Vido Island, Corfu, Serbian World War I Soldiers` Mausoleum Editorial Image

On the island of Vido there is a Serbian World War I soldiers` mausoleum.nDuring the First World War, the island of Corfu served as an island hospital and quarantine for sick Serbian soldiers following the epic retreat of the Serbian army and part of the civilian population through Montenegro and Albania in 1915 following the Austro-German-Bulgarian invasion of Serbia.nWhile the main camps of the recuperating army were on Corfu itself, the sick and near-dying, mostly soldiers, were treated on Vido to prevent epidemics. In spite of Allied material help, the conditions of both the improvised medical facilities and many of the patients on the island resulted in a high fatality rate. Due to small area of the island and its rocky soil, it soon became necessary to bury the dead in the sea by weighting the corpses with rocks to prevent them from floating. Over 5,000 people were buried at sea near the island of Vido.nThe waters around Vido island are sometimes referred to as the Blue Sea Tomb, after a poem written by Milutin Bojić after World War I.