Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano

The Treaty of San Stefano was signed in a small, beautiful house on the outskirts of San Stefano on 3 March 1878, changing the destiny of the Bulgarian people. Signed after the end of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), it laid the foundations for the restoration of Bulgarian statehood after nearly five centuries of Ottoman rule.
At that time Bulgaria had no ruler, but the document already envisaged its revival as an autonomous principality. Under the treaty’s provisions, a Bulgarian principality was to be established across extensive territories, from the Danube to the Aegean Sea and from the Black Sea to Lake Ohrid.
This was made possible by the Russian Empire, led by Emperor Alexander II, remembered in history as the Tsar Liberator. His army was the key force that broke Ottoman power in the Balkans. Among the most prominent figures supporting the Bulgarian cause was Count Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev, a Russian diplomat and Russia’s chief negotiator. He defended Bulgarian interests and succeeded in including extensive territories inhabited by Bulgarians in the treaty.
Although the Treaty of San Stefano remained provisional and was later revised by the Congress of Berlin, Bulgarians regard it as the first official act recognising their right to independence in a state of their own. Today, 3 March is celebrated as the national holiday of the Republic of Bulgaria, symbolising freedom and the sacrifices made to achieve it.