Aleksandar Stamboliyski (Bulgarian: Александър Стоименов Стамболийски, variously transliterated) (March 1, 1879 – June 14, 1923) was the prime minister of Bulgaria from 1919 until 1923. Stamboliyski was a member of the Agrarian Union, an agrarian peasant movement which was not allied to the monarchy, and edited their newspaper. He opposed the country's participation in World War I and its support for the Central Powers, Amidst the war in 1914, Stamboliyski's patriotism was questioned when members of the Bulgarian parliament questioned whether he was Bulgarian or not, to which he shouted in response "I am Yugoslav!". He was court-martialed and sentenced to life in prison in 1915.
In 1918, with the defeat of Bulgaria in the war, Tsar Ferdinand abdicated in favour of his son Tsar Boris III who released Stamboliyski from prison. He joined the government in January, 1919, and was appointed prime minister on October 14 of that year. On March 20, 1920, the Agrarian Union won national elections and Stamboliyski was confirmed as prime minister.
During his term in office, Stamboliyski took the unpopular measures of complying with the terms of Bulgaria's surrender. Though popular with the peasants, this antagonized the middle class and military. Many considered him to be a virtual dictator. He was ousted in a military coup on June 9, 1923. He attempted to raise a rebellion against the new government, but was captured by the military, tortured and killed.
Born to a farmer, Aleksandar Stamboliyski spent his childhood in the Bulgarian village of Slavovitsa, the same village where he would later gather several thousand insurrectionists from the region and advance against the town of Pazardzhik. However, before this grand counter-insurgence was to transpire, Stamboliyski had to work himself up the ranks of the nation’s political scene as the leader of the Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union. Although successful in his political ambition of acquiring the highest political office of the state, the unstable political atmosphere of Bulgaria in the early inter-war years ultimately led to Stamboliyski’s demise.
Read more about Aleksandar Stamboliyski: Early Political Career, The Radomir Rebellion of 1918, Ascension To Power, Rule, The Coup D’état of 9 June 1923 and The Fall of Stamboliyski, The Town of Stamboliyski, Further Reading