Lojze Bratuž, Italianized name ''Luigi Bertossi'', (February 17, 1902 – February 16, 1937) was a Slovene choirmaster and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

from

Gorizia Gorizia (; ; , ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, Region ...

who was killed by

Italian Fascist Italian fascism (), also called classical fascism and Fascism, is the original fascist ideology, which Giovanni Gentile and Benito Mussolini developed in Italy. The ideology of Italian fascism is associated with a series of political parties le ...

squads. He is regarded as a martyr of the

anti-Fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

struggle of the Slovene population in the

Slovene Littoral The Slovene Littoral, or simply Littoral (, ; ; ), is one of the traditional regions of Slovenia. The littoral in its name – for a coastal-adjacent area – recalls the former Austrian Littoral (''Avstrijsko Primorje''), the Habsburg possess ...

region during

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

rule.

Biography

Bratuž was born in a Slovene-speaking family in the town of

, then the center of the

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

County of Gorizia and Gradisca The Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca (; ; ), historically sometimes shortened to and spelled "Goritz", was a crown land of the Habsburg dynasty within the Austrian Littoral on the Adriatic Sea, in what is now a multilingual border area of ...

. He was educated in the town's Slovene schools and chose a career in music. After the

and the adjacent regions of

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica (plateau), Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the Goriška, Gor ...

were annexed to the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

under the Treaty of Rapallo in 1920, Bratuž remained loyal to his Slovene origins and resisted the forced

Italianization Italianization ( ; ; ; ; ; ) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or assimilation. It is also known for a process organized by the Kingdom of Italy to force cultural and ethnic assimilation of the nati ...

of the region, which was populated by a Slovene majority. Initially, he taught singing and was a choirmaster in the village of Šmartno in the

Gorizia Hills The Gorizia Hills ( or ''Collio''; or ''Brda''; ) is a hilly microregion in western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies on the right bank of the Soča (''Isonzo'') River, north of the Italian town of Gorizia, after which it is named. The r ...

north of Gorizia, and later in a small

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

in Gorizia. In 1929, he was imprisoned for a short time by the

Fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...

authorities due to his Slovene

patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to one's country or state. This attachment can be a combination of different feelings for things such as the language of one's homeland, and its ethnic, cultural, politic ...

. In 1930, he was appointed coordinator of church

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

s in the

region by the archbishop of Gorizia, Frančišek Borgia Sedej. He led the only choirs in Slovene allowed by authorities in the

region (in the Gorizia Hills,

Vipava Valley The Vipava Valley (; , , ) is a valley in the Slovenian Littoral, roughly between the village of Podnanos to the east and the border with Italy to the west. The main towns are Ajdovščina and Vipava. Geography The narrow valley of the Vipav ...

, Soča Valley, and upper

Karst Plateau The Karst Plateau or the Karst region (, ), also locally called Karst, is a karst plateau region extending across the border of southwestern Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies between the Vipava Valley, the low hills surrounding the val ...

). On December 27, 1936, a group of

s kidnapped Bratuž in Piedimonte del Calvario (now a suburb of

) immediately after the

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

, where he had been conducting a choir. He was taken to a nearby building, where he was brutally beaten and forced to drink

castor oil Castor oil is a vegetable oil pressed from castor beans, the seeds of the plant ''Ricinus communis''. The seeds are 40 to 60 percent oil. It is a colourless or pale yellow liquid with a distinct taste and odor. Its boiling point is and its den ...

mixed with

gasoline Gasoline ( North American English) or petrol ( Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When for ...

and

motor oil Motor oil, engine oil, or engine lubricant is any one of various substances used for the lubrication of internal combustion engines. They typically consist of base oils enhanced with various additives, particularly antiwear additives, deterge ...

. He was unable to recover from this

poison A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

ing, and he died a month and a half later in the Gorizia central

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

. A few days before his death, his supporters gathered beneath the hospital window, sang a Slovene song, and then fled before the authorities could arrest them. Thus Lojze Bratuž soon became a symbol of Fascist persecution of Slovenes in the Julian March. During his life, Bratuž set several poems to music and arranged them for choirs. Today a Slovene mixed choir from Gorizia and a Slovene cultural center in Gorizia bear his name. He was married to the poet Ljubka Šorli. Their daughter, Lojzka Bratuž, was an author and activist in the organizations of the

Slovene minority in Italy Slovene minority in Italy (, ), also known as Slovenes in Italy (, ) is the name given to Italy, Italian citizens who belong to the autochthonous Slovenes, Slovene ethnic and linguistic minority living in the Italian autonomous region of Friuli-V ...

References

External links

An article at RTVSLO (in Slovenian)

Mixed Choir Lojze Bratuž (in Slovene)

Lojze Bratuž Cultural Centre in Gorizia (in Slovene and Italian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bratuz, Lojze 1902 births 1937 deaths 20th-century Slovenian composers Italian Slovenes Italian anti-fascists Italian torture victims Kidnapped Italian people People murdered in Italy People from Gorizia Slovenian torture victims Slovenian male composers Slovenian Roman Catholics Slovenian anti-fascists Slovenian male musicians Italian composers

Biography

See also

References

External links