Revolutionary Georgi Drazhev

Georgi Drazhev Hadzhigeorgiev was a well-known Bulgarian national revolutionary, born on 26 April 1848 in the town of Yambol. He was the eldest son of Drazho Hadzhigeorgiev, an active participant in the struggle for Bulgarian education and ecclesiastical independence in Yambol and the surrounding region. In his youth Georgi Drazhev was accused of participating in the church struggle, arrested with his father and imprisoned.

He emerged as one of the central figures in the struggle against Ottoman rule. Under the influence of his teachers, the patriots Radi Kolesov and Dobri Chintulov, he became a determined fighter for Bulgaria's freedom and independence. In 1873 young patriots gathered in his home and founded the Yambol Local Revolutionary Committee, electing him chairman.

During the April Uprising, Georgi Drazhev was one of the leading figures of the local revolutionary committee and a key organiser for the Yambol region. After the uprising broke out, he actively joined the struggle. On 4 May 1876 the Sliven-Yambol detachment was formed, with Georgi Drazhev among its founders and members of its Military Council.

After a series of battles, the detachment was defeated and dispersed, and Georgi Drazhev was wounded and captured by an enemy pursuit force. He was sentenced to death and hanged outside his family home in Yambol on 29 June 1876. His final words called for the struggle for the Bulgarian people's freedom to continue.