Bulgarian Empire

Chapter 71: Russia-Bulgaria Alliance 1

As time passed, it was the end of 1891, and the long-drawn-out process of Russian-Bulgarian talks finally drew to a close.

The talks, which lasted more than a year, involved more than 500 issues, covering all aspects of political, economic, military, and even cultural exchanges.

On 15 December 1891, the two sides finally agreed to sign the Treaty of Political, Economic, Military, and Cultural Friendship between the Russian Empire and the Principality of Bulgaria, also known as the Russo-Bulgaria Alliance.

Ferdinand ratified the Russian-Bulgarian Alliance on the same day they signed it. It only had to be sent to St Petersburg and approved by Alexander III before officially setting it up.

The Russian delegation, which had been in Bulgaria for most of the year and who were now busy rushing back for Christmas, had declined Ferdinand's offer to stay.

Ferdinand, who was in a good mood, also took part himself in the farewell banquet to give the Russian delegation a good send-off.

To be honest, Ferdinand didn't expect the meeting to go so well either.

All things got taken together to see the Russo-Bulgaria Alliance was a treaty of equality for both sides. At the end of the nineteenth century, the struggle of a small country to conclude an equality treaty with a Great Power would have been beyond the grasp of later times.

Ferdinand had come from the future and knew it took up that time with Russia's diplomatic woes. The Franco-Russian alliance was already taking place in secret. The diplomatic risks involved in an alliance with Russia were also extremely high, as seen at the time.

Historically, it was already 1894 when Bulgaria leaned on Russia for a monopoly. At that time, the Franco-Russian alliance had been created and was already optional for Bulgaria, so naturally, it would not have cost a great deal to bring it together.

In Ferdinand's view, the creation of the Russo-Bulgarian Alliance gave Bulgaria access to raw materials from Russia for its industrial development and a vast market. It was an essential part of Bulgaria's industrialization process.

At that time, the only country that could provide Bulgaria with both of these was the Russian Empire.

At the end of the 19th century, the resource-rich countries besides Russia were Britain and France, which had large colonies. However, Britain and France were industrially advanced and largely self-sufficient and did not need to import industrial goods.

What about other countries?

In Germany, with its typical industrial development, the country has to import resources from abroad and find markets!

The Austro-Hungarian industry was not bad either. Moreover, its industry and commerce have closely linked to Germany, so it was not Bulgaria's choice!

Italy does not need to consider that he is still a poor fellow, resource-poor and industrially backward, and does not yet have the nerve to reach out to the Balkans.

The United States is not yet the future world policeman, and its hands cannot reach the Mediterranean, which means that even if the two sides trade, the shipping costs alone are higher than the price of the raw materials themselves.

The only option for Bulgaria then is Russia. Russia is rich in resources and is still close to Bulgaria. It has connected by the Black Sea and can be reached in one day while the industry is not very good and has to import many industrial goods every year.

Not only did Ferdinand find the alliance a good idea, but it was also Aleksandr III in St Petersburg who was now in a good mood.

Aleksandr III, the thirteenth emperor of the Russian Empire, reigned from 1881 to 1894.

The reign of Aleksandr III began under the great success of Aleksandr II, and Aleksandr III had no desire to embark on a new policy or to interfere too much in practical affairs.

He adopted a method of ruling similar to that of a chairman: he organized the naming of a group of competent people and formed a circle of think-tankers. These people were allowed to study the affairs of the state and come up with several options for dealing with them, which were then submitted to the emperor himself before he made a final decision.

During the reign of Aleksandr III, Russia reached a pinnacle of economic development. It became one of the world's leading powers, not only in military terms but also in economic terms.

However, the anti-reform measures pursued by the Russian elite have stifled the growth of ideas, gravely hampered the spread of education, affected the general quality of the population. They have hastened the rise of social class antagonism and set the stage for the final progress of society through violent forms of revolution and civil war.

On the diplomatic front, Aleksandr III actively pursued Pan-Slavism, which has linked to Russia's obvious increase in power and rising international standing.

The Pan-Slavism pursued by Russia has a solid diplomatic focus, mainly on the Balkans and the Black Sea coast. It intends to expand Russia's influence in these regions and strengthen Russia's power in areas inhabited by Slavic peoples.

On the one hand, Russian policy in the Balkans has played a positive role in enhancing its international standing and promoting the development of local ethnic freedom movements.

However, the downside was also obvious, and it was the same action in the Balkans that provided the spark for the First World War and laid the seeds for the downfall of the Russian Empire.

In addition to Austria-Hungary, the German Empire has also contested the Balkans with Russia.

Germany had always wanted a warm Mediterranean port that would break free from the North Sea and the Baltic with the Mediterranean passage, cutting Europe short, so it sped up the momentum of its expansion in the Balkans. It was one of the reasons why German-Russian relations were heading for a split.

On the whole, Russia under Aleksandr III was the closest to Europe in terms of culture and economy. There was a mutual sense of identity between Europe and Russia, and Russia was already able to achieve its political intentions without using force and through diplomatic efforts alone.

One of Aleksandr III's most famous and influential statements in foreign affairs was that the Russian Tsar was still on a fishing trip and that Europe could wait for the time being. (Aleksandr III uttered this phrase on one occasion when he was on a fishing trip during a holiday break and the minister in charge of European affairs came running to report to Aleksandr III on urgent business.)

Arguably, Aleksandr III was the most powerful ruler in Russia's nineteenth-century history.

During the reign of Aleksandr III, Russia waged only one foreign war: the small-scale Battle of the Merve Oasis under Mikhail Skobelev.

Merve is an oasis city in Turkmenistan in Central Asia, known as Malei in Han Dynasty texts and as Maguo in the Northern and Southern Dynasties. In contrast, Yuan Dynasty texts refer to the area as Maliwu or Malan.

After the annexation of Merve to Russia, Turkmenistan officially became part of the Russian Empire.

At the time of the assassination of Aleksandr II, Aleksandr III was in fear of being assassinated. He often stayed at his palace in Gatchina on the capital's outskirts.

Known as the Hermit of Gatchina, Aleksandr III was also known as the Peacemaker because he rarely started wars.