Jeni Bojilova-Pateva facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jeni Bojilova-Pateva
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| Born |
Dzhenda Bozhilova
1 December 1878 |
| Died | 17 June 1955 (aged 76) |
| Nationality | Bulgarian |
| Other names | Jenny Bojilowa, Jenny Bojilova Pateff, Jenny Pateff, Zheni Bozhilova-Pateva, Zheni Pateva |
| Spouse(s) | Ivan Patev |
Jeni Bojilova-Pateva (also known as Zheni Bozhilova-Pateva) was a brave Bulgarian woman. She was born on December 1, 1878, and passed away on June 17, 1955. Jeni was a teacher, a writer, and a strong supporter of women's rights. She also worked hard for women's suffrage, which means women's right to vote. Later in her life, she became involved in the movement for peace.
After finishing her teaching studies in 1893, Jeni started her career. But in 1898, a law was passed that stopped married women from teaching. This made her turn to activism and journalism. She quickly became part of the international women's movement. Jeni was a very important feminist leader. In 1901, she helped start the Bulgarian Women's Union. In 1905, she founded a feminist group called "Self-Awareness" in Burgas and led it for 25 years. As an editor for the Women's Voice newspaper, she wrote many articles. These articles covered women's issues and the progress of the women's movement in Bulgaria and other countries. Throughout her life, she wrote over 500 articles and books.
Jeni strongly believed that women should have the right to vote. She went to many international meetings and often gave speeches. Her book, В помощ на жената (To Help Women), written in 1908, was very important. It became a key idea for the Bulgarian Women's Union. The book suggested changes needed to improve policies for women and children. In 1915, when the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom was created, she became a leading member of the peace movement. In 1944, women in Bulgaria gained the right to vote. However, many groups like the Women's Union were closed down. In 1945, Jeni asked to open a cultural society, but she was called an "enemy of the people". Two years later, she protested against the death penalty. Because of this, her home and her son's factory were taken by the government, leaving them with nothing.
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Early life
Jeni Bojilova-Pateva was born Dzhenda Bozhilova on December 1, 1878. Her birthplace was Gradets, which was then part of the Ottoman Empire. Her father, Dimov Bozhil, was a tailor and cattle breeder. He had fought in the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) and strongly believed in education.
Jeni finished primary school in Gradets. Then she went to secondary school in Sliven. In 1893, she graduated from the "Nancho Popovich" Natural Sciences High School. She earned her qualifications to become a teacher.
Career
Teaching and studies
In 1894, Jeni Bojilova started teaching at a school in Karnobat. In 1896, she moved to Razgrad to teach at a girls' school. In 1897, she married Ivan Patev, who was also a teacher from her hometown. They had an equal marriage and agreed to help each other get more education.
Ivan went to Geneva to study and came back in 1899. Jeni supported him with her earnings while he was away. When Ivan returned with a law degree, he supported Jeni. She went to study in 1901 in Berlin and Jena. In 1902, she took classes in Paris, studying philosophy, sociology, German, French, and Russian. She did not finish a degree, but she learned a lot about the international women's movement. This greatly influenced her when she returned to Bulgaria in 1903. The couple settled in Burgas. They had three children: Luben (born 1904), Bozhan (born 1905), and Lilian (born 1913).
Women's rights activism (1898–1908)
Jeni Pateva became active in public life in 1898. This happened after the Bulgarian National Assembly passed a law. This new law stopped married women from being teachers. In protest, she wrote an "Open Letter" to all teachers. She told them to fight against this unfair law.
To bring women together, Jeni, along with Anna Karima and Julia Malinova, started organizing. In 1901, they helped create the Bulgarian Women's Union. This was the first national women's organization in Bulgaria. Anna Karima was the first leader, and Jeni Pateva was on the board. Even with pressure from women's groups, the law stayed until 1904.
In 1901, Jeni began giving speeches for the international women's movement. She worked with the "Charity" group in Burgas. In 1902, she went to Yambol to help reorganize the "Development" group. In 1903, she became the leader of "Charity." But she resigned because the group did not want to join the Bulgarian Women's Union.
That same year, the Women's Union faced a big problem. Anna Karima and Julia Malinova had a disagreement that split the group. One side believed all women had similar concerns, no matter their social class. The other side thought the union should focus only on working-class women. Jeni Pateva wrote a book about these issues, called "Disagreement in the Bulgarian Women's Union," published in 1903. She also started writing for Женски глас (Women's Voice), a newspaper. In 1904, she became an editor for it.
In 1904, Jeni Pateva, along with Penka Russeva-Belmustakova and Yordanka Guszova, started an educational group for women. This group offered language and reading courses. It also helped women get professional and university education. In 1905, they officially formed the group as "Self-Awareness." It was an educational and charity society under the Bulgarian Women's Union. Jeni Pateva was chosen as its leader.
In the spring of 1905, Jeni attended the Women's Union Congress in Sofia. She was asked to use her position as editor of Женски глас to publish articles about the union. This newspaper soon became their official media. From 1907, "Self-Awareness" offered general education classes. They also taught tailoring and other trades. That year, women's suffrage became an official goal of the Bulgarian Women's Union.
In 1908, Jeni Pateva represented the Bulgarian Women's Union at a big meeting in Amsterdam. This was the Fourth Congress of the International Woman Suffrage Alliance (IWSA). She worked hard to get the Bulgarian Women's Union accepted as a member, and it was approved. In 1909, she wrote an article arguing for women's freedom. In 1910, she remained editor when Женски глас moved its offices to Sofia.
Also in 1908, Jeni Pateva published her second book, В помощ на жената (To Help Women). In this book, she asked for many changes. She wanted laws to protect children and women workers. She also wanted support for mothers. Jeni called for the government to create places for working women's children, like nurseries. She also wanted laws to protect children born outside of marriage, orphans, and the sick. She believed women should be educated and take part in public life. This would help them care for themselves and their families, have jobs, and feel independent. This book became the main guide for the Bulgarian Women's Union's ideas.
Women's rights and peace activism (1911–1924)
Jeni Pateva spoke at the Sixth Congress of the IWSA in Stockholm in 1911. She wrote a report about the meeting for the Утро newspaper. In it, she argued for women to be fully equal in all parts of public life. During the Balkan Wars (1912–1913), she published "Appeal to the Balkan Women." In this, she urged women to work for peace.
When World War I began, Jeni started programs to help prisoners of war and their families. She even organized a movement to sew clothes for soldiers. Even though the Women's Union's activities were mostly stopped during the war, she traveled across Europe. She attended women's conferences and shared her ideas about peace. She believed women should help negotiate world peace. She spoke at the International Congress of Women in 1915 in The Hague. There, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) was founded. She called for disarmament and shared a plan to rebuild war-torn countries.
Back in Bulgaria, in 1918, Jeni founded the local WILPF branch in Burgas. In May, she organized a meeting with Julia Malinova and Victoria Angelova. Their goal was to restart the Bulgarian Women's Union. The next year, she and other members wrote a protest letter to American President Woodrow Wilson. They asked him to lift the isolation placed on the Central Powers after the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine.
Jeni Pateva represented the Bulgarian government at the International Council of Women (ICW) congress in Oslo in 1920. She gave a speech in French about "The Situation of Woman and Child in Bulgaria." In 1922, she attended another ICW meeting in The Hague. She spoke about the dangers of war. She repeated the need for total disarmament and cooperation among people. She wanted a culture of brotherhood, freedom, and self-determination.
At the Ninth Congress of the IWSA in Rome in 1923, she spoke about women's political rights. That year, after a coup d'état in Bulgaria, a law for the death penalty was passed. Jeni publicly spoke against this law. She wrote articles urging women to oppose it. She was one of the first to challenge it. She repeated her views at the Bulgarian Women's Union convention. She asked mothers, who knew the pain of raising children, to stand against killing human life, war, and the death penalty.
Later career (1925–1945)
In 1925, Jeni Pateva stepped down as leader of "Self-Awareness" after 20 years. She disagreed with the group's support for the harsh government of Aleksandar Tsankov. The next year, she started the "Women's Peace Society in Bulgaria." She led this group until 1944. This organization actively opposed unfair exile and punishment by the authorities.
For many years, she wrote articles for the Вестник на жената (Women's Journal). She also attended women's and peace conferences. She went to the Tenth Congress of the IWSA in Paris in 1926. In July, she was in Dublin for the WILPF Congress. In 1927, Jeni spoke at a meeting in Gland, Switzerland. She also attended conferences in Geneva (1929), Belgrade (1931), Lyon (1931), and Paris (1937). In 1939 and 1940, she attended events in Rotterdam.
Throughout her life, Jeni Pateva gave over 100 public speeches. She published about 500 articles and books. Her topics included women's rights, peace, and vegetarianism, which she followed. In 1931, she was given an honorary membership in the French branch of the International Union of Revolutionary Writers. Her home was a meeting place for important Bulgarian thinkers and public figures.
In 1944, a new government came to power. This communist government gave women the right to vote. But it also closed down many groups, including women's organizations.
In 1945, Jeni Pateva asked the Minister of Education for permission to form a new group. It was called the "Free People's Progressive Cultural Center of Self-Knowledge." She said the group would help women and young people improve their skills. This would benefit the Bulgarian people. Her request was denied. The government called the Patev family "enemies of the people" because they were wealthy. In 1947, when Nikola Petkov was sentenced to death, Jeni Pateva wrote to the government leaders. She demanded that they stop the death penalty. This letter had serious results. Her home and her son Bozhan's factory were taken by the government. Left with no money, she asked the government for a pension, but it was denied.
Death and legacy
Jeni Pateva died without money on June 17, 1955, in Sofia. In 1994, the women's organization she had founded, "Self-Awareness," was restarted. In 2016, the Burgas Writers' House put up a plaque to honor her. Historian Krassimira Daskalova remembers Jeni Pateva and Anna Karima as the two "most prominent leaders of the women's movement" of their time.
Images for kids
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Writers' House, Burgas
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Memorial plaque to Pateva at the Writers' House
See also
In Spanish: Jeni Bojilova-Pateva para niños
