The Turks under Bulgarian administrations 1909-1989

For centuries, Bulgarians living under the Ottoman rule had identified themselves as "Greek". However, after the French Revolution, Bulgarians were affected by the nationalist movements and they took action to build their own nation-state. First step for this was to separate themselves from Fener Greek Patriarchate and establish an independent religious authority instead. To this end, at the beginning of the 19th century, under the leadership of Father Paissy, Bulgarian national awakening movement called "Renaissance" began and along with a series of economic and cultural developments, Bulgarian revolutionaries were trained. Following the separation from Fener Greek Patriarchate, through uprisings and military operations supported by the Tsarist Russia, Bulgarians gained independence from Ottoman Empire in 1908. After the independence of Bulgaria, although their basic rights were preserved under the treaties, a large number of Turkish population living in Bulgaria either killed or forced to migrate and the Turks were turned into a minority and subjected to assimilation policies. From its foundation until 1989, opposing persons and groups were seen as enemies by the Bulgarian authorities. This led to the establishment of many concentration camps in the country. Of these concentrations camps, Belene Concentration Camp deserves special attention due to its role in assimilation policies against Turkish minority. This study deals with policies of Bulgarian governments against Turkish minority starting from Bulgarian national awakening.