Revolutionary Ivan Hasamski

Ivan Naydenov Hasamski, nicknamed "Komitata" (the Revolutionary), was born on 4 October 1848 in the village of Kolibe, where his family's home, also known as the "Secret House", stood. He was educated at Troyan Monastery, where his father Nayden Hasamski, known as Terziyata (the Tailor), was his mentor. In 1871 he travelled with his father to Karlovo, where he met Vasil Levski.

From then on, Levski repeatedly visited the Hasamski family's Secret House, which became a centre of revolutionary activity in the area. There Levski wrote his last letters before his death in December 1872 and organised numerous revolutionary actions.

Ivan Hasamski, or Komitata, was known as one of Vasil Levski's most reliable couriers. He was responsible for sending letters to Hristo Botev in Bucharest and procuring weapons from Romania. In 1872 he took Vasil Levski to Novo Selo, where Levski organised a meeting with local revolutionaries that subsequently led to the Novo Selo Uprising.

After Bulgaria's Liberation, Ivan Hasamski became mayor of the villages of Kolibe, Oreshak and Patreshko. He took an active part in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, fighting at Shipka and Pleven and receiving an award for bravery from the Russian general Pavel Kartsov.

Ivan Naydenov Hasamski, or Komitata, symbolises loyalty and dedication to the struggle to liberate the Bulgarian people from Ottoman rule.