People's Republic of Bulgaria

Bulgaria, 1946–1990. Draft, not yet reviewed

The People's Republic of Bulgaria was the Bulgarian state that existed from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the Bulgarian Communist Party together with its coalition partner, the Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union. Bulgaria was a close ally and one of the most loyal satellite states of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The BCP modeled its policies after those of the Soviet Union, transforming the country over the course of a decade from an agrarian peasant society into an industrialized socialist society. In 1989, after a few years of liberal influence, political reforms were initiated and Zhivkov, who had served as head of the party since 1954, was removed from office in a BCP congress.

Seat of power: Sofia

Rulers

Vasil Kolarov

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1946–1947

He was reelected in 1946 and became provisional president of Bulgaria that year, amidst the growing domination of the communists. He remained president until the formation of the government headed by Dimitrov in December 1947, which he entered as deputy prime minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. When Dimitrov died in July 1949, Kolarov was elected to Dimitrov's old post as prime minister.

Portrait of Vasil Kolarov: The original uploader was Nk at Bulgarian Wikipedia., CC BY 2.5 bg, file

Mincho Neychev

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1947–1950

Neychev served as the Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assembly (head of state) between 1947 and 1950. He then served as foreign minister of Bulgaria from 1950 until his death on 11 August 1956, although he was removed from the Politburo in 1954.

Portrait of Mincho Neychev: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file

Georgi Damyanov

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1950–1958

He served as Defence Minister during the first stage of Bulgaria's communist regime, from 1946 to 1950. On 27 May 1950 he was elected as the Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assembly (nominal head of state of Bulgaria). During his time in office much of the power was held by the first secretaries of the party, first Vulko Chervenkov and then by Todor Zhivkov.

Dimitar Ganev

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1958–1964

Dimitar Ganev Varbanov was a Bulgarian communist politician. He became Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assembly of Bulgaria on 30 November 1958, shortly after the death of Georgi Damyanov.

Georgi Traykov

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1964–1971

Traykov became leader of the Agrarian Union in December 1947, a year after the Bulgarian Communist Party rose to power. On 23 April 1964 he became the nominal head of state and Chairman of the Presidium of the National Assembly of Bulgaria, following the death of Dimitar Ganev. He remained head of state until 7 July 1971, when the leader of the communist party, Todor Zhivkov, took that position as the Chairman of the State Council.

Portrait of Georgi Traykov: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file

Todor Zhivkov

Chairman (President) of Bulgaria, 1971–1989

Zhivkov served as the de facto leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party. From 1984 onward, tightened internal policies led to the Revival Process against Bulgarian Turks, a policy of forced assimilation which led to a large-scale expulsion of Turks and Muslims in 1989. He resigned on 10 November 1989, under pressure by senior BCP members due to his refusal to recognise problems and deal with public protests.

Portrait of Todor Zhivkov: Extracted by Fredy.00, CC BY-SA 3.0 cz, file

Culture

Culture in PRB was strictly regulated by the government, although there were some periods of liberalization.
The Buzludzha Monument was built from 1974 to 1981, by public subscription.
In July 1968, the 9th World Festival of Youth and Students took place in Sofia, attracting 20,000 people from 138 countries.
The war-time coupon system was abolished, and healthcare and education were government provided.

Picture

Buzludzha is a historical peak in the Central Balkan Mountains, Bulgaria.

Image: Kerry Ferguson, CC BY 3.0, file

Sources

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.