Balgarianovinite.com Aleksandar Malinov, the only politician in Bulgarian history to die at the rostrum, suffered a fatal heart attack while delivering an election speech in Sofia on March 20, 1938, according to the Bulgarian Encyclopaedia of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.
Two days later, the former Bulgarian prime minister was buried with State honours after a funeral procession passed from his home on Graf Ignatiev Street through central Sofia to St Nedelya Church, where the funeral service was held, and then on to the Central Sofia Cemetery. King Boris III, Queen Ioanna (born Princess Giovanna of Savoy), public figures, relatives and many citizens attended.
BTA’s Bulgarian Bulletin carried a series of reports on Malinov’s death and funeral. It said he died on the morning of March 20, 1938, during an election meeting at which he was giving a campaign speech. It also noted that he had long suffered from heart disease.
The reports said the royal family sent condolences through Gruev, while the government did so through Belinov of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Council of Ministers decided that the funeral would be paid for by the State.
An official funeral programme prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs laid out the route of the procession and the order of participants, including mounted guards, the Sofia Bar Council, clergy, the hearse, the family, a representative of the King, the Council of Ministers, the diplomatic corps, former ministers, municipal representatives, officials and Malinov’s supporters.
On March 21, 1938, King Boris III, Queen Ioanna (born Princess Giovanna of Savoy) and Prince Kiril paid their respects before Malinov’s remains. The King laid a wreath, while the Queen brought flowers on behalf of Princess Maria Louisa.
On the day of the funeral, among those present were General Tsanev, Panov, Ivan Stamenov, Prime Minister Kyoseivanov, members of the cabinet, diplomats led by Dr Rümelin, former ministers, senior officials and many citizens. At St Nedelya Church, the cortege was met by the King, the Queen and Prince Kiril.
Aleksandar Pavlov Malinov was born on May 3, 1867, in the village of Pandakli in Bessarabia. He finished secondary school in Bolgrad and studied law at Kyiv University before settling in Bulgaria and entering public and political life.
After the death of Petko Karavelov, he became leader of the Democratic Party in 1903. The cabinet he led proclaimed Bulgaria’s independence from the Ottoman Empire on September 22, 1908, and Malinov played a central part both in the diplomatic preparation and in drafting the independence manifesto.
In 1922, the government of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union (BZNS), led by Aleksandar Stamboliyski, convicted Malinov over Bulgaria’s entry into World War I on Germany’s side, and he served a prison sentence. He was freed after the June 1923 coup, when the Military League and the People’s Alliance overthrew the BZNS government, and later joined the newly formed Democratic Alliance, within which he restored the Democratic Party.
During his political career, Malinov was elected 11 times to the National Assembly, once to the Grand National Assembly, and served five times as prime minister. He also wrote the books Amid Bitter and Dangerous Political Struggles, published in 1934, and Pages From Our New Political History: Memoirs, published in 1938. From the Archive: Bulgaria Bids Farewell to Aleksandar Malinov 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-03-20 09:21:00 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law