EastERN EURoPE BULGARIA

Bulgaria has a millennium-long, cyclical history of ruling Southeastern Europe by force, eventually succumbing to stronger empires, struggling against those powers to achieve independence, then building up militarily to start the whole series of events again. Three dominant Bulgarian states have risen and fallen since the 9th century.   

In 1944 Bulgarian Communists overthrew the nation's monarchy, developed strong ties with the USSR and established single party rule. When the Soviets left in 1989, Bulgaria transitioned to a multiparty, parliamentary democracy and a free market economy and in 2007 joined the European Union.