Republic Of Bulgaria is a state in south-eastern Europe, situated in the eastern part of the Balkan peninsula. The Balkan peninsula derives its name from the Balkan or Stara Planina mountain range which runs through the centre of Bulgaria and continues into eastern Serbia. Bulgaria is bordered to the east by the Black Sea, to the south by Greece and Turkey, on the west by Serbia and F.Y.R.M. and on the north by Romania with a frontier which follows the river Danube. The total length of the state border is 2245 km, including 1181 km. land frontier, 686 km. river frontier and 378 km. sea frontier. The total area is 110 910 sq. km.
The land route network has a total length of 36 720 km; the railroad network - 4300 km.
The official currency is Bulgarian Lev(BGN); the time zone - CET+1.
The population is 7 718 750 (2005 Bulgarian National Institute of Statistic). The Bulgarians living abroad(app. 800 000) are not included in this number. 83.9% of the population are ethnic Bulgarians, 9.4% - ethnic Turks and 4.7% Gipsies. The remaining 2 % consist of Armenians, Russians, Romanians, Ukrainians, Greeks and Jews. 84.8% of the population speaks Bulgarian, which is the official language. The population density is 70.3 p./sq. km.
Most of the Bulgarians are Orthodox Christians (83.9%), 12.1% are Muslim, 1.7% na Roman Catholics, 0.8% - Judaists and the rest 1.6% - Protestants and others.
Bulgaria comprises portions of the classical regions of Thrace, Moesia, and Macedonia. The southwest of the country is mountainous with two alpine ranges - Rila and Pirin and further east are the lower but more extensive Rhodope Mountains. Rila mountain includes the highest peak of the Balkan Peninsula, Mount Musala at 2925 meters (9,596 ft); the long range of the Balkan mountains runs west-east through the middle of the country, north of the famous Rose Valley. 
Hilly country and plains are found in the southeast along the Black Sea coast in the east and along Bulgaria's main river the Danube in the north. Other major rivers include the Struma and the Maritsa river in the south. The Bulgarian climate is mostly Temperate (2000 - 2400 sun hours per year) with four seasons with cold damp winters (average temperature 0°C) and hot dry summers (average temperature 23°C) ,the climate is Mediterranean along the Black Sea coast. The average annual temperature is 10.5°C
A Short History Of Bulgaria
The "Old Great Bulgaria",
as it was named by the ancient Byzantiun authors, it was founded by Khan Kubrat to the north of the Caucasus mountains in the steppe between the rivers Dnieper and Lower Volga. Between 630 and 635 A.C. Khan Kubrat managed to unite the two main Bulgar tribes of Kutrigur and Onogondur under his single rule, creating a powerful confederation which is often referred to by the Medieval authors as The Old Great Bulgaria and also known as Onoghuria. Some scholars assume that it also included among its subjects the defeated Avars and stretched as far west as the Pannonian plain. Its capital presumably was the ancient city of Phanagoria. Around 654 A.C. the Great Bulgaria split into three parts.
First Bulgarian Empire
The territory which we now call Bulgaria was inhabited from hoary antiquity - the Stone Age and the Copper Stone Age. During the Bronze Age it was settled by the Tracs, mentioned for the first time by Homer. Their occupation was agriculture and cattle-rising and they left a lot of evidence of a rich culture. During XI - VI Cent.B.C. the first states of the tracs were founded, which blossomed was during VII - VI Cent. B.C. During the Ist Cent. A.C. they were conquered by Rome and since V Cent.A.C. they became a part of the Eastern Roman Empire - Byzantium. Gradually during VI Cent. A.C. they melted into the newly settled slavic tribes.
After the split of the Old Great Bulgaria during the war against the Khazars, Khan Asparuh, the third son of Khan Kubrat, took back the land bordering the river of Danube. In the summer of 680 A.C. Byzantium Emperor Konstantin IV Pogonat launched a campaign against the protobulgarians. The byzantians were completely defeated resulting in a peace treaty in 681 A.C. with which the Bulgarian state received international recognition. This fact distinguishes Bulgaria as the oldest country still existing in Europe. Asparuh choose Pliska as his capital of the new country. During the governance of Khan Tervel (700-718 A.C.) Bulgaria expanded its territory and became a very important political power in the Balkans region. During the rule of Khan Krum (802 - 814), the Bulgarians from east and the Francs from the northwest together finally brought to an end the Avar Khaganate. Bulgaria became one of the three most powerful countries in Europe extending in the west to the river of Tisa and in the east to the river of Dnester (now in modern Ukraine). During the period 635 - 1018 A.C. Bulgaria developed a rich culture. Near the end of IX Cent. A.C. the brothers Cyril (Konstantin The Philosopher) and Methodius developed and popularized the slavic alphabet . Their students and followers Climent and Naum came to Bulgaria, where they were very warmly accepted. Although it is widely accepted that the Glagolitic alphabet was invented by Saints Cyril and Methodius, the origins of the early Cyrillic alphabet are still a source of much controversy. Though it is usually attributed to Saint Clement of Ohrid, disciple of Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius from Bulgarian Macedonia, the alphabet is more likely to have developed at the Preslav Literary School in north-eastern Bulgaria, where the oldest Cyrillic inscriptions have been found, dating back to the 940s. The theory is supported by the fact that the Cyrillic alphabet almost completely replaced the Glagolitic in north-eastern Bulgaria as early as the end of the tenth century, whereas the Ohrid Literary School—where Saint Clement worked—continued to use the Glagolitic until the twelfth century. With accession of Bulgaria to the European Union on January 1, 2007, Cyrillic becomes the third official alphabet of the EU. Stemming from Bulgaria the slavic alphabet and writing spread out into other slavic countries e.g. Serbia and Russia. Ohrid, Pliska and later also the new Bulgarian capital Great Preslav, became centres not only of Bulgarian but also of slavic culture. Kniaz Boris converted the Bulgarians to Christianity in 864 A.C. During the rule of Tsar Simeon I (893 - 927), who created the Bulgarian Patriarchy, Bulgaria became one of the most powerful countries in Europe spreading out over the vast majority of the Balkan Peninsula. After a successful military campaign Simeon was crowned by the Byzantine patriarch as "Emperor of the Bulgars and the Romans", a title that was quickly recognized by the then Pope Formosus . The capital was moved to Preslav. During 928 A.C. the Gnostic social-religious movement of priest Bogomil was founded which brought influence to the teachings of Catharism and Albigoi in western Europe and in spite of strong measures of repression it remained strong and popular until the fall of Bulgaria in the end of 14th century. During the rule of Tsar Peter I and Tsar Boris II Bulgaria started to decline due to internal turbulences. During 971 A.C. Byzantium occupied eastern Bulgaria and the capital was consecutively moved to Sredets, Skopie, Prespa, Bitolia and eventually Ohrid. After a long struggle during 1018 A.C. Bulgaria was conquered by Byzantium after the defeat of the King Samuil's army in 1014 A.C. and the doom of King Ivan - Vladislav in 1018 A.C. Almost immediately the struggle started for the liberation from the Byzantine domination. The first uprising was lead by Peter II Deljan (1040 - 1041).
Second Bulgarian Empire (1186-1393)
In 1186 A.C. an uprising lead by the brothers Asen and Peter finally ended the domination of Byzantium. The Second Bulgarian Kingdom was founded with its capital at Tarnovo. After 1186 A.C. The first king was Asen succeeded by Peter. During XII Cent. A.C. the Bulgarian state became stronger due to the successful military campaigns of Tsar Kalojan (their youngest brother) against the crusaders and the capture of the emperor of the Latin Empire Baldwin I of Constantinople (Baldwin IX Count of Flanders and Baldwin VI Count of Hainaut). During the reign of Tsar Asen II (1218 - 1241), the Second Bulgarian Kingdom reached its zenith - enforced full political hegemony over southeast Europe, spread out its borders to the Black Sea, White Sea and Adriatic Sea, developed a rich economy and culture. In 1235 A.C. the head of the Bulgarian church received the title Patriarch. I The period 1241 - 80 A.C. Bulgaria survived invasions of the Tatars, decay during the reign of Tsar Konstantin Tih Asen and the uprising of Ivailo. During the reign of Tsar Theodor Svetoslav in XIV Cent. A.C. there was a period of consolidation, but later the ambitions of the Bolyars to disengage from the central authorities increased resulting in the separate Dobrudja Despoty. During 1371 A.C. Bulgaria was split between the heirs of Tsar Ivan Alexander - Tarnov Kingdom lead by Tsar Ivan Shishman and Vidin Kingdom lead by Ivan Sratsimir. This weakened the state and turned it to easy quarry for conquerors and in 1396 A.C. it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire. During most the next five centuries Bulgaria was under Ottoman yoke.
Ottoman Yoke (1396-1878),
The period XV - XVII Cent. A.C. was filled with sporadically and badly organized attempts to throw off the Ottoman yoke - the uprising of Konstantin and Frugin, the campaigns of Vladislav III Varnenchik and Janosh Huniadi and the people uprises - Tarnovo, Chiprovo and Karposhovo. XVIII Cent.A.C. was the century in which the Bulgarian Renaissance began in earnest, blessed with bright personalities like Paisii Hilendarski and Sofronii Vrachanski. Another uprising followed - during the war of Ottoman Empire against Russia and Austria (1768 - 74) and the Russian - Othoman war from 1768-74. During the Crimean War (1854 - 1856) the Secret Community and the Goodact Company were founded. On 3 April 1860 Ilarion Makariopolski announced the split of the Bulgarian church from the Universal Patriarchy in Istanbul , to which it had been subordinate until then. On 27 February 1870 the Sultan signed a ferman stating the foundation of the Bulgarian Exarchy and in 1872 Antim I was chosen for Exarch. 1860 - 78 is a period of organized national liberation movement - G. S. Rakovsky founded the Secret Central Bulgarian Committee, Ljuben Karavelov, Christo Botev and Vasil Levski founded the Bulgarian Revolutionary Central Committee. Bursed out the Stara Zagora (1875) and the April (1876) uprisings. The biggest one is the April uprising, leaded by Georgi Benkovsky, Panaiot Volov, Todor Kableshkov and Zahari. On 12 April 1877 the Russian - Ottoman Liberation War begun which finished on 19 January 1878 with a victory of Russia.
New Bulgarian History (1878 - )
With the treaty of San Stefano (3 .03.1878) the Bulgarian state was restored, but not to its full territory. The native Bulgarian territories were split into three parts - Kingdom Of Bulgaria lead by Kniaz Battenberg, East Romelia with a Bulgarian governor nominated by the Sultan and Thracia and Macedonia still remained under Ottoman domination. Protests about this unfair decision of the Berlin Congress, resulted in the Kresna - Razlog uprising (1878 - 1879), which in 1885 lead to the union of the Kingdom Of Bulgaria and East Romelia. The Bulgarian Kniaz Ferdinand Saxe-Coburg and Gotha proclaimed in 1908 independence from Ottoman Empire and became a King of Bulgaria. Bulgaria took part in the Balkan war (1912) together with Serbia and Greece fighting for the freedom of Thracia and Macedonia. Bulgaria won this war, but in the following war between the ex-allies they were defeated by Romania, Turkey and their allies which split territories inhabited with Bulgarians.
The intervention of Bulgaria in the Ist World War on the side of the Central Powers finished with a national catastrophe. In 1918 Tsar Ferdinand abdicated in favour of his son Boris III. The treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine (1919) put some severe clauses on Bulgaria - losing the outlet on the White Sea, West Thtacia became a part of Greece, southern Dobrudja became part of Romania and the regions of Strumitsa, Bosilegrad and Tsaribrod were given to the Serbia - Chroatia - Slovenia Kihgdom. With a Bulgarian - Romanian treaty in 1940 south Dobrudja was given back to Bulgaria.
In the beginning of the forties Bulgaria makes a policy sympathetic towards Germany and the Axis. Tsar Boris III in support of public opinion didn't agree to deport about 50 000 Bulgarian Jews to the concentration camps.
In August 1943 Tsar Boris III died and the regents of the young Tsar Simeon II formed a government . On 5 September 1944 the soviet army entered Bulgaria and on 9 September instituted the government of the Fatherland Front lead by Kimion Georgiev. In 1946 Bulgaria was proclaimed as a republic. The Bulgarian Communist Party came to power. All political parties except the members of the Fatherland Front were banned the economy and banking were nationalized, the agricultural land was forcibly united in cooperation's. The Communist heads of the state consecutively changed from Georgi Dimitrov (1946-1949), Vasil Kolarov (1949-1950), Valko Chervenkov (1950-1956), Anton Jugov (1956-1962) and Todor Givkov (1962-1989)
The 10 November 1989 is the beginning of the democratic changes in Bulgaria. A new constitution was developed, the rights of the political parties were restored, the property was restitued and a privatisation was started.
From 1 January 2007 Bulgaria is a member of EU.
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