site.btaBulgaria Marks 129th Anniversary of Unification of Bulgarian Principality and Eastern Rumelia

ESD 16:31:30 06-09-2014
MY1631ES.109
109 POLITICS - UNIFICATION - CELEBRATIONS

Bulgaria Marks 129th Anniversary of Unification
of Bulgarian Principality
and Eastern Rumelia


Sofia, September 6 (BTA) - National celebrations of the 129th
anniversary of the Unification of the Principality of Bulgaria
and Eastern Rumelia were held throughout Bulgaria on Saturday.

Eastern Rumelia was established on May 19, 1879 by the Berlin
Treaty as an Ottoman autonomous province (vilayet) on 35,208 sq
km of Bulgarian lands south of the Balkan Range, with Plovdiv
as its administrative centre. In a bloodless military coup,
local irredentists ousted the provincial government and reunited
the territory with the Bulgarian Principality on September 6,
1885 in defiance of the Great Powers' settlement of the Eastern
Question. The Union was eventually recognized by Turkey,
Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Great Britain, Italy and
Russia by the April 5, 1886 Convention of Top-Khane.

Metropolitan of Plovdiv Nikolay held a prayer service at the
Church of the Holy Mother of God in the city of Plovdiv
(Southern Bulgaria), which was part of Eastern Rumelia before
the Unification. "Lets remember on this day all those who worked
hard for the Unification, because they had faith - pure and
orthodox - and it gave them courage them in their feat," said
Metropolitan Nikolay.

Celebrations in Plovdiv continued throughout Saturday. President
Rosen Plevneliev is scheduled to give a speech on the occasion
of the national holiday. Caretaker Prime Minister Georgi
Bliznashki will also attend the celebrations on Saturday
evening. VI/MY