The Union of Warriors for the Advancement of the Bulgarianness ( bg, Съюз на ратниците за напредъка на българщината, ''Sayuz na ratnitsite za napredaka na balgarshtinata''), commonly known as just the Ratniks (''Ратници, Ratnitsi'') was a

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

n nationalist organization founded in 1936. Its ideas were close to those of Germany's

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

, including

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and

paramilitarism A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

, but also loyalty to the

Bulgarian Orthodox Church The Bulgarian Orthodox Church ( bg, Българска православна църква, translit=Balgarska pravoslavna tsarkva), legally the Patriarchate of Bulgaria ( bg, Българска патриаршия, links=no, translit=Balgars ...

. The Ratniks wore red uniforms in outright competition with the communists for the hearts and minds of the Bulgarian youth, and also badges bearing the

Bogar Bogar, Bhogar, or Boganathar was a Tamil Shaivite Siddhar who lived sometime between 550 and 300 BC. He was a disciple of Kalangi Nathar. He was born in Vaigavur near Palani Hills. He received his education from his mother and his grand father ...

: a Bulgarian sun cross, which became the symbol of the organization. Despite decreeing their loyalty to the Monarchy and King

Boris III of Bulgaria Boris III ( bg, Борѝс III ; Boris Treti; 28 August 1943), originally Boris Klemens Robert Maria Pius Ludwig Stanislaus Xaver (Boris Clement Robert Mary Pius Louis Stanislaus Xavier) , was the Tsar of the Kingdom of Bulgaria from 1918 until h ...

he officially dissolved the organisation in April 1939. The ban however was not enforced and they remained in existence. It was soon after the ban that they carried out one of their more notorious acts, the so-called "Bulgarian

Kristallnacht () or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) paramilitary and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation fro ...

" when, on September 20, 1939, the Ratniks marched in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

throwing stones at the Jewish shops. Police did not intervene and some shop windows were smashed although ultimately it proved to have much less impact than the German version and was widely condemned by most politicians.

Alexander Belev Alexander Belev ( bg, Александър Белев; 1898, Lom, Bulgaria – 9 September 1944, Bulgaria) was the Bulgarian commissar of Jewish Affairs during World War II, famous for his antisemitic and strongly nationalistic views. He played ...

, a leading member of the group, later claimed that the attack had been his idea and that he had personally led the mob.Bar-Zohar, ''Beyond Hitler's Grasp'', p. 51. With the coming of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

and the

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

s into Bulgaria on September 9, 1944 which led to a coup d'etat on the same day, the Ratniks disappeared from the Bulgarian scene. Many of the leaders became members of the Bulgarian national government abroad, some of the young Ratniks become volunteers in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

, while others stayed in Bulgaria to fight against the Communists.

References

See also