On January 5, 1873, Vasil Levski was put on trial in Sofia after his capture by Ottoman authorities.
January 5, 1873 — Vasil Levski Goes on Trial
The proceedings aimed to expose and dismantle the network of secret revolutionary committees Levski had built across the Bulgarian lands. The trial took place in Sofia, while the network under examination extended far beyond the city.
Levski believed that liberation should be prepared by Bulgarians themselves and supported a vision of a democratic republic. The case therefore targeted more than one revolutionary. It reached toward the organised national movement formed through the secret committees.
January 5, 1889 — The Higher School Receives Its Name
In 1889, the Higher School received the name under which it began to develop into Sofia University. Its first cohort included 43 students. That number remains a concrete detail from the institution’s early history.
Bulgaria needed teachers and scholars quickly, and higher education in Bulgarian helped build the country’s institutions and culture. The Higher School’s new name marked the beginning of its development into Sofia University, while its first 43 students formed the small cohort from which that development began.
The figure of 43 also keeps the institution’s beginning in human scale. The Higher School started with a small group of students, not an established university system. Its later identity as Sofia University grew from that modest first cohort.
Related reading: Revisit the previous day — January 4; continue to the next day — January 6; and browse Abroad.
