The Republic of Bulgaria which celebrates her Liberation Day on 3rd March, is a parliamentary republic in Southeastern Europe bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south and The Black Sea on her eastern coast. A unified Bulgarian state dates back to the 7th century and the First Bulgarian Empire functioned as a cultural hub for Slavic peoples and spread over most of the Balkans.
The Ottoman Empire rules for almost 500 years when the Second Bulgarian Empire fell in 1396. The Third Bulgarian State was recognized in 1908 as a result of the Russo-Turkish war in 1877. Bulgaria allied with Germany in both World Wars and in 1946 it became a communist republic and a member of Warsaw Pact until 1989 when multi-party elections were allowed. Bulgaria transitioned to democracy and free-market capitalism was introduced.
Being a historical crossroads for various civilizations, Bulgaria holds some of the world’s ancient cultural artifacts.