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The death sentence was performed on 19th February (6th February Julian Calendar) 1873 in the outskirts of Sofia. Vassil Levski is popular also with his bynames of the Deacon, The Apostle - he is considered ideologist and organizer of the Bulgarian national revolution, founder of the Inner revolutionary organization and of the Bulgarian revolutionary central committee.
Vassil Levski (Vassil Ivanov Kunchev) was born on 18th July (6th July Julian Calendar) 1937 in Karlovo in the family of Ivan Kunchev Ivanov and Gina Vassileva Karaivanova. He had two brothers - Hristo and Peter - and two sisters - Ana and Mariyka. Levski used to study in a mixed school in Karlovo. Since 1855 he had been a novice of his uncle archimandrite Hadji Vassiliy, mendicant friar of the Hilendar Monastery in Karlovo and Stara Zagora; he used to study two years in a school in Stara Zagora and then a one-year course for priests. On 24th November 1858 he became a monk with the name of Ignatiy and in 1859 he became a deacon. However later, in 1861, under the influence of Georgi Rakovski, Levski cast off his cassock and devoted himself to the revolution.
In 1862 he went to Serbia and in Belgrade he took part in the First Bulgarian Legion formed by Rakovski. There due to his skills and courage he got the byname of Levski. After the legion was dismissed he joined the detachment of Uncle Ilyo Voivoda. In 1867 he became the colour-bearer of the detachment of Panayot Hitov. In Belgrade he took part in the Second Bulgarian Legion formed by Georgi Rakovski (1867 - 1868). In the end of 1869 Levski took part in the foundation of the Bulgarian Revolutionary Central Committee in Bucharest and together with Lyuben Karavelov he headed its revolutionary-democratic wing. He left Romania and returned to Bulgaria to build a net of local revolutionary committees. In the end of 1870 he decided Lovetch to be the center of the Inner Revolutionary Organization - "Temporary Government of Bulgaria".
On 22nd September 1872 Dimiter Obshti organized robbery of the Turkish mail in Arabakonak. Levski was against but he could not prevail. Levski was ordered by the Bulgarian Revolutionary Central Committee and Karavelov to start uprising but refused to realize it. Instead he decided to take the archives of the Inner Revolutionary Organization from Lovech and to leave for Romania. On 26th December 1872 he was captured by the Turkish police near the Kukrina pub.
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