Guerre

📖 Another week, another GUERRE story

🌍 During our fieldwork in Bulgaria, the work often begins far from archives, in landscapes where memory is hidden, weathered, and sometimes almost disappearing.

📸 Members of the GUERRE project team from IEFSEM-BAS documenting a First World War memorial: reading inscriptions, tracing names, and carefully recording the current condition.

🕊️ These moments reveal how war memory persists in local environments not only as history, but also as a fragile presence that requires attention, care, and documentation.

✨ Stay tuned for more stories from the field, where memory meets history.


ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS

Another week, another GUERRE story

⛺️Today we travel in the forgotten trenches of Mariovo…

⛰️ In the forgotten trenches of Mariovo, on the northern side of the Macedonian-Greek border, time has a strange taste. Eighty years after the battles of 1916, villagers near Gradešnica began uncovering dark, dust-covered bottles – remnants of a French unit wiped out by German shellfire. Among the fallen was Adjutant-Chief Eugène Rouges, who died with his men as their trench collapsed. Buried with them were sealed bottles of cognac meant to warm the soldiers before battle.

🍷 Decades later, a farmer’s plough struck glass. Inside was a treasure that had slept in the earth since the Great War. The villagers dared a sip of the thick, amber liquid. “At first we were afraid,” one of them said. “But this must be what people mean by the nectar of the gods.” Experts confirmed it was indeed aged French cognac: its taste preserved, its story reborn.

💰 Collectors offered thousands of euros per bottle, yet no one sold. The villagers kept the bottles, sharing them among friends and neighbours. To them, it was more than a drink. It was a connection to the soldiers whose story had slept beneath their fields for decades and decades.

🌧️ And even in the 21st century, new bottles still surface after heavy rains or the turn of a plough. Here, where the war once ended, the silence still tastes of cognac, and the spirits never truly left.

Follow GUERRE to see our next stories!

Филозофски факултет - Скопје
JOIST
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Maja Vasiljevic

📖 Another week, another story!

🚢🛶🎺 After traumatic retreat through Albanian mountains in the Winter 1915, called in cultural memory "Albanian Golgotha" more then 150,000 refugees from Serbia - soldiers, citizens, find consolation on the Greek island Corfu.

🏨Beside, soldiers who waited Allied forces, France and Italy to help them to recover and reorganized to go back to front, Serbian citizens and government too lived two years at Corfu island. Greeks gave them Hotel 'Bella Venezia' to use as war Serbian Parliament, as well as let them organize humanitarian cultural events - exhibitions, concerts, cinema etc.

📷 On this occasion, we present coastal view of Serbs in 1916 gathered in city Kerkyra, with Old Fortress behind. Picture is photographed by French press to show how Serbs are living in Greece. Today is kept at the National library of France.



Ακολουθοι
JOIST
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
Филозофски Факултет Бг
Maja Vasiljevic
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Филозофски факултет - Скопје

📸 We are back!

After a short break following Christmas (and, to be honest, some internal discussions as well), we are ready to continue our series of public history posts exploring the shared cultural heritage of the First World War in the Balkans.

👥 Today we focus on some of the smaller ethnic communities of the region, often squeezed between the dominant national groups.

🗺️ The expulsion of the Ottoman Empire from the Balkans, a vast multi-ethnic empire, gave rise to new nation-states. Yet these states inherited territories inhabited by a complex mix of peoples. During Ottoman rule, the main divisions between populations were largely based on religion (Christians, Muslims, Jews, and others). With the creation of nation-states, however, ethnicity and nationality became increasingly important, often creating tensions between dominant national groups and smaller communities that found themselves marginalised.

🧭 In reality, identifying people’s nationality was far from simple. Communities lived side by side, sharing languages, customs, and economic activities, and their identities were often fluid. When the Allied armies arrived in the region in 1915, they attempted to classify these populations. These distinctions were used not only for statistical and administrative purposes, but also to assess which groups might be friendly or hostile to the Entente, and therefore considered higher or lower security risks.

📑 As a result, Allied lists and reports, whether concerning labour recruitment, wounded civilians, or suspected espionage, carefully categorised people into groups such as Vlachs, Aromanians, Macedonians, Jews, and others. Many of these communities did not yet fit neatly into the national narratives of the new Balkan states that replaced the Ottoman Empire. They lived alongside Albanians, Greeks, Serbs, Montenegrins, Bulgarians, and Turks, forming the complex social mosaic of the region.

📷 In the photograph we share today, the Allied photographer identifies the woman as “Kautso-Vlach.” The image was taken mainly for ethnographic documentation, capturing an everyday practice of Vlach pastoral life.

🐑 The Vlachs of Greece, traditionally shepherding communities, practiced seasonal transhumance, moving their flocks mainly from the plains of Thessaly to the mountains of Macedonia during the summer months. The journey usually began at the end of April, with the return taking place around late October. Entire families travelled together with their animals, and the migration could last 30–40 days on foot.

🏛️ Today, this seasonal movement of herds, a tradition shared across several Balkan countries, is recognised as part of the region’s intangible cultural heritage, reminding us how deeply connected the peoples of the Balkans have always been through everyday practices and ways of life.

✨ Stay tuned for more stories from the archives of the Great War and the shared histories of the Balkans.


JOIST
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Филозофски факултет - Скопје
Филозофски Факултет Бг
Maja Vasiljevic

🎄 With this post, we have made it to Christmas! 🎄

For four months now, the GUERRE Project’s social media has been keeping you company, sharing stories from the Balkans during the Great War. Thank you for being part of this journey. 🤍

Many of you may be familiar with the Christmas Truce of 1914, when British and German soldiers stepped out of their trenches on Christmas Day, exchanged small gifts, and even played football, observing an unofficial truce for a single day. It remains one of the most powerful and symbolic peace initiatives of the war, created by soldiers, for soldiers. ⚽🕊️

In the Balkans, we do not find similar organised truces, but this does not mean that people did not long for the end of the war. The front page we share today, from the newspaper HELLAS (25 December 1915), captures this hope vividly. Men, women, and children raise their hands toward the sky, as a divine angel offers an olive branch to a soldier, the timeless symbol of peace. 🌿

At the same time, the newspaper’s final page sharply satirises the hypocrisy of the era’s leaders and kings, portraying them as the Magi bringing gifts to the newborn Christ, not gold or incense, but bombs and cannons.

The clouds of war once again hang over Europe. From Ukraine to the Eastern Mediterranean, today’s leaders are preparing the continent for another conflict. This makes remembrance more important than ever. History reminds us that peace is real only when people demand it, and that ordinary people have far more in common than what divides them. ✨

🎄 From all of us at the GUERRE Project, we wish you a peaceful and Merry Christmas. 🎄


JOIST
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Филозофски факултет - Скопје
Maja Vasiljevic

Dear

With Christmass just around the corner, here comes another exciting story from our research activity ✨

🖼️ The collections of the Museum of contemporary art (
https://msub.org.rs/?lang=en )
in Belgrade are a treasure of immense value and importance for understanding the impact of WWI on Serbian and Yugoslav culture.

This October prof. Jelena Erdeljan from the University of Belgrade - Faculty of Philosophy https://www.facebook.com/share/19QE7osx2w/ focused on studying the best examples of artwork from the collections of this museum produced by the great Serbian painter Nadežda Petrović (1873-1915).

Educated in Belgrade and Munich, Nadežda was an itellectual lumen and a prolific artist, highly engaged in the cultural life of Belgrade and other cities in Serbia at the turn of the century. She travelled to Paris and Rome where her works were exhibited 🌍.

With the onset of the Balkan wars as well as the beginning of World War I Nadežda, whose name signifies Hope, volunteered as a nurse and braved all the tragedies of the fighting. Many of her canvasses, some of which are kept today at the Museum of Contemporary art, were produced in wartime and show scenes of soldiers and army hospitals. It was in one such army hospital, that of the Serbian town of Valjevo, that Nadežda tended to the multitude of wounded and typhoid infected soldiers. While performing the humane duty of the volunteer nurse, Nadežda contraced this deadly desease and passed away in 1915. 🕊️

👀Stay tuned for more stories, and have an eye on our social media pages, because very soon our creative work for the Museum exhibitions will begin!


https://msub.org.rs/?lang=en

Maja Vasiljevic
Jelena Erdeljan

Welcome to Guerre Project | Guerre Museum GUERRE is a Creative Europe project preserving WWI cultural and linguistic heritage in Bulgaria, Greece, North Macedonia, and Serbia.

📜 "The Day the Guns Fell Silent"

Even though the Balkans had already seen peace return a few weeks earlier, with Bulgaria signing the Armistice on 29 September 1918, effectively ending fighting on the Macedonian Front, the peoples of the region joined the rest of Europe in celebrating 11 November 1918, the day the armistice with Germany was signed. 🕊️

For soldiers from Serbia, Greece, and across the Balkans who had fought for years in the trenches of the Salonika Front, the news carried a special weight. It was not only the end of the Great War, but also the end of years of occupation, displacement, and unimaginable loss.

📰 The headline of The Balkan News, the English-language newspaper of the Allied Army of the Orient printed in Thessaloniki, captured the feeling of that historic moment: “Armistice with Germany Signed – The Victory of the Allies.”

Across the Balkans, church bells rang, flags waved, and weary soldiers and civilians alike allowed themselves a moment of relief and hope. For the first time in years, silence, not gunfire filled the air.

However, in what historians often call the Long First World War (1911–1922), the Armistice marked not an end, but the beginning of new conflicts. Regiments from Greece and Serbia were soon deployed to Soviet Ukraine to fight the Bolsheviks. In defeated Bulgaria, a period of deep social unrest followed. Greece became embroiled in the Asia Minor Campaign, a venture that ended in catastrophe in 1922 and led to the largest population exchange in modern history. Meanwhile, Macedonians saw their national aspirations crushed between the two victors of the war, Greece and Serbia.

Beyond the moving commemorations, the Armistice reminds us that peace endures only when people insist on upholding it.

👉 Follow the GUERRE Project for more stories from the Balkans and the Great War.


Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
Филозофски факултет - Скопје
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Maja Vasiljevic

🎭 Serbian War Prisoners’ Theater in Boldogasszony

After a short break (illness got us down, but we’ve recovered! 💪), we’re back with more stories from our archival research, highlighting the touching and important cultural heritage of the First World War and the Balkans.

Indian summer research by historian Haris Dajč [🔗 https://www.facebook.com/share/177FxwcbkC/] in the Museum of Theatrical Arts of Serbia (Muzej pozorišne umetnosti Srbije/MPUS) [🔗 https://www.facebook.com/share/19yGJLbxCX/], exploring the unique collection of prisoner and military theaters during the First World War, stretching from North Africa and Greece to the prisoner camps of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Among these rare materials stands out a hand-drawn and artistic poster for the play “Elga” by Gerhart Hauptmann, created by Serbian prisoners who were also actors of the Singing Theater Society in the Boldogasszony camp.

The name Boldogasszony, meaning “Virgin Mary” carries deep symbolism in Hungarian culture. Yet between February 1915 and October 1918, it became a place of unimaginable suffering: around 25,000 prisoners, including children, were held there, and up to 10,000 Serbs perished from hunger, disease, and mistreatment.

🎵 Still, even in such darkness, culture found a way to survive.
In September 1918, Serbian prisoners organised a theatrical performance with their camp orchestra, refusing to surrender their humanity. Theater became their remedy for tortured souls, a fragile act of resistance, hope, and dignity amidst despair.

🕊️ Through stories like this, the GUERRE Project reminds us that even in captivity, the human spirit sought ways to create, to connect, and to remain free, if only for a moment.

Maja Vasiljevic
Филозофски факултет - Скопје
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
JOIST

🌐 We Are Live! 🎉
https://guerre-museum.eu/

The GUERRE Project website is officially online!

Our digital home brings together everything we have been working on: the stories, the research, and the memories that connect the peoples of the Balkans through the shared experiences of the First World War!

Explore our growing digital museum, discover the hidden histories uncovered during our fieldwork, and learn more about our partners and activities across Europe. 🌍

What you will find in our website:
- Overview of the Project: You will find detailed information about the project, including its objectives, overall scope, and key outcomes achieved so far.
- Access to the Digital Museum: While the Digital Museum is still under development, access will be made available through our official website once it is launched.
- Meet the Team: You will have the opportunity to get to know the project partners, not only at the institutional level, but also the team members responsible for developing the content and implementing the project.
- News and Updates: Stay informed with the latest news related to ongoing research on the First World War, as well as announcements for calls for papers, seminars, and presentations of interest.
- Contact and Social Media: You will be able to reach us via a dedicated email address and follow our activities through our social media channels, all accessible via the project website.

👉 Visit us now at https://guerre-museum.eu/ and start exploring the Balkan heritage of the Great War.

And don’t forget to follow us here for weekly stories and updates from the field!


JOIST
Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών University of Patras
Филозофски факултет - Скопје
Българска академия на науките - БАН
ИЕФЕМ - БАН / IEFSEM - BAS
Maja Vasiljevic

Welcome to Guerre Project | Guerre Museum GUERRE is a Creative Europe project preserving WWI cultural and linguistic heritage in Bulgaria, Greece, North Macedonia, and Serbia.

🕰️ These days, 107 years ago, Greeks, Serbs, Bulgarians and Macedonians were experiencing the aftermath of the Third Battle of Doiran. A battle with enormous losses on both sides.

Despite the scale of the clash and the sacrifices, the front line did not move an inch.

On one side, Greeks, Serbs, and Macedonians — on the other, Bulgarians, and again Macedonians.

The great cemeteries that dominate the Doiran area remain a living reminder of memory and pain.

As the GUERRE project, we choose to stand by our common heritage:
the agony of death, the fear when shells explode beside you 💥, the terror in the sound of the bugle 🎺 and the clash of weapons.

Today, in this dystopian international system we live in, it is more urgent than ever to say: Never Again! ✊🕊️