Where Croatia’s Foreign Volunteers Gather on November 18

Every year on November 18, the Column of Memory (Kolona sjećanja) marches through Vukovar to commemorate the victims of the 1991 siege and fall of the city, one of the defining tragedies of the Croatian War of Independence (Domovinski rat). Tens of thousands of Croatians from across the country participate, but among them is always a smaller, tightly knit group of foreign veterans who volunteered to fight for Croatia in 1991–1995.

These men—and a few women—came from countries including the UK, France, Germany, Scandinavia, Canada, the United States, Ireland, and even a handful from South America and South Africa. For them, November 18 is not just a commemoration; it is an annual reunion.

After the official ceremony at the Memorial Cemetery and the silent march (usually ending around 2–3 pm), most Croatian participants disperse or head to family lunches. The foreign volunteers, however, have their own tradition: they gather in the late afternoon and evening at The White Boar, a small English-style pub on the outskirts of Vukovar (technically in Bogdanovci, about 10–15 minutes’ drive from the town center).

The pub is owned by Steve Gaunt, a British volunteer who fought with HOS and later HV, and who settled in Croatia after the war. Its walls are decorated with unit patches, flags, old photographs, and war memorabilia, making it an unofficial international veterans’ clubhouse on November 18.

Inside, you’ll hear English, French, German, and Scandinavian languages mixing with Croatian. There’s grilled meat (often whole lambs or pigs), beer and rakija, retold war stories, songs ranging from “Moja domovina” to Irish rebel songs and “Sweet Caroline”, and countless toasts to fallen comrades.

Numbers are dwindling—age, illness, and time take their toll—but those who can still make the journey treat it as non-negotiable. For many, it’s the one day a year they see brothers-in-arms they haven’t met since 1995.

So if you want to meet Croatia’s foreign defenders on November 18, follow the trail of berets, unit insignia, and foreign accents toward The White Boar in Bogdanovci—but don’t expect easy entry if you’re not known to someone. For them, it’s more than a pub; it’s a second home.