Bulgaria Marks 146th Anniversary of Shipka Epopee

Mt Shipka, Aug 19 (BTA/GNA) – On Saturday, Bulgaria marked the 146th anniversary of the Battle of the Shipka Pass, also known as the Shipka Epopee, during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. A solemn ceremony was held in front of the Monument of Liberty on Mt Shipka. Attending were President and Commander-in-Chief of the Bulgarian Armed Forces Rumen Radev, regional governors, MPs, mayors, representatives of local and state institutions, and thousands of citizens.

In his address, President Radev said: “Every year, we climb Shipka to pay respects to the Bulgarian fighters and the warriors of the imperial army of the Tsar Liberator [Tsar Alexander II of Russia], who in the August heat of 1877 upheld our right to have a country. For a century and a half now, revived Bulgaria has been on the map of Europe.”

He described the millions of citizens of the republic as Bulgarians and Europeans by birth, history, and culture. “Those who never come to Shipka believe that to be a European, you have to renounce being a Bulgarian. That is a self-destructive complex,” Radev noted. In his words, it is a fatal delusion that to be a European means crossing out your history, making fun of traditions, being ashamed of the Bulgarian flag, and mocking patriotism. It is an unforgivable irresponsibility to betray ideals to which generations of Bulgarians have dedicated their lives and work. Radev went on to say that he and those in attendance have gathered to state that they will not allow those who are always absent from Shipka to manipulate the historical memory, encroach on Bulgarian relics and wonder how over the years to throw writer Ivan Vazov out of textbooks.

“Today, we say ‘enough’. March 3 is the red line of our patience,” Radev said. He was referring to the incumbent’s proposal for constitutional amendments whereby the national holiday is moved from March 3 (Day of Bulgaria’s Liberation) to May 24 (Day of Bulgarian Letters). “We say ‘no’ to the crawling censorship, snitching, replacement, and scandals through which a project for ravishing the Constitution is being passed. It envisages a Bulgaria governed by politicians for whom Bulgarian nationality is a detail [a reference to Continue the Change co-leader Kiril Petkov’s nationality case], and politics is a servitude competition. We say ‘no’ to the attempts to take down statehood by taking over institutions for self-interested, political, and economic goals,” the President said.

He added that Bulgaria will be a republic of free and legally equal citizens who determine their future themselves. In his words, the people’s movement will not allow March 3 to be obliterated, the national memory destroyed, and the Bulgarian statehood taken down.

The solemn ceremony ended with the laying of wreaths and flowers at the Monument to Liberty in honor of the heroes who gave their lives for Bulgaria’s liberation.

The festive programme on Saturday continued with the opening of a documentary photo exhibition dedicated to the cosmonauts who have visited the Monument to Liberty and re-enactments of the battles of 1877.

The events dedicated to the 146th anniversary of the Shipka Epopee continue until August 25. BTA is media partner of the Shipka Epopee national commemoration.

BTA/GNA