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Bulgaria Marks 135 Years of Historical April Uprising

Several Bulgarian towns and cities are marking Saturday with processions, church bells ringing and cultural events the 135th anniversary of the historical April Uprising.

The town of Koprivshtitsa, where the first shot of the uprising was fired, will be the focal point of the festivities, which are taking place during the entire weekend.

An exhibit, titled "
135 Years since the April Uprising"
is opening at 5 pm at the architectural complex known as "
Paleevi Kashti"
(Paleev Houses).

The military retreat and the fireworks are scheduled for 7 pm at the central town square "
20th of April,"
to be followed by a concert.

On Sunday, officials and citizens will lay flowers at the tomb of Koprivshtitsa native, revolutionary Todor Kableshkov, in honour of the 160th anniversary of his birth. The theatre performance titled "
First Shot"
begins at 11 am Sunday and presents scenes from the uprising.

In all towns that played key role in the revolutionary past of Bulgaria, there will be masses and events dedicated to the historical date.

Church bells will ring across the country, calling to all Bulgarians to remember the historical date of April 20, 1876 and those who fought for their freedom.

The April Uprising was an insurrection organized by Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876, whose indirect result was the establishment of Bulgaria as an independent nation in 1878.

The 1876 uprising was the last and biggest in a string of Bulgarian revolts, but spread only in parts of the Bulgarian territories.

In November 1875, activists of the Bulgarian Central Revolutionary Committee met in the Romanian town of Giurgiu and decided that the political situation was suitable for a general uprising. The uprising was scheduled for April or May 1876. The territory of the country was divided into five revolutionary districts with centres in Vratsa, Veliko Tarnovo, Sliven, Plovdiv and Sofia.

The uprising started, but the reaction of the Ottoman authorities was quick and ruthless. Detachments of regular and irregular Ottoman troops (bashi-bazouks) were mobilized and attacked the first insurgent towns as early as April 25th. By mid-May, the insurrection was completely suppressed.

At least 15 000 people were killed in the suppression of the uprising by the Ottomans. Some 80 villages and towns were burned and destroyed and 200 others were plundered.

The atrocities which accompanied the suppression of the insurrection reached its peak in the northern Rhodopes. Nearly the entire population (9 000) of the town of Batak including women and children was slaughtered, beheaded or burned alive by Ottoman irregulars who left piles of dead bodies around the town square and church.