Friday, October 20, 2023

Vidin, Bulgaria: World War I Memorial

The winners don't always get to write the history of great events.

Take this statue in Vidin, Bulgaria. It's an impressive work, overlooking the middle of the town. There are soldiers as the base of the monolith, and you might get the idea that they are the fighting men of Bulgaria.

You'd be right. But on the other side of the monument are soldiers from Germany. This salutes those who fought in World War I - although it's fair to mention that it also pays tribute to those who fought in the Serbian War of 1885. This was dedicated in 1944 when, to be obvious, Bulgaria probably should have been thinking about current battles instead of past ones.

The catch is that the Germans and Bulgarians, among others, lost that war. The Austria-Hungarian Empire was carved up after the peace treat of 1918. You can find many monuments to World War I in, say, France. But as for Bulgaria, or Eastern Europe in general, this one might be a bit lonely. 

The inscription reads, "THE GREATNESS OF THE MOTHERLAND IS BUILT ON THE BONE OF THOSE WHO WORTHLY LIVED AND DIED FOR HER."

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