Today’s Observances: August 2

The world:
– North Macedonia: National DayDay of the Republic.
On this date in Bulgarian history:
1887: At 3rd Grand National Assembly, Prince Ferdinand I (elected Bulgarian monarch on June 25, 1887 after August 26, 1886 abdication of Prince Alexander I) takes oath of allegiance to Constitution of Principality of Bulgaria (a.k.a. Tarnovo Constitution, Bulgaria’s first constitution). Abdicated October 3, 1918. 
1889: Princely Museum of Natural History established in Sofia, initially housing Prince Ferdinand’s personal collections of birds, mammals and butterflies. Transferred to Institute of Zoology of Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) in 1947. Becomes stand-alone National Museum of Natural History under BAS in 1974. 1891: (Old Style July 20) Bulgarian Social Democratic Party (BSDP) holds its founding congress on Bouzloudja Peak in Central Balkan Range. BSDP was forerunner of Bulgarian Communist Party (named so in 1948), which governed country between 1944 and 1989, and of present-day Bulgarian Socialist Party (since 1990).
1903: (Old Style July 20) Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising breaks out, intended to liberate Bulgarian population in Macedonia and Eastern Thrace left within Ottoman Empire under July 13, 1878 Treaty of Berlin. In nearly 240 battles, some 25,000 insurgents fight with 350,000 Turkish regular troops and bashi-bazouk. Two hundred and five villages are burnt, more than 70,000 people are left homeless. Over 5,000 are killed. Some 30,000 are forced to flee, most of them find refuge in Bulgaria. Uprising is called off by its organizers on October 2 (Old Style October 19), 1903.
1974: Diplomatic relations established with Venezuela.
1988: Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Yak-40 airliner crashes into Iskar River shortly after taking off from Sofia, bound for Varna (on Black Sea). Twenty-eight passengers are killed in accident and another nine are injured.
2006: Diplomatic relations established with Montenegro at embassy level.
2014: Torrential rains cause major flooding in town of Mizia (Northwestern Bulgaria), killing two persons, inundating hundreds of homes and destroying dozens of buildings. Over 800 people are evacuated.

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