a general armed uprising of Bulgarians against Ottoman occupation was imminent. In April 1876 the émigré community in Bechet decided to organise an armed company to cross the Danube and take part in the expected uprising. The organisers (known within the movement as "apostles") of the planned insurgency in the 3rd Revolutionary District centred in Vratsa, had crossed into Romania to try to solicit additional support from the Bulgarian expat community. They met with Botev and convinced him that the planned guerrilla company would be best employed in their area. While fighters were being recruited and armed the news arrived that the insurgency had started prematurely. The recruiters tried to secure an experienced Bulgarian guerrilla leader (known as voivoda) as a commander, but the two who were approached refused for political reasons. Thus, Botev himself, though lacking combat experience, took overall command of the company. Military expertise was provided by Nikola Voinovski (1849–1876), a graduate of the Emperor Nicholas Military Academy, who had previously held the rank of lieutenant in the Russian army. Due to time restraints and the need for secrecy the company did not undergo any formal combat training as a unit and had to rely on the individual fighting skills and experience of its members. The news of the uprising brought new urgency to the preparations and on 16 May 1876 (according to the Julian calendar) the 205-strong company was finally equipped and ready to deploy. Botev devised an ingenious plan for crossing into Ottoman territory without immediately alerting either the Romanian or the Ottoman authorities. The rebels, disguised as gardeners, boarded in groups at several Romanian ports the Austro-Hungarian passenger steamship Radetzky. When the last group boarded at Bechet the rebels retrieved their concealed weapons and seized control of the ship. (This incident was later commemorated in a popular poem and song.) Botev confronted the captain Dagobert Engländer, stated his intent to reach the Ottoman side of the Danube, and explained the political motivation behind his actions. Engländer was so moved by Botev's impassioned speech that he rendered full support and even later refused to cooperate with the Ottoman authorities when they requested the use of his ship to pursue the rebel company. Botev disembarked near Kozloduy and, together with every member of the company, ritualistically kissed the soil of the Homeland. As the rebels proceeded inland, they gradually realised, that, despite previous enthusiastic messages from