The Treaty of Berlin of 1878: Conclusion and Implementation

After the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, Russia and the Ottoman Empire concluded the Treaty of San Stefano on March 3, 1878, proposing a large autonomous Bulgarian polity. Britain and Austria-Hungary feared expanding Russian influence and demanded revision of the postwar arrangements. Britain, Russia, and other countries first held bilateral consultations before bringing the issues to the Congress of Berlin.

The congress met at the chancellor's residence in Berlin from June 13 to July 13, chaired by German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Britain, Italy, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire sent plenipotentiaries, including British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and Russian Foreign Minister Alexander Gorchakov. The treaty signed on July 13 contained sixty-four articles, placing postwar territorial arrangements within a collectively negotiated international framework.

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Article I defined Bulgaria as an autonomous tributary principality under the sultan's suzerainty, with a Christian government and national militia. Members of the ruling dynasties of the great powers were ineligible to become its prince. The ruler was to be locally elected, confirmed by the Ottoman government, and approved by the powers. Article IV required an assembly of notables first to convene at Tarnovo and draw up the principality's organic law.

Eastern Rumelia was separately constituted south of the Balkan Mountains. It enjoyed administrative autonomy but remained under the sultan's direct political and military authority. A Christian governor-general would be appointed by the Ottoman government with the powers' agreement for a five-year term. A European commission was to work with the Ottoman government on the province's administrative, judicial, and financial organization, reflecting the institutional distinction between an autonomous principality and an autonomous province.

Provisional government also had a time limit. Article VII restricted Bulgaria's provisional regime to nine months after the exchange of ratifications. Article XXII similarly limited Russian occupation of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia to nine months, with three additional months to complete withdrawal through Romania.

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The treaty recognized the independence of Montenegro, Serbia, and Romania while separately adjusting borders, debts, and transport obligations. Romania returned southern Bessarabia to Russia and acquired territory in the Danube delta and Dobruja. Serbia was required to assume a portion of Ottoman public debt for newly acquired districts, with the amount still subject to negotiation.

Religious equality was incorporated into conditions of recognition and the public law of the new polities. Articles XXXV and XLIV stipulated respectively that, in Serbia and Romania, differences of religious belief could not exclude individuals from civil and political rights, public office, or professional occupations. The treaty also protected the immovable property of some departing residents, allowing them to rent it out or entrust its management to others, addressing private-property questions arising from territorial transfers.

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Article XXV authorized Austria-Hungary to occupy and administer Bosnia and Herzegovina. Ottoman administration remained in the Sanjak of Novi Pazar, but Austria-Hungary obtained rights to station troops and construct military and commercial roads, with details to be settled separately between the two governments. Occupation and administration under the treaty therefore did not amount to an outright declaration annexing the entire area to Austria-Hungary.

In Asia, the Ottoman Empire ceded Ardahan, Kars, Batum, and other territories to Russia, which declared its intention to make Batum a free port primarily for commerce. Article LXI also required the Ottoman government to introduce reforms in provinces inhabited by Armenians, ensure their security, and report periodically to the powers, which would supervise implementation.

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Article LXIV required the powers to ratify the treaty and exchange ratifications in Berlin within three weeks, or sooner if possible. The protocol of exchange dated August 3 records that representatives of Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, and Russia presented instruments in proper form and completed the exchange.

Ottoman Ambassador to Germany Sadullah Bey explained that day that his country's instrument had not arrived in time, but that the sultan had ratified the treaty and recognized its validity from that date. The formal exchange would follow within fifteen days. Signature on July 13, exchange and recognition of effectiveness on August 3, and subsequent arrival of the Ottoman document were thus separate steps. Deadlines for occupation, withdrawal, and provisional administration likewise had to run from the points specified in the relevant articles.

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Implementation was not a peaceful handover. In a letter of September 20 to Secretary of State William Evarts, U.S. Minister to Austria-Hungary John Kasson reported repeated fierce fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina and difficulties of occupation and administration exceeding expectations. He remained doubtful about the stability of long-term administration. This contemporary account reveals the distance between diplomatic authorization and local acceptance.

The Greek frontier question also remained unresolved when the congress ended. Article XXIV merely reserved the powers' right of mediation. On August 30, U.S. Minister to the Ottoman Empire Horace Maynard reported that Greece sought Thessaly, Epirus, and other territories and that disturbances continued along the border. A note from Savfet Pasha enclosed with the dispatch rejected Greek arguments for territorial cessions. The treaty established negotiating channels, but actual boundaries and local order still had to contend with governmental differences, popular resistance, and further negotiations.

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