site.btaBelogradchik Uprising Was Bloody Lesson in Strategic, Political Maturity of Bulgarian Revivalists, Says President

President Rumen Radev attended a ceremony on Thursday marking the 175th anniversary of the uprising against Ottoman rule in Northwestern Bulgaria, held in the town of Belogradchik. In his speech, Radev described the Belogradchik Uprising as a bloody lesson in the strategic and political maturity of the Bulgarian National Revival leaders. “It teaches us to believe in ourselves and to fight for our freedom. To realize that freedom requires sacrifice. Today, more than ever, we understand the essence and power of their lesson,” the head of State noted.

“In this revolt against injustice, thousands of honourable men took up arms and raised demands for justice and autonomous Bulgarian self-governance. Even today, we see that time is powerless to erase the memory of the bravery of the thousands of Bulgarians from Vidin, Belogradchik, Lom, and Kula who dared, with clubs and axes, to stand against the sultan’s soldiers,” the President said, emphasizing that the ten-day siege of the Belogradchik Fortress remains a true symbol of their courage, dignity, and self-sacrifice.

“With the determination of the doomed, the rebels of 1850 managed to draw the attention of Europe to the historical and fundamental right of our people to be masters of their own destiny. With their blood, the people of Northwestern Bulgaria prevented self-serving foreign forces from hijacking the liberation movement and annexing this part of the country,” Radev further said.