Conversely, the Bulgarian Workers' Social Democratic Party experienced increased tensions between the orthodox Marxist and reformist factions due to differing views on how to respond to the unrest.

[5] This period was marked by fierce competition for civil offices, as the expanding intelligentsia strained the bureaucratic system, resulting in widespread corruption within political circles and little ideological distinction among the era's various parties.

[1] The majority of Bulgaria's population, consisting of peasants, faced limited access to education and minimal political representation, primarily restricted to participation in increasingly manipulated elections.

[6] While the 1897 census indicated that independent peasant smallholders owned most of the farmland, they struggled with low productivity, usury, declining grain prices on the global market, and a growing rural population.

[19][21][20] Though campaigning on a program of tax relief for the peasants, Todor Ivanchov's government, installed in the fall of 1899, decided to reintroduce the tithe, which was to be paid in kind with agricultural products.

[24] However, the underlying motivation was the dire state of the national budget: land tax arrears for 1899 had soared to a record 40%, rendering the government incapable of servicing its external debt and struggling to meet the payroll for civil servants.

This strategy included measures such as reducing civil servants' salaries by 7%, imposing a mandatory 25% deduction from their wages, compensating government contractors with bonds instead of cash, raising excise taxes, and doubling road duties.

[36][28][26][24] Despite the opposition voiced by municipal councils, the subsequent administration under Todor Ivanchov pushed for the introduction of the tithe, implementing some measures it hoped would placate public discontent.

[37] Outside the parliament, opposition to the tithe emerged prominently with the advocacy efforts of Dimitar Dragiev [bg], a young teacher based in Radnevo, one of the founders of the Agrarian Union.

In May 1899, Dragiev initiated the publication of the journal Spravedlivost ("Justice"), utilizing its platform to promote the establishment of local peasant associations aimed at advocating for reform at the village level and later at preventing the collection of the new tax.

Thus, the resolutions adopted in Kaspichan, Burgas, and around Svishtov included points such as progressive taxation, reduction of salaries for high officials, introduction of a people's militia in place of the regular army, and provision of medical assistance in rural areas.

[42][43][24][44] However, fearing that the peasant delegates might come under the influence of the BRSDP, whose supporters also participated in the debates, the Union's leadership reluctantly agreed to adopt a radical resolution addressed to the President of the National Assembly.

The resolution attributed the "worse than intolerable" economic conditions faced by the peasantry to the newly introduced tax system, which not only depleted the farmers' income but also eroded their capital.

[48] Socialists like Dimitar Blagoev and Georgi Kirkov also backed the peasant movement against the tithe, endorsing and fostering the involvement of BRSDP members in protest gatherings and demonstrations against the tax.

The Turkish minority also became involved in the protests, endorsing a resolution adopted by Bulgarian peasants in Razgrad and participating in village rallies in the regions of Ludogorie and Southern Dobruja.

[57][58][59][52] In Ruse, the event was organized by Nikola Kormanov,[59] a moderate leader of the Union, who had collaborated with teachers and students from the local state-owned model farm to campaign throughout the province.

[61][62] On February 18, a lackluster procession organized by the ruling Liberal Party only served to inflame the fifteen to twenty thousand peasants who had gathered in the city's central square.

Although organizers endeavored to disperse the gathering by noon, around 500 peasants decided instead to march toward the province's administrative headquarters to demand Pekarev's release, vociferously denouncing the tithe and the government en route.

The preceding night, gendarmes from Harmanli and Parvomay were brought in, while police officers rounded up peasants lodging in local inns, arresting those who refused to vacate the town.

As it coincided with a market day, once the rally concluded, many participants sought to return to town, leading to a stone fight between the villagers and the police, supported by a local posse.

[76][68] The government's effective suppression of the protests bolstered its confidence, leading the Ruse authorities to initiate a series of arrests targeting leaders of the anti-tithe movements in and around the city.

Furthermore, it asserted that the mass rallies allowed the peasants to exercise their constitutional right to assembly, and condemned the government for abusing its authority by instructing the police to violently suppress the demonstrations.

Their commander, however, attacked the protesters with his saber and revolver, killing one and wounding two; he was eventually surrounded and beaten, barely escaping alive thanks to the intervention of an Agrarian Union representative.

[82][74][67][68] Disputes arose between civilian and military authorities regarding the prosecution; ultimately, only a lieutenant colonel and 64 lower-ranking soldiers were convicted for insubordination due to their refusal to shoot the peasants.

[68] On May 22, as the deadline for submitting tax returns expired, Vladimir Arseniev, the administrator of the Balchik district, accompanied by a contingent of gendarmes, conducted an assessment of the tithe owed in the villages of the region.

[98][36][97][93] After residing in the Mangalia area for two to three months, they were arrested by Romanian authorities in connection with the assassination of journalist Ștefan Mihăileanu by a Bulgarian national instigated by the Supreme Macedonian-Adrianople Committee.

Despite the presence of the army, on June 11, a large rally was held in Marash [bg], drawing peasants from six neighboring villages carrying flags demanding the abolition of the tithe and the dismissal of the government.

[109][110] On November 22, the Radoslavist administration, weakened by peasant unrest and the international conflict with Romania, was compelled to resign following revelations of multiple financial scandals implicating its ministers.

[111][33] The Agrarian Union convened its second congress from December 3 to 5, during which it formalized its opposition to the tithe and advocated for enhanced rural education, expanded experimental farms, accessible credit, and progressive taxation.

Concurrently, improved harvests bolstered the economic prospects of peasants, leading to a temporary decline in the Union's appeal;[120][112] however, over time, the BANU established itself as one of the most popular political parties in Bulgaria.