Voivode Angel Zotev

Angel Zotev, also known as "Angel the Voivode" or "Old Angel", was a Bulgarian hajduk born in the second half of the eighteenth century in the village of Dripchevo in the Haskovo region. He led a Kardzhali band subordinate to Emin Agha, the local notable of Haskovo. Angel Zotev headed a large hajduk detachment whose aim was to protect the Christian population in Thrace, particularly during the Kardzhali disturbances. At the request of local inhabitants, he left his native region and travelled to south-western Macedonia, where he successfully repelled Albanian bands in the Ohrid, Debar and Korçë regions.

After 1810, however, traces of Angel Zotev disappear, and information about him becomes limited. Nevertheless, he is remembered as an important participant in the struggle for the rights and freedom of the Christian population during a time of tension in the region. His name remains in the history of Bulgarian hajduks as a symbol of resistance to Turkish rule and the defence of national interests.