THE BULGARIAN EXARCHATE AS A RUSSIAN PROJECT IN EUROPEAN TURKEY (FOUNDATION, DEVELOPMENT AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH UNTIL 1878)

Authors

  • Vladimir Vučković Академија за 1774-1878“ националну безбедност Београд

Keywords:

the Russian Empire, Exarchate, church, Bulgaria, European Turkey, Old Serbia, the Eastern Question

Abstract

Starting from the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca (1774) until the Treaty of Paris of 1856, Russia had the right to protect the religious rights of all Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire. Russia lost the status of the protector of Orthodox Christianity in the Ottoman Empire after the Treaty of Paris, since it was also defeated in military terms in the Crimean War (1853). This influenced the change in tactics of Russia’s approach towards East. The former idea about the unity of all Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire was abandoned. In accordance with the newly formed situation and with its own imperial interest, Russia turned towards supporting only one nation – Bulgarian. Therefore, its first step was to bring out the question of Bulgarian Church in Turkey before the European diplomatic circles. The idea was to build an organisation of Bulgarian churches as a foundation for the national liberation of Bulgarians. Since then, the fight to separate Bulgarian Church from the Ecumenical Patriarchate started. By a decree (firman) of the Sultan in 1870, the Bulgarian Exarchate was promulgated. The territory of the Exarchate included almost all medieval eparchies of the Patriarchy of Tarnovo, southeastern eparchies of the Patriarchy of Peć and some eparchies of the autocephalous Archbishopric of Ohrid. The Russian diplomacy forbade the Principality of Serbia to react; therefore, Serbian people in the Old Serbia had to be on their own. A hard and painful struggle to preserve the cultural, national and religious identities would last until the liberation of these areas from the Ottomans (first in 1878, and then in 1912).

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Vasiljević H.J. (1928): Prosvetne i političke prilike u južnim srpskim oblastima u 19. veku, Beograd: Štamparija Sv. Save.

Vučković V. (2011): Niška eparhija (kratak istorijski pregled), Niš: Sven (Niš).

Grujić S. (1897): Kako je postala Bugarska egzarhija, Beograd: Parna Radikalna štamparija.

Jovanović A. (1936): Postanak Egzarhije i Turska, Rusija i Srbija, Skoplje: ”Nemanja” (Skoplje).

Jovanović S. (1926): Vlada Milana Obrenovića, knj. 1, Beograd: Beogradski izdavačko-grafički zavod; Jugoslavija publik; Srpska književna zadruga.

Lilić B. (1994): Istorija Pirota i okoline, knj. 1, Pirot: „Hemikale”.

Matinski P. (2008): Manastir Sv. Jovana Bogoslova u Poganovu (eparhija Niška), Niš: Sven.

Milaš N. (1926): Pravoslavno crkveno pravo, Beograd: Geca Kon.

Pisma Jovana Ristića Filipu Hristiću (1870-1873), (1878-1880), Beograd 1931; Srpska kraljevska akademija, Narodna štamparija.

Stojančević V. (1996): Jugoistočna Srbija u 19. veku (1804-1878), Niš: Prosveta.

Stojančević V. (1986): Srbija i Bugarska od Sanstefanskog mira do Berlinskog kongresa, Beograd: Istorijski institut/Prosveta.

Downloads

Published

2014-12-31

How to Cite

Vučković, V. . (2014). THE BULGARIAN EXARCHATE AS A RUSSIAN PROJECT IN EUROPEAN TURKEY (FOUNDATION, DEVELOPMENT AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH UNTIL 1878). KULTURA POLISA, 11(25), 95–108. Retrieved from https://kpolisa.com/index.php/kp/article/view/1198

Issue

Section

Monographic study

Metrics