Vasil Kolarov

Vasil Petrov Kolarov (; 16 July 1877 – 23 January 1950) was a Bulgarian communist political leader and leading functionary in the Communist International (Comintern).

Biography Early years Kolarov was born in Şumnu, Ottoman Empire (now Shumen, Bulgaria) on 16 July 1877, the son of a shoemaker. After graduating from high school in Varna, he worked as a teacher in Nikopol from 1895 to 1897.

In 1897, Kolarov joined the Bulgarian Workers' Social Democratic Party (BWSDP). In 1913, Kolarov was elected to the Bulgarian National Assembly.

In June 1923, Kolarov spoke at the 3rd Enlarged Plenum of ECCI in Moscow before returning secretly to Bulgaria at the end of the month. There he was promptly arrested but released on 5 August. Upon his release, Kolarov played a critical role along with Georgi Dimitrov in convincing the Bulgarian Communist Party to organize an insurrection in accordance with Comintern instructions. Kolarov was a member of the revolutionary committee which launched the resulting September Uprising in 1923. This attempted revolution failed and Kolarov was forced to flee to the Soviet Union by way of Yugoslavia and Austria. He remained in exile for more than two decades.

Kolarov remained a top official of the Communist International, presiding over the body's debates at the 5th World Congress of 1924. He was re-elected to the ECCI and its governing Presidium at the 5th, 6th, and 7th Congresses.

Kolarov was President of the Executive Committee of the Peasant International (Krestintern) from 1928 until its dissolution in 1939. He also served as director of the International Agrarian Institute in Moscow during this period. In 1943, Kolarov signed the document formally dissolving the Communist International.

Return to Bulgaria Kolarov returned to Bulgaria in 1945 during its occupation by the Soviet Union, and was elected to the National Assembly again. He was reelected in 1946 and became provisional president of Bulgaria that year, amidst the growing domination of the communists. He remained president until the formation of the government headed by Dimitrov in December 1947, which he entered as deputy prime minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

When Dimitrov died in July 1949, Kolarov was elected to Dimitrov's old post as prime minister. He served until his own death a few months later.

Death and legacy Kolarov died in Sofia on 23 January 1950, aged 72. His funeral was held as a state funeral and his body was buried in the Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum.

His city of birth, Shumen, was named Kolarovgrad in his honor between 1950 and 1965.

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