Between Two Centers of Power – Tarnovo and Constantinople. The Story of a Delegation from the 1850s

In the 1840s and 1850s, a conflict broke out in the Tarnovo region between two warring parties. One was supporting the Metropolitan of Tarnovo, and the other – his opponent. Of course, this case cannot be separated from the main processes taking place in the Ottoman Empire. The Tanzimat reforms are considered to remain only on paper, but they gave a new spirit among the Bulgarian population in search of their identity against the old and difficult to reform Orthodox Church with the center of Constantinople. The appearance of rich and influential Bulgarians such as Hadzhi Mincho Hadzhi Tsachev and his interests affected by the Metropolitan of Tarnovo Neofit are the basis of our article. Each of the two warring parties sought support not only from the local population, but also from government and church circles. A supporter of Metropolitan Neofit in Constantinople is Nikomidias, a person who has not been the subject of research. The representative of supreme Ottoman government in the person of Stefan Bogoridi also turned out to be a supporter of Neofit. Letters from the fund of Georgi Popsimenov (National Library – Sofia), a vekil of Tarnovska Kaza, who represented a delegation in defense of the Tarnovo Metropolitan Neophyte and their wandering in the labyrinth of bureaucratic Constantinople, are studied.