The collection includes:
- According to some researchers, the people's representatives in this first National Assembly were 231 in number, according to others - 229. Almost all the more educated, more famous and deserving people for their homeland participated as deputies, as well as representatives of all religions.
At the same time, delegates from Eastern Rumelia, Thrace and Macedonia, who, by virtue of the Berlin Congress, remain outside the borders of the Principality, are also sitting in the "St. Nicholas" church in Tarnovo. "All these representatives have come here with the intention of holding special meetings to discuss their affairs alongside the Bulgarian National Assembly, and either orally or in writing to present their wishes to the Assembly of Leaders, subsequently a deputation chosen from among them, and to state that in no way they can no longer remain under Turkish rule and want union with the Principality of Bulgaria", wrote the Austro-Hungarian delegate from the European consular commission for Bulgaria, Baron Zvidenek, to Count Andrassy, the Austro-Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs.
It is the topic of national unification that is leading at the beginning of the Constituent Assembly, but from mid-March the deputies start discussions on the real part of their work - the draft constitution. The proposed Russian draft prepared by a commission headed by the head of the judicial department of the Provisional Russian Government S. I. Lukianov, which also includes proposals from the Bulgarian side, is under consideration. (S.I. Lukianov is on the far left in the photo of the Council of the Russian Imperial Commissar in Bulgaria, headed by Dondukov, which can be seen in Showcase 1 in front of Hall 5. In the center, on the right, is Prof. Marin Drinov, who also participated in the commission's work.)
During the debates, the main political division emerged - between conservatives and liberals. The discussions on March 21 and 27 are the most heated, and on the second date the liberals prevail, who impose their views on a more liberal model of government (rejecting the idea of a bicameral parliament) and on giving broad rights and freedoms to citizens. Among the most active speakers at the Constituent Assembly are Konstantin Stoilov, Petko R. Slaveikov, Petko Karavelov, Marko Balabanov, Dragan Tsankov, Dimitar Grekov, Hristo Stoyanov and others. Many of them are participants in church-educational and revolutionary struggles, received a solid education in the best European universities, gained experience in the administration of the Provisional Russian Government. Subsequently, many of them became prominent figures in Bulgarian political and cultural life. Photos of all MPs and personal belongings of Petko Karavelov, Dragan Tsankov and Konstantin Stoilov can be seen in the NIM exhibition. The museum has in its collections portrait and family photos of Dragan Tsankov, as well as photos of Petko Karavelov and Konstantin Stoilov.
An impartial testimony of the parliamentary debates is provided by a rare publication - "Diaries of the First Constituent National Assembly in Tarnovo", displayed in showcase 2, dedicated to the event. It is curious that then there were no stenographers and the minutes of the meetings were written by hand by secretaries chosen from among the deputies. Today they are stored in the National Library "St. St. Cyril and Methodius" in Sofia, and the first editions of the journals of the Constituent Assembly have long since become bibliographic rarities.
The Tarnovo constitution was voted and signed on April 16, 1879 by the deputies of the Constituent Assembly. The newly adopted constitution legitimizes the restoration of Bulgarian statehood. The basic law affirms the principle of separation of powers - head of state (prince), legislative (Ordinary and Grand National Assembly), executive (Council of Ministers) and judicial (court). Its democratic character paves the way for Bulgaria to modern European statehood.
The Tarnovo Constitution can be seen in the NIM (the original is kept in the Central State Archives), placed in a magnificent red leather binding, on which is written "Constitution of the Bulgarian Principality" in golden letters.
The Tarnovo constitution was changed in 1893 and 1911, reflected in special editions - brochures, materials and speeches, which are also stored in the NIM. The amendments to the Basic Law of 1911 were issued in the impressive "Silver Constitution", so called because its cover is made of hammered silver with gilding, which is preserved in the Central State Archives.
