roy

Is this the King of Bulgaria, or just a military group?

I'm betting on the former.

Any help appreciated.





Roy

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re: Cyrillic translation needed - Bulgarian postcard

I have used translation sites that offer a cyrillic keyboard.

Quite tedious, but viable for a few key words.

Cyrillic Keyboard

It's a bit of a cumbersome process.
After you type in the cyrillic characters, you cut them. Then, scroll down and click on the Cyrillic to Latin converter. Paste. Finally, paste the Latin equivalent into a translator.

I think the last word in the caption is a proper name. I got "Varia". Could be the Bulgarian name for a town in Italy, also known as Vicovaro. Makes me wonder if the subjects of the photograph were a foreign relations legation to Italy.

Comparing the link that Charlie2009 posted to the postcard, I don't see anyone in the postcard pic with a nose or a girth as large as Czar Ferdinand's was... Also, he was apparently fond of heavily be-medaled quasi-military uniforms. None of the men in the postcard photo have a lot of bling on their chests. Ferdinand's reign was 1908-1918, when he abdicated to his eldest son, who became Boris III.

The CDS on the postcard appears to be 1902. Or, maybe 1892. So, the photo would have predated Ferdinand I's reign. However, Ferdinand I was "ruling prince" for more than 20 years prior to his ascent to the throne. Mainly because, apparently, no one else wanted the job.

In the postcard image, there is an elderly gentleman in the center of the first row standing, next to the religious figure. He appears to be the center of attention for this photograph. A clue might be to understand the traditional garb of the religious figure - Eastern Orthodoxy? Ferdinand I converted his infant son (Prince Boris) to that religion about 1896.

Thanks for the puzzle!
-Paul

PS, we may need to consider that the CDS is actually 1912. That would fit better with the idea that Bulgaria and Italy were in 'talks'. Though perhaps not closely allied, both Italy and Bulgaria treated the Greeks as enemies in the run-up to WWI.

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