Miladin Zarić (1889–1976) was

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

n and later, Yugoslavian teacher. At the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and liberation of

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

, the capital of

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

on 20 October 1944, during their retreat, the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

have mined the

Old Sava Bridge The Old Sava Bridge ( sr, Стари савски мост, Stari savski most) is a and bridge, crossing the river Sava in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the smallest road bridge in the Serbian capital and is used both for car and tram traffic. The main ...

, in order to stop the progress of the

Soviet Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

and the

People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...

that were chasing them. They would have got away with it if there was not Miladin Zarić, a school teacher and a plain civilian with a considerable experience in

demining Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast waves. By contra ...

gained previously during

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

and

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He saved the bridge from demolition, by cutting the detonator wires, making it the only large bridge in Europe, beside

Ludendorff Bridge The Ludendorff Bridge (sometimes referred to as the Bridge at Remagen) was in early March 1945 a critical remaining bridge across the river Rhine in Germany when it was captured during the Battle of Remagen by United States Army forces durin ...

that the Germans didn't succeed in demolishing while retreating. The importance of his act is even bigger considering that the next bridge connecting

and

Syrmia Syrmia ( sh, Srem/Срем or sh, Srijem/Сријем, label=none) is a region of the southern Pannonian Plain, which lies between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is divided between Serbia and Croatia. Most of the region is flat, with the exce ...

was in

Šabac Šabac (Serbian Cyrillic: Шабац, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Mačva District in western Serbia. The traditional centre of the fertile Mačva region, Šabac is located on the right banks of the river Sava. , the city p ...

, 90 kilometers away.

Life

Zarić was born in Seča Reka near

Kosjerić Kosjeríć ( sr-cyr, Косјерић, ) is a town and municipality located in the Zlatibor District of western Serbia. The municipality has a population of 12,090 inhabitants, but the town itself has 3,992. The municipality's area is , with 26 v ...

, in 1889. He enrolled at the Theological Faculty in

Prizren ) , settlement_type = Municipality and city , image_skyline = Prizren Collage.jpg , imagesize = 290px , image_caption = View of Prizren , image_alt = View of Prizren , image_flag ...

, but because disagreement with

Nikolaj Velimirović Nikolaj Velimirović (Serbian Cyrillic: Николај Велимировић; – ) was bishop of the eparchies of Ohrid and Žiča (1920–1956) in the Serbian Orthodox Church. An influential theological writer and a highly gifted orato ...

leaves priesthood and became a teacher. He participated as a reserve officer in the

Balkan wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

, when cleared the bridge on the river Šemnica near

Bitola Bitola (; mk, Битола ) is a city in the southwestern part of North Macedonia. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba, Nidže, and Kajmakčalan mountain ranges, north of the Medžitlija-Níki ...

, as well as in the

, during which he survived the retreat through Albania. For his service in the war, Zarić received gold and a silver medal for bravery "Miloš Obilić" Cross of King Peter I and Memorial medal for the withdrawal of Serbian army through Albania. After the war, he was a teacher in

Kovilj Kovilj () is a suburban settlement of the city of Novi Sad, Serbia. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 5,599 people (2002 census). Name In Serbian, the village is known as ''Kovilj'' or Ковиљ, in Croatian ...

and

Užice Užice ( sr-cyr, Ужице, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Zlatibor District in western Serbia. It is located on the banks of the river Đetinja. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 59,747. The Cit ...

, and later became a head of the primary school in his native

, then moved to

Žarkovo Žarkovo ( sr-cyr, Жарково, ) is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Čukarica. Location and divisions Žarkovo (Greater Žarkovo) is one of the most populous single neighborhoods of B ...

, the village near

, and then in elementary school, "Janko Veselinović", in which he worked during

. According to the testimony of his disciples, Zarić was a virtuous and noble man, also a dedicated teacher who tried pass his knowledge and positive life values even during the war, regardless of the time of war and the difficulties which are all facing.Teacher that have savet the Old Sava bridge
��, „Politika“, 17. October 2009; Stevan Mihailović - rubrika „Među nama“, „Politika“, 2. November 2009.

References

External links

Teacher Miladin Zarić that have saved Old Zemun pedestrian bridge
(„Политика“, 30. октобар 1944)
Teacher that have saved Old Sava bridge
(„Политика“, 17. октобар 2009) {{DEFAULTSORT:Zaric, Miladin 1889 births 1976 deaths Serbian soldiers Serbian people of World War I Serbian people of World War II People from Kosjerić Serbian educators 20th-century Serbian educators