The Rediscovery of the Serbian Great War Veterans in Socialist Yugoslavia (1970-1989). The Case of Momčilo Gavrić, the Boy Soldier

Abstract

The article puts in its focus the reappearance of the Serbian Great War veterans during the two last decades of the existence of socialist Yugoslavia. It has been argued that the public’s demand for more and more stories from the first hand was propelled by a number of reasons including lack of previous systematic dealing with the war and its consequences. In addition, the need to strengthen the Serbian national identity also played an important role in this process. As an illustrative case study of these phenomena, the fate of the famous boy soldier of the Serbian army, Momčilo Gavrić, has been reconstructed and analyzed. Ultimately, the popularity of the old former warriors had a number of consequences for the Serbian and Yugoslav society. One of the most important was that oral history began to be perceived in the eyes of the public as a much more trustworthy discipline than was the case with the works of professional historians.

Keywords

• Serbia
• Momčilo Gavrić
• First World War

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