-
Declaring Neutrality
The Western Allied powers, France and England, exerted pressure on Bulgaria, demanding that Tsar Boris III declare neutrality, which he did on September 16th. -
Period: to
Initial neutrality
-
Bulgaria joins the Axis bloc
Nazi Germany demanded that Bulgaria joins the Tripartite pact. In order to avoid destruction and German invasion, Bulgaria signed the Tripartite Pact on 1 March 1941 and joined the Axis bloc. -
Period: to
Axis Powers
-
The Passive Alliance
On 6 April 1941, despite having officially joined the Axis Powers, the Bulgarian government did not participate in the invasion of Yugoslavia and the invasion of Greece, although Bulgarian troops occupied zones in both Macedonia and Greek Thrace -
Bombing of Sofia
The Bulgarian government was forced by Germany to declare a token war on the United Kingdom and the United States on 13 December 1941, an act which resulted in the bombing of Sofia and other Bulgarian cities by Allied aircrafts. -
No "Final Solution" for the Bulgarian Jews
During the spring of 1943, the Bulgarian government, after protests led by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and Dimitar Peshev M.P., succeeded in saving 50 000 Bulgarian Jews from being sent to Nazi concentration camps. Thus, the only country that saved its Jewish population. -
The Tsar's death
In August 1943, after a visit to Germany, Bulgarian Tsar Boris III died suddenly, believed to have been poisoned by the SS because of his denial to send the Bulgarian Jews to concentration camps. -
Changing Sides
Bulgarians went into collective shock when Russia declared war on September 5, 1944. The Soviet Union planned to occupy Bulgaria and create a communist state. Bulgaria broke diplomatic relations with Germany on the 7th and declared war on the Nazi state the next day, but it was too little, too late. When Russian troops crossed into Bulgaria on the 8th, the government ordered the army not to resist. -
Paris Peace Treaties
The Paris Peace Treaties of 1947 confirmed the incorporation of Southern Dobruja into Bulgaria during the War, thus making Bulgaria the only German ally that increased its pre-War territory. The occupied parts of the Aegean region and Vardar Macedonia remaining within the borders of Bulgaria were returned, with 150,000 Bulgarians being expelled from Western Thrace.
