in Sofia in the 1950s after the promulgation of the Bulgarian Exarchate in 1870. Bulgarian Orthodox Church, as the independent national church of Bulgaria (like the other national branches of Eastern Orthodoxy in their respective countries) plays a role as an inseparable element of Bulgarian national consciousness. Bulgarian statehood without breaking away from the Orthodox dogma. Bulgarian Orthodox Church had 6,552,000 members in Bulgaria (82.6% of the population).