The Anarchy, the Russo-Turkish Wars and the Uprisings in the Ottoman Empire from the End of the 18th and the First Decades of the 19th Century as a Factor in the Development of Cities in the Bulgarian Lands Under Ottoman Rule

The article analyzes the impact of the major socio-political upheavals in the Ottoman Empire from the end of the 18th and the first decades of the 19th century on the demographic and economic development of cities in the Bulgarian lands under Ottoman rule - especially the prolonged anarchy in the Balkan provinces of the Empire and the Russo-Turkish wars of 1806–1812 and 1828–1829. The role of these upheavals in activating the decline of some significant Ottoman military-administrative centers, such as Nikopol, Silistra and Sofia, is considered. At the same time, these events contributed to the demographic, economic and administrative rise of other cities in the Bulgarian-populated Ottoman provinces of the Balkans, such as Ruse, Plovdiv and Bitola. The research found that despite all the political upheavals, the share of the urban population in the Bulgarian lands increased, which favoured the further development of urbanization in the region during the 19th century.