Monument to the Tsar Liberator
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The Monument to the Tsar Liberator (Паметник на Цар Освободител, Pametnik na Tsar Osvoboditel) is an equestrian monument in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It was erected in honour of Russian Emperor Alexander II who liberated Bulgaria of Ottoman rule during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78.
The memorial's author is Italian sculptor Arnaldo Zocchi, who won the project in competition with 90 other artists from 15 countries in the end of the 19th century. The foundation stone was laid on 23 April 1901, St George's Day, in the presence of Knyaz Ferdinand I of Bulgaria, but work on the sculpture did not begin until 15 September 1903.
Ferdinand also attended the monument's inauguration on 30 August 1907 together with his sons Boris and Kirill, Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia, son of Alexander II, together with his wife and his son, as well as other notable figures.
Erected of polished granite, the Monument to the Tsar Liberator consists of a pedestal, a middle part with figures and a massive Renaissance cornice finished with the sculpture of the Russian tsar on a horse. The bronze wreath at the foot was donated by Romania in memory of the Romanian soldiers that died during the war.
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