NACHO PLANINSKI - A MAN OF NOTE

Nacho Planinski was born on 20 July 1847. In the town of Stara Zagora he completes some classroom studies until his age of seventeen. From 1864, with a stipend from the church syndics in town, he is send for medical studies in Bucharest. There he enrolls as a student in the High Medical School, where, head is Prof. Carol Davila. We don't have much information about Planinski's achievements as a student. Probably, he performed well there, as is evident by his "Forte Binne" award on his graduation. However, he left more traces with his public activity in Romania.

Bucharest in the 60s was a center for the national-liberation struggles of the bulgarian people. Noted revolutionary like G. S. Rakovsky introduces him in the circles, and, soon young Nacho Planinski begins to publish a fly-sheet with revolutionary content. He becomes the initiator for the establishment of a local community center with reading rooms - the so-called "chitalishte". Such educational centers were something new for the bulgarian revival period, and, deservedly Planinski is acclaimed one of the forerunners for this small scale educational facilities - accordingly, this is from the words of great bulgarian statesman Stilian Chilingirov. Another famous bulgarian statesman and writer - Zachary Stoyanov - narrates about bulgarian "chitalishte" in Bucharest, from his "Notes about the Bulgarian Uprisings":

"... in this classroom, Nacho Planinski served his compatriots with making presentations on various topics in the fields of physics, chemistry, sociology, hygiene, etc. He always emphasized that, some people still live in the age of barbarism and that the only way out from this stage is to work "hand-in-hand", together, for the progress of the whole humanity ..."

With some friends of his, notably Marin Drinov, Vassil Drumev and others, Planinski becomes one of the co-founders of Bulgarian Literary Society in Braila. Fact is, that, he was a corresponding member of "Branch for Natural and Medical Sciences" from year 1869. From 1875 he is full member but after liberation period he neglected his activities with the Society, these, for reasons unexplained by the historical community.

In the year 1870, with his graduate medical diploma, Dr. Nacho Planinski establishes for a private practice in his native town. Some people from his Bucharest period witnessed, that, he had served medical aid even before finishing his medical studies. These are people from the rebel detachment of voivoda Panayot Hitov - the latter, a legendary fighter for national freedom and author of a book with memoirs, notably the "My traveling on the Balkan Mountains" /i.e., supposed to be the first memoir book in the bulgarian literature/. Whatever, we engage very little in literature questions here and our aim is to give brief autobiography sketch of some eminent bulgarian medics.

In Stara Zagora, he stays for two years but disappointedly so. The local town leaders - "chorbadjii" - harm with his medical practice. So, Dr. Planinski devotes to other activities and most of all to drama. He stages and produces, here, the play "A tormented Genevieve" and some other plays. He also engages in some educational activities in the local "chitalishte". However, in 1872 Nacho Planinski transfers to another bulgarian town with good revivalist traditions - the town of Sliven.

This time he receives a good welcome from the town community. Even from the first days of his arrival he is involved in a political event with the bulgarian eparchy in town. The initiated protest meeting demands, that, the bulgarian bishops shouldn't be sent to exile - accordingly, to a sultans "firman" from Tzarigrad. The Sliven's "myufti-sarafin" Ali Bey attends the meeting, and, being greeted by the crowd with exclamations: "Padishah chock yasha", that is "Long live the Sultan". And, Ali Bey is flattered so that he sends a telegram to the grand vizier in Tzarigrad, and, some days later the order for exile is revoked with the bulgarian bishops being able to go back to their native eparchies. The date is 28 January 1872.

Further, Dr. Nacho Planinski is able to practice his profession for 5 years in Sliven. For his work, he receives good credit in the bulgarian circles, and, for some time an advertisement for his medical skills runs in the newspaper "Eastern Times". But Dr. Planinski never put aside his links with the revolutionary process in the country. In the turmoil of the April Uprising from 1876, he is among those who renders help to the rebels - with money and medical consummative - also, he is known to have accepted for treatment some wounded rebels in his own house. His most well-known enterprise is, notably, some months after the suppression of the uprising. On 24 December 1876, Lady Stanford from Edinburgh is visiting the town of Sliven on occasion of the reported atrocities with christian population. Dr. Planinski and Mihail Ikonomov are two bulgarians, who, dare to join the group of Lady Stanford to the demolished village of Boyadjick. Later, the lady advocates in front of the liberal government of Gladstone - namely, to send thousands of pounds sterling to help the victims from the uprising. The literature for the protest of the English government to the atrocities of the April Uprising is vast, and, we couldn't list here all the sources. Maybe in some other expose, it will be possible to give a fuller account.

Dr. Nacho Planinski is one of the victims from the uprising, also. Together with another 20 bulgarian notables from Sliven, he is arrested and sent to trial in Tzarigrad. There, the defense of Dr. Planinski argues that the doctor has been helping all people suffering from the disasters of the uprising, and, evidently turks who had also been wounded by the rebels. But the prosecutor Saduk Bey is firm in his accusations, saying: "... those pezevenks /i.e. traitors/ helped the commits and are dangerous for the empire.". Sometime in December 1877, Dr. Planinski is sentenced and sent to exile in Mala Asia - in the town of Bollu. This place, tough for dwelling, hardens the experience of the doctor. But, luckily Dr. Planinski is enabled to practice medicine in that remote place and that makes it easier to await the victory of the russian army in the ensuing war. 

With the signing of the San Stefan treaty, Dr. Planinski is back in Sliven. Like many other significant revolutionaries, he is granted deserved honor for the rest of his life. He is considerably young, when, elected district physician of the town of Sliven and director of the city hospital - only, 31 years of age. Next year, he is elected member of parliament for Eastern Rumelia /1879-1882/. He participates actively in the public life of the country. Thus, Dr. Planinski is in the accrediting board of the association "Saint Pantaleimon" in Plovdiv. This benevolent society have the task to help and organize the network of hospital care in Eastern Rumelia - based, on the material resources left by the russian army. Later, this society is a foundation for the Bulgarian Red Cross.

In the year 1885 is waged the Bulgarian-Serb War, on occasion of the unification for the two Bulgarian principalities. Dr. Planinski participates as a sanitary major in this war. For his courage in helping the wounded, he is awarded medals "Saint Alexander", IVth and Vth degrees. After demobilization from war, he is elected consecutively member of parliament for the Third, Fourth and Fifth National Assembly. During that period, Dr. Planinski actively cooperate for the well-being of his electors. The citizens of Sliven remember him as a men with encyclopedic erudition, and, this is how the public activist Atanas Iliev remembers about him in his memoirs. Dr. Planinski is the one who puts a beginning to organized variola vaccination in the region. He also writes profusely in the local newspapers.

The year 1887 is an end for the political carrier of Nacho Planinski. He participates unsuccessfully for the royal election campaign of Alexander Exarches /1810-1891/. Later, he writes a book about that bulgarian public activist. Dr. Planinski is also author of two other textbooks: 1. A textbook of zoology; 2. A textbook of gynecology. These books are difficult to obtain. We couldn't find them catalogued in any public library. Perhaps, they exist in the collection of a private person. While trying to be parsimonious, we should recommend that a new bibliography is necessary for many of the revivalist scholars and men of letters from that period in Bulgaria.

Dr. Nacho Planinski dies from typhus on 8 November 1895, only 48 years of age. In memoriam