On this day, 90 years ago, the dedication of the Freedom Monument on Mount Shipka took place. It was erected in memory of the fallen heroes of the defended place during the Battle of Shipka, around which the decisive battles for the Russo-Turkish War and the Liberation of Bulgaria took place in the summer of 1877.
The monument was built with the voluntary sacrifices of the entire Bulgarian people. It was inaugurated on August 26, 1934, when it was consecrated by Metropolitan Pavel of Stara Zagora and welcomed with 101 cannon shots. Tsar Boris III cut the ribbon and delivered the first speech, followed by Prime Minister Kimon Georgiev.
The monument resembles a medieval Bulgarian fortress. It is 31.5 m high and 890 steps lead to it. A bronze lion stands proudly above the central entrance - a symbol of Bulgarian statehood. On the other three sides are written the names of Shipka, Sheynovo and Stara Zagora - the battlefields reminding of the feat of the Bulgarian militiamen.