Serbian Statehood Day
Sunday, 15.2.2026 | Culture and traditions
Today, in a series of events, Serbia celebrates the Statehood Day, in memory of the 1804 Candlemas Day (Sretenje), when the First Serbian Uprising took place, and in memory of the same date in 1835, when the first modern constitution of Serbia was adopted.
On the occasion of the holiday, an envoy of the Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces and President of the Republic, President’s Advisor Miloš Vučević laid a wreath at the Monument to the Unknown Hero on Avala, accompanied by Minister of Defense Bratislav Gašić and Chief of the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff General Milan Mojsilović.
Following the wreath-laying ceremony, with the Guard’s honorary formation and playing the national anthem, President’s advisor Vučević wrote in the memorial book:
“On behalf of the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the grateful fatherland, I pay tribute to the remains of the unknown hero, on the occasion of the Statehood Day 2026.
May the wreath that I lay on behalf of the head of state in this holy place be a sign of glory and gratitude of Serbian people, binding to eternity this hero and all his brothers in arms resting in known or unknown graves, from Kalemegdan to Kajmakčalan, from Serbian uprisings to Serbian liberation wars.
Glory to the heroes of holy defense! Honor to the torch bearers of freedom! Peace to their souls.
May the Lord make us worthy of the sacrifice made by our ancestors over two centuries of struggle for the freedom and independence of the Serbian state, which began on the Candlemas Day in 1804.”
Today, as part of the Statehood Day celebration, members of the Serbian Armed Forces have participated in rendering military honors at a state ceremony in Orašac, attended by Deputy Chief of the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff, Lieutenant General Tiosav Janković and members of the collegiums of the Minister of Defense and Chief of the General Staff, including numerous ceremonies in cities and municipalities throughout the country.
Today’s activities came after the Statehood Day gun salute, conducted by members of the Serbian Armed Forces Guard from the Sava Plateau on Kalemegdan.
