Turnovo Uprisings of 1598 and 1686

large-scale armed demonstrations against the Ottoman yoke by the residents of Turnovo (now Veliko Turnovo) and other cities of central Bulgaria. The uprisings, about which historical details are few, were led by representatives from the local clergy, boliars, and townspeople: in 1598, by Dionisii Rali, the metropolitan of Turnovo, and Todor Balina, a resident of Nikopol; and in 1686, by Rosti-slav Stratimirovich, who was proclaimed prince of Turnovo. A Russian nobleman, Savelii Dubrovskii, also took part in the uprising of 1686, at the head of a force of 800 men. The leaders of the uprisings declared their intention to revive the Turnovo Kingdom, hoping thereby to gain the active support of the European states that were at war with the Ottoman Empire during the periods 1592–1606 and 1683–99. The uprisings, however, were brutally suppressed by Turkish troops.