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{{Short description|Prince/Tsar of Bulgaria from 1887 to 1918}}
{{Infobox royalty|type=monarch
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
| name = Ferdinand I
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Ferdinand I<br/>{{nobold|Фердинанд I}}
| full name = {{langx|de|Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria}}
| image = Zar Ferdinand Bulgarien.jpg | image = Zar Ferdinand Bulgarien.jpg
| imgw = 200px | caption = Ferdinand I in 1912
| reign = 7 July 1887 – 3 October 1918 | reign = 5 October 1908 – {{nowrap|3 October 1918}}
| coronation = | coronation =
| succession = ] | succession = ]
| predecessor = ] | predecessor = Himself (as Prince)
| successor = ] | successor = ]
| reign2 = 7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908
| spouse = ]<br/>]
| succession2 = ]
| issue = ] <br/> ] <br/> ] <br/> ]
| house = ] | predecessor2 = ]
| successor2 = Himself (as Tsar)
| father = ]
| spouses = {{ubl|{{marriage|]|1893|1899|reason=died}}|{{marriage|]|1908|1917|reason=died}}|{{marriage|]|1947}}}}
| mother = ]
| issue = {{ubl|]|]|]|]}}
| house = ]
| father = ]
| mother = ]
| birth_date = 26 February 1861 | birth_date = 26 February 1861
| birth_place = ], ] | birth_place = Vienna, Austrian Empire
| death_date = {{death date and age|1948|9|10|1861|2|26|df=yes}} | death_date = {{death date and age|1948|9|10|1861|2|26|df=yes}}
| death_place = ], ] | death_place = ], Germany{{efn|Germany was under ] at the time of Ferdinand's death.}}
| burial_place = St. Augustine's Church, ] | burial_place = {{ubl|] (1948–2024)|], Bulgaria (since 2024)}}
| religion = ] | religion = ]
| signature = Ferdinand I of Bulgaria signature.svg
}} }}
] ]'s uniform 1941]]
{{Coin image box 1 double
'''Ferdinand I''' (Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria; 26 February 1861 – 10 September 1948) was ] from 1887 to 1908 and ] from 1908 until his abdication in 1918. Under his rule, ] on the side of the ] in 1915.<ref>Stephen Constant, ''Foxy Ferdinand, 1861-1948, Tsar of Bulgaria'' (Sidgwick & Jackson, 1979).</ref>
| header = Silver coin of Ferdinand I, struck 1894
| image = File:Ferdinand I of Bulgaria Coin.jpg
| caption_left = <small>Obverse: (Bulgarian): ΦЕРДИНАНДЪ I БЪЛГАРCКИЙ КНЯЗЬ, or in English, "Ferdinand I, Knjaz (Prince) of Bulgaria"</small>
| caption_right = <SMALL>Reverse: (Bulgarian): 5 ЛЕВА 1894, or in English, "5 Leva, 1894."</SMALL>
| width = 250
| position = right
| margin = 0
}}
'''Ferdinand I''' (26 February 1861 – 10 September 1948),<ref name="LoudaT149">], Table 149</ref> born ''Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry'', was the ruler of ] from 1887 to 1918, first as ''knyaz'' (], 1887–1908) and later as ] (1908–1918). He was also an author, ], ] and ].


==Family background== ==Family background==
{{see also|Bulgarian royal family}}
Ferdinand was born in Vienna, a prince of the ] branch of the ducal family of ]. He grew up in the cosmopolitan environment of ] high nobility and also in their ancestral lands in ] and in Germany. The Koháry descended from an immensely wealthy Upper Hungarian (now Slovakian) noble family, who held the princely lands of ] and ] in ], among others. The family's property was augmented by ]' remarkable dowry.
Ferdinand was born on 26 February 1861 in ],<ref name="LoudaT149">], Table 149</ref> a German prince of the ]. He was the son of ] and his wife ], daughter of King ]. ] was a Hungarian Noble and heiress who married Ferdinand's grandfather, ]. Ferdinand was raised in his parents’ Catholic faith and baptised in ] on 27 February, having as godparents ] and his wife ].<ref>Archiv der Domkirche St. Stephan, Wien, Taufbuch 1860-1865</ref> He grew up in the cosmopolitan environment of ] high nobility and also in their ancestral lands in ] and in Germany. The ] descended from an immensely wealthy Upper Hungarian noble family, who held the princely lands of ] and Sitno in present-day ], among others. The family's property was augmented by ]' remarkable dowry.<ref name="Constant, 1948">Constant, ''Foxy Ferdinand, 1861-1948, Tsar of Bulgaria'' (1979).</ref>


The son of ] and his wife ], daughter of king ], Ferdinand was a grandnephew of ], Duke of ] and of ], first king of the Belgians. His father Augustus was a brother of ], and also a first cousin to ], her husband ], ] and her brother ]. These last two, Leopold and Carlota, were also first cousins of Ferdinand I's through his mother, a princess of Orléans. This made the Belgian siblings his first cousins, as well as his first cousins once removed (his father's first cousins). Indeed, the ducal family of ] had contrived to occupy, either by marriage or by direct election, several European thrones in the course of the 19th century. Following the family trend, Ferdinand was himself to found the ] of ]. Ferdinand was a grandnephew of ], Duke of ] and of ], first king of the Belgians. His father August was a brother of King ], and also a first cousin to ], her husband ], ] and her brother ]. These last two, Leopold and Carlota, were also first cousins of Ferdinand I's through his mother, a princess of Orléans. This made the Belgian siblings his first cousins, as well as his first cousins once removed. Indeed, the House of ] had contrived to occupy, either by marriage or by direct election, several European thrones in the course of the 19th century. Following the family trend, Ferdinand was himself to found the royal dynasty of Bulgaria.<ref name="Constant, 1948"/>

Ferdinand had some ancestry from medieval rulers of Bulgaria, descents from both his mother's and father's side. {{citation needed|date=March 2013}}


==Prince of Bulgaria== ==Prince of Bulgaria==
] for the funeral of ], photographed on 20 May 1910. Standing, from left to right: ], ], ], ], ] and ]. Seated, from left to right: ], ] and ].]]
]
The first Knyaz (]) of the ], ], abdicated in 1886, only seven years after he was elected.<ref name="Finestone227">], p 227</ref> Ferdinand, who was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian army was elected Knyaz of autonomous ] by its Grand National Assembly on 7 July 1887 in the ] (the "New Style" used hereinafter).<ref name="Finestone227"/> In desperate attempts to prevent Russian occupation of Bulgaria, the throne had been previously offered, before Ferdinand's acceptance, to princes from Denmark to the Caucasus and even to the King of Romania.<ref name="Louda297">], p 297</ref>
His accession was greeted with disbelief in many of the royal houses of Europe. ], his father's first cousin, stated to her Prime Minister, "He is totally unfit&nbsp;... delicate, eccentric and effeminate&nbsp;... Should be stopped at once."<ref name="Aronson83">], p 83</ref> To the amazement of his initial detractors, Ferdinand generally made a success during the first two decades of his reign.<ref name="Aronson83"/>


The previous ruling prince of Bulgaria, ], had abdicated in 1886 after a ], only seven years after he had been elected.<ref name="Finestone227">], p 227</ref> Ferdinand, who was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian army, was elected Prince of autonomous ] by its Grand National Assembly on 7 July 1887 in the ] (the "New Style" used hereinafter).<ref name="Finestone227"/> The throne had been previously offered, before Ferdinand's acceptance, to princes from Denmark to the Caucasus and even to the King of Romania.<ref name="Louda297">], p 297</ref> The Russian tsar himself had nominated his aide, ], but his candidacy was rejected by the Bulgarians. Ferdinand's accession was greeted with disbelief in many of the royal houses of Europe; ], his father's first cousin, stated to her prime minister, "He is totally unfit&nbsp;... delicate, eccentric and effeminate&nbsp;... Should be stopped at once."<ref name="Aronson83">], p 83</ref> To the amazement of his initial detractors, Ferdinand generally made a good account of himself during the first two decades of his reign.<ref name="Aronson83"/>
Bulgaria's domestic political life was dominated during the early years of Ferdinand's reign by liberal party leader ], whose foreign policy saw a marked cooling in relations with ], formerly seen as Bulgaria's protector.


Bulgaria's domestic political life was dominated during the early years of Ferdinand's reign by liberal party leader ], whose foreign policy saw a marked cooling in relations with Russia, formerly seen as Bulgaria's protector.
==Personal life==
Ferdinand was thought to be ] throughout his life, but up to middle age, his proclivities for women predominated.<ref name="Constant96">], p 96</ref>


Stambolov's fall (May 1894) and subsequent assassination (July 1895) - probably not engineered by Ferdinand<ref>Constant, pp. 159-167.</ref> - paved the way for a reconciliation of Bulgaria with Russia, effected in February 1896 with Ferdinand's decision to convert his infant son, Prince Boris, from ] to ]. However, this earned him the animosity of his Catholic Austrian relatives, and he was ] by ].
Ferdinand entered a ]<ref name="Constant143">], p 143</ref> with Princess ], daughter of ] and ], on 20 April 1893 at the Villa Pianore in ] in Italy, producing four children:


*] (1894–1943) ==Tsar of Bulgaria==
]: 5 leva, Ferdinand I, 1894]]
*] (1895–1945)
On 5 October 1908 (celebrated on 22 September), Ferdinand proclaimed Bulgaria's ''de jure'' independence from the ] (though the country had been ''de facto'' independent since 1878). He also proclaimed Bulgaria a kingdom, and assumed the title of ''tsar''—a deliberate nod to the rulers of the earlier Bulgarian states.<ref name="Louda297"/> However, while the title ''tsar'' was translated as "emperor" in the First and Second Bulgarian empires, it was translated as "]" under Ferdinand and his successors.<ref> at ]</ref> The ] was proclaimed by him at the ] in ], and was recognized by the Ottoman Empire and the other European powers.<ref name="Louda297"/> The ] was retained, with the word "prince" replaced by the word "''tsar''."
*] (1898–1985)
*] (1899–1958). Married ].


On a visit to ] ], his second cousin once removed, in 1909, Ferdinand was leaning out of a window of the ] when the Emperor came up behind him and slapped him on the bottom. Ferdinand was affronted by the gesture, but the Kaiser refused to apologize. Ferdinand however exacted his revenge by awarding a valuable arms contract he had intended to give to the ]'s factory in ] to French arms manufacturer ].<ref name="Aronson8-9">], pp 8–9</ref> Another incident occurred on his journey to the funeral of his second cousin King ] of the United Kingdom in 1910. A tussle broke out over where his private railway carriage would be positioned in relation to the ] to the Austro-Hungarian throne, ]. The Archduke won out, having his carriage positioned directly behind the engine. Ferdinand's was placed directly behind his. Realising the dining car of the train was behind his own carriage, Ferdinand obtained his revenge on the Archduke by refusing him passage through his own carriage to the dining car.<ref name="Aronson7">], p 7</ref> On 15 July the same year during a visit to Belgium, Ferdinand also became the first head of state to fly in an airplane. He awarded the pilot of the plane with a medal when they landed.<ref>{{cite web|title=King up in Aeroplane: Ferdinand of Bulgaria First Monarch to Do It – Sons Fly Also|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/07/16/102043617.pdf|work=New York Times website|access-date=2010-07-17|page=1|format=Adobe Acrobat|date=16 July 1910}}</ref>
Marie Louise died on 31 January 1899 after giving birth to her youngest daughter. Ferdinand did not think again about marriage until his mother, Princess Clémentine died in 1907. To satisfy dynastic obligations and to provide his children with a mother figure, Ferdinand married ], Princess ], on 28 February 1908.<ref name="Aronson85">], p 85</ref>


== Balkan Wars (1912–1913) ==
Ferdinand's regular holidays on ], then a famous haunt for wealthy ] men, were common knowledge in royal courts throughout Europe.<ref name="Constant266">], p 266</ref>
{{Main|Balkan Wars}}
Like many other rulers before him, Ferdinand desired the creation of a "new ]", a desire that has to be interpreted as wanting to create a significant, essentially Christian, Balkan power, given that Bulgaria and Bulgarians had neither cultural, ethnic, historical nor linguistic affinity with the old ], which was quintessentially ] and, evolving through the centuries, ].<ref name="Aronson86">], p 86</ref> In 1912, Ferdinand joined the other Balkan states in an assault on the Ottoman Empire to free occupied territories. He saw this war as a new crusade declaring it, "a just, great and sacred struggle of the Cross against the Crescent."<ref name="Aronson87">], p 87</ref> Bulgaria contributed the most and also lost the greatest number of soldiers. The ] insisted on the creation of an ].<ref name="Louda297"/> Though the ] allies had fought together against the common enemy in the ], that was not enough to overcome their mutual rivalries. In the original documents for the Balkan League, Serbia had been pressured by Bulgaria to hand over most of ] after it had conquered it from the Ottoman Empire. However Serbia, in response to the new Albanian state receiving territory in the north that it had expected to gain for itself, said that it would keep possession of the areas that its forces had occupied. Soon after, Bulgaria began the ] when it invaded its recent allies Serbia and Greece to seize disputed areas, before being attacked itself by Romania and the Ottoman Empire. Although Bulgaria was defeated, the 1913 ] granted the Kingdom some territorial gains. The region of ], giving access to the ] was secured.<ref name="Louda297"/>


== First World War and abdication (1915–1918) ==
{{House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha of Bulgaria}}
{{more citations needed|section|date=October 2020}}{{Main|Bulgaria during World War I}}
Stambolov's fall (May 1894) and subsequent assassination (July 1895) paved the way for a reconciliation of Bulgaria with Russia, effected in February 1896 with the conversion of the infant Prince Boris from ] to ] Christianity. However, this move earned him the animosity of his Catholic Austrian relatives, particularly that of his uncle, Emperor ].
] and Tsar Ferdinand in Sofia, 1916]]
On 11 October 1915, the Bulgarian army ] after signing a treaty with ] and Germany stating that Bulgaria would gain the territory it sought at the expense of Serbia. While he was not an admirer of German Emperor Wilhelm II or ] ]&mdash;whom he described as "that idiot, that old dotard of a Francis Joseph".<ref name="Aronson126">], p 126</ref>&mdash;Ferdinand wanted additional territorial gains after the humiliation of the Balkan Wars. This also entailed forming an alliance with his former enemy, the ]. This ranging of his country with the Central Powers made him a de facto supporter of Germany's war aims and was not well received by the Allies. ] wrote:


“In this war, where the ranks of the enemy present to us so many formidable, sinister, and shocking figures, there is one, and perhaps but one, which is purely ridiculous. If we had the heart to relieve our strained feelings by laughter, it would be at the gross Coburg traitor, with his bodyguard of assassins and his hidden coat-of-mail, his shaking hands and his painted face. The world has never seen a meaner scoundrel, and we may almost bring ourselves to pity the Kaiser, whom circumstances have forced to accept on equal terms a potentate so verminous.”
==Tsar of Bulgaria==
]


During the initial phase of World War I, the Tsardom of Bulgaria achieved several decisive victories over its enemies and laid claim to the disputed territories of Macedonia after Serbia's defeat. For the next two years, the Bulgarian army shifted its focus towards repelling Allied advances from nearby Greece. They were also partially involved in the 1916 conquest of neighboring Romania, now ruled by another ], who was also Ferdinand's first cousin once removed.
On 5 October 1908 (celebrated on 22 September), Ferdinand proclaimed Bulgaria's ''de jure'' independence from the Ottoman Empire (though the country had been basically independent since 1878). He also elevated Bulgaria to the status of a kingdom, and proclaimed himself ''tsar'', or king. The ] was proclaimed by him at the ] in ]. It was accepted by Turkey and the other European powers.<ref name="Louda297"/>


To save the Bulgarian monarchy after multiple military setbacks in 1918, Tsar Ferdinand ] in favour of his eldest son, who became Tsar ] on 3 October 1918.<ref name="Palmer206">], p 206</ref> Under new leadership, Bulgaria surrendered to the Entente and, as a consequence, lost not only the additional territory it had fought for in the major conflict, but also the territory it had won after the Balkan Wars giving access to the Aegean Sea.<ref name="Palmer206"/>
Ferdinand was known for being quite a character. On a visit to ] ], his second cousin once removed, in 1909, Ferdinand was leaning out of a window of the ] when the Emperor came up behind him and slapped him on the bottom. Ferdinand was affronted by the gesture and the Emperor apologised. Ferdinand however exacted his revenge by awarding a valuable arms contract he had intended to give to the ]'s factory in ] to French arms manufacturer ].<ref name="Aronson8-9">], pp 8–9</ref> Another incident occurred on his journey to the funeral of his second cousin, British King ] in 1910. A tussle broke out over where his private railway carriage would be positioned in relation to the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, ]. The Archduke won out, having his carriage positioned directly behind the engine. Ferdinand's was placed directly behind. Realising the dining car of the train was behind his own carriage, Ferdinand obtained his revenge on the Archduke by refusing him entry through his own carriage to the dining car.<ref name="Aronson7">], p 7</ref> On 15 July the same year during a visit to ] Ferdinand also became the first head of state to fly in an airplane.<ref>{{cite web|title=King up in Aeroplane: Ferdinand of Bulgaria First Monarch to Do It – Sons Fly Also|url=http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9B04E1DC1239E433A25755C1A9619C946196D6CF|work=New York Times website|publisher=New York Times|accessdate=2010-07-17|page=1|format=Adobe Acrobat|date=16 July 1910}}</ref>


==Balkan Wars== ==Personal life==
]
{{Main|Balkan Wars}}
Ferdinand married Princess ], daughter of ] and ], on 20 April 1893 at the Villa Pianore in ]. Steven Constant describes this as a "marriage of convenience".<ref>Constant, 1986, ‘’Foxy Ferdinand’’, p 143</ref> The marriage produced four children:
Like many a ruler of an Orthodox land before him, Ferdinand had a "dream of a new Byzantium".<ref name="Aronson86">], p 86</ref> In 1912, Ferdinand joined the other Balkan states in an assault on the Ottoman Empire to free occupied territories. He saw this war as a new crusade declaring it, "a just, great and sacred struggle of the Cross against the Crescent."<ref name="Aronson87">], p 87</ref> Bulgaria contributed the most and also lost the greatest number of soldiers. The great powers insisted on the creation of an independent Albania.<ref name="Louda297"/> Soon after, Bulgaria attacked its recent allies Serbia and Greece and itself was attacked by Romania and the Ottoman Empire and was defeated. Nevertheless, the ] gave some territorial gains to Bulgaria. A tiny area of land giving access to the Aegean Sea was secured.<ref name="Louda297"/><!-- note from AusTerrapin: I am assuming that the ibid reference was to Louda p297 (immediately prior in text), not to Aronson p 87 (immediately prior in reference list), however I didn’t have access to the sources to confirm -->
* ] (1894–1943)
* ] (1895–1945)
* ] (1898–1985)
* ] (1899–1958).


Marie Louise died on 31 January 1899 after giving birth to her youngest daughter. Ferdinand did not think about remarriage until his mother, Princess Clémentine, died in 1907. To satisfy dynastic obligations and to provide his children with a mother figure, Ferdinand married ], on 28 February 1908.<ref>Aronson, p 85.</ref> Neither romantic love or physical attraction played any role, and Ferdinand treated her as no more than a member of the household, and showed scant regard.<ref name="ReferenceA">Stéphane Groueff, ‘’Crown of Thorns: The Reign of King Boris III of Bulgaria, 1918-1943’’, Madison Books, 1998.</ref>
==First World War and abdication==
{{Main|Bulgaria during World War I}}
] and Tsar Ferdinand in Sofia, 1916]]
On 11 October 1915, the Bulgarian army ] after signing a treaty with ] and Germany stating that Bulgaria would gain the territory she sought at the expense of Serbia. Ferdinand was not an admirer of German Emperor Wilhelm II (his second cousin once removed) or ] ] whom he described as "that idiot, that old dotard of a Francis Joseph".<ref name="Aronson126">], p 126</ref> But Ferdinand wanted extra territorial gains after the humiliation of the Balkan Wars. This did however mean forming an alliance with his former enemy, the ].


In his private relations, Ferdinand was a somewhat hedonistic individual. He enjoyed affairs with a number of women of humble position, siring a number of illegitimate children whom he then supported financially.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> In his later life, rumours abounded of Ferdinand's trysts with lieutenants and valets. His regular holidays on ], then a popular holiday destination with wealthy ], were common knowledge in royal courts throughout Europe.<ref name="Constant">Constant, Stephen ''Foxy Ferdinand, 1861–1948, Tsar of Bulgaria'', Sidgwick and Jackson, 1979, pp. 96, 266.</ref>
At first the war went well, Serbia was defeated and Bulgaria took possession of most of the disputed territory of Macedonia. For the next two years, the Bulgarian army fought a defensive war against the Allied army based in Greece. Part of the Bulgarian army was involved in the conquest of Romania in 1916.


He was remembered in ]'s memoir: ''"Prince Ferdinand, who was a Coburg, was a cousin of ]’s, and I remember the latter saying, when we got back to the hotel, that being the youngest of his family he was naturally looked upon as a fool, “ But,” said my father, “ for the fool of the family he has not done so badly for himself and I should not be surprised if he did not prove them all to be wrong.” He was always mocked at by his relations for covering himself with orders and decorations created by himself, and he was rudely nicknamed “ the Christmas-tree,”"''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gleichen |first=Lady Helena |title=Contacts and Contrasts |publisher=Butler & Tanner Ltd. |year=1940 |pages=15}}</ref>
Then, in the autumn of 1918, the Bulgarian army was badly beaten {{Citation needed|date=December 2012}} by an attack from the Allied forces in Greece. With his army shattered, Tsar Ferdinand ] to save the Bulgarian throne in favour of his eldest son who became Tsar ] on 3 October 1918.<ref name="Palmer206">], p 206</ref> Under new leadership, Bulgaria surrendered to the Allies and as a consequence, lost not only the additional territory it had fought for in the major conflict, but also the territory it had won after the Balkan Wars giving access to the Aegean Sea.<ref name="Palmer206"/>

== Exile and death (1918–1948) ==
After his abdication, Ferdinand returned to live in ], Germany. He had managed to salvage much of his fortune and was able to live in some style.<ref name="Aronson201">], p 201</ref> He saw his being in exile simply as one of the hazards of kingship.<ref name="Aronson201"/> He commented, "Kings in exile are more philosophic under reverses than ordinary individuals; but our philosophy is primarily the result of tradition and breeding, and do not forget that pride is an important item in the making of a monarch. We are disciplined from the day of our birth and taught the avoidance of all outward signs of emotion. The skeleton sits forever with us at the feast. It may mean murder, it may mean abdication, but it serves always to remind us of the unexpected. Therefore we are prepared and nothing comes in the nature of a catastrophe. The main thing in life is to support any condition of bodily or spiritual exile with dignity. If one sups with sorrow, one need not invite the world to see you eat."<ref name="Aronson175">], p 175</ref> He was pleased that the throne could pass to his son. Ferdinand was not displeased with exile and spent much of his time devoted to artistic endeavors, gardening, travel and natural history. In 1922 the Bulgarian government gave former King Ferdinand I, who had been living in exile since 1918, permission to return to ]. The ] immediately sent an ultimatum objecting to the move.<ref name="tribune jan 2">{{cite news |last=Fendrick |first=Raymond |date=January 2, 1924 |title=Ultimatum to Bulgars Sent by Jugo-Slavs | work=]|page=1 }}</ref>

However, he would live to see the collapse of everything he had held to be precious in life.<ref name="Aronson175"/> His eldest son and successor, ], died under mysterious circumstances after returning from a visit to ] in Germany in 1943. Boris' son, ], succeeded him only to be deposed in 1946, ending the Bulgarian monarchy. The Kingdom of Bulgaria was succeeded by the ], under which Ferdinand's other son, ], was executed. On hearing of Kyril's death he said, "Everything is collapsing around me."<ref name="Aronson202">], p 202</ref>

In 1947, Ferdinand (then 86 years old) secretly married his 26-year-old assistant ] in ], Germany,<ref name=efaid>{{cite web|url=http://matica.sk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/V%C3%A1ro%C5%A1_s67-76.pdf|title=Dve Slovenky: Vdova Po Cisarovi a Kralovi|date=March 2015|author=Milan Vároš
|website=matica.sk|access-date=31 May 2023}}</ref> much to the displeasure of the members of his family. After his death, she returned to her homeland ], where she remarried and had a daughter. Being afraid of what the communist regime might do to her, she only told her daughter about her marriage to Ferdinand two years before her death. She survived her husband by 67 years and died in ], Slovakia in 2015.

Ferdinand died in Bürglass-Schlösschen on 10 September 1948 in ], Germany, cradle of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty. He was the last surviving grandchild of Louis-Philippe of France. His final wish was to be buried in Bulgaria. However, the Communist authorities in Bulgaria would not allow it, so he was buried in the family crypt in ].

On 29 May 2024, the remains of Ferdinand I of Bulgaria were transported from Coburg to Sofia by a military plane, which landed at Sofia Airport. They were transported from Germany to Bulgaria by a military aircraft in accordance with the decision adopted by the Council of Ministers. The coffin was taken down and carried by national guards and solemnly placed in a hearse which left for the royal ] on the outskirts of Sofia, where Ferdinand I was buried.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mortal Remains of Bulgarian King Ferdinand I Brought to Bulgaria from Germany |url=https://www.bta.bg/en/news/bulgaria/679464-mortal-remains-of-bulgarian-king-ferdinand-i-brought-to-bulgaria-from-germany |website=Bulgarian News Agency |access-date=31 May 2024}}</ref>

==Honours==
{{infobox royal styles|royal name=King Ferdinand I of Bulgaria|image=]
|dipstyle=]|offstyle=Your Majesty}}

=== Bulgarian ===
* ], in Diamonds, ''27 May 1883''<ref name = "BulgarianOrders"> - official website of H.M. Simeon II</ref>
* Founder and Grand Master of the ], ''1891''<ref name = "BulgarianOrders"/>
* Founder and Grand Master of the ], ''19 May 1900''<ref name = "BulgarianOrders"/>
* Founder and Grand Master of the ], ''18 May 1909''<ref>''State Gazette'', No. 104, 21 May 1909</ref>

=== Foreign ===
]]]
{{columns-list|colwidth=25em|
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Albania}} ]:{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
** Knight of the , with Collar
** Grand Cross of the ], Special Class
* {{flagicon|Austrian Empire}} {{flagicon|Kingdom of Hungary|1896}} ]:
** Grand Cross of the ], with Collar, ''1899''; in Diamonds, ''1917''<ref name="osthandbuch">{{citation|chapter-url=http://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=shb&datum=1918&size=45|chapter=Ritter-Orden|title=Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie|date=1918|access-date=2 November 2019|pages=51–52, 55}}</ref>
** ], with Collar, ''1911''<ref name="osthandbuch"/>
** ] with War Decoration, ''1915''
** Grand Cross of the ], with Collar, ''1917''<ref name="osthandbuch"/>
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Bavaria}} ]:
** ], ''1896''<ref>'''' (1906), "Königliche-Orden" p. 8</ref>
** Grand Cross of the ]
* {{flag|Belgium}}: Grand Cordon of the ]{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
* {{flagicon|Empire of Brazil}} ]: ], with Collar{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
* {{flag|Denmark}}: ], with Collar, ''20 May 1910''<ref>{{cite book|author=Jørgen Pedersen|title=Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=glw-AQAAIAAJ|year=2009|publisher=Syddansk Universitetsforlag|language=da|isbn=978-87-7674-434-2|page=469}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Saxe-Coburg and Gotha}} {{flagicon|Saxe-Altenburg}} {{flagicon|Saxe-Meiningen}} ]:
** Grand Cross of the ], ''1879''<ref>'''' (1890), "Herzogliche Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden" p. 43</ref>
** Knight of the ], ''1888''
* {{flagcountry|French Third Republic}}: Grand Officer of the ], ''1905''{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
** {{flagicon|Kingdom of France}} ]:
*** ]{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
*** ], with Collar
* {{flagicon|Grand Duchy of Hesse}} ]: Grand Cross of the ], ''28 November 1893''<ref name="ordensliste">{{citation|title=Großherzoglich Hessische Ordensliste|chapter=Ludewigs-orden|page=8|language=German|location=Darmstadt|year=1907|publisher=Staatsverlag}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Italy}} ]:
** ], with Collar, ''10 July 1897''<ref name="dell'interno1898">{{cite book|author=Italia : Ministero dell'interno|title=Calendario generale del Regno d'Italia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0dnhcmSJ6FcC&pg=PP5|year=1898|publisher=Unione tipografico-editrice|page=}}</ref>
** ]{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
** ]
** {{Flagicon|Duchy of Parma}} ]: ], ''1893''
** {{Flagicon|Two Sicilies}} ]: ]
* {{Flag|Sovereign Military Order of Malta}}: ]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kingsimeon.bg/wp-content/gallery/gallery-106/gallery-106_034.jpg|website=kingsimeon.bg|title=Image|access-date=10 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kingsimeon.bg/en/2013/02/tehni-velichestva-prisastvaha-v-rim-na/|title=The Majesties attended the celebrations of the 900th anniversary of the Sovereign Order of Malta|work=The Majesties attended the celebrations of the 900th anniversary of the Sovereign Order of Malta - H.R.H. King Simeon II}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kingsimeon.bg/en/2011/06/tsarskoto-semejstvo-be-gost-na-priema-v/|title=The Royal family attended the reception on the occasion of the Day of St. John the Baptist, patron of the Order of Malta|work=The Royal family attended the reception on the occasion of the Day of St. John the Baptist, patron of the Order of Malta - H.R.H. King Simeon II}}</ref>
* {{flag|Monaco}}: ], ''11 May 1892''<ref>{{cite web|language=fr|title=Journal de Monaco|date=31 May 1892|url=https://journaldemonaco.gouv.mc/var/jdm/storage/original/application/f8c27457cde022d0eb3a65e2e04c728d.pdf}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Portugal}} ]:<ref name="Agraciamentos">{{cite journal|last1=Bragança |first1=Jose Vicente de|date=2014 |title=Agraciamentos Portugueses Aos Príncipes da Casa Saxe-Coburgo-Gota |url=https://www.academia.edu/10576008 |language=pt|trans-title=Portuguese Honours awarded to Princes of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|journal=Pro Phalaris |volume=9-10 |page=9 |access-date=28 November 2019 }}</ref>
** Grand Cross of the ], ''17 July 1886''
** ], ''17 July 1886''
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Prussia}} ]:
** ], with Collar, ''2 May 1896''<ref>{{citation|title=Königlich Preussische Ordensliste|chapter-url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015025921423&view=1up&seq=5&skin=2021|page=|language=German|chapter=Rother Adler-orden|location=Berlin|year=1895}}</ref>
** ], with Collar{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
** ] (1914), 2nd and 1st Classes{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
** ] (military), with Oak Leaves, ''8 September 1916''<ref>{{cite web|title=Foreign Pour le Mérite Awards: Foreign Awards During World War I|url=https://pourlemerite.org/|website=pourlemerite.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031062935/https://pourlemerite.org/|access-date=12 August 2020|archive-date=2019-10-31}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Kingdom of Romania}} ]: Collar of the ]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://familiaregala.ro/ordine-si-decoratii/ordinul-carol-i |title=Ordinul Carol I |website=] |location=Bucharest |language=ro |trans-title=Order of Carol I |access-date=17 October 2019}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Russian Empire}} ]:
** ], with Collar, ''1907''<ref>{{cite book|author=Sergey Semenovich Levin|title=Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-called (1699-1917). Order of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine (1714-1917)|year=2003|chapter=Lists of Knights and Ladies|location=Moscow}}</ref>
** ], ''10 February 1910''<ref>{{cite web|author=Alexei Popovkin|url=https://ruskline.ru/analitika/2012/08/27/neoslavistskoe_dvizhenie/|title=Visits of the Slavic Monarchs to Russia|year=2012|language=ru|access-date=7 April 2020}}</ref>
** ]
** ], 1st Class
** ], 1st Class
* {{flagicon|Restoration (Spain)}} ]: Grand Commander of the ]{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
* {{flag|Sweden}}: ], with Collar, ''28 June 1937''<ref>{{citation|title=Sveriges statskalender|year=1940|pages=903–904|url=https://runeberg.org/statskal/1940bih/0008.html|via=runeberg.org|access-date=2018-01-06|language=sv}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} ]:
** ] in Diamonds, ''26 March 1896''<ref>{{cite book | last = Kumanov | first = Milen | title = Bulgarian-Turkish relations during the First World War (1914 – 1918) – A collection of documents |language= bg | publisher = Gutenberg | location = Sofia | year = 2015 | edition = 2 | url = http://archives.bg/wars/books/f/Balgaro_turski_otnosheniya.pdf | isbn = 978-619-176-034-3 | page = 516}}</ref>
** Exalted Order of Honour, ''1915''
* {{flagcountry|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland}}:
** ], ''1897''
** Honorary Grand Cross of the ], ''6 September 1904''<ref name=p430>Shaw, Wm. A. (1906) ''The Knights of England'', '''I''', London, </ref>
** ] (civil), ''7 March 1905''<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=27774|page=2012|date=14 March 1905}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Württemberg}} ]: Grand Cross of the ]{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}
}}


=== Honorary military appointments ===
==Exile and death==
]
After his abdication, Ferdinand returned to live in ], Germany. He had managed to salvage much of his fortune and was able to live in some style.<ref name="Aronson201">], p 201</ref> He saw his being in exile simply as one of the hazards of kingship.<ref name="Aronson201"/> He commented, "Kings in exile are more philosophic under reverses than ordinary individuals; but our philosophy is primarily the result of tradition and breeding, and do not forget that pride is an important item in the making of a monarch. We are disciplined from the day of our birth and taught the avoidance of all outward signs of emotion. The skeleton sits forever with us at the feast. It may mean murder, it may mean abdication, but it serves always to remind us of the unexpected. Therefore we are prepared and nothing comes in the nature of a catastrophe. The main thing in life is to support any condition of bodily or spiritual exile with dignity. If one sups with sorrow, one need not invite the world to see you eat."<ref name="Aronson175">], p 175</ref> He was pleased that the throne could pass to his son. Ferdinand was not displeased with exile and spent most of his time devoted to artistic endeavors, gardening, travel and natural history. However, he would live to see the collapse of everything he had held to be precious in life.<ref name="Aronson175"/> His eldest son and successor, ], died under mysterious circumstances after returning from a visit to Hitler in Germany in 1943. Boris III's son, ], succeeded him only to be deposed in 1946, ending the Bulgarian monarchy. The Kingdom of Bulgaria was succeeded by the ], under which his sole surviving son, ], was executed. On hearing of his son's death he said, "Everything is collapsing around me."<ref name="Aronson202">], p 202</ref> He died a broken man in Bürglaß-Schlösschen on 10 September 1948 in ], Germany, cradle of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty. His final wish was to be buried in Bulgaria, and for this reason his coffin was temporarily placed in the crypt of St. Augustin's Roman Catholic Church in Coburg, next to his mother's and father's coffins. It could still be found there today.
* {{flag|Russian Empire}}: Colonel of the 54th Minsk Regiment, ''1902''<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Prince ferdinand at Kieff |date=27 June 1902 |page=7 |issue=36805}}</ref>


==Ancestors== ==Ancestors==
{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2022}}
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|1= 1. '''Ferdinand I of Bulgaria''' |1= 1. '''Ferdinand I of Bulgaria'''
|2= 2. ] |2= 2. ]
|3= 3. ] |3= 3. ]
|4= 4. ] |4= 4. ]
|5= 5. ] |5= 5. ]
|6= 6. ] |6= 6. ]
|7= 7. ] |7= 7. ]
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|10= 10. ] |10= 10. ]
|11= 11. ] |11= 11. ]
|12= 12. ] |12= 12. ]
|13= 13. ] |13= 13. ]
|14= 14. ] |14= 14. ]
|15= 15. ] |15= 15. ]
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|16= 16. ]
|17= 17. ]
|18= 18. ]
|19= 19. ]
|20= 20. Ignaz Koháry de Csábrág
|21= 21. Maria Anna von Cavriani
|22= 22. Georg Christian von Waldstein-Wartenberg
|23= 23. Elisabeth von Ulfeldt
|24= 24. ]
|25= 25. ]
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|27= 27. ]
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== See also ==
==Decorations and awards==
{{Italian|Ferdinando I di Bulgaria}}
Grand Master of the following Bulgarian Orders:
* ] * ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]

Also a member of the following foreign orders:
* Knight of the ] (Austria)
* Knight of the Supreme ] (Kingdom of Italy)
* Knight of the ] (German Empire)
* Knight of the ] (Sweden)
* Knight of the ] (Russian Empire)
* ], 1st class (Russian Empire)
* Knight of the Imperial ] (Russian Empire)
* ], 1st class (Russian Empire)
* ]
* Knight Grand Cross of the ] (Austria-Hungary)
* Knight Grand Cross of the Royal ] (Austro-Hungarian Empire)
* Knight Grand Cross of the ] (Kingdom of Bavaria)
* Knight Grand Cross of the ]
* ] (German Empire)
* Grand Officer of the ] (France)
* ] of 1914, 1st and 2nd class (German Empire)
* ], 3rd class with war decorations (Austrian Empire)


==References== ==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=33em}} {{Reflist|colwidth=33em}}
==Notes==

{{notelist}}
==External links==
*
*


==Books== ==Books==
*{{cite book * {{cite book
| last = Aronson | last = Aronson
| first = Theo | first = Theo
| authorlink = Theo Aronson | author-link = Theo Aronson
| coauthors =
| title = Crowns In Conflict: The Triumph And The Tragedy Of European Monarchy, 1910–1918 | title = Crowns In Conflict: The Triumph And The Tragedy Of European Monarchy, 1910–1918
| publisher = ] | publisher = ]
| year= 1986 | year= 1986
| location = London | location = London
| pages =
| url =
| doi =
| isbn = 0-7195-4279-0 | isbn = 0-7195-4279-0
| ref=Aronson1986}} | ref=Aronson1986}}
*{{cite book * {{cite book
| last = Finestone | last = Constant
| first = Jeffrey | first = Stephen
| title = Foxy Ferdinand, 1861–1948, Tsar of Bulgaria
| authorlink = Jeffrey Finestone
| publisher = ]
| coauthors =
| year= 1986
| title = The Last Courts of Europe
| publisher = ]
| year= 1981
| location = London | location = London
| pages = | isbn = 0-283-98515-1
| url = | ref=Constant1986}}
* {{cite book
| doi =
| isbn = 0-460-04519-9
| ref=Finestone1981}}
*{{cite book
| last = Louda | last = Louda
| first = Jiri | first = Jiri
| authorlink = Jiri Louda | author-link = Jiri Louda
| coauthors = Michael Maclagan |author2=Michael Maclagan
| title = Lines of Succession | title = Lines of Succession
| publisher = ] | publisher = ]
| year= 1981 | year= 1981
| location = London | location = London
| pages =
| url =
| doi =
| isbn = 0-460-04519-9 | isbn = 0-460-04519-9
| ref=Louda1981}} | ref=Louda1981}}
*{{cite book * {{cite book
| last = Constant | last = Massie
| first = Stephen | first = Robert K
| authorlink = Stephen Constant | author-link = Robert K. Massie
| title = The Last Courts of Europe
| coauthors =
| publisher = ]
| title = Foxy Ferdinand, 1861–1948, Tsar of Bulgaria
| year= 1981
| publisher = ]
| year= 1986
| location = London | location = London
| pages = | isbn = 0-460-04519-9
| url = | ref=Finestone1981}}
* {{cite book
| doi =
| isbn = 0-283-98515-1
| ref=Constant1986}}
*{{cite book
| last = Palmer | last = Palmer
| first = Alan | first = Alan
| authorlink = Alan Palmer | author-link = Alan Palmer
| coauthors =
| title = The Kaiser: Warlord Of The Second Reich | title = The Kaiser: Warlord Of The Second Reich
| publisher = ] | publisher = ]
| year= 1978 | year= 1978
| location = London | location = London
| pages =
| url =
| doi =
| isbn = 0-297-77393-3 | isbn = 0-297-77393-3
| ref=Palmer1978}} | ref=Palmer1978}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Ferdinand I of Bulgaria}}
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Ferdinand I of Bulgaria}}
*
* {{PM20|FID=pe/005090}}


{{S-start}} {{S-start}}
{{s-hou|]|26 February|1861|10 September|1948|]}} {{s-hou|]|26 February|1861|10 September|1948|]}}
{{s-reg}} {{s-reg}}
{{s-bef|before=]}} {{s-bef|before=]}}
{{s-ttl|title=]|years=7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908}} {{s-ttl|title=]|years=7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908}}
{{s-non|reason=]|reason2=Bulgarian independence<br/>from ]}} {{s-non|reason=Proclaimed tsar|reason2=''De jure'' independence}}
|-
{{s-new|reason=] elevated<br/>to ]}}
{{s-vac|reason=Ottoman rule|last=]}}
{{s-ttl|title=]|years=5 October 1908 – 3 October 1918}}
{{s-aft|after=]}} {{s-ttl|title=]|years=5 October 1908 – 3 October 1918}}
{{s-aft|after=]}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef|before=]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Governor-general of ]|years=7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908}}
{{s-non|reason=Proclaimed tsar|reason2=Bulgarian independence}}
{{S-end}} {{S-end}}


{{Bulgarian monarchs}} {{Bulgarian monarchs}}
{{Bulgarian princes}}
{{Princes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha}} {{Princes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha}}
{{Bulgaria in World War I}}
{{Authority control}}


{{commons category|Ferdinand I of Bulgaria}}

{{Persondata
|NAME=Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=
|birth_date= 26 February 1861
|birth_place= ], ]
|death_date=10 September 1948
|death_place= ], ]
|DATE OF BIRTH= 26 February 1861
|DATE OF DEATH= 10 September 1948
|PLACE OF BIRTH= ], ]
|PLACE OF DEATH= ], ]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferdinand 01 Of Bulgaria}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferdinand 01 Of Bulgaria}}
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Latest revision as of 18:02, 6 January 2025

Prince/Tsar of Bulgaria from 1887 to 1918

Ferdinand I
Фердинанд I
Ferdinand I in 1912
Tsar of Bulgaria
Reign5 October 1908 – 3 October 1918
PredecessorHimself (as Prince)
SuccessorBoris III
Prince of Bulgaria
Reign7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908
PredecessorAlexander
SuccessorHimself (as Tsar)
Born26 February 1861
Vienna, Austrian Empire
Died10 September 1948(1948-09-10) (aged 87)
Coburg, Germany
Burial
Spouses
Issue
Names
German: Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria
HouseSaxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry
FatherPrince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
MotherPrincess Clémentine of Orléans
ReligionCatholic
Signature
Ferdinand in Bulgarian Field Marshal's uniform 1941

Ferdinand I (Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria; 26 February 1861 – 10 September 1948) was Prince of Bulgaria from 1887 to 1908 and Tsar of Bulgaria from 1908 until his abdication in 1918. Under his rule, Bulgaria entered the First World War on the side of the Central Powers in 1915.

Family background

See also: Bulgarian royal family

Ferdinand was born on 26 February 1861 in Vienna, a German prince of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry. He was the son of Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and his wife Clémentine of Orléans, daughter of King Louis Philippe I of the French. Princess Maria Antonia Koháry was a Hungarian Noble and heiress who married Ferdinand's grandfather, Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Ferdinand was raised in his parents’ Catholic faith and baptised in St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna on 27 February, having as godparents Archduke Maximilian of Austria and his wife Princess Charlotte of Belgium. He grew up in the cosmopolitan environment of Austro-Hungarian high nobility and also in their ancestral lands in Hungary and in Germany. The House of Koháry descended from an immensely wealthy Upper Hungarian noble family, who held the princely lands of Čabraď and Sitno in present-day Slovakia, among others. The family's property was augmented by Clémentine of Orléans' remarkable dowry.

Ferdinand was a grandnephew of Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and of Leopold I, first king of the Belgians. His father August was a brother of King Ferdinand II of Portugal, and also a first cousin to Queen Victoria, her husband Albert, Empress Carlota of Mexico and her brother Leopold II of Belgium. These last two, Leopold and Carlota, were also first cousins of Ferdinand I's through his mother, a princess of Orléans. This made the Belgian siblings his first cousins, as well as his first cousins once removed. Indeed, the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had contrived to occupy, either by marriage or by direct election, several European thrones in the course of the 19th century. Following the family trend, Ferdinand was himself to found the royal dynasty of Bulgaria.

Prince of Bulgaria

The Nine Sovereigns at Windsor for the funeral of King Edward VII, photographed on 20 May 1910. Standing, from left to right: King Haakon VII of Norway, Tsar Ferdinand of the Bulgarians, King Manuel II of Portugal and the Algarve, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and Prussia, King George I of the Hellenes and King Albert I of the Belgians. Seated, from left to right: King Alfonso XIII of Spain, King George V of the United Kingdom and King Frederick VIII of Denmark.

The previous ruling prince of Bulgaria, Alexander of Battenberg, had abdicated in 1886 after a pro-Russian coup, only seven years after he had been elected. Ferdinand, who was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian army, was elected Prince of autonomous Bulgaria by its Grand National Assembly on 7 July 1887 in the Gregorian calendar (the "New Style" used hereinafter). The throne had been previously offered, before Ferdinand's acceptance, to princes from Denmark to the Caucasus and even to the King of Romania. The Russian tsar himself had nominated his aide, Nichols Dadian of Mingrelia, but his candidacy was rejected by the Bulgarians. Ferdinand's accession was greeted with disbelief in many of the royal houses of Europe; Queen Victoria, his father's first cousin, stated to her prime minister, "He is totally unfit ... delicate, eccentric and effeminate ... Should be stopped at once." To the amazement of his initial detractors, Ferdinand generally made a good account of himself during the first two decades of his reign.

Bulgaria's domestic political life was dominated during the early years of Ferdinand's reign by liberal party leader Stefan Stambolov, whose foreign policy saw a marked cooling in relations with Russia, formerly seen as Bulgaria's protector.

Stambolov's fall (May 1894) and subsequent assassination (July 1895) - probably not engineered by Ferdinand - paved the way for a reconciliation of Bulgaria with Russia, effected in February 1896 with Ferdinand's decision to convert his infant son, Prince Boris, from Roman Catholicism to Eastern Orthodoxy. However, this earned him the animosity of his Catholic Austrian relatives, and he was excommunicated by Pope Leo XIII.

Tsar of Bulgaria

Silver coin: 5 leva, Ferdinand I, 1894

On 5 October 1908 (celebrated on 22 September), Ferdinand proclaimed Bulgaria's de jure independence from the Ottoman Empire (though the country had been de facto independent since 1878). He also proclaimed Bulgaria a kingdom, and assumed the title of tsar—a deliberate nod to the rulers of the earlier Bulgarian states. However, while the title tsar was translated as "emperor" in the First and Second Bulgarian empires, it was translated as "king" under Ferdinand and his successors. The Bulgarian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed by him at the Holy Forty Martyrs Church in Tarnovo, and was recognized by the Ottoman Empire and the other European powers. The Tarnovo Constitution was retained, with the word "prince" replaced by the word "tsar."

On a visit to German Emperor Wilhelm II, his second cousin once removed, in 1909, Ferdinand was leaning out of a window of the New Palace in Potsdam when the Emperor came up behind him and slapped him on the bottom. Ferdinand was affronted by the gesture, but the Kaiser refused to apologize. Ferdinand however exacted his revenge by awarding a valuable arms contract he had intended to give to the Krupp's factory in Essen to French arms manufacturer Schneider-Creusot. Another incident occurred on his journey to the funeral of his second cousin King Edward VII of the United Kingdom in 1910. A tussle broke out over where his private railway carriage would be positioned in relation to the heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The Archduke won out, having his carriage positioned directly behind the engine. Ferdinand's was placed directly behind his. Realising the dining car of the train was behind his own carriage, Ferdinand obtained his revenge on the Archduke by refusing him passage through his own carriage to the dining car. On 15 July the same year during a visit to Belgium, Ferdinand also became the first head of state to fly in an airplane. He awarded the pilot of the plane with a medal when they landed.

Balkan Wars (1912–1913)

Main article: Balkan Wars

Like many other rulers before him, Ferdinand desired the creation of a "new Byzantium", a desire that has to be interpreted as wanting to create a significant, essentially Christian, Balkan power, given that Bulgaria and Bulgarians had neither cultural, ethnic, historical nor linguistic affinity with the old Byzantine Empire, which was quintessentially Roman and, evolving through the centuries, Greek. In 1912, Ferdinand joined the other Balkan states in an assault on the Ottoman Empire to free occupied territories. He saw this war as a new crusade declaring it, "a just, great and sacred struggle of the Cross against the Crescent." Bulgaria contributed the most and also lost the greatest number of soldiers. The Great Powers insisted on the creation of an independent Albania. Though the Balkan League allies had fought together against the common enemy in the First Balkan War, that was not enough to overcome their mutual rivalries. In the original documents for the Balkan League, Serbia had been pressured by Bulgaria to hand over most of Vardar Macedonia after it had conquered it from the Ottoman Empire. However Serbia, in response to the new Albanian state receiving territory in the north that it had expected to gain for itself, said that it would keep possession of the areas that its forces had occupied. Soon after, Bulgaria began the Second Balkan War when it invaded its recent allies Serbia and Greece to seize disputed areas, before being attacked itself by Romania and the Ottoman Empire. Although Bulgaria was defeated, the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest granted the Kingdom some territorial gains. The region of Western Thrace, giving access to the Aegean Sea was secured.

First World War and abdication (1915–1918)

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Main article: Bulgaria during World War I
Emperor Wilhelm and Tsar Ferdinand in Sofia, 1916

On 11 October 1915, the Bulgarian army attacked Serbia after signing a treaty with Austria-Hungary and Germany stating that Bulgaria would gain the territory it sought at the expense of Serbia. While he was not an admirer of German Emperor Wilhelm II or Austrian Emperor Franz Josef I—whom he described as "that idiot, that old dotard of a Francis Joseph".—Ferdinand wanted additional territorial gains after the humiliation of the Balkan Wars. This also entailed forming an alliance with his former enemy, the Ottoman Empire. This ranging of his country with the Central Powers made him a de facto supporter of Germany's war aims and was not well received by the Allies. Edmund Gosse wrote:

“In this war, where the ranks of the enemy present to us so many formidable, sinister, and shocking figures, there is one, and perhaps but one, which is purely ridiculous. If we had the heart to relieve our strained feelings by laughter, it would be at the gross Coburg traitor, with his bodyguard of assassins and his hidden coat-of-mail, his shaking hands and his painted face. The world has never seen a meaner scoundrel, and we may almost bring ourselves to pity the Kaiser, whom circumstances have forced to accept on equal terms a potentate so verminous.”

During the initial phase of World War I, the Tsardom of Bulgaria achieved several decisive victories over its enemies and laid claim to the disputed territories of Macedonia after Serbia's defeat. For the next two years, the Bulgarian army shifted its focus towards repelling Allied advances from nearby Greece. They were also partially involved in the 1916 conquest of neighboring Romania, now ruled by another Ferdinand I, who was also Ferdinand's first cousin once removed.

To save the Bulgarian monarchy after multiple military setbacks in 1918, Tsar Ferdinand abdicated in favour of his eldest son, who became Tsar Boris III on 3 October 1918. Under new leadership, Bulgaria surrendered to the Entente and, as a consequence, lost not only the additional territory it had fought for in the major conflict, but also the territory it had won after the Balkan Wars giving access to the Aegean Sea.

Personal life

WWI-era portrait of Ferdinand I

Ferdinand married Princess Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Parma and Princess Maria Pia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, on 20 April 1893 at the Villa Pianore in Lucca. Steven Constant describes this as a "marriage of convenience". The marriage produced four children:

Marie Louise died on 31 January 1899 after giving birth to her youngest daughter. Ferdinand did not think about remarriage until his mother, Princess Clémentine, died in 1907. To satisfy dynastic obligations and to provide his children with a mother figure, Ferdinand married Princess Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz, on 28 February 1908. Neither romantic love or physical attraction played any role, and Ferdinand treated her as no more than a member of the household, and showed scant regard.

In his private relations, Ferdinand was a somewhat hedonistic individual. He enjoyed affairs with a number of women of humble position, siring a number of illegitimate children whom he then supported financially. In his later life, rumours abounded of Ferdinand's trysts with lieutenants and valets. His regular holidays on Capri, then a popular holiday destination with wealthy epicenes, were common knowledge in royal courts throughout Europe.

He was remembered in his cousin's memoir: "Prince Ferdinand, who was a Coburg, was a cousin of my father’s, and I remember the latter saying, when we got back to the hotel, that being the youngest of his family he was naturally looked upon as a fool, “ But,” said my father, “ for the fool of the family he has not done so badly for himself and I should not be surprised if he did not prove them all to be wrong.” He was always mocked at by his relations for covering himself with orders and decorations created by himself, and he was rudely nicknamed “ the Christmas-tree,”"

Exile and death (1918–1948)

After his abdication, Ferdinand returned to live in Coburg, Germany. He had managed to salvage much of his fortune and was able to live in some style. He saw his being in exile simply as one of the hazards of kingship. He commented, "Kings in exile are more philosophic under reverses than ordinary individuals; but our philosophy is primarily the result of tradition and breeding, and do not forget that pride is an important item in the making of a monarch. We are disciplined from the day of our birth and taught the avoidance of all outward signs of emotion. The skeleton sits forever with us at the feast. It may mean murder, it may mean abdication, but it serves always to remind us of the unexpected. Therefore we are prepared and nothing comes in the nature of a catastrophe. The main thing in life is to support any condition of bodily or spiritual exile with dignity. If one sups with sorrow, one need not invite the world to see you eat." He was pleased that the throne could pass to his son. Ferdinand was not displeased with exile and spent much of his time devoted to artistic endeavors, gardening, travel and natural history. In 1922 the Bulgarian government gave former King Ferdinand I, who had been living in exile since 1918, permission to return to Sofia. The Kingdom of Yugoslavia immediately sent an ultimatum objecting to the move.

However, he would live to see the collapse of everything he had held to be precious in life. His eldest son and successor, Boris III, died under mysterious circumstances after returning from a visit to Hitler in Germany in 1943. Boris' son, Simeon II, succeeded him only to be deposed in 1946, ending the Bulgarian monarchy. The Kingdom of Bulgaria was succeeded by the People's Republic of Bulgaria, under which Ferdinand's other son, Kyril, was executed. On hearing of Kyril's death he said, "Everything is collapsing around me."

In 1947, Ferdinand (then 86 years old) secretly married his 26-year-old assistant Alžbeta Brezáková in Bamberg, Germany, much to the displeasure of the members of his family. After his death, she returned to her homeland Czechoslovakia, where she remarried and had a daughter. Being afraid of what the communist regime might do to her, she only told her daughter about her marriage to Ferdinand two years before her death. She survived her husband by 67 years and died in Bratislava, Slovakia in 2015.

Ferdinand died in Bürglass-Schlösschen on 10 September 1948 in Coburg, Germany, cradle of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty. He was the last surviving grandchild of Louis-Philippe of France. His final wish was to be buried in Bulgaria. However, the Communist authorities in Bulgaria would not allow it, so he was buried in the family crypt in St. Augustin, Coburg.

On 29 May 2024, the remains of Ferdinand I of Bulgaria were transported from Coburg to Sofia by a military plane, which landed at Sofia Airport. They were transported from Germany to Bulgaria by a military aircraft in accordance with the decision adopted by the Council of Ministers. The coffin was taken down and carried by national guards and solemnly placed in a hearse which left for the royal Vrana Palace on the outskirts of Sofia, where Ferdinand I was buried.

Honours

Styles of
King Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
Reference styleHis Majesty
Spoken styleYour Majesty

Bulgarian

Foreign

Arms of Ferdinand I as knight of the Austrian branch of the Order of the Golden Fleece

Honorary military appointments

General of infantry shoulder straps, сhef of 54th Minsk Infantry Regiment, 1902-1912

Ancestors

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Ancestors of Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
8. Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
4. Ferdinand, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry
9. Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf
2. Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
10. Ferenc József, Prince Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya
5. Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya
11. Countess Maria Antonia von Waldstein
1. Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
12. Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
6. Louis Philippe I of France
13. Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon
3. Princess Clémentine of Orléans
14. Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
7. Princess Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily
15. Archduchess Maria Carolina of Austria

See also

References

  1. Stephen Constant, Foxy Ferdinand, 1861-1948, Tsar of Bulgaria (Sidgwick & Jackson, 1979).
  2. Louda, 1981, Lines of Succession, Table 149
  3. Archiv der Domkirche St. Stephan, Wien, Taufbuch 1860-1865
  4. ^ Constant, Foxy Ferdinand, 1861-1948, Tsar of Bulgaria (1979).
  5. ^ Finestone, 1981, The Last Courts of Europe, p 227
  6. ^ Louda, 1981, Lines of Succession, p 297
  7. ^ Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 83
  8. Constant, pp. 159-167.
  9. Tsar at Encyclopedia Britannica
  10. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, pp 8–9
  11. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 7
  12. "King up in Aeroplane: Ferdinand of Bulgaria First Monarch to Do It – Sons Fly Also" (Adobe Acrobat). New York Times website. 16 July 1910. p. 1. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
  13. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 86
  14. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 87
  15. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 126
  16. ^ Palmer, 1978, The Kaiser, p 206
  17. Constant, 1986, ‘’Foxy Ferdinand’’, p 143
  18. Aronson, p 85.
  19. ^ Stéphane Groueff, ‘’Crown of Thorns: The Reign of King Boris III of Bulgaria, 1918-1943’’, Madison Books, 1998.
  20. Constant, Stephen Foxy Ferdinand, 1861–1948, Tsar of Bulgaria, Sidgwick and Jackson, 1979, pp. 96, 266.
  21. Gleichen, Lady Helena (1940). Contacts and Contrasts. Butler & Tanner Ltd. p. 15.
  22. ^ Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 201
  23. ^ Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 175
  24. Fendrick, Raymond (2 January 1924). "Ultimatum to Bulgars Sent by Jugo-Slavs". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 1.
  25. Aronson, 1986, Crowns In Conflict, p 202
  26. Milan Vároš (March 2015). "Dve Slovenky: Vdova Po Cisarovi a Kralovi" (PDF). matica.sk. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  27. "Mortal Remains of Bulgarian King Ferdinand I Brought to Bulgaria from Germany". Bulgarian News Agency. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  28. ^ The Grand Master of the Bulgarian Orders - official website of H.M. Simeon II
  29. State Gazette, No. 104, 21 May 1909
  30. ^ "Ritter-Orden", Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie, 1918, pp. 51–52, 55, retrieved 2 November 2019
  31. Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreichs Bayern (1906), "Königliche-Orden" p. 8
  32. Jørgen Pedersen (2009). Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009 (in Danish). Syddansk Universitetsforlag. p. 469. ISBN 978-87-7674-434-2.
  33. Staatshandbücher für das Herzogtum Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha (1890), "Herzogliche Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden" p. 43
  34. "Ludewigs-orden", Großherzoglich Hessische Ordensliste (in German), Darmstadt: Staatsverlag, 1907, p. 8
  35. Italia : Ministero dell'interno (1898). Calendario generale del Regno d'Italia. Unione tipografico-editrice. p. 54.
  36. "Image". kingsimeon.bg. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  37. "The Majesties attended the celebrations of the 900th anniversary of the Sovereign Order of Malta". The Majesties attended the celebrations of the 900th anniversary of the Sovereign Order of Malta - H.R.H. King Simeon II.
  38. "The Royal family attended the reception on the occasion of the Day of St. John the Baptist, patron of the Order of Malta". The Royal family attended the reception on the occasion of the Day of St. John the Baptist, patron of the Order of Malta - H.R.H. King Simeon II.
  39. "Journal de Monaco" (PDF) (in French). 31 May 1892.
  40. Bragança, Jose Vicente de (2014). "Agraciamentos Portugueses Aos Príncipes da Casa Saxe-Coburgo-Gota" [Portuguese Honours awarded to Princes of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]. Pro Phalaris (in Portuguese). 9–10: 9. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
  41. "Rother Adler-orden", Königlich Preussische Ordensliste (in German), Berlin, 1895, p. 7{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  42. "Foreign Pour le Mérite Awards: Foreign Awards During World War I". pourlemerite.org. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  43. "Ordinul Carol I" [Order of Carol I]. Familia Regală a României (in Romanian). Bucharest. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  44. Sergey Semenovich Levin (2003). "Lists of Knights and Ladies". Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-called (1699-1917). Order of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine (1714-1917). Moscow.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  45. Alexei Popovkin (2012). "Visits of the Slavic Monarchs to Russia" (in Russian). Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  46. Sveriges statskalender (in Swedish), 1940, pp. 903–904, retrieved 6 January 2018 – via runeberg.org
  47. Kumanov, Milen (2015). Bulgarian-Turkish relations during the First World War (1914 – 1918) – A collection of documents (PDF) (in Bulgarian) (2 ed.). Sofia: Gutenberg. p. 516. ISBN 978-619-176-034-3.
  48. Shaw, Wm. A. (1906) The Knights of England, I, London, p. 430
  49. "No. 27774". The London Gazette. 14 March 1905. p. 2012.
  50. "Prince ferdinand at Kieff". The Times. No. 36805. London. 27 June 1902. p. 7.

Notes

  1. Germany was under Allied occupation at the time of Ferdinand's death.

Books

External links

Ferdinand I of Bulgaria House of Saxe-Coburg and GothaCadet branch of the House of WettinBorn: 26 February 1861 Died: 10 September 1948
Regnal titles
Preceded byAlexander Prince of Bulgaria
7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908 		Proclaimed tsar
De jure independence
VacantOttoman ruleTitle last held byConstantine II Tsar of Bulgaria
5 October 1908 – 3 October 1918 		Succeeded byBoris III
Political offices
Preceded byAlexander Governor-general of Eastern Rumelia
7 July 1887 – 5 October 1908 		Proclaimed tsar
Bulgarian independence
Bulgarian monarchs
First Empire (680–1018)
Rebels against the Byzantines
Second Empire (1185–1422)
Rebels against the Ottomans
Principality (1878–1908) and
Kingdom (1908–1946)
Bulgarian princes
Forefather
1st generation
2nd generation
3rd generation
4th generation
See also House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Princes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
ForefatherDuke Francis I*
1st generation
2nd generation
Ducal
Koháry
Belgium
3rd generation
United Kingdom
Portugal
Koháry
Belgium
4th generation
United Kingdom
Portugal
Koháry
Bulgaria
Belgium
5th generation
United Kingdom
Ducal
Portugal
Koháry
Bulgaria
Belgium
6th generation
Ducal
Koháry
Bulgaria
Belgium
7th generation
DucalPrince Hubertus
KoháryPrince Johannes
Bulgaria
Belgium
*Titled as Princes of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld before 11 February 1826
Bulgaria during World War I
Prelude South-western front
Serbian campaign, Macedonian front 		Romanian front • Outcome • Others Important persons
Balkan Wars

1912–1913

1913

Neutrality

1914

1915

Commanders

 Bulgaria

Nikola Zhekov • Kliment Boyadzhiev • Dimitar Geshov • Georgi Todorov • Ivan Lukov • Stefan Nerezov • Vladimir Vazov

Entente:

 Serbia: Radomir Putnik • Živojin Mišić • Stepa Stepanović • Petar Bojović • Pavle Jurišić Šturm;
 France: Maurice Sarrail • Adolphe Guillaumat • Louis Franchet d'Espèrey;
 United Kingdom: Bryan Mahon • George Milne;
 Kingdom of Greece: Panagiotis Danglis

Field Armies Battles

1915

Morava Offensive • Ovče Pole Offensive • Kosovo offensive (1915) • Battle of Krivolak

1916

First battle of Doiran • Battle of Florina (Lerin) • Struma operation • Monastir offensive

1917

Second battle of Doiran • 2nd Crna Bend • Second battle of Monastir

1918

Battle of Skra-di-Legen • Battle of Dobro Pole • Third battle of Doiran

Commanders

 Bulgaria

Nikola Zhekov • Panteley Kiselov • Stefan Toshev • Todor Kantardzhiev • Ivan Kolev

Entente:

 Romania: Constantin Prezan • Alexandru Averescu;
 Russia: Andrei Zayonchkovski • Vladimir Sakharov

Field Armies Battles

1916

Battle of Turtucaia • Battle of Bazargic • First Cobadin • Flămânda Offensive • Second Cobadin • Battle of Bucharest

Outcome

1918 Treaty of Brest-Litovsk • Armistice of Focșani • Treaty of Bucharest • Protocol of Berlin

Outcome

Others

Categories:
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