Bosilegrad ( sr-cyr, Босилеград; ) is a town and municipality located in the

Pčinja District The Pčinja District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia. It occupies the southernmost part of Serbia, bordering Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Sou ...

of southern Serbia. The municipality comprises an area of . According to the 2022 census, the town has a population of 2,348, while the municipality has 6,065 inhabitants. Along with Dimitrovgrad (Tsaribrod), Bosilegrad is an economic and cultural centre of Serbia's ethnic Bulgarian community.

History

Historically, Bosilegrad was part of Bulgaria. On May 15, 1917, Serbian paramilitaries (

Chetniks The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...

) under the command of Kosta Pećanac crossed the old Bulgarian border and, as part of the Toplica Uprising, captured Bosilegrad, which they then burned. Then Pećanac and his band withdrew to

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

, which was controlled by the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

. The

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

gained some territory from

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 ...

as part of the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine, following the invasion and occupation of part of the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

and subsequent Allied defeat of the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,; ; , ; were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulga ...

in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. From 1929 to 1941, it was part of

Vardar Banovina The Vardar Banovina, or Vardar Banate ( Macedonian and ; ), was a province ( banate) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1941. History It was located in the southernmost part of the country, encompassing the whole of today's North Mace ...

. The Bulgarian army occupied Bosilegrad during 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 ...

from 1941 to 1944. At the end of the Second World War, Bulgaria switched sides in the war and in October 1944 gave the occupied Western outlands back to Yugoslavia.Велизар Енчев, Югославската идея: исторически, политически и международни аспекти на доктрината за национално освобождение и държавно обединение на южните славяни, Захарий Стоянов, 2009, ISBN 9540902673, стр. 314.

Settlements

Aside from the town of Bosilegrad, the municipality consists of the following villages:

Demographics

According to the 2022 census, the municipality of Bosilegrad has 6,065 inhabitants. Only 32.28% of inhabitants live in urban areas.

Ethnic groups

The majority of municipality's population are

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

, amounting to 72.3% of total population. Other minor ethnic groups are

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

and

Roma people {{Infobox ethnic group , group = Romani people , image = , image_caption = , flag = Roma flag.svg , flag_caption = Romani flag created in 1933 and accepted at the 1971 World Romani Congress , ...

. The ethnic composition of the municipality:

Gallery

File:Bosilegrad-view.jpg, ''Town of Bosilegrad'' File:Bosilegrad1.JPG, ''Bosilegrad town street'' File:Bosilegrad5.JPG, ''Bosilegrad town hall'' File:Vasil Levski Bosilegrad.jpg, ''Unveiling of the monument of Bulgarian revolutionary

Vasil Levski Vasil Levski (, spelled in Reforms of Bulgarian orthography, old Bulgarian orthography as , ), born Vasil Ivanov Kunchev (; 18 July 1837 – 18 February 1873), was a Bulgarians, Bulgarian revolutionary who is, today, a Folk hero, national ...

'' File:Bosilegrad-school-2.jpg, ''School in Bosilegrad'' File:Serbian-Bulgarian border at Bosilegrad.jpg, ''Serbia–Bulgaria State border'' File:Bosilegrad-church-01.jpg, ''Bosilegrad Church'' File:Izvora-church-02.jpg, ''Church in Izvor, Bosilegrad'' File:Lisinsko jezero4.JPG, ''Lisinsko Lake in Bosilegrad''

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Populated places in Pčinja District Municipalities and cities of Southern and Eastern Serbia Bulgarian communities in Serbia World War I sites