Nationalism from the Left - The Bulgarian Communist Party during the Second World War and the Early Post-War Years

Nationalism from the Left

Balkan Studies Library

Editor-in-Chief

Zoran Milutinović, University College London

Editorial Board

Gordon N. Bardos, Columbia University

Alex Drace-Francis, University of Liverpool

Jasna Dragović-Soso, Goldsmiths, University of London

Christian Voss, Humboldt University, Berlin

Advisory Board

Marie-Janine Calic, University of Munich

Lenard J. Cohen, Simon Fraser University

Radmila Gorup, Columbia University

Robert M. Hayden, University of Pittsburgh

Robert Hodel, Hamburg University

Anna Krasteva, New Bulgarian University

Galin Tihanov, The University of Manchester

Maria Todorova, University of Illinois

Andrew Wachtel, Northwestern University

VOLUME 2

Nationalism from the Left

The Bulgarian Communist Party during the

Second World War and the Early Post-War Years

By

Yannis Sygkelos

LEIDEN • BOSTON

2011

On the cover: Venev, Rabotnichesko Delo #03, 20.09.1944. The beast of fascism has

been killed by the national and the red flags. Yet the national flag overshadows the

red one. The sun of the new socialist era is shining, demonstrating the date of the

communist takeover.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Sygkelos, Yannis.

Nationalism from the left : the Bulgarian Communist Party during the Second

World War and the early post-war years / by Yannis Sygkelos.

p. cm. — (Balkan studies library ; 2)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-90-04-19208-9 (hardback : acid-free paper) 1. Bulgarska

komunisticheska partiia—History. 2. Communism—Bulgaria—History—

20th century. 3. Nationalism—Bulgaria—History—20th century. 4. Bulgaria—

Politics and government—1944–1990. I. Title. II. Series.

JN9609.A8K6854581 2011

324.2499’07509044—dc22

2010048896

ISSN 1877-6272

ISBN 978 9004 19208 9

Copyright 2011 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.

Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing,

IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,

mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission

from the publisher.

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Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to

The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910,

Danvers, MA 01923, USA.

Fees are subject to change.

CONTENTS

List of Illustrations ........................................................................... ix

Acknowledgements .......................................................................... xi

Acronyms .......................................................................................... xiii

Transliteration ................................................................................... xv

Introduction ...................................................................................... 1

The ‘Archaeology’ of Marxist Nationalism ............................... 9

Chapter One Marxist Nationalism as Evolved by the

BCP up to 1944 .......................................................................... 25

1.1 Regional Dynamics and the BCP Before and During

World War Two ................................................................... 29

1.2 Elements of the National(ist) Discourse of the

Bulgarian Communist Leadership .................................... 40

1.2.a The Anti-Imperialist Theory ................................. 40

1.2.b Patriotism and Internationalism .......................... 44

1.2.c Binary Divisions ..................................................... 45

1.3 The Partisan Movement ..................................................... 53

1.3.a Objectives and Apparatuses of the Partisan

Movement ................................................................ 54

1.3.b Use of Commemoration and Anniversaries ....... 60

1.3.c Partisan Songs ......................................................... 63

1.3.d Word and Symbols ................................................. 65

1.3.e Key Elements of the Nationalist Discourse of the

Resistance Movement ............................................. 67

Chapter Two The Nationalist Discourse in Domestic Politics ... 71

2.1 The Political Spectrum in Post-War Bulgaria ................. 73

2.2 Disadvantages and Advantages of the BCP ..................... 81

2.3 Communist Tactics ............................................................. 87

2.4 Self-presentation of the BCP as National Party .............. 91

2.5 Nation, People, State, and Party ........................................ 95

2.6 National Enemies ................................................................ 104

2.7 The Ethnic ‘Other’ .............................................................. 111

vi contents

Chapter Three The Nationalist Discourse with Regard to the

International Arena ..................................................................... 119

3.1 Binary Divisions ................................................................. 125

3.2 The Nation and its Friends at the International Level ... 128

3.2.a Socialist Patriotism and Proletarian

Internationalism ...................................................... 128

3.2.b The Anti-imperialist Idea and the Cominform ... 132

3.2.c The Soviet Union .................................................... 133

3.2.d Pan-Slavism ............................................................. 136

3.2.e Non-Slav Socialist Friends ..................................... 139

3.3 The Nation and its Enemies on the International Level ... 139

3.3 a The Past and the Present Worst Enemy of the

Slav Peoples .............................................................. 140

3.3.b Neighbouring Enemy Nations of Bulgaria .......... 142

3.4 National questions .............................................................. 143

3.4.a The Thracian Question .......................................... 144

3.4.b The Macedonian Question .................................... 149

Chapter Four Flagging Nationhood: Bulgarian Communist

(Re)construction of the National Past ..................................... 161

4.1 (Re)construction of the Past: Institutional Framework ... 163

4.2 A Peculiar Marxist Version of History-Writing ............. 172

4.3 An Outline of How the Bulgarian Communists

Narrated the past of Bulgaria ............................................. 182

4.3.a Bulgarian Lands Since Prehistory ......................... 182

4.3.b Presentation of Origin ............................................ 184

4.3.c Byzantine Times ...................................................... 187

4.3.d Cyril and Methodius .............................................. 189

4.3.e Survival of the Nation Under the Ottoman Yoke

(14th–18th century) ............................................... 191

4.3.f National Liberation Movement Against the

Turkish Yoke (circa 1860-1878) ............................ 196

4.3.g National Integration: Eastern Rumelia￾Macedonia (1885–1913) ........................................ 204

4.3.h Bulgaria as a Semi-Colonial Country

(Inter-War Years) .................................................... 206

4.3.i Second World War—Resistance Movement—

9 September 1944 .................................................... 208

contents vii

Chapter Five Flagging Nationhood: Events and Symbols ...... 213

5.1 Celebrating the Bulgarian Nation in the Late 1940s ....... 215

5.2 Anniversaries and Commemorations of Plainly

National Character .............................................................. 219

5.3 Anniversaries and Commemorations of National and

International Character ...................................................... 223

5.4 Anniversaries and Commemorations of a Largely

Socialist Character .............................................................. 224

5.5 National Symbols ................................................................ 228

5.5.a The National Emblem ............................................ 229

5.5.b The National Flag ................................................... 230

Conclusion ........................................................................................ 235

Marxist Nationalism .................................................................... 239

Why Nationalism? ........................................................................ 244

Appendix One Political Parties .................................................. 251

Appendix Two Figures ................................................................. 255

Appendix Three Tables ................................................................ 269

Bibliography ...................................................................................... 273

Index .................................................................................................. 287

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Anti-Monarchist Poster, Angelushev (1946) ......................... 48

2. Untitled caricature, Venev (1944) ........................................... 85

3. Fly-sheet on 1st May ................................................................. 92

4. Poster, “The Opposition Platform” ......................................... 108

5. Caricature, “In Restaurant ‘Paris’ ”, Zhendov (1946) ............ 147

6. A school poster ......................................................................... 166

7. The symbol of Septemvrists ..................................................... 167

8. Untitled caricature, Korenev (1945) ....................................... 184

9. Untitled caricature, Zhendov (1945) ...................................... 189

10. A poster of the National Committee of the

Fatherland Front ....................................................................... 209

11. The national emblem ................................................................ 229

12. A poster of the Local Committee of the Fatherland

Front of Varna ........................................................................... 241

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A number of people have contributed to the process of researching and

writing this book, helping me to deal with the considerable archival and

research work and to overcome various obstacles and setbacks. I would

like to take this opportunity to mention their names. First and foremost,

since this book relies on my thesis, there are no words to express my

gratitude to both of my supervisors: Spyros Sofos (Senior Research Fel￾low at Kingston University, London) and Prof. Philip Spencer (Associate

Dean at Kingston University, London). Their supervision, their in-depth

scientific erudition, and the invaluable discussions I had with them

were decisive in helping me to formulate and rehearse my ideas. At

this point, I would also like to express my thanks to the examiners of

my thesis for their knowledgeable observations and thoughtful remarks

made during my viva: Dr. Tom Gallagher (Chair of Ethnic Conflict

and Peace, Bradford University, UK) and Dr. Mike Hawkins (Research

Fellow in History of Ideas, Kingston University, UK). I am indebted to

my colleague and friend, Dr. Boryana Buzhashka, who helped me to

navigate the Bulgarian Communist Party and Bulgarian State Records

and Archives and, on many occasions, exchanged views with me. Vasiliki

Papoulia (Professor Emeritus at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)

also made many invaluable comments about my thesis in her capacity

as supervisor appointed by the IKY (Greek State Scholarships Founda￾tion), which provided me with a scholarship, after I succeeded in the

statutory exams.

I have had the opportunity to discuss my research and exchange

views with several other scholars and researchers (namely Prof. Maria

Todorova, Prof. John Lampe, Dr. Paul Auerbach, and Prof. Fikret

Adanir); their comments and assistance in resolving theoretical issues

have contributed to the development and formulation of my arguments

since frequent discussion or debate of my theses caused me to reflect

more effectively. I would like to express my gratitude to Prof. Roumen

Daskalov, to Dr. Martin Mevius, to Dr. Zoran Milutinovic and to the

anonymous reviewer from Brill for their comments and suggestions.

I would also like to express my thanks to the staff of the Bulgarian

Communist Party Records, the Bulgarian State Records, the National

Library in Sofia, the British Library, and Kingston University Library.

xii acknowledgements

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the moral

support I have received from my parents, Panagiotis and Vasiliki, and

from Petya Pesheva.

ACRONYMS

AgitProp Agitation and Propaganda department

of the BCP

BAN Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

BANU Bulgarian Agrarian National Union

BANU-Vrabcha-1 Bulgarian Agrarian National Union—

Vrabcha-1

BCP Bulgarian Communist Party (Bulgarian

Workers’ Party)

BWPc Bulgarian Workers’ Party (communists)

BWSDP Bulgarian Workers’ Social-Democratic

Party

BWSDP (narrow socialists) Bulgarian Workers’ Social-Democratic

Party (the group which was transformed

into the Communist Party)

CCP Chinese Communist Party

Cominform Communist Information Bureau

Comintern Communist International

CPSU Communist Party of the Soviet Union

CPUSA Communist Party of the USA

CPY Communist Party of Yugoslavia

DP Democratic Party (Bulgaria)

ECCI Executive Committee of the Communist

International

ELAS National People’s Liberation Army

IMRO Internal Macedonian Revolutionary

Organisation

KKE Greek Communist Party

KPB Communist Party of Belgium

KPD Communist Party of Germany

KSČ Communist Party of Czechoslovakia

MKP Hungarian Communist Party

NOVA National Liberation Insurrectionary Army

PCE Communist Party of Spain

PCF Communist Party of France

PCI Italian Communist Party

xiv acronyms

PCR Romanian Communist Party

PPR Polish Workers’ Party

RP Radical Party (Bulgaria)

RSFSR Russian Socialist Federation of Soviet

Republics

SED Socialist Unity Party