Printers at the May Day Rally, Sofia, Bulgaria 1901 -- Daily LIFT #49

Printers at the May Day Rally, Sofia, Bulgaria 1901

This remarkable photo shows the contingent of print workers at the May Day rally in Sofia, 1901. This was just 3 years after the very first one was held in 1898, which had been banned but the workers marched anyway and engaged in street battles with police.

What is most notable here is that the third person in the front row from the left is Georgi Dimitrov who would later famously defy the Nazis in court, lead the Communist International and become the first Communist leader of Bulgaria after the Second World War.

(The Daily LIFT - Leftist Image for Today - is a new The Left Chapter feature posting a daily photo, cartoon, artwork or other image related to leftist history or contemporary realty.)

Sofia, Bulgaria 1973 -- 19 Vintage Postcards and Images

Today we are taking a look at 19 images of some of the streets, buildings and sights of Sofia, People's Republic of Bulgaria, 1973. 18 of these vintage photographs were from a postcard folder that was aimed at Russian/Soviet visitors with the text in Russian while one is a card from the same era aimed at French tourists.

There are a large number of streetscapes -- of which we are very fond here on The Left Chapter -- as well as photos of new housing developments, monuments, and famous landmarks like the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. Among these is a photo of the Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum which was constructed in honour of the famed Communist and anti-fascist leader after his death in 1949. Despite the opposition of two-thirds of the country's population the mausoleum was destroyed in 1999 by a right wing government. 

The photos of the Vitosha Mountain cable car and outlook are spectacular. 

The post begins and ends with views of National Assembly Square, one during the day and one at night with the cathedral lit in the background. 

(Click on images to enlarge)

National Assembly Square

Monument to the Soviet Army

Residential Buildings on V. I. Lenin Ave.

Aleksandar Stamboliyski Street

( Stamboliyski was Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 1919 to 1923 when

he was murdered after a right wing coup.)

Ivan Vazov National Theatre

Vitosha Mountain Cable Car

Outlook with a View of the City from Vitosha Mountain

The 4th Century Church of St. George

(The oldest building in the city)

Hotel Rila

New Residential Area

Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum

Downtown

Downtown

V. I. Lenin Square

Fountain in the City Center

University

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

National Assembly Square at Night

See also: Warsaw 1972 - Vintage Streetscapes and Other Photos

See also: 30 Photographs and Streetscapes of Paris, 1973

"I am defending myself, an accused Communist" -- In Honour of the Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov

Today is the 136th anniversary of the birth of the great Bulgarian Communist leader Georgi Dimitrov (June 18, 1882 to July 2, 1949).

A major figure in the Communist International prior to WWII, Dimitrov is perhaps most famous for his exceptionally courageous and inspiring defense of himself and other Communists against entirely bogus charges of having been behind the Reichstag fire in the early days of Nazi Germany, 1933. His defense was so effective that the court was forced to acquit him and his co-defendants though he remained in a Gestapo prison for some time afterwards.

His words in his summation remain stirring and an abridged version of it, published in a Soviet English language magazine in honour of the centenary of his birth, is presented in the scans below.

I am defending myself, an accused Communist.

I am defending my political honour, my honour as a revolutionary. 

I am defending my communist ideology, my ideals. 

I am defending the content and significance of my whole life. 

We have looked at aspects of Dimitrov's life before in the posts  September 1923: The first anti-fascist uprising - Ivan Mihailov, Bulgaria 1973 Part I w. maps & photos  and Part II as well as in the post An Outstanding Revolutionary and Leninist -- In Commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov, CPSU 1972 .

Also of interest in this context would be our post Fascism Must Be Defeated! -- Clara Zetkin's Speech at the Reichstag August 30, 1932.

An Outstanding Revolutionary and Leninist -- In Commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov, CPSU 1972

Vintage Leftist Leaflet Project

See the end of this post for details on the project.

Leaflet: An Outstanding Revolutionary and Leninist -- In Commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov, CPSU 1972

Published in 1972 to commemorate the 90th anniversary of his birth, this booklet contains two separate essays from a Soviet perspective on what the authors saw as the importance and legacy of Bulgarian Communist leader and revolutionary Georgi Dimitrov. Dimitrov was the first leader of the post-war People's Republic of Bulgaria and is especially famous for his defense during the Nazi Leipzig Trial in 1933 when he was charged (falsely) with having been part of a conspiracy to burn down the Reichstag.

The essays are interesting in the focus on his ideological and tactical positions towards the united front idea and nationalism.

One notable quote was "We Communists are implacable and principled opponents of bourgeois nationalism of every stripe. But we are not advocates of national nihilism and must never appear as such".

(Click on scans to enlarge)

When The Left Chapter began part of what I wanted to do on the blog was to show and highlight vintage public leftist election/political leaflets and booklets. While many of these have been offered with commentary to date, a very large collection of hundreds of them from several different sources remains and to preserve these often quite rare documents we will be posting them on a regular (almost daily) basis now often without or with minimal commentary so that people may have access to them as quickly as possible as an historical resource. 

While these will all be leaflets from a variety of different leftist viewpoints and countries, they are being posted as an historical/study resource and the views or opinions expressed in them do not necessarily reflect the views of this blog or blogger.

All of these posts (as well as posts made to date) will be listed on the page: Vintage Communist/Socialist Leaflets (which is still being updated with past posts).

If you have any public, vintage leaflets or booklets you would like to contribute to this project please contact us via theleftchapter@outlook.com