Bulgaria marked on 2 May 2016 the 140th anniversary of the April Uprising against Ottoman rule.
The uprising had been put down but helped pave the way for the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 that led to the restoration of Bulgarian statehood after almost 500 years of Ottoman domination.
The photographs below show re-enactment of events of April 1876 in the town of Koprivshtitsa, where the first shot in the uprising was fired: the arrest of a leader of the uprising by Ottoman forces, rebels firing at a police officer on a small river bridge in Koprivshtitsa and a rebel attack in the streets of the town.
Koprivshtitsa was one of the centers of the uprising and is known for its traditional Bulgarian architecture, making it a popular tourist destination.
Re-enactment of events of the start of the uprising in Koprivshtitsa dates back to 1926.
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