Study Centre

Military Cemeteries at the Isonzo Front

In the years 1915–1917, the border area between the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and the Kingdom of Italy was a scene of bloody combats that left traces still visible today. Belonging to them are also military cemeteries which are scattered along the former Isonzo Front from Log pod Mangartom to Prosecco/Prosek. A century ago, hundreds of major and minor military cemeteries were arranged along the front, but in the years after the war, they were joined with bigger military cemeteries. Nowadays, there are 58 military cemeteries and charnel houses in the Soča Region, in the area around Nova Gorica (Goriška) and Gorizia and on the territory of Kras. Furthermore, many soldiers died in hospitals in the rear of the front where bigger military hospitals operated: Škofja Loka, Kranj, Ljubljana, Celje, Stržišče (today’s Kidričevo), Udine, Pordenone, etc. The exact number of all who were buried in these cemeteries still remains unknown because many military cemeteries were rearranged after the war. Numerous soldiers were reburied by their relatives to local civilian cemeteries. In some military cemeteries there are mass graves with only an approximate number of soldiers buried, while authentic documents are missing for some military cemeteries. In the 1930s, the fascist regime decided to change the way of honouring the deceased by building monumental charnel houses. At that time, three charnel houses (Kobarid, Oslavia/Oslavje, Redipuglia/Redipulja) were built in the area of the former Isonzo Front; mortal remains of Italian soldiers from numerous Italian military cemeteries were transferred to them.  It has been assessed that over 300,000 soldiers were buried in military cemeteries in the zone of the Isonzo Front, which, however, will have to be confirmed in the years to come by examining the preserved documents that are mainly kept in the Military Archive in Vienna (Kriegsarchiv Wien), regional archives in Slovenia and Friuli, and in the General Commissariat for Honours to the Fallen (Commissariato Generale per le Onoranze ai Caduti) in Rome.

Much effort has been put into exploring military cemeteries in recent years. It was the Tolmin Museum that broke new ground in this field. In the years 2005–2007, with the assistance of Lovro Galić of Zagreb, the staff explored military cemeteries from Log pod Mangartom to Modrejce (near Most na Soči) and those in Baška grapa. A collection of data was acquired for soldiers who fell in the Upper Soča Region, and it was digitized by the Walk of Peace Foundation; added were also the data for the soldiers buried in the Italian military charnel house in Kobarid. In 2019, the Walk of Peace Foundation and the Milko Kos Historical Institute of the ZRC SAZU obtained funds for research on military cemeteries in Goriška and in the Kras in the framework of the WALKofPEACE project within the Interreg V-A Italy‒Slovenia programme. Thus, a database of the acquired data for military cemeteries in Goriška and the Kras will be established in 2022.

During the period of commemorating the centenaries of World War I (2014–2018), a database of its victims in Slovenia was also established. In 2013, most of the institutions studying World War I joined forces. Collected was the data on the inhabitants of the present-day territory of Slovenia who lost their lives during World War I. By now, more than 26,000 names of soldiers have been recorded who died in the battlefields of World War I. In 2014‒2018, many steps were taken to revive the memory of fallen Slovenes who had died on forgotten World War I fronts in Galicia and on the Balkans. We expect that after the end of the research on cemeteries along the Isonzo Front, the efforts will be directed to exploring military cemeteries on the Eastern Front and on the Balkan battlefield. In Italy too, much research on military cemeteries has been done in recent years and lists of buried soldiers have been digitized. The research focused mainly on military cemeteries and charnel houses in the provinces of Gorizia and Udine (Provincia di Gorizia, Provincia di Udine).

Database of Soldiers Fallen in the Upper Soča Region

The database includes data on soldiers buried in eight Austro-Hungarian military cemeteries (Log pod Mangartom, Trenta, Soča, Bovec, Loče pri Tolminu, Klavže I & Klavže II, Modrejce), in the German charnel house in Tolmin and in the Italian charnel house in Kobarid as well as data on fallen Austro-Hungarian soldiers entered in regimental registry books for the area of the Upper Soča Region. The basis contains 20,935 names with surnames of fallen soldiers. The late military persons can be searched by their first name or surname, while for further information it is necessary to send an inquiry to the e-mail address  mihael.ursic@potmiru.si

Victims of World War I in the Slovenian Lands

On the occasion of the centenary of the end of World War I, a database of its victims in the Slovenian lands was presented to the public. During a five-year period, Slovenian institutions researching the era of World War I gathered data about the death toll of the war on the Slovenian territory. For the time being, the database contains 26,006 names of fallen soldiers. The late military persons can be searched by their first name or surname, date of birth/death, place of birth/residence, and military unit. For any further information it is possible to contact the institution or the individuals that have provided the data.

Database of the Fallen Soldiers in the Province of Gorizia and the Province of Udine

In 2015, the Province of Gorizia (Provincia di Gorizia), with the help from the General Commissariat for Honours to the Fallen (Commissariato Generale per le Onoranze ai Caduti), presented a database of fallen soldiers in the areas of Provincia di Gorizia and Provincia di Udine. The database includes the information of the fallen Austro-Hungarian soldiers buried in military cemeteries in Fogliano/Foljan, Palmanova, Brazzano/Bračan, and in the charnel house at Oslavia/Oslavje as well as Italian soldiers buried in the charnel houses and military cemeteries in Kobarid, Oslavia/Oslavje, Redipuglia/Redipulja, Aquileia, Udine, Timau, and in the charnel house “Faro” on Mt. Bernadia.

For further information it is necessary to send an inquiry to the e-mail address grandeguerra@promoturismo.fvg.it

Photo: Tanja Gorjan, Fundacija Poti miru

Within the cluster of World War I centenaries, lots of exhibitions were organized on the topics of the Walk of Peace, World War I, and the Isonzo Front. Some of them are also available in e-form. However, if you prefer to see some exhibition on the spot, information on current temporary exhibitions is available.

One of the most important tasks of the Walk of Peace Foundation is to take care of the restoration and maintenance of immovable heritage of the Isonzo Front. During the twenty years of its existence, the Foundation, jointly with its partners, restored 36 monuments of the Isonzo Front. The restorations were carried out in cooperation with the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, owners and managers.

The Walk of Peace Foundation prepares and issues various publications and contributes papers to native and foreign professional proceedings, journals and at symposia.

The library constitutes part of the Study Centre on World War I that operates within the framework of the Ustanova “Fundacija Poti miru v Posočju” (The Walk of Peace Foundation). The specialized library collects and houses mainly the materials related to World War I. It is open to public. The History Library of Kobarid can be found in the  Osnovno iskanje: COBISS+ under the acronym ZKK (ZKK – acronym of the Slovenian name of the History Library Kobarid).