Rotterdam, Netherlands – An exhibition titled “The Serbian Soldiers Who Died in the Netherlands 1917-1919” opened on October 9, 2023, at the Holy Trinity Parish in Rotterdam. The exhibition was officially opened by Her Excellency, the Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia in The Hague, Ms. Ksenija Milenković, who emphasized the importance of preserving the memory of Serbia’s role in World War I.

The exhibition and accompanying book, authored by Ana Jelić, Nenad Karamijalković, Fabijan Vendrig, Tanja Vendrig, and John Stienen, are the result of a research project that sheds light on the little-known fact that around one hundred Serbian soldiers, prisoners of war recovering in neutral Netherlands, died from the Spanish flu in late 1918 and early 1919. Their remains were transferred to the Mausoleum in Jinhidrovica, Czech Republic, in 1938.

At the Reformed Cemetery in Garderen, where a monument to the deceased Serbian soldiers was erected in 1919, a commemoration was held on October 7, 2023, and new marble monuments were unveiled for each soldier. Among them are the names of two soldiers from Gornji Milanovac, Marjan Marjanović and Tihomir Jovanović. The exhibition, through a bilingual publication and documentation, pays tribute to these soldiers and their families, ensuring their names are not forgotten.