The battle for the independent determination of Bulgaria's national interest continues to this day, with the country striving to ensure it is not subverted by external or internal factors. This comment was made by Ivo Mihaylov of "We Continue the Change" in a declaration from the parliamentary rostrum, recalling the events surrounding August 9, 1886. At that time, in contact with the Russian diplomatic mission, a group of pro-Russian officers carried out the first military coup in the Third Bulgarian State. According to the MP, the arrest of Prince Alexander Battenberg was a punishment for his "audacity to defend the Bulgarian national interest, rather than the Russian one."
The historical context of this resolve begins with the Unification of the Principality of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia, which Mihaylov defined not merely as a political or revolutionary act, but as a "defended national interest." The process began seven years after the Liberation, in 1885, when Zahari Stoyanov headed a new Bulgarian Secret Central Revolutionary Committee in Plovdiv. Its ranks included numerous Bulgarian officers and revolutionaries for whom September 6 was associated with great risk, whereas today we honor it as a national holiday.
Mihaylov pointed out that the Unification was prepared without Russia's approval, without the consent of the Great Powers, and without the permission of the Ottoman Empire. The price for this independent decision was high: Russia withdrew its officers from the Bulgarian army, including the Minister of War, in an attempt to force our country to back down. Although Great Britain was initially reserved, it quickly changed its position in favor of defending the Unification.
After the Ottoman Empire decided not to undertake military intervention, Serbia declared war on Bulgaria on November 2. In the decisive clash at Slivnitsa, the young Bulgarian captains faced off against the Serbian generals, and Prince Alexander Battenberg himself took command of the army, the MP recalled at the end of his declaration.