Why did Bulgaria join the axis? (Short Animated Documentary)

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In this episode we'll discuss why Bulgaria opted to join the axis. Spoiler: it's because they didn't want to get Yugoslavia'd.
Sources:
A Concise History of Bulgaria (2nd ed.) by R. J. Crampton.
Sofia was bombed? Bulgaria's Forgotten War with the Allies by Irina Gigova in History and Memory, Vol. 23 (2011).

[@thomaswilson3827]

Bulgaria: the only axis member to gain territory in the peace conference.

[@angusfangus1136]

Bulgaria gain territories , and Hungary not lose territories .

[@a2falcone]

Not really. They gained that territory before entering the war, and they gained it from a country that was also on the loosing side, so there was nothing to discuss about it in peace conferences.

[@brm5844]

@my mom is your name by any chance Joe?

[@uncleflagzz]

And Romania gained North Transylvania from Hungary, actually Bulgaria is the only Axis member to KEEP its territories before the war. Because South Drobudja was Bulgarian territory before the war.

[@FBIAGENT725]

@@a2falcone germany got austria and czechoslovakia before ww2 and they lost it after

[@171Mirza]

"...and also to end Yugoslvia, because why not?" Hahah

[@mdza]

Actually Hitler planned to go through Yugoslavia first, the King of Yugoslavia signed the treaty but the army withdrew the signature and the Germans were not allowed to pass.

[@saladbruh2625]

Nah nah bois ,lets just skip complicated relationship between Germany and Yugoslavia during 1941 and just say "because why not"..... *My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined*

[@LZin-uk5nh]

My exact thinking when doing "fate of yugoslavia" in hoi4.

[@171Mirza]

@@saladbruh2625 I know, I'm from Bosnia...

[@arianmartic7965]

@@saladbruh2625 We always get fucked by someone, by invaders or by ourselfs.

[@TheGreatCooLite]

Hitler: Hey, I’m going to march troops through you to get to Greece, so either join us or, you know, be invaded

[@bobo5580]

Goteem

[@phenomenalone7134]

oversimplified

[@TheGreatCooLite]

@@phenomenalone7134 yep

[@terrypennington2519]

Bulgaria opted to join them and Yugoslavia opted to get invaded

[@matthiascorvinus8843]

Then Greece fell to the joint German-Italian invasion.

[@gagetolinwrites6845]

Do you ever notice how most of the "lesser" Axis powers just didn't really have a choice? It was either be invaded by Nazis or be invaded by Soviets

[@yuvalshalgi2289]

@Andrej Yugoslavia was in the same position, they refused to join, and then they were conquered.

[@BjornHeiden]

@@yuvalshalgi2289 They joined at first, the reason they were invaded was because of a pro British coup and a major rise in communism following it.

[@mastrorick]

They could always join the allies and get invaded by both

[@BjornHeiden]

@@mastrorick Joining the allies never went well (Greece, Yugoslavia)

[@someguy7723]

@@mastrorick Poland tired that. They dont recomend it

[@jj52071]

Germany: Please help invade the soviet union Bulgaria: I dont think i will

[@dafrigg4745]

You forgot the no

[@jj52071]

@@dafrigg4745 i dont think i will

[@Daniel-kq4bx]

@Jonathan Williams i think Boris probably hated his life

[@trayanaz3530]

Boris the 3rd got killed over that so you know one of the most consequential memeings ever. OK its a bit more complicated nobody knows who poisoned him or if precisely he was poisoned but man died from a stomach complications a week after visiting Hitler and refusing for a 3rd time to send Bulgarian troops to fight in Russia. But you know let me dream

[@SyntheticParanoia]

@@Daniel-kq4bx ... aaaaaaand you got poisoned.

[@thomasturner6980]

If germany allied with Luxembourg then they would have definitely won the war

[@yourethatmantis5178]

Luxembourg is pretty meh. Lichtenstein though, when they send troops they come back with more men than they sent.

[@joanignasi91]

Yes our army can defeat any power! Except for that time we lost to a bunch of drunk English football hooligans in 1983 noone can stand in our way!

[@someoneonearth1617]

Metal Wolf English football tea. Edit: I meant team but as a Brit I can say the mistake was honestly better than team.

[@conversationtosaurusrex]

@Christian VII idk how to respond to that

[@viro8683]

The great Luxembourg Empire made the descisive killing blow to the Nazis.

[@BromTeque]

Even though it's shown in the "ended pretty poorly for Bulgario though" map, did you forget to mention that Bulgaria got to keep Southern Dobruja. I feel this is something you should've mentioned as Bulgaria was the only axis member to actually gain territory after WW2.

[@Martoto94]

Technically, Romania also gained more land than it had under the Axis. It got the entirety of northern Transylvania back from the Hungarians.

[@BromTeque]

Mart kenyon I mean more net gain. Romania had a net loss of land pre vs post war. Bulgaria was the only axis member with a net positive land gain pre vs post war.

[@BulgarianFan]

Technically that's not true because Bulgaria got Dobruja (September 1940) before officially joining the axis (March 1941). So it's more accurate to say that Bulgaria did not lose any pre-war territory.

[@BromTeque]

BulgarianFan What do you mean technically not true? It’s absolutely technically true. I didn’t mention anything about when they got the territory and it’s not relevent. They are still the only axis member to have a net gain in land pre vs post ww2.

[@kalyka98]

They ended up being an extremly poor puppet completely dependent from the soviets, they still are among the poorest in europe so i don't think that land gain gave any advantage to Bulgaria, they were not feared that's all

[@AndrewPonti]

"Czars and communism don't mix" - Understatement of the 20th century.

[@bosnianseparatist1174]

@21st century superstar Because he fled to Spain

[@Blu_Jay07]

Mladorossi would like to have a word with you

[@graterdeddly9527]

Communism doesn’t mix with anyone, rational that is.

[@graterdeddly9527]

@@lilwerner1518 Not much of a point -- communism is irrationally genocidal by practice, and no, that wouldn't mix with the Holy Roman Empire.

[@addiction4062]

@@graterdeddly9527 cringe

[@Tim_Morder]

You forgot to mention that Boris III died mysteriously.

[@CarlJohnsonTheCJ]

@crampus 9 not officially confirmed

[@andygf]

@@CarlJohnsonTheCJ it's official

[@CarlJohnsonTheCJ]

@@andygf it isn't

[@andygf]

@@CarlJohnsonTheCJ nope he has poisoned by Hitler 's doctor...so it's official

[@Pavelgon4ik]

@@andygf No it isn't!

[@nikolaytsankov9066]

I'm like waaaaaaay too late but I thought of a joke anyway Tsar Boris be like "All my ministers are anglophiles, my generals are germanophiles, the people - rusophiles. I think I'm the only Bulgarian in this country"

[@sirkydric1999]

*bulgarophile

[@ongamex]

Boris was german btw.

[@Synox89]

Sure you did think of it.

[@Fruzhin5483]

you forgot " my wife is italian"

[@LeLaidbackLauncher]

Which is ironic since the Bulgarian royal family was actually imported in from Austria after the nation won its Independence from the Ottomans.

[@jacobmeade1045]

So Bulgaria was forced to join them, but was against the unethical actions and didn’t actually fight anyone, but still lost. Damn feels bad

[@user-ri1gq3ec2q]

They were also bombed merciless by the allies the whole war

[@FoxyBoxery]

Well we actually gained Dobrudja in the end so its not that bad

[@nikoladoctorov553]

FUCK mate .. as a bulgarian citizen i tell you - due to the western and eastern powers our country is now the most corrupt state in the EU! When i chat with the westerners online and they tell me how their standards of living are .. damn .. you do indeed live like princes and princesses compared to almost all of us, born in this country .. probably the albanians have it worse tho, but i don't think that should be any form of relief .. tbh your western ideals don't seem to be as bad as all people around me think they are, but God help me if any of my parents, drandparents or classmates find out .. many here tend to be quite xenophobic, sadly, but i still think much of that might change in the near future i hope xd ...

[@nikoladoctorov553]

@@Whatareyoudoinnhere I am talking about statistics. Your dull way of interpreting my comment is your fault and nobody else's. Italians live better than easterners as well despite their corruption, which is still way smaller than ours so i don't see why you mention it. Besides, my comment full of nationalism? Saying "Bulgarians", "Russians", etc doesn't mean i even believe in nationalities. You cancall a man, born in east Europe an Easterner, a man born in Bulgaria "Bulgarian" etc and still not believe in the sheer existence of the countries you mention. That doesn't mean you can identify as somebody born in Greece if you are born in America for example. I am an individualist and base my opinions and judgements on the same scale. Also, as i said - i don't believe in illogical ideas, such as religions and nationalities, but i use the termins to specify people's places of birth. For example, the "westerners" are the people born in West Europe and saying that the majority of westerners live better than the majority of easterners is statistics.. Moreover, correct statistics approved by actual people who have seen both places. There isn't any nationalism or racism in that. However, despite that you are a moron, I'd agree with you that war causes pain and nationalism causes war. Every illogical idea does - religion, nationality, etc...

[@bobo5580]

@@nikoladoctorov553 that's why this massive migration is happening now, we are a little less than 7million now

[@RyanGotReal]

That kinda sounds like asking the bullied kid why did he join a street gang full of foreigners.

[@petarmitkov1056]

That's a ridiculously good description

[@Nietabs]

Good description

[@kaloyanmanchev6613]

Wow you are so right

[@OggyT]

Are you... describing Russel Peters' joke ? :D

[@arbendit4348]

@Andrej Yugoslavia has committed way more atrocities against Bulgarians in Macedonia. No, Bulgaria was in it's right to want ethnically Bulgarian land that was oppressed. And as such Bulgarians will never feel any guilt for what they did.

[@nicknameless27]

Seems worth mentioning that pretty much everyone supported Bulgarian claims to southern Dobrudja (except Romania obv), not just the Germans, hence it remained Bulgarian after the war.

[@Dourios_96]

Weren't the Bulgarians a majority in the region or am i mistaken?

[@Dourios_96]

@Dacia thanks

[@Dourios_96]

@Dacia probably not his mother language

[@Dourios_96]

@Thracian true

[@ConorMcgregor322]

@Thracian Nope, Dobrudja was mostly Romanian, it's quite clear from ethnic maps.

[@Sammie1053]

"Bulgaria joined the Axis in WWII" >:0 "Bulgaria refused to actually fight anybody or to deport its Jewish population" :)

[@dkgamers1385]

Occupied parts of Greece and Yugoslavia took all the food and starved them to death :(

[@Lyenati]

@@dkgamers1385 ;)

[@lefteris.k.680]

@@Lyenati And you are real happy about that, huh?

[@dkgamers1385]

@@Lyenati I don't hate Bulgaria I just say that it isn't innocent

[@TheTrooper1878]

@@dkgamers1385 well the occupied Yugoslavian territories were filled to the brim with bulgarians so it was just retaking old territories back. The Greek territories were taught to have a lot of Bulgarians in them, but after they counted the population it was clear that only a small part of it was still Bulgarian, because most of the people there imigrated to Bulgaria after WW1.

[@boiniq]

I will correct one thing: Treaty of Craiova (the returning of Southern Dobrudja to Bulgaria) was not only backed by Italy (like you said in the video) but in fact was approved by Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Soviet Union and to some extend by the United States.

[@InfiniteVirusS]

it should have been. Southern dobrudja is not romanian core land. I am romanian and i do not know why our king took it in the first place.

[@TheWeedIsland]

@@InfiniteVirusS What about Transylvania and Bucovina lmao

[@affentaktik2810]

@@InfiniteVirusS he took it in the second Balkan war because it was very rich 60% of all bulgarian grain was coming from southern dobruja

[@tsvetankostoff2484]

@@affentaktik2810 Neither North, nor South Dobrudja ever belonged to Romania. North Dobrudja was awarded to Romania after the Russo-Ottoman war as a compensation of the Russian occupation of South Bessarabia (Moldavia). And of course because Romania wanted to have a sea border. There was very little to no vlach population in that area at the time.

[@affentaktik2810]

Цветан Костов yes i know dobruja should be bulgarian again

[@user-eq3rs2tt5v]

> Protected the Jews > Did not participate (actively) in the invasion of the Soviet Union, nor in the war overall > Knock, knock! There is nothing for dinner! But kept Dobruja at least

[@bobo5580]

Boris never sent any Bulgarian soldiers to fight the Soviets BUT *Guess what's on the menu* it's communism

[@nodspruductionss3812]

You only genosided greeks :)

[@WILLIAN_1424]

@@nodspruductionss3812 classical

[@nodspruductionss3812]

@@Boykofan Common enemy? You meen the turkish islamists? The common enemy is much more hiden my co-cucked neighbour... hiden in plane site

[@Prussian_Defence]

@@nodspruductionss3812 and now not our country is enemy with turkey

[@catalin90vlad]

Poor Bulgaria, never did any fighting againsts soviet union but still gets invaded and became Soviet satelite

[@MisterCreeper97]

Oh, it gets much worse from there. 19th and 20th century Bulgarian history is best described as a series of heroisms and tragedies with far more lost than gained.

[@Dourios_96]

@@MisterCreeper97 actually Bulgaria was the only axis member that not only it didn't lost territory but it even gained some (southern dobruja) after WW2

[@petarmitkov1056]

@@makeromaniagreatagain9697 bruh the name is obviously Greek

[@aleksk4151]

@@Dourios_96 exactly bro! good fact

[@yarpen26]

They never minded being a satellite. Hell, Zhivkov even tried to get the country directly annexed by the USSR. Even now, Bulgarians continue to adore Russians. To them, the Turks are the reason behind their underdevelopment, not the Russians (which the Poles, Czechs, Balts, Hungarians and Romanians state).

[@apustussanmakko5610]

Since we are on the train of countries joining/fighting with the axis how about you do Finland next? In my oppinion it's the most complicated of the bunch since there was no clear pact between Finland and the axis but there was clear co-operation between the two during the Continuation War. Also the reasons that led up to it are very complex and interesting on their own.

[@jamieweir4311]

they never join the Axis though

[@noobster4779]

Finland did never join the axis. They fought their own war with the soviets and ha dmilitary aid agreements with germany (sending supplies and allowing axis soldiers to fight in finland). This is propably one of the reasons why finland got extremly lucky after their peace with athe soviets and wasnt made a communist country despite no one able to stop Stalin from forcing it to happen. Other axis members who changed sides like romania, hungary and bulgaria got a regime change included.

[@nicknameless27]

Not that complex. Finland wished to remain neutral in the German-Soviet war. Soviets assumed that Finland would enter the war on the German side, so when the Germans attacked, the Soviet started bombing Finland. And it's kinda hard to remain neutral when you're getting bombed.

[@apustussanmakko5610]

It's correct that Finland never officially joined the axis but still remained in close ties with them until right at the end when german forces were forcefully pushed out of Finland during the Lapland War. All in all Finlands situation was truly unique in the Second World War and its aftermath and it would be really cool to see it being explored in a video. (The title would have to be altered from "Why did "blank" join the axis" to something more fitting tho :D)

[@nicknameless27]

@Dwarov 1 *citation needed* Also, they invaded their own islands? How dare they?

[@lelouchvibritannia7809]

"Hitler wanted to move troops through the Bulgaria and Yugoslavia to Greece and told those countries to join the Axis or be invaded. Bulgaria opted to join the Axis. Yugoslavia opted to be invaded."

[@user-wj6dt5bq3w]

You left out the important part that the Germans passed information to Bulgaria that the Soviets had demanded to conquer Bulgaria.

[@thegaminggamer218]

I love your videos and I really enjoyed this one as I'm a Bulgarian! Much love from Bulgaria! ❤

[@dimitargeorgiev2936]

Аз супер много се изкефих ^^

[@NeoZondix]

Cyrillic frenzy! Lez goooo!

[@nikolaivanov3344]

То само тва ли е за България? Hah it's really cool to write cyrillic you guys understand me others don't. 😃🇧🇬😁

[@basketbolnatatopkanasemeis9396]

Много Българи има в коментарите.

[@Emily-5124]

U should have helped Germany

[@kaisertog7685]

Great video, Bulgaria is definitely overlooked in ww2.

[@yarpen26]

Nobody ever gives a shit about the Balkans except the start of WWI and sometimes the '90s when they simply _have_ to mention them. I had to browse through dozens of Wikipedia articles to get at least some understanding of what life in the Balkans even looked like _after_ they were conquered by the Ottomans. Even History Matters' video on the "rise" of the Ottomans essentially ingored how they basically swallowed each of the Christian empires one by one, starting from Byzantium, through Bulgaria, Serbia (which was practically in the making as the next great power of the region) and Hungary, essentially by using the help of the very country they aimed to swallow up next in line (they did the same with Austria in order to deal with Hungary, after which, surprise, surprise, they invaded Austria).

[@fairextl]

@@yarpen26 The Balkan nations are usually overlooked as a whole. Bulgaria for example, had entered its Second Golden age of Bulgarian culture during the reign of Tsar Ivan Alexander, but got split up between his successors later on. Interestingly enough, there was also a crusade, lead by Hungary, against the Ottomans to put Frujin, one of Tsar Ivan Shishman's sons, as the Tsar of Bulgaria.

[@LondonPower]

They commit ethnic cleansing in Northern Greece they killed repad loot all the Greek Macedonia they were worst then Nazis

[@user-du8xi8yq2c]

Tsar Boris was so anti-war that when a woman told him that they are eating black bread, he told her that it's better to eat black bread that to have black veil (symbol of mourning for the dead)

[@missymiami6798]

Germany: Just like the good ol time? Bulgaria: *Yes and no*

[@theRecOiil]

Love these shorter videos and the frequency they've been coming out, but I have to say I miss some of the longer videos. Covering a bigger topic was always great to watch

[@FlorGeneva]

When I saw the notification I was like “wait didn’t I already watch that” but then I realized that the old video was about Romania, not Bulgaria.

[@martinlozanov400]

Flor Geneva i am offended

[@reuben8531]

Flor Geneva i am also offended

[@MegaOgrady]

It's the same thing anyways

[@nikolaivanov3344]

Uncool.

[@themorselord5649]

How about y’all man the fuck up then if a comment saying that two videos have an almost identical title is offensive to you.

[@rixille]

Bulgaria just seems like a small country in between giants trying to not pick sides in an attempt to keep itself alive during that period.

[@skelet8337]

Yes but sadly in our position the others can't go around our territory like with Switzerland so Bulgaria is aways forced at the end

[@_Sami_H]

@@skelet8337 it's not like it didnt abuse the moment it gained anyway So while it was forced and it is pretty terrible it sure did some terrible shit too

[@vasilist642]

you always have a choice. either fight against SS (like Greece) or join them, staying neutral is equal bad. They were not victims. They were trying to get as much as possible.

[@ArcherOfJustice]

@@vasilist642 A casual reminder that being invaded makes it hard to be the only axis country to prevent the deportation of your mainland jews. There is no glory in fighting a war you know you cannot win.

[@vasilist642]

@@ArcherOfJustice Bulgaria wanted to reach Aegean. They cooparated with the nazi germany to do it. If the excuse here is "if you can not kill the devil, join him", this is just terrible. Many ..many people died fighting this devil, and they won. Bulgaria was a bad example and worked with the nazis. The end. Hope history will never repeat itself!

[@kristastisch2505]

0:04 I like how the bulgarian border matches very well to the german border.

[@Bonk_Co]

Germany: Hey Bulgaria, can you help Deport Jews and such and help invade the Soviet Union? Bulgaria: Yes but actually n- *Surrenders to the Soviets*

[@trayanaz3530]

Fall is not precisely correct here , there was no fight . Remember in the video when he said a lot of pro Russian people in Bulgaria , ye there was a lot of them the Soviets just walked in Bulgaria and no body stooped them i mean NO BODY not a single bulled in combat fired (post takeover executions don''t count) as a matter of fact there are still a lot of pro Russian people in Bulgaria

[@trayanaz3530]

edit no idea why i wrote this comment , looking back on it i am just ruining a good joke

[@Pavelgon4ik]

@@trayanaz3530 Bolgarians - slavs...

[@radigeorgiev9662]

@@Pavelgon4ik Bulgarians are not slavs! We are just thankful to the Russians what they did for us - help us fight for our freedom. Just as much as they are thankful to us for giving them their current alphabet in the 14th century and christianizing them!

[@FoxyBoxery]

Lmfao

[@Orthane]

Bulgaria: No I won't help invade the Soviet Union Stalin: Okay but we're still going to occupy you anyway.

[@user-wj6dt5bq3w]

Stalin had already asked for Bulgaria from the Germans in November 1940.

[@Edmonton-of2ec]

0:48 Because Tsars and communism don't mix.... That just killed me😅😂

[@Edmonton-of2ec]

Mladorossi: Oh really?

[@Darkerio]

Wow this comment is 1 year old XD

[@Edmonton-of2ec]

cahillyio cat Ikr?

[@Darkerio]

CanadianPrince time go by so fast

[@thatperson656]

It also killed Nicholas II

[@kingt0295]

2:22 Bulgaria waddling away was surprisingly hilarious and cute

[@leithesocialistyuricon8981]

It’s because they went down that part of their focus tree... plus Germany and the Thunder Dragon Empire was boosting party popularity...

[@zagreus4728]

Bruh

[@talhahhussain5603]

But Bulgaria doesn't have a unique focus tree...

[@leithesocialistyuricon8981]

Talhah Hussain Road to ‘56!

[@bobo5580]

@@leithesocialistyuricon8981 the road to 56 tree is now soo cewl, but in the older one you cloud, get this, get tsar Ferdinand back and I likes that

[@teodork06bulgaria4]

Ah, yes, hoi4 memes 😂

[@DaisyGeekyTransGirl]

Romania and Bulgaria basically joined the Axis so they don't die.

[@enternamehere942]

but the reason why Romania joined the axis was so they did not die by the USSR.

[@STALKER-zm9gc]

@Thor the Creator yeah they also supplied them with food

[@ConorMcgregor322]

@Thor the Creator Are you fucking joking? Romania was a victim of the war, either we joined the Soviets or the Germans. The Soviets were much worse so we joined the Germans.

[@darrengraveheart1907]

Awesome! And the moment "Bulgaria just taking the new territories and leaving Axis." - epic, absolutely hilarious!

[@viktormilkov935]

Thanks for the cool vid! It was very informative and as a Bulgarian I was very happy to watch it. Love and regards from Bulgaria!

[@monroecorp9680]

AS I understand, Bulgaria went hearty in WW1 and lost a LOT of their population, and so weren't too keen on fighting again. Seems to me it wouldn't been in Tsar-mans interests to go just all in.

[@manghariz2211]

i mean other than the ww1 they were f*ck up in the second balkan wars where they literally is fighting everyone in balkans even the ottomans and the romanians. and the ww1 they joined to reclaim the land just to be defeated and taken more of their land. it is kinda make sense after two major wars they only lost and lost and i think better preserved what they still had

[@HawkPlatinum]

@@manghariz2211 Actually, Bulgaria was winning even against Greece and Serbia towards the end. WW1, however, was knocking on the door and Germany nudged Romania to invade, so Bulgaria could eventually join the fight. Against all odds it did manage to hold off the Entante, but it was pointless

[@VladTaushanov]

Boris' father, Tsar Ferdinand was German-born, so there was a bit of national pride in the reasons why Bulgaria joined Germany in WW1. Boris was born in Bulgaria, and his only allegiance was his country of birth (despite his German surname). Joining the Axis was a decision purely for survival. Incidentally, Boris' surname was Saxe Coburg-Gotha. The same as a certain house of Windsor, before they changed it during WW1. His son and Queen Elizabeth are literally cousins.

[@user-he4el3hs4v]

Interesting fact: Bulgaria's army DIDN'T participate in any fighting while being part of the Axis. Her troops were only sent for occupation of the territories Germany had transferred to her. However, after the communist coup and Soviet invasion of 1944 Bulgaria was occupied by the USSR. After that Bulgarian forces were sent West and took part in some battles, including the one near the Drava River in Yugoslavia in which the Bulgarians managed to push back the attacking Germans and secure the back of one of the Soviet armies

[@nikolaivanov3344]

Hello, Hello, Hello who has watched "Българска История" Дравската операция.

[@bobo5580]

One more interesting fact, the Bulgarian army when entering the territories of trace and Macedonia were not seen as invaders, but liberators since the people in these territories were (and still are) Bulgarians

[@fiko3424]

@@bobo5580 dali si normalen be tatar eden hahahaha

[@generalalexandrospapagos325]

blobeldenben the hydrated if you asked anyone in those regions what they considered themselves they would say Greek.

[@ConorMcgregor322]

@@generalalexandrospapagos325 Well yes, the Greek settlers from Asia Minor rapidly outnumbered the native Slavic population but nonetheless, the people in these regions were Bulgarians. The Greeks there were from Anatolia.

[@kinginexile7139]

So cool seeing my country's history on here - thank you!!!

[@keeski8926]

"Things ended pretty poorly for Bulgaria" Yeah that sums up 20th century Bulgaria

[@Shortline819]

At least they kept Southern Dobruja

[@nxibba]

You should say that they are thankful

[@BuRsTiNxMLB]

Adrian NormalPlayerRO Romania’s claim to Southern Dobrudja was extremely weak to begin with

[@uncleflagzz]

@@BuRsTiNxMLB Yea and the major population of South Drobudja was and still is Bulgarian, so it was for the best for us to give it back. We would've gave it back eventually even if Germany wouldn't had interfered.

[@user-vi8in1on5j]

it was rightfuly ours proven by history so the allies didnt bother taking it away from us

[@uncleflagzz]

@@user-vi8in1on5j Yes, it was no reason for Romania to keep Southern Drobudja

[@petarmitkov1056]

Literally everyone: Bulgaria just join a side Bulgaria: No I don't think I will Hitler: I'm gonna cross my troops over you to reach Greece Bulgaria: -my- Greece's time has come

[@nikolaivanov3344]

This was cool.

[@donaldnibba2584]

When will fucking Memenade make Bulgarian memes,dude.XD

[@johntr.9657]

Can you do one about Greece in WWI or WWII?

[@rat_thrower5604]

Greece in WW1 doesn't go very well for them. Greece WW2 results in Civil War after it, so quite interesting topic.

[@konstantinosnikolakakis8125]

I would like that (I'm Greek-Canadian from Montreal).

[@thomaswilson3827]

WWI would be interesting, especially the power struggle before the war on who to join. The Greek prime minister wanted to join the Entente, but the king, being a relative of the Kaiser, wanted to join the Central Powers.

[@johntr.9657]

@@konstantinosnikolakakis8125 χαιρετισμούς από Ελλάδα!

[@brandonlyon730]

Doesn’t Greece gain back a lot of territory after WW1, sure it didn’t fix the internal problems but they got back most of there ethic Greek lands from the Ottomans other then Cyprus and Constantinople/Istanbul

[@sleeper7271]

Bulgaria also had 2 empires and 2 golden ages by which its culture spread all over Eastern Europe+ Russia and in a way formed Russian culture and language today.Though even Russians do not know this...

[@gospodinblanco5138]

No one knows except Bulgarian nationalists :).

[@sleeper7271]

@@gospodinblanco5138 Doesn't change facts, no matter who knows what

[@SamAronow]

Sterling Archer wants you to explain why Ireland was an Axis power.

[@openthinker6562]

For the last time , Archer, Ireland was neutral!!

[@leithesocialistyuricon8981]

Soba Dragon No they weren’t! The Irish joined the axis!

[@SA-pj3fz]

That moment when you realize that Bulgaria was Germany’s best ally in both world wars

[@gregorious7838]

Japan

[@alvinium2574]

@@gregorious7838 Japan fought against Germany in WW1

[@gregorious7838]

@@alvinium2574 but he said both world wars not 1 so yea

[@alvinium2574]

@@gregorious7838 Both world wars as in the First World War and the Second one

[@gregorious7838]

@@alvinium2574 japan was friend of Germany in ww2

[@HanBaby82]

Love your videos, love the drawings and your sense of humor!

[@eddielawson8590]

Another class video,your videos are excellent keep it up🙂👍🏻

[@imhappy639]

2:04 I love the fact Mussolini wears that hat

[@haj0727]

You know hat above hat

[@sdcard7129]

Loving these recent videos about the other nations of WWII, you should do Manchukou next

[@sergeantscumbag2116]

I always look forward to your uploads

[@captainmccuckin2698]

Very well done ,nice job about the details

[@dominykasjonasblynas9312]

1:43 minor complaint, the border of Lithuania and USSR should be different, because the USSR gave Vilnius back in 1939 from the Poles

[@bbenjoe]

In 1943 tsar Boris III visited Germany. Soon after his return, he misteriously died. His 6 year old son was declared tsar uder the regnal name Simeon II. Although he was deposed in 1946 by the communists, he returned after the Cold War and served as prime minister between 2001 and 2005. Currently he is the last surviving head of state of a country which participated in World War II.

[@muminahzahid541]

Actually the last surviving head of state to participate in world war 2 was queen elizabeth 2

[@bbenjoe]

@@muminahzahid541 Yes, but she served in the military, she was no queen back then. Simeon II, on the other hand, was tsar from 1943 to 1946.

[@norbertmagyari5105]

I love your videos, I'd love them more if you'd go in deeper sometimes, maybe longer videos? But for sure you do sooo great love it.

[@draganescuconstantin2380]

Germans: here's these lands that we've already conquered, come join us Bulgaria: Oh okay cool Germans: please give up these territories that make up a huge % of your country, then come join us Romania: Oh okay cool

[@fzzy5739]

romania was promised compensation of lands in the soviet union

[@yarpen26]

God, I'm getting so fed up with those country dialogue things... they're never funny and usually are written by history illiterates.

[@nikolaivanov3344]

yarpen26 it isn't real History but sometimes is really funny just because is written by people who don't know what actually happened. By the way I saw you already 2 or 3 times in the comments.

[@boyanbogdanov1854]

It shows how artificially enlarged Romania was after the WW1. And today they still have Kiustendja and Transilvania.

[@johnwolf7073]

the past is the past, the future is the future. love from Greece to Bulgaria

[@vasil.kamdzhalov]

Good that we have such relations and I'm happy that more greeks know of us like we study for decades.

[@darkzoneification]

Stop assimilating bulgarians and throwing them in jail for calling themselves bulgarian in the occupied territory of Agean Macedonia stop genociding them , give the land back, and i will MAYBE forgive you.

[@GeoBBB123]

@@darkzoneification Stop being ignorant

[@re1na451]

Thank you for making a video about my country

[@oliversherman2414]

I love your channel keep up the great stuff!!!!!!!

[@bbpetrov]

As a Bulgarian, I can confirm this is true! Also the King Boris the third was the last good Tsar that we had. He died mysteriously 4 days after meeting with Hitler at the "Wolf's Lair" probably poisoned.

[@user-wj6dt5bq3w]

Nope. That's a myth. The Bulgarian Prime Minister Bogdan Filov didn't even believe the Germans killed Boris.

[@sandcastle1128]

The German you used to represent "first" and "second" is wrong. It should be "Erstens" and "Zweitens", not "Erste" and "Zweite".

[@dlxmarks]

Is erstens the adverb and erste the noun?

[@hashemsweidan3388]

As someone who watches a lot of history videos I love your videos the most

[@user975bg]

Well researched and true. Well done!

[@TheMilitantHorse]

Bulgaria: So, can we have some land back? Stalin: How bout some troops occupy your country?

[@nikoladd]

King Boris III (Fun fact Boris is a original Bulgarian name) served as a staff officer under Mackensen during ww1 in the conquest of Romania, where they fought the Russians too. In ww1 Bulgaria fought French, Greek, Yugoslavian, English and colonial troops on the Macedonian front and was highly valued by the Germans as an actual fighting ally.... unlike all the other Axis countries. Bulgaria was seen as a reliable Balkan defense and actually wasn't allowed certain offensive actions like attacking Turkey. Also all the territories Bulgaria tried to get(get back that is for the most part) were predominantly settled with ethnic Bulgarians... before all the cleansing Greeks and Serbs did there in the 1930s that is. So after ww1, which is dubbed "Second national catastrophe" in Bulgaria, Bulgaria(and Boris III) was not keen on a new war. Economy was doing rather well at the time and things were going upwards up to 1939, but German troops were at the border anyway so there wasn't too much choice. The actual reason Boris III didn't want to attack the USSR was because he was not stupid. The excuse that Bulgarians wouldn't fight Russians because of the liberation debt is half true, but also half propaganda. Also a notable fact is that Boris III died in 1943 likely from poisoning right after returning from Germany, from a meeting with Hitler.

[@ivanivanofivansson8551]

i love the detailed borders!

[@fatdaddyeddiejr]

Bulgaria was stuck between a rock and and a hard place. They tired to walk in the middle. They tried to stay neutral. And in the end. The Red Army still swept into their country and became a satellite state to the USSR.

[@user-kb5dp6ve1y]

I dont know if its true or urban legend, but it said that when Hitler asked Boris to send troop agains Soviet Union, Boris III said: "If i send my army agains the Russians, they will join them with songs and dances" :D

[@user-wj6dt5bq3w]

It's fake. The Bulgarian Prime Minister Bogdan Filov said Hitler never asked for Bulgarian troops on the Eastern front.

[@dimitargeorgiev2936]

Im from Bulgaria! Thanks for the video!

[@jameszombies7093]

Well done!!

[@beaverjedi1236]

2:00 I absolutely love how he makes these.

[@PolishBehemoth]

I learned something new in this video: Bulgaria never contributed to the russian war (the most important war of all sides and angles). Its not like it wouldve made much of a difference, with the dominace of the russian divisions. But that just surprises me, knowing all the gross abuses the soviets later did to the romanians, hungarians, probably bulgarians too, east germans and polish. Everything i think i know everything on a given topic video on this channel i learn something new.

[@YG-zx6tv]

@Nazx 36 no

[@vasil.kamdzhalov]

They executed the political elite and taught how majority of the people to act like rats really, when you know communism doesn't work but they have power and you can't say anything and you agree slowly with the fact, you become rat.

[@C-Doge7577]

Why do I feel like there's gonna be a "why did Hungary join the axis video?"

[@johnruetz1296]

Bulgaria really didn't have much of choice.

[@mirzahamzabaig5667]

They did had the choice first time though.

[@fazeblizz5898]

Well it did like it could just stayed neutral and allow German troops to invade Greece

[@kaloyanmanchev6613]

@@fazeblizz5898 Actually no

[@teodoe1210]

Why did Germany joined The Axis?

[@hodor9851]

You must be joking

[@hodor9851]

Germany STARTED the Axis

[@uncleflagzz]

@@hodor9851 He is joking, dude =))

[@shingosshojiopoulos6608]

IDK

[@hodor9851]

@@uncleflagzz Yes I just realized

[@memescap1236]

I play hoi4 and want to know why they always join the axis

[@baneofthewilds5702]

because they're fascist

[@501stadvisor]

Bulgaria is poorly designed in that game.

[@bobo5580]

I think that's an AI modifier and most mods portray the joining of Bulgaria in the axis not as a forced thing by them Germans but by the bulgarian AI

[@brennanbrown306]

They have a focus tree now in battle for the bosfurus

[@internuf5754]

2:32 I want that hat Please do merch with that hat It's the ULTIMATE GRAND FEDORA

[@martinlozanov400]

Čte se to mem just google orthodox archbishop

[@thehobowizard]

There is always more to the story, and thankfully this channel exists to tell it.

[@looinrims]

Um, what? Look through the comments of most of these videos and you’ll have the opposite sentiment as important details are left out or just completely wrong

[@painfulhades9876]

Great vid history accurate

[@sky1army423]

2:25 XD 👌👌👌🇧🇬

[@holydoggo4822]

Please do more Bulgaria video

[@LucidFL]

0:00 South Sakhalin is missing from Japan

[@jivkoyanchev1998]

As a bulgarian, i say that you have outdone yourself in this video!!

[@abrahamruiz345]

I asked about the Bulgarian participation during Second World War; now I have that question answered. Please talk about the Chinese Revolution and their Civil War, the indepence of Latin America and about the Cold War Crisis, like Berlin, Missile Crisis and The Soviet Invasion to Afghanistan. Gratings from Mexico.

[@zuzudernegger9721]

Bulgaria had the choice join the Axis or face German invasion. Bulgaria after the peace treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine was not allowed to have a real army.

[@richardroberson2564]

Such a small nation but with very interesting history.

[@dayanbalevski4446]

It used to be a big nation. But greedy neighbors teamed up against us.

[@richardroberson2564]

@@dayanbalevski4446 To be fair Bulgaria was the aggressor in the secound Balkan war.

[@dayanbalevski4446]

@@richardroberson2564 Aggressor? Trying to liberate our people? I don't think that is aggression.

[@richardroberson2564]

@@dayanbalevski4446 I mean, they invaded another nation. There was other solutions to this problem.

[@monipln]

Richard Roberson another nation? Which one?

[@Ntreik96]

"Bulgaria was the only member of the Axis that didn't participate in any axis war expedition and didn't comit any war crime". Greeks of Macedonia and Thrace that Germany gave to Bulgaria: weeeell no...

[@CasperEgas]

Can you cover Thailand in this series too please?

[@hungarycountryball1056]

What about why Hugary joined the axis?

[@TheWeedIsland]

To regain territories lost with the treaty of Trianon and also wage war on Romania.

[@gavrielpapas773]

Yo, finally and for the first time I could hear what was the role of Bulgaria in WW2!

[@krasimirivanov9153]

Excellent!

[@barry63196]

Thank you for covering my country

[@user-zz7fr8xc2m]

“In order to end yugoslavia cuz why not“ That had me laughing😂😂

[@1993Redemption]

Axis: join us Bulgaria, you'll gain new territory and prestige while all we ask is that you be very militarily aggressive and do some, ehem, cleansing. Bulgaria: that sounds like a plan that would go well at first but ultimately blow up in our faces 5 years from now, and is just ethically fucked up, so no. Axis: please Bulgaria: no Axis: please Bulgaria: no Axis: Pleeeeeeease! Bulgaria: fine, jeez. WWII ends. Bulgaria: -__-

[@gordoncalders]

Can you please do one about Siam joining the Axis briefly

[@Munax.]

Can you make a video about neutral countries of Europe during WW II?

[@turplexx233]

2:15 ideal map

[@janwillemdewaard354]

Why?

[@dd.mm.ll.]

But nevertheless they're the only axis country to gain territory. They eventually kept the Southern Dobruja

[@cram4676]

Well I mean it's kinda rightfully theirs

[@MarcusML]

@@cram4676 Good point!

[@niller1918]

Love your videos! AND: First reason would be: Der erste Grund. Second reason would be: Der zweite Grund. Third reason would be: Der dritte Grund

[@cheknauss9867]

Lol the artwork here is just so top-notch. The squinting from Hitler was the icing on the cake.

[@jdblake3224]

Narrator: “Boris the Third aka Boris the Animal” Boris: “It’s just Boris!”

[@Edmonton-of2ec]

Boris III was Tsar, not King of Bulgaria for anyone wondering....

[@mdkdjd4329]

Our neigbours Bulgarians has titule Tsardom (Empire) but we Serbs and Greeks never recognised it, We alvays called them kingdom. West had take our view to Bulgaria

[@Edmonton-of2ec]

Yeah, I mean he held the title of Tsar but in the West it's always referred to as the of Bulgaria, and was technically the 3rd Bulgarian Empire.

[@yarpen26]

Yup, that's the key fact. Abroad Bulgaria was always known as the kingdom so their self-proclaimed empire was simply domestic flattery with zero relevance elsewhere.

[@ingnavar]

@@yarpen26 nobody cares what you think dum Polack

[@storm_raider-]

Andro Starčević The title tsar was originally Bulgarian and then Serbia and Russia stole it. In Bulgarian there’s another word for emperor so tsar just meant “Bulgarian monarch”. Only during the time of the Russian empire the title became associated as emperor. The Bulgarian monarchs had a full right to use it.