Konstantin Vladov Muraviev (; 5 March 1893 – 31 January 1965) was a leading member of the Agrarian People's Union who briefly served as

Prime Minister of Bulgaria The Prime Minister of Bulgaria () is the head of government of Bulgaria. They are oftentimes the leader of a political coalition in the Bulgarian parliament, known as the National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unica ...

near the end of

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

's involvement in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

on the side of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Muraviev was educated at

Robert College The American Robert College of Istanbul ( or ), often abbreviated as Robert or RC, is a Selective school, highly selective, Independent school, independent, mixed-sex education, co-educational, Education in Turkey#Private schools, private Second ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, just like Todor Ivanchov, Konstantin Stoilov and many other Bulgarians were at the time.

Early career

The nephew of

Aleksandar Stamboliyski Aleksandar Stoimenov Stamboliyski (; 1 March 1879 – 14 June 1923) was a Bulgarian politician who served as the List of Prime Ministers of Bulgaria, Prime Minister of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria from 1919 until 1923. Stamboliyski was a memb ...

, he was appointed Minister of War under his uncle when aged only 29, although he proved unsuccessful in the post, with his refusal to acknowledge threats of a coup a major factor in the collapse of Stamboliyski's government in 1923. He would hold several other cabinet posts in coalition governments between 1931 and 1934 and his assured performances in these role rehabilitated his political reputation.Marshall Lee Miller, ''Bulgaria During the Second World War'', Stanford University Press, 1975, p. 205

Prime minister

During the Second World War he became one of the most prominent leaders of the legal opposition within parliament. However, on 2 September 1944 Muraviev was chosen by the Regency as Prime Minister in order to appeal to the Western

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

after they had rejected the advances of his predecessor Ivan Bagryanov. Muraviev ratified the abolition of all laws against

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

s on 5 September. The cabinet included no members of either the Fatherland Front or the left wing of the Agrarian Party, making it wholly unacceptable to Moscow. Muraviev had made overtures to the Fatherland Front although he was rebuffed as by this point they felt ready to establish their own government, rather than act as junior partners. His refusal to declare war on Germany further alienated him from the Soviets, although for his part Muraviev feared that a declaration of war would offer the USSR the pretext for an occupation of Bulgaria, ostensibly as the defence of an ally.R.J. Crampton, ''A Short History of Modern Bulgaria'', Cambridge University Press, 1987, p. 133 Faced with a series of strikes he broke relations with Germany on 5 September but, on the advice of his War Minister General Ivan Marinov, did not declare war in order to allow Bulgarian troops to evacuate

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

first. The scheme failed however as the Soviet Union promptly declared war on Bulgaria and, by the time Muraviev did likewise against Germany on 8 September it was too late. After just over a week in the job, his government was overthrown by the coup of 9 September 1944 initiated by the Fatherland Front as the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

advanced into the country. Although he had made overtures to the Allies throughout his brief Premiership the Soviet Union had refused to negotiate with him and his efforts had failed. Muraviev's efforts had also been damaged by the fact that General Marinov had secretly been in contact with the Fatherland Front throughout and had been largely acting on their behalf.

Post-war

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Muraviev was not executed after the war, albeit he received a life sentence and was imprisoned until 1955. In 1956, he was re-arrested and imprisoned until 1961. Upon his release, Muraviev largely resigned himself to the new situation and in 1961 even held a series of discussions with Georgi Traykov, something for which he was condemned by his former colleagues on the right of the Agrarian Union.Kevin McDermott, Matthew Stibbe, ''De-Stalinising Eastern Europe: The Rehabilitation of Stalin's Victims after 1953'', Springer, 2015 He published a book on Bulgarian politics, ''Sаbitiya i hora'' (Събития и хора (Events and people)), in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muraviev, Konstantin Vladov 1893 births 1965 deaths People from Pazardzhik Bulgarian Agrarian National Union politicians Prime ministers of Bulgaria World War II political leaders Robert College alumni Leaders ousted by a coup Members of the National Assembly (Bulgaria) Bulgarian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment 20th-century Bulgarian politicians Heads of government who were later imprisoned Defence ministers of Bulgaria Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Bulgaria

Early career

Prime minister

Post-war

See also

References