PATRONS OF BULGARIAN ARMY REGIMENTS
In the spirit of the army traditions at the end of the 19th and the turn of the 20th century, members of the royal family in the Principality of Bulgaria (1878 – 1908) and the Kingdom of Bulgaria (1908 – 1946) became patrons of military regiments. Serving in such a regiment was considered a great honour. Prince Alexander Battenberg was the first to assume patronage over an army regiment in Bulgaria. The tradition was followed by Prince Ferdinand and later - by King Boris III. Apart from members of the royal family, patronage was entrusted to foreign dignitaries – relatives to the reigning monarch, as well as to allied heads of state. In 1896 Prince Ferdinand was proclaimed honorary patron of 54th Minsk regiment, by force of an imperial rescript by Emperor Nicholas II of Russia.
During the visit of Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia to the ancient city of Filipiki in Macedonia, King Ferdinand entrusted him the patronage of 12th Balkan Regiment, which carried his name henceforth. The same tradition was followed with regard to other allied heads of state too.
Members of the royal family became patrons of military regiments from their birth. Thus, Prince Boris of Turnovo was proclaimed patron of 4th Infantry Pleven regiment, of 4th Cavalry regiment and 3rd Artilery regiment. When Simeon, Prince Turnovski, was born on June 16, 1937, he was enrolled as second lieutenant in the ranks of 6th Turnovo Infantry regiment of HM King Ferdinand I and was proclaimed patron of 19th Shumen Infantry regiment, 1st Army Artilery regiment and 3rd Cavalry regiment.
The officers from the Patron regiments differed in some details of their uniform from those in the regular regiments. They had a different colour of the collar broider and edging, with the corresponding golden or silver monogram of the regiment’s patron over their epaulettes etc.
Prior to the Balkan war of 1912 – 1913, there were eighteen Patron regiments in Bulgaria – ten in the infantry, two in the cavalry and two in the artillery. Apart from them, the ruling monarch was by right patron of the Life-guards regiment and of the Navy.
When King Boris III was enthroned on October 3, 1918, he did not alter the traditions, created so far in this respect. He proclaimed the first patronage over an army regiment on the occasion of his wedding to Princess Giovanna of Savoy, who took the name Ioanna, in honour of St. Ioan of Rila, the patron saint of Bulgaria. With a royal prescript to the Bulgarian army, he proclaimed Queen Giovanna patron of 10th Cavalry regiment. And the wedding present from her partron regiment was a horse with trappings and a full-dress uniform decorated with her monograms.
After the coup of September 9, 1944, the old army traditions were banned, many members of the officer corps were executed, and others were subjected to repressions on charged of being “enemies of the people”. The tradition of patron regiments was thus ended.
In 1992, the great grandson of Count Nikolai Ignatiev arrived on a visit to Bulgaria. To mark the occasion, a Bulgarian army detachment decided to take the patron name of this outrstsanding Russian statesman and diplomat, who played a key role in Bulgari’s modern history. This act of respect for history could be regarded as a bleak imitation of the almost forgotten traditions.
List of some of the Bulgarian Army Patron regiments:
1st Infantry regiment of HRH Prince Alexander
4th Infantry regiment of HRH Prince Boris Turnovski
6th Infantry regiment of HM King Ferdinand I
8th Infantry regiment of HRH Princess Maria Luisa
9th Infantry regiment of HRH Princess Clementine
18th Infantry regiment of HM King Ferdinand I
20ieth Infantry regiment of HRH Kyril of Preslav
22nd Infantry regiment of HRH Duke Carl Edward
17th Infantry regiment of Grand Duke Vladimir
1st Cavalry regiment of HM King Ferdinand I
2nd Cavalry regiment of HRH Princess Maria Louise
4th Artilery regiment of HM King Ferdinand
Life-guards regiment of HM the King
Navy of HM the King
12th Balkan Infantry regiment of HIRM Kaiser Wilhelm
24th Infantry regiment of HM Queen Eleonore
10th Cavalry regiment of HM Queen Giovanna
19th Infantry regiment of HRH Prince Simeon Turnovski
1st Army Artilery regiment of HRH Prince Simeon Turnovski
3rd Cavalry regiment of HRH Prince Simeon Turnovski | |
