Тракия в политиката на България и Гърция (1878–1919 г.)
Thracia in the Policy of Bulgaria and Greece (1878–1919)

Summary/Abstract: The comparison between the policy followed by Greece and Bulgaria with regard to the geographical area of Thracia reveals the specificity of each country’s policy and the changes of their frontiers in the 1878–1919 period. The article maps out the historical path which Bulgaria had to go to reach the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean and gain a territorial outlet on the Aegean Sea between the Mesta and the Maritsa river, although it was for a short period of time – from 1913 to 1919. Special attention is paid to the preparation and the course of the Paris Peace Conference. The American stand is marked off. Stress is laid on Greece’s advantageous position and the possibilities for success of the policy pursued by Eleutherios Venizelos in 1918–1919. The thesis is proved that in settling the problem of frontiers in Thracia considerations such as justice and ethnic motivation were the least paid attention to. The diplomatic solution to the problem was ascribed to the Greek delegation who drew up and carried out a programme that accommodated the interests of the Great Powers. The Bulgarian efforts for a just and comprehensive settlement of the national problem by solving all related minor problems on an equal basis were not in line with the possibilities and the interests of the winners in World War I, that is they were unsuccessful.

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