The cancellation ceremony took place in Moscow at the Embassy of Bulgaria in Russia. Boyko Kotsev, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Russian Federation, and Oleg Dukhovnitsky, Head of the Federal Communications Agency took part in the event.
During the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878 for the Shipka Pass were fierce battles. Through Shipka ran the shortest route to Istanbul. On July 5, 1877, the pass was occupied by Russian troops. The Turkish command sent the army of Suleiman Pasha from Montenegro into the Beating, thus decided to launch a counter-offensive in order to force the Russian troops out of the Danube. On Shipka, more than 25,000 Turks were sent with 48 guns against Stoletov's defenders, consisting of less than 5,000 people, including 2,000 Bulgarians.
The defense of Shipka by the Russian-Bulgarian detachment of General Nikolai Stoletov is one of the most heroic battles of the Russo-Turkish war. The fights between the defenders of the pass and the Turkish army took place between August 21 to 26, 1877. The Shipka defenders repulsed all the attacks of the Turkish army and held a strategically important fortress.
The envelope depicts a fragment of a picture of Russian artist and writer, one of the most famous battle painter V. Vereshchagin “Shipka-Sheinovo. Skobelev at Shipka.” The circulation of the envelope was 1 million copies.
“The feat of honourable ancestors, as a testimony to the friendship of the Russian and Bulgarian Peoples, should not be forgotten. The memory of that war is sacred equally for Bulgaria and for Russia. Each year the Bulgarians gather on Shipka, lay flowers to memorable monuments and give military honors to those who sacrificed themselves for the sake of the brotherly people. Today, we pay tribute to the victory of our troops and we keep in memory these sacred pages of history, issuing an envelope into circulation for the victory on Shipka. These artistic stamped envelopes will disperse around the world, securing the friendly memory of two Slavic peoples - Russians and Bulgarians,” said the Head of the Federal Communications Agency of the Russian Federation.
The Marked products, dedicated to the relations between Russia and the Republic of Bulgaria, are issued since 2009. In 2009, 2014, 2017 three artistic stamped envelopes were issued on the themes “2009 - the Year of Bulgaria in Russia”, “135 years of establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Bulgaria”, “140 years of the victory of the Russian troops and the Bulgarian militia over the Turkish army on Shipka”; the souvenir sheet “135 years of the end of the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878 issued in 2013 as part of the joint issue of the Russian Federation and Republic of Bulgaria”; a postage stamp of a joint issue between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Bulgaria was issued in 2014. Traditions and modernity”.
« back