Locally-produced - moderately used and neatly hand-embroidered! - Bulgarian armshield showing a Cyrilic-styled, capital 'B'-character (being a piece that was intended for a volunteer serving within the WWII-period: 'Brannik'-organization)

This particular colourful (and typical!) WII-era (ie. Bulgarian-related) armshield shows a Cyrilic-styled, capital 'B'-character and was as such specifically intended for (and used by!) a member (possibly an officer) serving within the so-called: 'Brannik'-organization and that comes in an overall nicely preserved- (and just moderately used- and/or carefully tunic-removed, condition. The neatly hand-embroidered shield is executed in velvet-like, darker-reddish-toned wool and shows a capital 'B'-character (as executed in golden-toned braid): it measures approximately 6,5 x 4,7 cms. and it neatly backed with beige-toned carton: moreover, does it still shows some stitching-holes with which it was once tunic-attached. The 'Brannik'-organization was a Bulgarian, pro-fascist youth-organization during WWII that was founded on the initiative of the then prime-minister prof. Bogdan Filov during the: 'XXV National Youth Meeting' which was held on December 29, 1940. It was closely modeled after the German HJ (or: 'Hitlerjugend') having the motto: 'Boris, Bulgaria, God!'. The 'Brannik'-organization was closely related to the Bulgarian authorities and its leader Tsar Boris III personally. Organizationally, it was divided into 3 structures: for children from 10 to 14 years, for the younger part of the youth from 14 to 16 years and for older youths from 16 to 21 years. From April 1941 onwards (ie. when the occupation of parts of the territory of Yugoslavia by the Bulgarian army took place) it also included representatives of occupied Vardar Macedonia. In 1942, members of the Bulgarian Red Cross also joined the the 'Brannik'-organization: as such it became a mass-movement, reaching a population of approx. 450 thousand members. On September 9, 1944 - after Bulgaria had switched to the Allied side - specifically the Soviet one - the 'Brannik'-organization was outlawed as a fascist organization. Many members were sentenced or repressed in the post-war years by the Communist authorities. Simply a nice occasion to acquire a - most certainly rarely encountered! - Bulgarian armshield that belonged to a member serving within the 'Brannik'-organization!