Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Bulgaria celebrates freedom on 3 March

It is the 147th anniversary of the country's liberation from Ottoman rule

Photo: архив

On 3 March, Bulgaria celebrates the 147th anniversary of its liberation from five centuries of Ottoman rule. The day was declared a national holiday in 1990 by a decision of the National Assembly.

The Treaty of San Stefano, signed on 19 February 1878 (Old Style) between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, ended the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). The document provided for the creation of an autonomous tributary Principality of Bulgaria, which would pay taxes to the Sultan.

The signing of the peace treaty of San Stefano, engraving.
However, Great Britain and Austria-Hungary opposed the preliminary peace treaty, and in July of the same year the Treaty of Berlin was signed, dividing Bulgaria into five parts.
Bulgaria's Liberation was first commemorated in Veliko Tarnovo in 1879, when Exarch Antim I, then President of the Constituent National Assembly, held a memorial service in the church of Sveta Bogoroditsa in the presence of MPs and citizens. Since 1888, it has been celebrated as the day of Bulgaria's liberation from Ottoman rule.

On March 3, citizens lay wreaths and flowers at monuments in honour of the soldiers who died for Bulgaria's liberation, there is a memorial service and a prayer of gratitude, a solemn military roll call and fireworks.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Cheesefare Sunday prepares the faithful for Great Lent and repentance

Today is Cheesefare Sunday. According to Orthodox tradition, this day is observed on the eve of Great Lent, when Christians seek and give forgiveness to each other . It is also known as Sirni Zagovezni because it marks the last day before Lent, when..

published on 3/2/25 7:15 AM
Priest Lyubomir Bratoev

Priest Lyubomir Bratoev in Berlin: The first liturgies in Bulgarian were served at the embassy building

Priest Lyubomir Bratoev is a direct participant in the events of t he founding of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church community in Berlin . He came to the capital of East Germany in the late 1980s as a doctoral student. And, like a typical Orthodox Christian..

published on 2/26/25 8:15 AM

The Church of St. John of Rila – a piece of Bulgaria in London

After nearly 35 years, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church Community in London has its own church in the central part of the British capital, in close proximity to the Bulgarian Embassy. There, in the prestigious Kensington district, next to Hyde Park and..

published on 2/24/25 3:05 PM