The

1940s File:1940s decade montage.png, Above title bar: events during World War II (1939–1945): From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching Omaha Beach on Normandy landings, D-Day; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of ...

in the

Kingdom of Bulgaria The Tsardom of Bulgaria (), also known as the Third Bulgarian Tsardom (), usually known in English as the Kingdom of Bulgaria, or simply Bulgaria, was a constitutional monarchy in Southeastern Europe, which was established on , when the Bulgaria ...

(until 1946) and the

People's Republic of Bulgaria The People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB; , NRB; ) was the official name of Bulgaria when it was a socialist republic from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP; ) together with its coalition partner, the Bulgarian Agraria ...

(from 1946).

Incumbents

Kingdom of Bulgaria

Tsar of Bulgaria The monarchs of Bulgaria ruled Bulgaria during the medieval First Bulgarian Empire, First ( 681–1018) and Second Bulgarian Empire, Second (1185–1422) Bulgarian empires, as well as during the modern Principality of Bulgaria, Principality (1879 ...

: **

Boris III Boris III (; 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 his death in 1943. The eldest son ...

(1918–1943) ** Simeon II (1943–1946) * Regent: **

Kiril, Prince of Preslav Prince Kiril of Bulgaria, Prince of Preslav (, ; 17 November 1895 – 1 February 1945) was the second son of Ferdinand I of Bulgaria and his first wife Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma. He was a younger brother of Boris III of Bulgaria and a prince ...

(1943–1944) ** Bogdan Filov (1943–1944) **

Nikola Mihov Nikola Mihaylov Mihov (, 11 December 1891 – 1 February 1945) was a Bulgarian lieutenant general of artillery who served as one of the three Regents of Bulgaria for the underage Simeon II (1943–44). Biography left, Meeting between Nikola ...

(1943–1944) ** Todor Pavlov (1944–1946) ** Venelin Ganev (1944–1946) **

Tsvetko Boboshevski Tsvetko Petrov Boboshevski (Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: Цвятко Петров Бобошевски) was Regent of Bulgaria for the underage Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Simeon II from 1944 to 1946. The first name is also transliteration, tra ...

(1944–1946) *

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 ...

: **

Georgi Kyoseivanov Georgi Ivanov Kyoseivanov (; 19 January 1884 – 27 July 1960) was a Bulgarian politician who was Prime Minister from 1935 until 1940. Kyoseivanov came to power on 23 November 1935 after a period in which the country had had three Prime Minister ...

(1935–1940) ** Bogdan Filiov (1940–1943) ** Petar Gabrovski (acting, 1943) **

Dobri Bozhilov Dobri Bozhilov Khadzhiyanakev () (June 13, 1884 – February 1, 1945) was Prime Minister of Bulgaria during World War II. Biography Born in Kotel, Bulgaria, Bozhilov attended the Higher Commercial School in Svishtov before starting work as a ...

(1943–1944) **

Ivan Bagrianov Ivan Ivanov Bagryanov (; 17 October 1891 – 1 February 1945) was a leading Bulgarian politician who briefly served as Prime Minister during the Second World War. Biography After a career as a diplomat, he was chosen by the Council of Regents, who ...

(1944) **

Konstantin Muraviev 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 near the end of Bulgaria's involvement in the Second World War on the side of ...

(1944) **

Kimon Georgiev Kimon Georgiev Stoyanov (; August 11, 1882 – September 28, 1969) was a Bulgarian general who was the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bulgaria from 1934 to 1935 and again from 1944 to 1946. He was considered a "master in the art of coup d'etats. ...

(1944–1946)

People's Republic of Bulgaria

General Secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED Onlin ...

: **

Georgi Dimitrov Georgi Dimitrov Mihaylov (; ) also known as Georgiy Mihaylovich Dimitrov (; 18 June 1882 – 2 July 1949), was a Bulgarian communist politician who served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party from 1933 t ...

(1948–1949) **

Valko Chervenkov Valko Velyov Chervenkov ...

(1949–1954) * Chairman of the Provisional Presidency:

Vasil Kolarov Vasil Petrov Kolarov (; 16 July 1877 – 23 January 1950) was a Bulgarian communist political leader and leading functionary in the Communist International (Comintern). Biography Early years Kolarov was born in Şumnu, Ottoman Empire (now Shum ...

(1946–1947) * Chairman of the Presidium:

Mincho Neychev Mincho Kolev Neychev (Bulgarian: Минчо Колев Нейчев) (4 April 1887 – 11 August 1956) was a Bulgarian Communist political figure. He was born in Stara Zagora, and served as the Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assem ...

(1947–1950) * Prime Minister of Bulgaria: ** Kimon Georgiev (1946) ** Georgi Dimitrov (1946–1949) ** Vasil Kolarov (1949–1950)

Events

1940

* 7 September – Bulgaria regained control of

Southern Dobruja Southern Dobruja or South Dobruja ( or simply , ; or , ), also the Quadrilateral (), is an area of north-eastern Bulgaria comprising Dobrich and Silistra provinces, part of the historical region of Dobruja. It has an area of 7,412 square km an ...

under the

Treaty of Craiova The Treaty of Craiova (; ) was signed on 7 September 1940 and ratified on 13 September 1940 by the Kingdom of Bulgaria and the Kingdom of Romania. Under its terms, Romania had to allow Bulgaria to retake Southern Dobruja, which Romania had gained ...

. * 14 December – Shipwreck of the Salvador, a ship carrying Jewish refugees to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, in the

Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

. 230 of the 326 passengers died in the wreck. * 24 December – The '' Law for the Protection of the Nation'', an anti-Jewish racial law which included banning Jews from having Bulgarian citizenship, was ratified.

1941

* March 1 – Bulgaria joined the

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

1942

* June 5 – The United States declared war on

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 ...

following the latter's joined of the

bloc the previous year.

1943

* December 10 – The allies conduct bombing raids over

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

1944

* August 26 –

officially withdraws from

World War II 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 ...

. * September 8 - Soviet forces cross the border. They occupy the north-eastern part of Bulgaria along with the key port cities of

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city ** Varna Province ** Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna ** Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis * Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy * Varna (Šabac), a village in Serbia Asia * Var ...

and

Burgas Burgas (, ), sometimes transliterated as Bourgas, is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, fourth-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, an ...

by the next day. By order of the government, the Bulgarian Army offers no resistance.

1945

* 18 November –

Parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

were held in

Dieter Nohlen Dieter Nohlen (born 6 November 1939) is a German academic and political scientist. He currently holds the position of Emeritus Professor of Political Science in the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Heidelberg. An ex ...

& Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', pp368-369 * 21 July – The University of Ruse was founded.

1946

* 8 September – A referendum was held in

on whether to become a republic. The result were unanimously in favour of the change, with 95.6% supporting and with 91.7% voter turnout. * 31 December – The 1946 Bulgarian census.

1947

* Bulgaria's second constitution, the

Dimitrov Constitution The Dimitrov Constitution was the second Constitution of Bulgaria, in effect from 1947 to 1971.Konstantinov, EmilConstitutional Foundation of Bulgaria (Historical Parallels). Rigas Network, 2002. It formed the legal basis for Communist rule in ...

, came into effect. It was later replaced by the Zhivkov Constitution in 1971.

1948

* 6 January –

Balkantourist Balkantourist () is the oldest existing Bulgarian tour operator, established on 6 January 1948 as a state-owned government monopoly in what was then the People's Republic of Bulgaria. Privatised in 1995, it has continued to exist in the post-19 ...

(the oldest still running

tour operator A tour operator is a business that typically combines and organizes lodging, accommodations, meals, sightseeing and transportation components, in order to create a package tour. They advertise and produce brochures to promote their products, holi ...

) is established.

1949

* 18 December –

were held in

& Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p368

Births

* 1940 ** 2 July – Georgi Ivan Ivanov, first Bulgarian in space. ** 8 December – Alexander Yossifov, composer and conductor.

Deaths

* 1940 ** 23 March – Dimitar Stanchov, 15th

(b. 1863) ** 10 September –

Nikola Ivanov Nikola Ivanov Ivanov () (2 March 1861, Kalofer – 10 September 1940, Sofia) was a Bulgarian general and a minister of defence of the Principality of Bulgaria. One of the first graduate of the General Staff Military Academy of St Petersbu ...

, Bulgarian general (b. 1861) ** 23 December – Mariyka Popova, actress (b. 1866).

References

{{Years in Bulgaria

Years of the 20th century in Bulgaria

Incumbents

Kingdom of Bulgaria

People's Republic of Bulgaria

Events

1940

1941

1942

1943

1944

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

Births

Deaths

See also

References