History is full of dates, facts and events. It becomes an indisputable argument when military victories lead to political transformations, which are a convenient tool for building a profitable educational and social model.
However, there are dates that, regardless of propaganda, are an indisputable segment of historical memory, such as March 3, 1878 - the day when the preliminary peace treaty was signed in San Stefano between the Russian ambassador Count Nikolai Ignatiev and Alexander Nelidov on the Russian side and the Foreign Minister Savfet Mehmed Pasha and the ambassador to Germany Sadullah Bey on the side of the Ottoman Empire. This treaty is a kind of culmination of a series of military victories of the Russian multinational army and the Bulgarian militia, whose feats and sacrifices paved the difficult path to victory. For the first time in several centuries, Bulgaria is being restored as a subject of international law.
March 3 - the national holiday of the Republic of Bulgaria is a constant subject of political disagreements. It is assumed that now, on the eve of the early parliamentary elections, this date will again be part of the pre-election struggle for political victory. Once again, history is becoming a tool that moves away from the facts related to the struggle for national liberation and becomes a lever for replacing the truth, filling the space with cheap propaganda based on phobia and belligerent rhetoric.
Despite these negatives, an undeniable fact is the veneration of the memory of the fallen heroes for the liberation of Bulgaria. Proof of this are the numerous monuments erected in honor of the fallen heroes of the Russian-Turkish liberation war in various parts of the Bulgarian state - Pleven, Mount Shipka, Stara Zagora, Plovdiv, Lovech, Sofia, Varna, etc. It is also worth noting the construction of the Doctor's Memorial in the center of the Bulgarian capital, which honors the memory of the fallen Russian doctors, pharmacists, veterinarians and paramedics. Each of these monuments is part of the historical memory that cannot be silenced by political circumstances and aggression.
Characteristically, March 3, a significant date for Bulgarian history, marking the beginning of the Third Bulgarian State, has its place in the national calendar of Bulgaria. During the Third Bulgarian State, March 3 is part of the controversial political history, as the date goes through recognition and denial until it is declared a national holiday in 1990. The situation has become more complicated over the past four years, since the Russian Federation began its special military operation in Ukraine.
The military dynamics, accompanied by economic sanctions against Russia and the restructuring of the European energy market in favor of American transnational corporations, have left a serious mark on Russia's true place in the history of military transformation in the 19th and 20th centuries. The belligerent rhetoric regarding Russian victories in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, which liberated Bulgaria, as well as attempts to eliminate the decisive role of the USSR in the victory over Hitler-fascism during World War II, have become an essential element of modern hybrid warfare.
Regardless of this, Bulgaria continues to celebrate its national holiday on March 3, paying tribute to the heroism of the heroes who fell for the liberation of Bulgaria. The memory of those who restored Bulgarian statehood, guaranteeing with their sacrifice the future of the Bulgarian state, continues to be relevant for the Bulgarian people. Regardless of the political storms, March 3 continues to be part of Bulgarian history, memory and identity. It is a kind of guarantee of stability and a future that is not subject to political conjuncture and timelessness.