Sunrise on Peak Šipka: Places of the Russo- Ottoman War in the Student Excursions in Bulgaria (1896 – 1912)
Sunrise on Peak Šipka: Places of the Russo- Ottoman War in the Student Excursions in Bulgaria (1896 – 1912)

Summary/Abstract: School excursions were introduced in Bulgaria by the Minister of Education Konstantin Veličkov (1855 – 1907) in 1896. He was inspired by Johann Friedrich Herbart’s ideas about “experience-based education” and aimed to “expand the horizon” of the pupils. The excursions’ statistics pointed out that among the most frequently visited places were the memory places to the Russo-Ottoman War of 1877 – 1878 as well as places presenting the industrial progress in Bulgaria. By analyzing the school trip experiences, observations published in the journal “School review” and the school annuals, one can draw the conclusion that school excursions at the beginning of the 20th century created a space of new knowledge, social entertainment and emotional experience. As a result of these trips, on a mental map places of memory of the Russo-Ottoman War were connected to modern enterprises and state power institutions, which shaped the Bulgarian landscape as symbols of heroic past, nature’s beauty and national progress.

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