Marko Nikolic and Nenad Mitrovic took the part in that expedition. This week they are visiting Melbourne and next week Canberra to attend the 100th anniversary coinciding with the end of WWI to share their experience with Australians. They will have a presentation in The Holly Trinity Church Hall in Brunswick on 8th September and in the Monastery New Kalenic in Canberra on 16th Serptember.
Serbia suffered the worst casualties, as a proportion of its population, of all nations in World War One. Out of a population of 4 million, Serbia lost 1.1 million people in the war, or 27% of its population and over 60% of its male population. 265,000 Serbian soldiers died or 25% of all mobilised men.
Germany, Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria invaded Serbia from the North, West, East and South East with overwhelming forces and superior equipment, trying to encircle and destroy the Serbian Army.
The Serbian Government decides that the Army, Government and refugees retreat to the Adriatic coast over the Montenegrin and Albanian mountains.
The Serbian Army destroys its heavy equipment and retreats over the mountains at peak of winter, November 1915-January 1916, losing thousands of casualties to starvation, cold, exhaustion, disease and attacks from Islamic Albanian tribes. Some 155,000 men reach the coast and are transported to Corfu for rest and re-equipment by the Allies.
In Serbian history this is known as "Albanian Calvary or Golgotha".
April 1916 the Serbian Army is transferred to the Salonika Front.
