While Bulgaria was one of the Axis powers during World War Two,
its overall contribution to the war effort was limited. Despite pressure from Germany to do more,
Bulgaria worked to position itself so it benefited from Hitler’s protection
without sparking conflict with the Allies, especially the Soviets.
So why did Bulgaria join the Axis at all? In this video, we break down Bulgaria’s
trajectory in World War II and discuss why it joined the Axis and how it played both sides.
Throughout the early 20th century, Bulgaria suffered a series of military defeats in
the Balkan wars, which led to the cessation of Bulgarian territory to other Balkan states. During
World War I Bulgaria aligned itself with Germany, which promised to restore Bulgaria’s lost land in
exchange for an alliance. Unfortunately this did not go as planned. Bulgaria ultimately lost even
more territory, including an Aegean Port, in the 1919 Treaty of Neuilly. It also was restricted to
an army of 20,000 men, which severely limited the nation's ability to defend itself and wage war.
Now Bulgaria’s economy was truly suffering. It had lost access to the money these lost lands
were bringing in, and it had also accrued a large debt from the war.
In the early 1920s, Alexander Stamboliyski was elected Prime Minister. Despite protests
from the Tsar, Boris III, he pushed the nation towards a more communist style of government.
But it did not last.
A series of coups during the 1920s and 1930s led to the Tsar consolidating his
power and banning Communists from participating in the elections.
By 1935, Bulgaria was operating under a royal dictatorship.
So when World War Two began, Bulgaria – still reeling from internal strife
and the effects of previous wars – decided to sit this one out.
Bulgaria relied on Germany for nearly 70% of its exports, but it didn’t want
to alienate the Western Allies or the Soviets, especially as many Bulgarians were Russophiles.
In 1940, Boris appointed Bogdan Filov as prime minister. A pro-German politician,
Filov moved Bulgaria closer to joining the Axis. Germany sweetened the deal by offering
the Southern Dobruja region, which was then held by Romania, to Bulgaria in the Treaty of Craiova.
Bulgaria sought to curry favor with Germany by passing anti-Semitic laws in early 1941,
including the Law for the Protection of the Nation, which, similar to the Nuremberg Laws,
forbade granting Bulgarian citizenship to Jewish people. Still, Boris refused to join
Axis powers, hoping to continue receiving support from Germany and the Allies.
Finally, in March 1941, after mounting pressure from the Germans as they advanced on the Balkans,
Bulgaria signed the Tripartite Pact, joining the Axis. Italy failed to invade Greece,
and Germany wanted to use Bulgaria as a base for a follow-up invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia.
In exchange, Germany agreed to cede Thrace, parts of Macedonia, and parts of Serbia to Bulgaria,
despite Bulgaria not actively participating in the invasion.
At the time of the signing, Germany was in a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union,
so the signing of the Tripartite Pact
saw little resistance from the general pro-russian population.
In the Buglarian-occupied areas of Macedonia, many of the people welcomed the Bulgarians with
open arms. Many were ethnic Bulgarians who’d faced persecution under Yugoslav-Serbian rule.
However, in Thrace and other parts Macedonia, other ethnic groups,
including the Turks and Greeks, fiercely opposed Bulgarian rule.
Having regained some of its territory,
Bulgaria now wanted to keep out of the conflict as much as possible.
To show support for the Axis, Bulgaria declared war on the US and Britain in December 1941. This
was mostly symbolic, though, as Bulgaria still refused to send troops to the front.
Additionally, Bulgaria refused to join the German invasion of the Soviet Union
in June 1941 or even declare war on the USSR. The Tsar’s official position was
that the Bulgarian Army was not well equipped or well trained for the task.
But internally, he believed such a decision would lead to civil unrest.
Within the Balkan region, though, Bulgarian troops fought against the
Partisan Communists led by Josip Broz Tito and supported by the Soviets.
However, this was more about holding onto regained territory than it was about pleasing the Germans.
A small resistance force composed of communists, socialists, and other Axis
objectors operated in Bulgaria. This mostly materialized after Operation Barbarossa,
Hitler’s invasion of the USSR, and it was severely repressed by the government.
In 1943, after Operation Barbarossa failed, these resistance groups came
together to form the Fatherland Front and further resisted the pro-German government.
Around the same time, Germany pressured Bulgaria to enact more anti-Semitic legislation,
including the deportation of the Jewish people with Bulgarian-held territory. While
many non-Bulgarian Jews were deported, and despite pressure from the Nazis,
public support forced the government to scrap plans to send Bulgarian Jews to the camps.
The resistance operating in Bulgaria, as well as the public outcry in relation to the deportation
of Jewish people, proved that support for the Axis war efforts wasn’t widely accepted.
By 1943, many thought that Boris would relinquish Bulgaria’s alliance with Germany,
as the Axis were struggling on all fronts. That never transpired. In August 1943, shortly after
once again refusing to provide Hitler with troops to fight the Red Army, Boris perished.
Because Boris’s son and heir – Simeon II – was only six years old,
a regency council was established by Filov.
The new prime minister, Dobri Bozhilov, remained publicly committed to the German alliance.
But the same year, Italy surrendered and the Allies began a bombing campaign against
several Bulgarian cities, including Sofia. As the situation in the Balkans deteriorated,
Bozhilov began negotiations with the Western Allies.
By April 1944, the Soviets began pressuring the Bulgarians to abandon the Axis.
While many – including Bozhilov – wanted to do this, Filov tried to hold off.
He hoped that an Allied landing in the Balkans would allow Bulgaria
to join the Allies without ceding any of its newly gained territory.
Eventually, the political pressure grew too great and Bozhilov resigned. This was in May 1944.
Bozhilov was replaced by Agrarian Ivan Bagryanov. To avoid a Soviet occupation,
he hoped to withdraw Bulgaria from the war before the Red Army reached Bulgaria.
He also repealed anti-Semitic legislation and negotiated the withdrawal of German
troops from parts of Bulgaria in an attempt to appear sympathetic to Western Allies.
These efforts were futile. On the 23rd of August 1944, Romania surrendered,
which brought the Red Army to the Danube river. This caused panic in the central government,
and on the 27th of August, Bagryanov declared neutrality.
However, Bagryanov attempted to maintain diplomatic ties with
Germany by aiding in their withdrawal. This angered the Fatherland Front,
which began plotting a coup against Bagryanov. Additionally, Stalin did not accept Bulgaria’s
neutrality and demanded Bulgaria declare war on Germany. Bagryanov refused.
In early September, chaos broke out.
On the 2nd, Bagryanov was replaced by Konstantin Muraviev of the Agrarian Union. Muraviev cut all
diplomatic ties with Germany on the 5th, and officially declared war on Germany on the 8th.
The same day, the Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria, and a day later,
the Red Army invaded. Bulgarian troops offered no resistance. This meant that, for a short time,
Bulgaria was at war with all four major powers: the US, Britain, Germany, and the USSR.
During the same period, the Fatherland Front staged a coup to oust Muraviev.
They replaced him with Kimon Georgiev of Zveno — a
Soviet sympathizer who immediately began organizing an armistice.
The armistice was signed with the Allies in Moscow on the 28th of October 1944.
This gave the Soviets control over Bulgaria. They later abolished the
monarchy and installed a Communist regime with Georgi Dimitrov as leader.
In the end, almost all territory gained during the war was returned;
however Southern Dobruja remained part of Bulgaria,
making it Bulgaria of the only Axis countries to gain territory during the war.
Bulgaria tried to toe the line between ally and neutral party throughout the war.
To the end of gaining territory and avoiding conflict Bulgaria succeeded,
mostly. It suffered fewer losses than many other participating nations and
regained territory like Southern Dobruja, but wasn’t able to maintain hold on Thrace
or Macedonia. By aligning with the Axis while also maintaining diplomatic relations with the
Soviets and refusing to send troops to the front, Bulgaria proved to be a very opportunistic nation.
But what do you think? Did Bulgaria successfully play all sides? Do you think it would’ve kept more
land if it had aligned with the Allies? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.