The remains of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria have been repatriated.
Tsar Ferdinand reigned Bulgaria from 1887 until 1908 as Prince of Bulgaria and as Tsar from 1908 until 1918. He abdicated in 1918 in favour of his eldest son, Boris III, to save the Bulgarian monarchy. He retired to Bavaria, where he died on 10 September 1948 at the age of 87. He was interred in the Saint-Augustin Church in Coburg.
Negotiations to have Ferdinand’s body repatriated began last year and were led by Professor Ivaylo Shalafov, director of the Tsar Boris III and Tsarina Joana fund, and his colleague Petar Stoyanovich. On 29 May, the coffin was flown from Germany to Sofia airport, and it was received with honours. Ferdinand’s grandson, former Tsar Simeon II, who reigned as a child between 1943 and 1946, was there as well. He told reporters, “I am grateful for what is happening, it is for our history, for the Bulgaria. May God grant that it is a symbol of the unity of the Bulgarian nation. Respecting history is very important; it builds trust, as in general patriotic events. It shows that we respect our past and lets us recognize and respect the merits of our former leaders.”
(Screenshot/Fair Use)
Many family members and other dignitaries were there to pay their respects.
The coffin was brought to the family crypt at Vrana Palace and placed into a red marble sarcophagus.
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