Krapchev, Danail

Born in the family of the nationalist politician Vasil Krapchev, an active participant in the Bulgarian movement in Macedonia . Politically shared the position of his father. In 1906 he graduated from the History Department of Sofia University .

Danail Krapchev began journalistic activities in the weekly newspaper Macedon-Odrinsky . Headed the cell BMORO . Together with Peyo Yavorov and Vasil Paskov, he edited the illegal publication VMRO Ilinden , then the newspapers Fatherland , Rodina , Vardar , Bulgaria , Pryaporets .

During the First World War, Krapchev was a war correspondent in the Bulgarian army.

In 1919, Danail Krapchev founded the daily newspaper Zora , which was published for 25 years. “Zora” was one of the most popular and authoritative publications in Bulgaria, seriously affecting public moods. Professional samples for the newspaper were Le Temps and The Times . Politically, “Zora” was guided by the Democratic Party of Alexander Malinov and Andrei Lyapchev . At the same time, Krapchev himself was not a member of the party and strictly abided by the principle of organizational and financial independence of the publication ^[1] .

Krapchev took a revolutionary nationalist position, called for the unification of the Bulgarians in a nation state, was a supporter of Macedonia’s annexation to Bulgaria, an opponent of the Yugoslav authorities of Serbian nationalism (at the same time, he established friendly relations with Croatian nationalists). At the same time, Krapchev was a supporter of the democratic system. He opposed the left - agrarian authoritarianism of Alexander of Istanbul , but sharply criticized the repressive policies of Alexander Tsankov .

After the coup on May 19, 1934, Krapchev was interned by the government of Kimon Georgiev . Released after the removal of the “Link” group from power.

Danail Krapchev was a consistent anti-communist and spoke from anti-Soviet positions:

There is no greater good for man than personal freedom. It is a goal in itself. Without it, man is like a fish on land. Therefore, the dictatorship preached, for example, by the Communists, is obscurantism.
Any party in power, like the Communists, can re-arrest its political opponents and get rid of competitors. So rule the Russian Bolsheviks. This is not democracy at all - it is tyranny ^[2] .

He was criticized in the communist press. Communist publicist and cartoonist Alexander Zhendov mentioned Krapchev extremely negatively in political pamphlets ^[3] .

He was engaged in media management, led the joint-stock companies of the Bulgarian press and Presa . Danail Krapchev actively participated in the activities of the Bulgarian-Macedonian organizations. He was a co-founder of the Macedonian Scientific Institute ^[4] , led by the Union of Macedonian Youth Organizations. After the assassination of Alexander Protogerov in 1928 , he edited the Macedonia newspaper for some time.

Krapchev approached the participation of Bulgaria in World War II from the point of view of the Bulgarian national unification project. He supported cooperation with the Third Reich , although he was not a supporter of Nazism and fascism .

The Communists attacked Krapchev as a Germanophile and fascist. They did not know that in fact Krapchev was a staunch democrat. He reacted negatively to National Socialism. But he reflected: “If the Soviet Union is doing a common thing with ultra-capitalist England and ultra-capitalist America, why should we not accept cooperation with Hitler Germany, which promises to help us, in the name of our national interests? This does not mean denying democracy. ”
Petr Todorov , Minister of Finance of Bulgaria in 1923-1926 and 1934-1935 ^[5]

In April 1941, Prime Minister Bogdan Filov instructed Daniil Krapchev to organize government interaction with the Bulgarian action committees , which were preparing the annexation of the occupied Yugoslav territories to Bulgaria.

In 1942, the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party decided to kill Danail Krapchev as "the chief of the criminals of the pen." An attempt was made, as a result of which Krapchev was injured ^[6] .

September 9, 1944 Danail Krapchev was captured by communist militants and killed the next day. Posthumously sentenced to death by the People's Court . Krapchev's wife and children were interned, family property was confiscated ^[7] . The newspaper "Zora" was banned, the editors were defeated, some employees were killed.

In 1994, Danail Krapchev was rehabilitated by the Supreme Court of Bulgaria.

In modern Bulgaria, Danail Krapchev is respected for patriotism and democratic views, is considered one of the founders of national journalism ^[8] .

• KRAGLA MASA IS LIGHTED ON DANAIL KRAPSCHEV - BELGARIAN JOURNALIST, SOCIETY AND REVOLUTIONARY
• Danail Krapchev and c. "Zora." Nezravravimoto (Interview, letter, documents). The conductor and editor of Tsveta Trifonova (Veliko Tarnovo, 2006)