Serbian Museum

Going down Moustoxydi Street, in “Plati Kantouni” as the locals call it, we encounter the unique, three-storey, neoclassical tile building that houses the Serbian Museum. The “Serbian House” as it is also referred to, was granted by the Municipality to the Serbs 30 years ago, honouring their history and the strong ties forged on the “island of Salvation”, namely Corfu.

The history behind the Serbian Museum

The existence of this particular and very special museum is tribute to a human tragedy; the story of the largest exodus in recent history, which began in 1915. The general Austro-German attack on Serbia on October 6, 1915 resulted in the destruction of the Serbian army and its withdrawal, along with fleeing of her displaced people through Albania to Corfu. 250,000 people were lost from the daily battles, the terrible cold, the famine, the hardships, the diseases and being held captive. From 18 January 1916 until 21 February, 43 large Allied transport ships transported the remnants of the Serbian army and thousands of civilians to Corfu.

These 150,000 Serb exiles gathered in makeshift camps across the east side of the island.

Initially, there was no organization for their reception, as a result of which they were left in the countryside, without food and shelter, exposed to the cold, resulting in mass deaths from diseases. Under the threat that the Serbian army could become a source of infection for the islanders, the allies also took drastic measures on the small island of Lazaretto, opposite the port. There, they set up a transit centre where all those who arrived were disinfected. They also set up a hospital for infectious diseases.

The “Blue Cenotaph”, the sea around the island of Vido, became part of Serbian history. During the first days of the army’s stay in Vido, about 100 people died every day. Initially, they were buried on rocky shores and in shallow tombs. The dead multiplied dramatically and were consequently transported in the boats of a French medical ship  and buried at sea, where they remain forever.

The exiled Serbian Government, in February 1916, found Serbia dominated by Austrians and Bulgarians. The Pasic government, together with many deputies and the Army Staff, decided to settle in Corfu until the end of the war, in January 1918.

The building of the Municipal Theater hosted the Parliament, while the hotel “Bella Venezia” hosted the Government On July 20, 1917, the Serbian government-in-exile and the Yugoslav Commission co-signed and published the “Corfu Declaration”, in which Serbs, Slovenes and Croats expressed their desire to unite into a single nation-state.

In addition to the regular sessions of Parliament, the Serbian Government was also concerned with the establishment of the national state printing house in the port of Corfu. With the help of a Corfiot printer, the necessary equipment was set up and the Serbian banknotes of that time were immediately issued. Then, three times a week, the newspaper “Srpske Novine” (Serbian News) was published with a distribution of 10,000 copies. Simultaneously, political, scientific and literary publications, with the aim of raising public awareness, came to light at this integral time in the history of the Serbian nation. Many of these publications are still preserved in Belgrade and the Museum of Serbian Memories in Corfu.

The history of the Serbian nation, from September 1915 until the end of the war in 1918, unfolds in detail in the Serbian Museum through photographs, documents and other exhibits. In addition to the photographs, which are the largest exhibition material, there are other exhibits such as uniforms, weapons and equipment of Serbian soldiers and officers. Serbian constitutional flags, church vestments and various other items of Serbian priests, medical tools of Serbian doctors from the island of Vido in 1916, insignia and medals of the Kingdom of Serbia and more.

Serbian Museum

Contact telephone: 2661026724