The Wars for Independence, also called the First and the Second SerboTurkish Wars 1876-1878, were the first military conflicts in the modernhistory of the Serbian state, after which the Principality of Serbia gained full independence at the Berlin Congress. There are many written sources concerning the wars of 1876-78. Some of them date from between 1877 to the lull between two world wars, and some many years later. Nevertheless, the fact is that today this bright period of Serbian history is almost forgotten. This book offers to a very thorough analysis of the Serbian Army of the period, its organization, participation in military operations, weapons, equipment, uniforms, and the system of orders and medals that had just been introduced. It is a synthesis of all available literature, published for the first time in the English language, and contains extensive visual material and photographs, including colour uniform plates, contemporary paintings, portraits and photographs and many colour photographs of preserved artifacts and documents. A special emphasis is placed on the colourful aspects of Serbian uniforms from the epoch. After the Crimean War, when photographers were reporting from the field of military conflict for the first time, coverage of the American Civil War and Franco-Prussian War followed, as did the Balkan wars of 1876-78. This book offers remarkable photographs of the time, showing all manner of aspects of the Serbian campaigns, including uniforms, military formations, artillery, telegraphs, liberated towns, and wounded soldiers. It is up to readers to open the book, and enter into this unknown and unexpected territory. 45 colour photos, 29 colour illustrations, 129 b/w photos, 44 b/w illustrations
