President Visits Byala Cherkva on May 10 to Mark Triple Anniversary

Momchil Rusev, BTA correspondent Nikolay Venkov

President Iliana Iotova visits Byala Cherkva on May 10, 2026 (BTA Photo/Nikolay Venkov)

Sofia,

11.05.2026 08:03

(BTA)

President Iliana Iotova visited the town of Byala Cherkva, Northern Bulgaria, on Sunday to mark "three major anniversaries, the holiest of them being 150 years since the outbreak of the Bulgarian revolution in the spring of 1876 - the April Uprising, 50 years since Byala Cherkva was declared a town, and 50 years since the creation of its natural memory - the Historical Museum". "The April epic marks one of the most glorious periods in Bulgarian history with both grandeur and tragedy, marking those historical moments in which martyrdom, death and betrayal became one, but also the great and boundless love for Bulgaria, for having our own State, for having a homeland equal to all others in Europe, that homeland of which [revolutionary] Vasil Levski also spoke," she said.

The head of State added that these 50 years represent only the contemporary steps in the town’s long and glorious history. "Time remembers how Byala Cherkva was a centre of enlightenment, a stronghold of memory, and how it preserved Bulgarian traditions for generations to come," Iotova added.

"With the feat of Bacho Kiro and 101 insurgents, Byala Cherkva forever inscribed its name in the history of Bulgaria," the town’s Mayor Georgi Terziev said in his speech. “One hundred and fifty years separate us from that bloody April, which taught us how to die for freedom,” he added, recalling the night of May 10-11, 1876, when the insurgents led by Bacho Kiro left their homes to join the struggle for national liberation. Seventy-five of them were killed, and a month later Bacho Kiro was hanged in Tarnovo.

In his address, Pavlikeni Municipality Mayor Emanuel Manolov said that May 10 is a day of remembrance and gratitude, on which Byala Cherkva speaks with the voice of its history. “One hundred and fifty years ago, men set out from here fully aware of what awaited them. They could have remained on the sidelines, but instead they chose self-sacrifice in the name of freedom,” Manolov said. He stressed that Bacho Kiro ignited the spark of national self-awareness through his educational activities, because he believed that freedom is first born in the human mind.

Veliko Tarnovo Metropolitan Grigoriy recalled facts from the history of Byala Cherkva, Bacho Kiro and his associates, and spoke about the restoration of the Bulgarian Patriarchate.

The head of State and Commander-in-Chief received the guard of honour of the Vasil Levski National Military University, after which a ceremonial tattoo inspection took place. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Byala Cherkva being declared a town and the 150th anniversary of the April Uprising, the President’s Badge of Honour was awarded.

The event was part of the commemorations of the anniversary of the April Uprising, which are being held under the patronage of the President. Official guests also included a Vazrazhdane MP, the head of the Vasil Levski National Military University in Veliko Tarnovo, Brigadier General Stancho Kaykov, representatives of municipal councils, mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities, public figures, heads of State and regional structures, and directors of schools and kindergartens.

/MR/