Vidovdan

Vidovdan (Serbian Cyrillic: Видовдан) is a Serbian religious holiday, St. Vitus Day, whose feast is on June 28 (Gregorian Calendar), or June 15 according to the Julian Calendar, in use by the Serbian Orthodox Church. Also, Serbian Orthodox Church is designated as a memorial day to Saint Prince Lazar and the Serbian holy martyrs who gave their lives to defend their faith during the epic Battle of Kosovo against Ottoman Empire on June 28, 1389. It is a Slava (Patron saint feast day) of St. Vitus, connected in Serbian culture to the Battle of Kosovo, among other events. The feast day is sacred to ethnic Serbs (Serbian Orthodox Christians), who transformed the pagan Slavic god (deity) of war, fertility and abundance "Svetovid" (Vid) into the Sicilian martyr (St. Vitus) - who exorcised the evil out of Diocletian's son, at the time of the final Christianization of the Serbs during the rule of Basil I (867–886) by Byzantine missionaries of Constantinople Cyril and Methodius. Through the centuries, Serbian historical events such as the Battle of Kosovo became sources for spiritual strength and patriotism. It was not a coincidence that Gavrilo Princip assassinated the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Vidovdan, triggering the First World War.