Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Sofia marks anniversary since bombings during Second World War

2
Bombings of Sofia during the WW2
Photo: militarymuseum.bg

On November 14, 1943, massive air raids against Bulgaria began during the Second World War. For 5 months, Sofia was systematically bombed by the allies USA and Great Britain. 

By April 17, 1944, a total of 2,000 aircraft in 7 day and 5 night attacks dropped over 8,800 bombs over the Bulgarian capital. 

The targets were mainly civilian objects. More than 900 people were killed and more than 1,000 were injured. 12,567 residential, industrial and public buildings were destroyed. The entire bourgeois center of the city was destroyed. 


The bombings came after the forced accession of Bulgaria to the Tripartite Pact of Germany, Italy and Japan on March 1, 1941, and from the irrationally declared war on December 13 of the same year by Bulgaria against the United States and Great Britain.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

Gallery

More from category

No. 000001 – the turbulent history of the first Bulgarian banknote

The Regional History Museum in Gabrovo displays a modest, rectangular piece of paper measuring 10 by 15 cm : the first Bulgarian banknote — a twenty-leva bill with the serial number 000001. It was printed on August 1, 1885, in St. Petersburg, and this..

published on 8/1/25 9:15 AM
Father Julian Angelov

Father Julian Angelov – from Vidin to Berlin in service to God

Founding a Bulgarian Orthodox parish thousands of kilometers away from the homeland is no easy task, especially when the Bulgarian diaspora is scattered across vast distances. In Bulgaria we take for granted that every neighborhood in a large city has..

published on 7/28/25 1:48 PM

1800-year-old triangular tower discovered near Sofia

The Urvich Fortress continues to reveal its secrets from the time when Sofia was Roman Serdica. A triangular stone tower dating back to the end of the 2nd century was discovered by young archaeologists Dr. Filip Petrunov and..

published on 7/26/25 6:10 AM