Today the Bulgarian Orthodox Church celebrates an anniversary of the restoration of the Bulgarian Patriarchate.
Its existence was terminated at the end of the 14th century when Bulgaria fell under Ottoman rule. The restoration of the Bulgarian Patriarchate became the goal of Bulgarian church leaders during the National Revival. In 1870 the first step was made through the establishment of the Bulgarian Exarchate.
At the end of the Second World War, the Patriarchate of Constantinople recognized the autocephaly of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. On May 10, 1953, the Third Church Assembly elected Metropolitan Kiril of Plovdiv as the first Bulgarian Patriarch in modern times.