The Men of Lom at Chegan (Ломци на Чеган; 1917) Bulgarian Patriotic Song

Please consider Joining our Discord for to learn and talk about History!   / discord   Info about the song: The Men of Lom at Chegan (Ломци на Чеган/Lomtsi na Chegan), officially "The March of the 15th Lom Regiment" is one of the most iconic, yet forgotten musical pieces of the Bulgarian Army. The song was published in 1917 in a small tome called "Six Military Marches", written by Milan Mitov Tsolov, more popularly known as Milan Mitov. In the book he writes about the march: "I am far from the thought that I can even illustrate their (the 15th regiment's) titanic struggles, with this soaring spirit of national pride and renunciation of the self with which the glorious Men of Lom went and keep going from victory to victory - this I leave to history, who will do that deservedly and thoroughly". Milan Mitov was a veteran of the Wars for National Unification of Bulgaria (1912-1918) and was himself born in the town of Lom on the 27th of February 1884. During the First Balkan War, as part of the 15th Lom Infantry Regiment Milan Mitov would quit his job as a teacher and partake in the battles at Mandra, Tatarkyoy, Lyule-Burgas, Tyurkbey, Sakikyoy and Tatarli, participates in the storming of Otluk-Tabiya Fortress at Chataldzha and after the fall of the Adrianople Fortress would participate in the battles of Kum-Burgas and Yalos. During the Second Balkan War in 1913 he would fight against Bulgaria's former allies at Berovo, Pehchevo, Budinartsi, Umlyano, Bayaz-Tepe, Mount Rwen and Pancharevo. After Bulgaria's entry in WW1 in 1915, he would partake in the battles of Stoykovo Bardo, Zaychar, Morava. After Greece's entry into the war the 15th Lom Regiment, with Mitov still apart of it, would take over Lerin, Banitsa, Armenohor, Gornichevo, Surovichevo, Patele and many more. He and his regiment would also partake in the battles of Chegan and the infamous Battle of The Red Wall - the bloodiest battle in WW1 for Bulgaria. The march "The Men of Lom at Chegan" follows a tradition in Bulgarian military music which rarely appears in other countries - it lists carefully the largest victories of the Regiment during the war - Battle of the Red Wall, the battles of the Lerin Operation - Chegan, Lerin and Armenohor. It would in time become forgotten as the new Communist authorities prohibited it as "Fascist". ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Many thanks to my friend from bulgaria Kalin Ivanov for giving me the translation and making me find this song!