Under a law passed by the National Assembly on June 4th, 1880, the Bulgarian state adopted as its national currency the lev, divided into 100 stotinki. For the duration of the Bulgarian monarchy from the 3rd of March, 1878, to the 15th of September, 1947, four monarchs and numerous series of banknotes and coins succeeded each other.
The face of this 200 leva banknote, issued in 1929, depicts King Boris III, Tsar of the Bulgarians, as well as the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Bulgaria. The white circle on the left portion of the banknote contains a watermark - a lion rampant. The text reads "The Bulgarian National Bank shall pay to the bearer 200 leva." The back of the banknote depicts Paisi Hilendarski (1722-1773), author of the historical work "Slaveno-Bulgarian History" and one of the forefathers of the Bulgarian National Revival of the 18th-19th centuries.
The face of this 250 leva banknote, issued in 1929, depicts King Boris III, Tsar of the Bulgarians, as well as the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Bulgaria. The white circle in the center of the banknote contains a watermark - a lion rampant. The text reads "The Bulgarian National Bank shall pay to the bearer 250 leva." The back of the banknote depicts the city of Veliko Turnovo.
The face of this 1000 leva banknote, issued in 1942, depicts King Boris III, Tsar of the Bulgarians. The text reads "The Bulgarian National Bank shall pay to the bearer 1000 leva." The back of the banknote depicts the Rila monastery, a major center of Bulgarian culture, language, and literature during the Turkish occupation.
The face of this 250 leva banknote, issued in 1943, depicts King Simeon II, Tsar of the Bulgarians, who succeeded his father, King Boris III, after the latter's untimely death in 1943. Also featured is the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Bulgaria. The text reads "The Bulgarian National Bank shall pay to the bearer 250 leva."
