Petrov B. (2024) Cultural route for the military memory to Col. Serafimov in Smolyan Region. PROCEEDINGS with Papers of the Eghteenth International Traveling Seminar of ULSIT “Modern Dimensions of the European Educational and Research Area. Bulgarian-Sicilian Cultural Communication“ 2nd – 7th June 2024 University of Messina, Sicily, Italy 02-07.06.2024 : Volume 12. – Sofia Academic Publishing House „About Letters – About Writing“. – рр. 134-145. – ISSN 2367-7988

Abstract: In this papaer the thesis is presented that the military monuments located on the territory of the Smolyan region have the necessary potential to become an essential part of the cultural routes in the region. The necessary informative basis has been built regarding the historical events and personalities that led to the final liberation of the Rhodopes, on which to base the current proposal. Emphasis is placed on the mythologized image of Colonel Vladimir Serafimov and his command of the 21st Srednogorets Regiemnt, which played a major role in the heroic events during the Balkan War that took place near Mount Srednogorets. The steadily increasing interest in the tourist sites related to them, as well as the possibilities to realize this potential, through the addition of the war memorials, as an invariable part of the culturalknowledge routes presented by the municipality of Smolyan and the Regionalhistory museum in the city, have been assessed. In support of the proposed cultural route “Memory to Colonel Serafimov”, an exemplary tourist program has been suggested, which has the resources to be implemented both independently and with the assistance of RHM– Smolyan officials.

Keywords: military monuments, Vladimir Serafimov, Rhodope Shipka, Balkan War, cultural route, Bulgarian army, 21st Srednogoretsregiment, tourism