After his graduation from the Greek institute at Yanina and the
University of Athens, where he studied literature, at the instigation of
his brother, Dimitar, and following the example of many young
Bulgarians of that period, in 1856, Konstantin went to Russia. Reaching
Odessa, and short of money, the Bulgarian Society in that city financed
his trip to Moscow. Konstantin enrolled at the University to study
Slavic philology.
In the early days of the 19th century, Russia was the richest well from
which a young Bulgarian intellectual could derive knowledge in a
language close to his own and among people who sympathized with the
sufferings of the oppressed Bulgarians.
While at the University of Athens, he was exposed, exclusively, to the
teachings and thinking of ancient and modern Greek scholars. In
Moscow, he came in contact with prominent Slavic writers and
intellectuals, scarcely mentioned in any of the Greek textbooks. For
young and impressive Konstantin, this was like stepping from one
world into another. It did not take long for him to make friends with
some of the most prominent Slavists and to plead with them for help to
publish the huge collection of Bulgarian folk songs which he had
brought with him.
But while Moscow captivated him with its ancient beauty and its
history, he could not suppress the burning desire to see the River
Volga. At the time of his youth, the universal belief in his homeland
was that the Proto-Bulgarians had camped on the banks of the
legendary river, had crossed it on their way to the Balkans and the
origin of their name had come from the Holy Russian River - Volga.
Reaching its shores, Konstantin stood before it in awe, fascinated and
almost hypnotized, unable to utter a word, his eyes following the
flowing waters. A poet at heart, he poured his exaltations in a letter to
one of his friends:
O, Volga, Volga! What memories you
awake in me, how you drive me to bury
myself in the past! hi your waters,
Volga. I, and my friend, also a
Bulgarian, we dived and proudly told
ourselves that, at this very moment,
we received our true baptismal. Do
not laugh if I tell you that my
friends washed their heads in the
Volga and one of them picked up a few
rocks, just like the pilgrims brought
home little stones from the River Jordan.
Volga! How many different tribes
have passed each other on your shores!
How many great events have taken place
around you. And from all the other
people who have tasted your waters, only
we (meaning the Bulgarians) are the only
ones who have preserved your name
The Russian Journal "Rodnoe Plemya II", page 287
If Konstantin Miladinov had never uttered a single word proclaiming
his Bulgarian nationality, this letter alone is an undisputable proof of his
strong national feelings to place him in the pantheon of those heroes
and martyrs who devoted their entire life to the struggle for the
Bulgarian National Revival.
His efforts to find a sponsor for the publication of the songs failed.
Some attribute this failure to the fact that all of the songs were written
with Greek letters. This failure prompted him to seek help elsewhere
and he approached the Croatian Catholic Bishop of Djakovo, Joseph
Strossmayer (1815-1905), well known for his generosity and devotion to
Slavic culture. A well-educated man, the Bishop was a Croatian patriot
and highly respected by the church and civil authorities.
Konstantin established contact with Strossmayer and early in 1860,
when he heard that the Bishop would be in Vienna, he left Moscow and
headed for the Austrian capital to meet his future benefactor. At the
very first meeting, Bishop Strossmayer was favourably impressed with
the young Bulgarian patriot and intellectual. Holding the collection of
songs in his hands, the Bishop looked at Miladinov and said:
Miladinov, let me tell you one thing: If you want me to publish
your songs, you must, once and for all, disavow the Greek letters. The
Greeks have caused you, the Bulgarians, so much harm and misery:
Cast away these foreign letters and use the Slavic (Cyrillic)
alphabet
The above quotation is from a letter by Bishop Strossmayer sent to
"
Slavyanska Beseda" in Sofia in 1885
During all this time when he was dealing with Bishop Strossmayer and
getting the book ready for the printer, Konstantin did not know that
his brother, Dimitar, was brought in chains to Istanbul and thrown
into the underground dungeon of the police station.
The book, dedicated to his benefactor, Bishop Strossmayer, was printed
in Zagreb. It was ready in June of 1861 and Konstantin left the
Croatian city a month later. On the way to Strouga, he stopped for a
few days in Belgrade. Rakovsky, with whom he wanted to confer, was
not there, but from other Bulgarian patriots, he learned of the arrest of
his brother. In his desire to see him and, if possible, free his brother, he
headed for Istanbul. Denounced by the Greek Patriarchate as a
dangerous Russian agent, he was arrested on August 5, 1861. It is not
clear whether he was placed in the same cell with his brother, or
whether the two brothers saw each other.