A Turkish peasant performs his last prayer before being executed

A Turkish peasant performs his last prayer before being executed by Bulgarian soldiers, Cisr-i Mustafapaşa (Svilengrad), Bulgaria, 1913

The claim that the photo shows people executed for not wearing hats

"two Turks who were tried at the Bulgarian Military Court allegedly were found guilty of shooting at a

Bulgarian unit passing outside their village, another allegedly killing Bulgarian soldiers entering their

homes. On one hand, they are guilty of armed resistance while not wearing a uniform (from the Bulgarian perspective).

On another, they simply tried to defend their homes from an invading army (from the Turkish perspective).

This is one of those grey areas, but these two seem to be more the victims than the guilty. By comparison,

the soldiers in similar situation would be handled better (either shot on sight or taken as POWs).

Both Bulgaria and Turkey were signatories to the First Geneva

Convention (though it did not cover much). Someone not in uniform but with weapons was often hanged as a spy/saboteur in this or the next wars. But it was a harsh interpretation of that rule to use it on villagers.

As to the claim that they Bashibozuks, this does not seem likely. The dress style is different, the old man is too old etc. 

There is a report of two members of the Bashibozuk (an irregular Ottoman formation known for the many

atrocities they committed) who were executed in Svilengrad, November 1912 for murdering Bulgarian

soldiers who had been quartered in their houses. They were also both suspected of many additional murders

of civilians. The older one apparently had a white beard and they both prayed before their executions, so it's

possible that the man in the above photograph is one of the people mentioned in the report.

Bulgarians were oppressing the turkish minority to make them flee to Turkey. Happened all around balkans

not only in Bulgaria. They took over their goods and massacred who were resisted. So this policy turned out to

be successful, 1m+ turk fled to turkey over 100-120 years only from Bulgaria. Balkan wars and Bulgarians were trying to get back at the Turks because they were their slaves for almost

500 years. The turks enslaved Bulgarians for 500 years and did terrible terrible things to them as well. Such as forceful fate conversion or death. Going into villages and killing

little boys so them don't grow up to fight the Turkish occupation and many other things. So it's a lot more complicated than it looks. "The town was ceded to Bulgaria in 1912 after the First Balkan War," IMHO, either the Bulgars were ethnically cleansing or there was a movement to return the area to Turkey

For most of 1913, the Bulgarians were at war with the Turkish Ottoman Empire twice: during the First- and

Second Balkan wars. The first took a bunch of territory, including the town of Svilengrad. I have no idea why this gentleman was being executed, but if the title is to believed, then he'sa freshly conquered chap.an it looks.

"The town was ceded to Bulgaria in 1912 after the First Balkan War,"

IMHO, either the Bulgars were ethnically cleansing or there was a movement to return the area to Turkey For most of 1913, the Bulgarians were at war with the Turkish Ottoman Empire twice: during the First- and

Second Balkan wars. The first took a bunch of territory, including the town of Svilengrad. I have no idea why this gentleman was being executed, but if the title is to believed, then he'sa freshly conquered chap.

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