Bulgarian
MILITARY HISTORICAL COLLECTION
Voennoistoricheski sbornik
2004/1
Contents
The defence of Doyran
Dimiter Zafirov
The article draws in details on the establishment and the condition of the position at Doyran during the 1915-1918 First World War as well as on the battles for its capturing. The author concludes that despite the courage of the Bulgarian defenders, ‘the defence actions were noted for the skills of arranging and carrying out the fights at night, the effective use of fire, close cooperation, strong and continuous management’. Except being a valuable example for ‘developing the Bulgarian defence tactics’, these operations are a ‘source of national pride’.
A visit at the British Legion
Memories of Lieutenant General Vladimir Vazov
Aglika Petrova
The memoir of Gen. Vazov is related with his visit in Great Britain in 1936 when the British veterans paid deserved tribute to their enemies – the Bulgarian soldiers who fought against them during the First World War. A short author’s article on the life and activities of Gen. Vazov accompanies the memoir.
The graves of Doyran defenders
Ivo Antonov
The article clarifies in details the condition of Bulgarian war cemetery by Doyran Lake from the First World War. It is concluded that unlike the other foreign cemeteries in the Doyran region, which are kept in perfect condition, the graves of the Bulgarian soldiers, with some exceptions, suffer a poor fate.
Swearing allegiance in Bulgarian Army
Todor Petrov
The author directs his attention to the most important and solemn ritual in Bulgarian Army – the military oath. All text versions of the oath are investigated since the restoration of the Bulgarian state in 1878 until nowadays. The ritual related to swearing allegiance in the different periods of the existence of the Third Bulgarian state are separately examined.
The oath in Bulgarian traditional culture
Ivanka Petrova
The article presents a detailed look on the oaths and their importance as a part of our folklore treasury of customs and speech. The author argues that the oaths present the people’s views on the fate and the world and its reliance on magic. They serve as a valuable source for ‘a scrutinized penetration in the soul and customs of traditional Bulgarians’.
About the flags
Ivan ivanov
The author who is the most popular Bulgarian researcher in the field of flag science focuses his attention on the birth and development of the flags in human history. The various symbols on the colours as well as the kinds of flags in the different stages of human history are examined – horse tails, labarum, banners, standards, etc.
Military Archiv
Stefan Stambolov – a volunteer in the Serbian- Bulgarian War of 1885
Ivan Koev
The article draws on two documents of Stefan Stambolov of 1885, kept in the Central Military Archives, Veliko Turnovo. They include an application for enrollment in the Bulgarian Army and Order No. 1 of Lieutenant Colonel Danail Nikolev, Head of the Western Corps. The documents illustrate the acceptance of Stefan Stambolov for service and his participation as a volunteer in 1885 Serbian-Bulgarian War.
Establishment of the Bulgarian Military Veterinarian Service 1879–1899
Katia Brankova
The article presents the first steps of establishing a veterinarian service at the Bulgarian Army. The basic regulatory documents are examined for foundation and development of a military veterinarian service, as well as its structure and activities, and all of it heads during the period.
Military historical vocabulary
Grenadiers
Snezhana Radoeva
The author clarifies the term ‘grenadiers’ as an infantry formation with special tasks and examines its forming and use in the European countries. Emphasis is laid on the participation of grenadiers in the 1877-1878 Russian-Turkish War as an example of notable behaviour and actions of that type of infantry in combat operations in Bulgarian military history.
Bulgarian Military Museums
The National Military Historical Museum –
a dignified 88-year history
Sonia Dimitrova
Born as an expression of gratitude to Russia and the Russian Army for the liberation of Bulgaria, the activities of developing a museum of military history firstly took the form of keeping and preserving monuments, museum houses, mausoleums and common graves of 1877-1878 Russian-Turkish War period. The idea of establishing a specialised institution evolved in the eve of the First World War but was implemented during its course – in 1916 when a Military Museum was founded in the building of the Military College in Sofia. War trophies were the first exhibits but gradually funds and expositions were formed and accumulated.
1944: The beginning of the end of the 3rd Reich
Roumen Nikolov
Having captured the strategic initiative and established supremacy in resources, in 1944 the Allies undertook active offensive actions in all directions. The formation of a western front with the Overlord Operation and the two powerful offensive operations of the Soviet Army to the east – the Byelorussian and the Yash-Kishinev – made the German forces withdraw to the boundaries of the Reich. The Japanese strategic defence lost its last fortress – the Philippines. The flame of war in Europe and Asia caught back the countries that have unleashed it.
Combat operations of the Bulgarian Air Forces
in the Second World War
Dimiter Nedialkov
The 1940 law on armed forces made the air forces in Bulgaria a separate army type. The country afforded 595 airplanes out of which 258 combat ones and the staff exceeded 10 000 people. The functions of Bulgarian aviation were at first limited to reconnaissance, patrol and guard operations. The airforces and the air defence first tasted the gunpowder in late 1943 and early 1944 during the massive English-American bombardments of the country.
The Bulgarian marine patrol team
at the Ohrid Lake (1943-1944)
Atanas Panayotov
The first scientific publication on this poorly known formation of the Bulgarian army. The team afforded three vessels for guard and patrol actions in the Ohrid Lake and coast guard. It performed repair and recovery operations to salvage ships. In the early September 1944 the group staff withdrew to Bulgaria.
The famous battles in history
The birth of Europe: Adrianople 378 AD
Svetlozar Eldarov
The first article of the new series draws on a notable battle in Bulgarian lands. In 378 AD the Visigoths inflicted a stunning defeat of the Eastern Roman Empire at the walls of Adrianople (Odrin). Emperor Valent and two thirds of his elite troops found their death in the battle. The political effects of the battle however stretch far than its military consequences. The Visigoths thus made a significant step to a public and political consolidation round the king’s rule and started conquering Europe from the Bulgarian lands.
The Soviet Union and the 1968 events
in Czechoslovakia
Valerii Vartanov
The democratization process in Czechoslovakia in the 60-ies of the 20th c., which introduced the ‘communist with a human face’ alternative, not only threatened the unity of the Eastern Bloc but shook the foundations of the official communist ideology. The Soviet Union couldn’t remain inactive and undertook a military intervention. The article of Prof. Vartanov, 1st Rank Captain, former deputy head of the Institute of Military History in Moscow and member of the Russian Academy of Natural Science provides a detailed and unbiased story on the preparation and the implementation of the operations of the Warsaw Pact troops in Czechoslovakia in 1968.
Bulgarian military participation in
the 1968 events in Czechoslovakia
Georgi Loukov
Being regarded as the 16th Soviet republic, Bulgaria has a modest contribution to the suppression of the so-called Prague spring in 1968. Being a Warsaw pact member country, Bulgaria participated in the invasion with 12th and 22nd motorized regiments comprising of 2 177-member personnel and 26 T-34 tanks.
Unique articles from the National Military Historical Museum
Greek Corynthian helmet of 7th- 6th c. BC
Daniela Tsankova-Gancheva
Field marshal’s warders and epaulettes
for Tsar Boris III
Daniela Tsankova-Gancheva