The mortal remains of Tsar Ferdinand were placed in Vrana Palace

The mortal remains of Bulgarian Tsar Ferdinand were placed in the central foyer in Vrana Palace near Sofia on May 29.

The coffin containing the remains was transported by military plane from the German town of Coburg, where Ferdinand spent the last part of his life.

At Sofia airport, the military plane with the remains of King Ferdinand was met by Metropolitan Anthony of Western and Central Europe, official envoy of the Holy Synod, and the Apostolic Nuncio to Bulgaria, Archbishop Monsignor Luciano Suriani. The coffin was carried by national guardsmen.

Tsar Ferdinand’s mortal remains will be transported to Sofia

The mortal remains were transprted to Vrana Palace, where a laying ceremony took place. A guard band led the funeral procession from the main entrance of the Vrana to the palace itself. The coffin was followed by members of the royal family and representatives of the religious communities. Many members of the public also gathered in front of the palace.

The mortal remains of Tsar Ferdinand were laid for reverence in the central foyer of the palace to the sound of the old Bulgarian anthem "Shumi Maritsa".

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The return of Tsar Ferdinand's remains comes 76 years after the monarch's death. Until now, the remains were laid to rest in the crypt of St. Augustine Church in the German town of Coburg.

After his death in the German town of Coburg in 1948, the body of Tsar Ferdinand I was temporarily laid to rest in the crypt of the Catholic Church of St. Augustine" in the same town.

In the year of his death, the burial of the Tsar in his second homeland, Bulgaria, was completely impossible in view of the political situation in the country and in the post-war period throughout Europe, despite his great desire and that of his relatives.

After the democratic changes, several initiative committees were set up whose efforts in this direction were not successful, despite the good intentions of their organisers.

Today's conditions of democracy and respect for history allow the remains of Tsar Ferdinand to be laid to eternal rest in the family crypt of his beloved Vrana Palace in Sofia. In this way, the necessary tribute will be paid to a long-serving head of state and commander-in-chief who, despite a number of controversial assessments of some moments of his reign, contributed much to the development and modernisation of Bulgaria.

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Tsar Ferdinand was born in 1861 in Vienna. He was the son of Prince Augustus of Saxe-Coburg and Princess Clementine, daughter of King Louis Philippe I of the French.

In 1887 he was elected by the National Assembly as Bulgarian Prince.

On the declaration of Bulgaria's independence in 1908, he became the first Bulgarian King of the Third Bulgarian State.

During the first 25 years of his reign, defined as extremely successful, he modernized Bulgaria. During his reign, Sofia University, the Museum of History, the Opera House, the Borisov Garden, and the Zoo were established. The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences was moved from Braila to Sofia. (1887 – 1912)

During the reign of Tsar Ferdinand - the Bulgarians experienced their two national catastrophes. And in 1918, in one of the most difficult periods for Bulgaria - he abdicated in favor of his son Tsar Boris III.

He left for the German town of Coburg, where he died in 1948 surrounded by his two daughters Eudoxia and Nadezhda. He survived the deaths of his two sons and the monarchy in Bulgaria.