Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

80 years since the communist coup in Bulgaria

Photo: historymuseum.org

It is 80 years, on 9 September, since the communist coup d'état which put an end to the Kingdom of Bulgaria.

On 9 September, 1944, as World War II was still raging, officers who had passed over to the so-called Fatherland Front seized the Ministry of War, the Central Post Office, the Central Railway Station and other key sites in Sofia. The cabinet ministers from the government of Konstantin Muraviev were arrested and Kimon Georgiev, who took the helm of the new government, declared, over the radio, the new government of the national committee of the Fatherland Front. Bulgaria, which had been an ally of Nazi Germany, had by that time severed relations with the Third Reich. Nevertheless, on the night of 9 September, 1944, the government was overthrown, and Bulgaria was occupied by the Soviet Union’s red army. Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence, and a wave of brutal violence and repressions ensued, with the so-called People’s Court later sentencing thousands to death, thus effectively beheading the country’s political, state, military and intellectual elite.



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

Bulgaria is among the first in the EU in new car registrations

New car sales in Bulgaria in October increased three times more than the average for the European Union , where the purchase of new cars is only 1.1%.  According to the Association of European Automobile Manufacturers, 75.9% of cars registered in..

published on 11/21/24 3:45 PM

Teachers in Bulgaria ready to go on strike, demand pay rise

77 per cent of those employed in Bulgaria's secondary education system are ready to go out on strike demanding a pay rise in the sector, according to a national survey by Podkrepa trade union. Half of those surveyed are in favour of a nation-wide..

published on 11/21/24 1:30 PM

Damage control teams in Shumen clear up fallen trees due to strong wind

The damage control and fire-fighting teams in Shumen have responded to 10 reports of damage due to the strong wind, the Regional Directorate of the Interior Ministry has announced. More often than not the reports were of fallen trees and branches in..

published on 11/21/24 11:48 AM