The Implications of the Russo-Ottoman War of 1877-1878 on the Muslim Minorities in Bulgaria: Reports from the British Documents

The Russo-Ottoman war that broke out in 1877-1878 was aimed at solving the issue of Ottoman administration in the Balkans, especially regarding the alleged weakness of the Ottoman administration over the Christian people in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ironically, the war had a more significant impact on Muslims in the Balkans, especially in Bulgaria, than the solution to the issue in Bosnia-Herzegovina. This article analyzes on how the war has had implications on the Muslim minority population in Bulgaria. This article uses a qualitative method approach which involves the content analysis of British official documents and records collected from the British National Archives and the University of London from the School of Slavonic and East European Studies. The findings proved that the Russo-Ottoman War of 1877 was not intended to give justice to the Christian community under the Ottoman empire but was a strategy of the Russia and Bulgarian governments to carry out ethnic cleansing on the Muslim minority in Bulgaria. The implication of this war led to widespread oppression and mass expulsion of the Muslim population in Bulgaria, resulting in significant demographic changes and a prolonged humanitarian crisis. For future research, it is suggested that an in-depth examination be conducted on the roles and positions of other European powers in the Russo-Ottoman conflict of 1877, particularly regarding their attitudes and reactions towards the fate of the Muslim population in Bulgaria.