The conquest of the
Balkans saw a lot of destruction.
The liberation, the emergence of the independent states
also saw a lot of destruction.
Different monuments, different targets during
the liberation, the emergence of the successor states
the focus was against the monuments, which were mostly associated
with the ruler or ruling elite, with the ruling
community, with the ruling religion.
These monuments were mainly associated
with religion, with Islam, and they were the mosques.
Of course, we cannot say that it was the Islamic buildings
just for the sake of the Islamic buildings to be destroyed,
because there were also modernization projects
and all the new countries wanted to associate themselves with Europe,
with the modern lifestyle, with the modern urban setting.
And that meant new streets, new houses
and the
removal of some of the old styles,
both houses and mosques.
When they started considering what
to do, how to do it, we may say that if they had to,
if they could, to destroy a mosque, they did it.
One example, Sophia had at the time
of the liberation 53 mosques.
Some of them were not in good state
because the city had undergone decay
through, for various reasons, including earthquakes,
which had demolished some of the monuments
and some of the infrastructure.
But the liberation and the appointment, the decision
that Sophia would become the capital city of the new Bulgarian state,
gave a lot of inspiration
to the new municipality
to start modern projects.
And this was mainly already moving the remnants
of the old of the old period.
Out of the 53 mosques
we have just one functioning right now
it's from the 16th century, admittedly.
And there are two which were preserved in a different way.
I mean, converted one of them into the archeology
museum, National Archeology Museum, which was the main congregational
mosque of the city, and the other one
which underwent even more radical change.
It was converted into a church.
Ah, that mosque.
We are quite happy that it was preserved
because it was the work of the famous Ottoman architect, Mimar Sinan.
So it's really luck that
it was at least converted but not demolished entirely.
Because during the first years after the liberation,
the Russian governor of Bulgaria, there was a two year period,
he hated to see the minarets
and he organized during one stormy night with thunders.
the demolishment of, the minarets of these mosques,
by setting them, exploding them,
sending people so people couldn't hear
because of the thunders, couldn't see and hear the explosions.
In the morning, they woke up and more than ten minarets were gone.
On the other hand, there were people who wanted to demolish
consciously that minarets.
But there was a nice, interesting story
in one of the newspapers of early Bulgaria,
young Bulgarian state, where it announced
that one of the specialists on the demolishment of minarets
had fallen and perished.
And the Sofian citizens regarded this as punishment
for his ungodly work.
So we see that
actually there was a wish
to remove the remnants of the old, but there was an uneasy feeling
that you are demolishing holy places after all.
So, ah, yes,
resistance, hatred even, for the past.
but at the same time recognition that this must exist after all.